Pope illuminates big Christmas tree via Tablet

(AP) Pope Benedict XVI has illuminated a huge Christmas tree lighting display in Umbria by tapping on a tablet computer from the comfort of the Vatican.

Benedict brought the tree to life Wednesday with a Sony Tablet S, thanks to a wireless connection with the local electric grid. In reality the tree, billed as the world's biggest, is a display made up of nearly 1,000 lights on a mountainside in Gubbio. It is 450 meters by 750 meters and covers an area of 130,000 square meters, or just under 30 football fields.

The 84-year-old Benedict has embraced new technology: Earlier this year, he tweeted for the first time and put the Vatican's news information portal online by tapping on an iPad.