Religious institutions should never ever write about art, other than their sacred art. Same with politicians and about science. Art and science are about freedom and "truth", institutions are about cohesion and organization.

"We are more popular than Jesus" was the scandalizing quotation in 1966. My own view is: a pop star should be popular, a religious leader should make unpopular demands. If Lennon had said "we are wiser than Jesus", Christians would have had a reason to be scandalized. (Besides, if I had to spend some time on an island with either Jesus or Lennon, I'm not sure whether I'd choose the latter, even though I would have a lot to talk about with him.)

The Vatican and other churches should have just withdrawn their criticism of the Beatles, nothing else. To top it all, the "Top 10" are anglocentric, a shame for a worldwide paper like the Osservatore.