Businesses call federal marriage act unfair

Nearly 300 companies are asking the US Supreme Court to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, saying it forces them to discriminate against married gay employees.

John Kerry and David Thorne shared a warm greeting.

Jacquelyn Martin/Reuters

Statecraft is the latest bond for Kerry and Thorne

Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to Rome is a chance for him to see David Thorne, a longtime friend and US ambassador to Italy.

Pope Benedict XVI rode through St. Peter’s Square for the final time on Wednesday and told the cheering masses that his eight-year papacy held joy and light as well as “moments in which the waters were agitated and the wind contrary.”

Pope says farewell in St. Peter’s Square

Pope Benedict XVI bestowed his valedictory words to the world in a heartfelt, sometimes wistful address that highlighted the price of being a pope — and its rays of happiness.

Red Line train service over the Longfellow Bridge will be suspended for 25 weekends but will still be available during the work week.

Darren McCollester/Getty Images

Longfellow Bridge repairs, disruption to start in summer

The $255 million project will lead to three years of disruptions, including suspending Red Line service for 25 weekends and eliminating northbound traffic.

Sequestration? Few can explain latest budget crisis

Sequestration is the latest down-to-the-wire, fasten-your-seat-belts federal financial precipice that has left many Americans scratching their heads.

Markey says abortion shift was personal

US Representative Edward J. Markey said he was never making a political calculation when he became a supporter of abortion rights decades ago.

Aaron Swartz was arrested in 2011 after allegedly using MIT’s network to illegally download documents from JSTOR.

Inquiry widens into Swartz prosecution

A congressional committee is broadening its investigation of the Boston-based prosecution of political activist Aaron Swartz.

Metro

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Dr. Bohdan Pomahac and a team at Brigham and Women’s performed the hospital’s most complicated face transplant.

Vermont woman burned with lye gets face transplant

A team of 30 Brigham and Women’s Hospital surgeons performed a complex face transplant on a woman whose immune system had been altered by many blood transfusions.

Nation & World

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Politics

Mayor Thomas M. Menino, still reovering from a series of medical problems, attended the opening of the Market Cafe in the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center Wednesday.

Not saying he’ll run, Menino banters about the campaign

“Let’s have a nice, good campaign,” Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, a 20-year incumbent, said he told 39-year-old Councilor John R. Connolly about the upcoming race.

Business

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Arts

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Stage Review

Marianna Bassham as Mrs. Swanson in the Actors’ Shakespeare Project production of Will Eno’s “Middletown.”

‘Middletown’ a rewarding destination

In the Actors’ Shakespeare Project production now up at the Cambridge YMCA, the town is a tough but rewarding destination.