A breakaway group of conservative Anglican archbishops meets this week, threatening to split the worldwide communion over the issue of homosexuality, and the 10-yearly Lambeth Conference starts next month. The future of the 80 million-strong Anglican Communion hangs by one of Dr Williams's whiskers.

Anglicans in Africa and Asia are infuriated enough with the liberal North American churches, where openly homosexual clergy and church blessings for same-sex couples are now commonplace. But the news that two male priests used a traditional wedding liturgy, involving the exchange of rings and vows, in a Church of England church could push them to the edge.

The eyes of the Anglican world will now be on Dr Williams. The archbishop will be expected to act by showing strong leadership. THIS WILL TEST HIS AUTHORITY AND POTENTIALLY SHAPE THE FUTURE OF ANGLICANISM. While the pro-gay lobby will argue that this wedding is part of being an inclusive Church, the traditionalists claim that homosexual behaviour is a sin and conceding on this would be to undermine the authority of the Bible. It is set to ignite a battle for the soul of the Church.

Officials guess it will be four days before the Cedar River drops enough for workers to even begin pumping out water that has submerged more than 400 blocks, threatened the city's drinking supply and forced the evacuation of a downtown hospital. "We're estimating at least a couple of weeks before the flood levels get down right around flood stage and below," said Dustin Hinrichs of the Linn County emergency operations center.

The Cedar River crested Friday night at nearly 32 feet, 12 feet higher than the old record set in 1929. County Supervisor Linda Langston estimated the number forced from their homes at 20,000 and said that figure could rise as officials got a better grasp of how many neighborhoods were flooded. Cedar Rapids has a population of about 120,000. "THIS IS OUR VERSION OF KATRINA," Johnson County Emergency Management spokesman Mike Sullivan said. "This is the worst flooding we've ever seen - much worse than 1993," when much of the Midwest was hit by record flooding

THE DRENCHING HAS ALSO SEVERELY DAMAGED CROPS IN AMERICA'S NO. 1 CORN STATE and other parts of the Midwest at a time when corn prices are soaring. Dave Miller, a grain farmer and director of research for the Iowa Farm Bureau, estimated that up to 1.3 million acres of corn and 2 million acres of soy beans - about 20 percent of the state's overall grain crop - had been lost to flooding.

Two male priests exchanged vows and rings in a ceremony that was conducted using one of the church's most traditional wedding rites - a decision seen as blasphemous by conservatives.

The ceremony broke Church of England guidelines and was carried out last month in defiance of the Bishop of London, in whose diocese it took place. News of the "wedding" emerged days before a crucial summit of the Anglican Church's conservative bishops and archbishops, who are threatening to split the worldwide Church over the issue of homosexual clergy. Although some liberal clergy have carried out "blessing ceremonies" for homosexual couples in the past, this is the first time a vicar has performed a "wedding ceremony", using a traditional marriage liturgy, with readings, hymns and a ­Eucharist.

THE MOST REV HENRY OROMBI, THE ARCHBISHOP OF UGANDA, SAID THAT THE CEREMONY WAS "BLASPHEMOUS." He called on Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to take decisive action if the Anglican Church were not to "disintegrate". Archbishop Orombi added: "WHAT REALLY SHOCKS ME IS THAT THIS IS HAPPENING IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND THAT FIRST BROUGHT THE GOSPEL TO US. The leadership tried to deny that this would happen, but now the truth is out. Our respect for the Church of England will erode unless we see a return to traditional teaching."

The couple, the Rev Peter Cowell, who is a cleric at one of the Queen's churches, and the Rev Dr David Lord, had registered their civil partnership before the ceremony. Mr Dudley opened the service by saying: "Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of God to join these men in a holy covenant of love and fidelity. Such a covenant shows us the mystery of the union between God and God's people and between Christ and the Church." In the vows, Mr Cowell and Dr Lord pledged to "hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part".

Mr Dudley blessed the union with the words: "As David and Jonathan's souls were knit together, so these men may surely perform and keep the vow and covenant betwixt them made."

Public health workers in Maricopa County, which includes the cities of the Phoenix valley, are breeding thousands of so-called mosquito fish to gobble up larvae that thrive in the green pools of abandoned homes across the county. The tiny, silvery fish are being offered to residents and municipal authorities across the parched desert county, which has tens of thousands of swimming pools, AND ONE OF THE HIGHEST FORECLOSURE RATES IN THE UNITED STATES.

"The abandoned pools become a stagnant little swamp that breeds mosquitoes in the middle of a neighborhood," said John Townsend, Maricopa County Vector Control manager. "It is an important public health issue to keep the mosquito population down - and the fish are very effective at that," he added. West Nile virus, which came to the United States from Africa in the late 1990s, is now endemic in the county. Severe cases can produce high fever, stupor, tremors and paralysis, and can prove fatal.

In the first three months of the year, 17,214 HOMES IN MARICOPA COUNTY WERE OFFERED FOR FORECLOSURE SALES, a more than three-fold rise on the previous year, according to RealtyStore.com. In addition, an unknown number of local homes were simply abandoned as the owners skipped out on their spiraling debts, many leaving untreated backyard pools to stagnate, local authorities say.

In a homily to pilgrims in southern Italy, the Pope said the Church's role in politics - where it often speaks out against abortion, gay marriage and embryo research - was not intended to take the place of western secular ways of government.

"The Christian community cannot and does not want ever to substitute the legitimate and right competencies of institutions," the Pope told pilgrims at the start of a two-day visit to one of Italy's most economically depressed areas. A day after strolling through the Vatican Gardens with U.S. President George W. Bush, with whom he sees eye-to-eye on many moral issues, the Pope said the Church had the role of "supporting (governments) in their work and always proposes cooperating with them for the good of all".

The two men spoke for half an hour in the 12th century Tower of St John, a private area in the Vatican gardens which is used by the pope for private reflection. A source close to the Vatican said that Mr Bush was the most "Catholic-minded" president since John F Kennedy, who famously played down his Catholicism.

MR BUSH HAS FILLED THE WHITE HOUSE WITH CATHOLIC SPEECH-WRITERS AND CONSULTANTS and is also thought to have asked a Catholic priest to bless the West Wing. Before he became president, Karl Rove, his former political adviser, invited Catholic intellectuals to Texas to lecture the candidate on the church's teachings. Mr Bush appointed the Catholic judges Samuel Alito and John Roberts to the Supreme Court.

However, it is thought unlikely that Mr Bush would convert until after he has left office. Jeb Bush, the president's brother, has already converted to Catholicism. Catholics have noted that during the contested election in 2000, Jeb Bush travelled to Mexico and prayed to the icon of Our Lady of Guadelupe. His victory was announced by the Supreme Court on December 12, the feast day of the Lady of Guadelupe.

The council has 29 members including Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Sri Lanka. It was the Sri Lankan envoy who raised concerns over the British monarchy. The resulting report said Britain should have a referendum on the monarchy and the need for a written constitution with a bill of rights. The monarchy costs each adult in Britain around 62p a year but even groups representing taxpayers said there was no case for getting rid of it.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "With so many human rights abuses around the world the UN should be busy reporting on issues of starvation, execution and the denial of the vote to huge numbers of people around the world. Saudi Arabia and Cuba should pay a little more attention to their own human rights record."

The UN report was also critical of the UK's treatment of immigrants from Sudan. Syrian representatives accused the UK of discriminating against Muslims and Iran complained about the UK's record on tackling sexual discrimination. A royal source said: "People here certainly haven't detected any appetite for a referendum. The Queen is a focus for national unity, identity and pride."

The blaze already had destroyed at least 20 homes. Authorities on Thursday had closed all roads to Paradise and ordered 9,000 people to leave. In recent days, hot temperatures, steady winds and tinder-dry vegetation have fueled a series of destructive blazes in the northern heartland of California.

Across the country, authorities in North Carolina issued an air quality advisory for Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Durham through Friday after smoke from a wildfire burning in a wildlife refuge drifted westward. The lightning-sparked blaze has burned more than 60 square miles in and around the Pocosin Lakes Wildlife Refuge, and was only 40 percent contained.

Authorities say without a massive rainstorm, firefighters can do little to extinguish the blaze and put an end to the smoky weather.

A hospital in the city of Cedar Rapids was flooded and its patients evacuated after the Cedar river burst its banks and swamped more than 400 streets. Iowa Governor Chet Culver has declared 83 of the state's 99 counties to be disaster areas and said that nine rivers are at, or above, record levels.

THE FLOODS HAVE ALSO DESTROYED MOST OF THE MIDWEST'S CORN AND SOYBEAN CROPS. The damage has helped push prices for the foods to record levels this week. Wheat, oats and rice production has also been affected.

One of the worst flooded areas in Iowa has been Cedar Rapids, the state's second largest city with a population of 124,000, where at least 438 city centre streets were inundated by rising water from the Cedar river and a railway bridge collapsed. Flooding has also swamped parts of Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Kansas and Indiana. So far, officials in Indiana have reported three flood-related deaths and at least two deaths in Iowa.

France and Germany have described the No vote in the referendum as a serious blow but have urged the EU to press ahead with the project. EUROPEAN COMMISSION HEAD JOSE MANUEL BARROSO SAID THE TREATY WAS NOT DEAD. But Czech President Vaclav Klaus said the treaty was finished, since any further ratification was impossible.

His is a lone voice among EU leaders, but his views will probably resonate with many European voters who did not get a say in a referendum, says the BBC's Oana Lungescu in Brussels. The third failed referendum on an EU treaty in three years can only be seen as a serious blow to the EU's credibility at home and abroad, our correspondent adds.

The European Commission says nations should continue to ratify the treaty, designed to streamline decision-making. BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY DAVID MILIBAND SAID THE UK WOULD PRESS ON WITH ITS RATIFICATION.

Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper says bankers have detected a curious pattern where customers are withdrawing cash directly from branches, screening the notes to determine the origin of issue. They ask for paper from the southern states to be exchanged for German notes.

Each country prints its own notes according to its economic weight, under strict guidelines from the European Central Bank in Frankfurt. The German notes have an "X"' at the start of the serial numbers, showing that they come from the Bundesdruckerei in Berlin. PEOPLE CLEARLY SUSPECT THAT SOUTHERN NOTES MAY LOSE VALUE IN A CRISIS, OR IF THE EUROZONE BREAKS APART. This is what happened in the US in the Jackson era of the 1840s when dollar notes from different regions traded at different values.

A group of leading German professors warned at the outset of EMU that the euro would tend to be weaker than old Deutsche Mark, and that it would fuel inflation over time. German citizens were never given a vote on the abolition of the D-Mark, which had become a symbol of Germany's rebirth after the war. Many have kept a stash of D-Marks hidden in mattresses to this day. A recent IPOS poll showed THAT 59PC OF GERMANY NOW HAD SERIOUS DOUBTS ABOUT THE EURO.

In St Peter's Square, the Pontiff paid tribute to St Columbanus, a monk from Co Meath who led a mission into Europe in AD500. He said, "With his spiritual strength, with his faith, with his love of God and neighbour, he became one of the Fathers of Europe, SHOWING US TODAY THE WAY TO THOSE ROOTS FROM WHICH OUR CONTINENT MAY BE REBORN."

"We have noted with certain concern that there are signs of growing protectionism in a number of areas," reads the union's statement to the World Trade Organisation issued on Wednesday (11 June). The document attacks "mounting restrictive import requirements for security purposes" as they represent a "considerable burden" on EU exporters. The EU has hinted it may challenge the measures in front of the Geneva-based body.

"The EU raised doubts about the compliance of these measures with World Trade Organisation rules and their professed intent," the statement concludes. The two sides are the world's export leaders, with transatlantic trade amounting to €3 billion per day.

The EU has also criticised more generous hand-outs foreseen in the new 2008 US Farm Bill, especially in the context of the ongoing Doha development round of world trade talks. The Doha development round began in 2001 with the aim of cutting farm subsidies and tariffs and boosting free trade. The bill is the work of the US Congress which is pushing higher subsidies despite opposition from President George W. Bush.

He was later pardoned by former French President Jacques Chirac, a close friend. Barrot was never barred from holding public office and FAILED TO DECLARE HIS PAST WHEN HE JOINED THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION AS TRANSPORT COMMISSIONER IN 2000.

The Sun notes that his new job as Justice Commissioner will make him the second most powerful man in the EU, with control over laws on environmental crime, seizure of terrorist funds, copyright and patents across the 27 member states.

The Lisbon Treaty will also give him power to dictate how EU countries operate criminal law, policing, courts, rules of evidence, immigration and border controls. He will be paid £160,000 a year. Open Europe is quoted saying, "TO SAY THIS SMACKS OF POACHER TURNED GAMEKEEPER IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT."

"Instead of dwelling on our differences, we are increasingly united in our interests and ideals," Bush was to say in a speech Friday in Paris. "In leaders like Berlusconi and Brown, Merkel and Sarkozy, I see a commitment to a powerful and purposeful Europe that advances the values of liberty within its borders, and beyond."

With his own country and all the ones he is visiting far more interested in the race to find his successor than in his doings, Bush claimed a success that he would be passing on to the next president. "When the time comes to welcome a new American president next January, I will be pleased to report to him that the relationship between the United States and Europe is the broadest and most vibrant it has ever been," Bush said.

Bush will meet with the pope on Friday before departing to Paris to continue his farewell European tour. It will be Bush's third meeting with Benedict. The two last met in April at the White House in Washington.