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National & World News
The most frequently asked questions about Pope Benedict XVI
By CNA Staff CNA Newsroom, Dec 28, 2022 / 11:00 am On Dec. 28 the press office of the Holy See announced that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s condition had taken a turn for the worse and that he was receiving medical care at his residence at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican. …
Meet the Holy Innocents: The ‘infant martyrs’ who died for Baby Jesus
By Katie Yoder Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 28, 2022 / 09:35 am The Holy Innocents did not know Jesus, but they died in his place. Dec. 28 marks the feast of these baby boys who are, today, recognized as the first martyrs and pro-life patron saints. Their story appears in the Gospel of …
Remembering the first Christmas in space: Here’s how it happened
By Jonah McKeown St. Louis, Mo., Dec 26, 2022 / 10:00 am 1968 was a turbulent year for America. As the Vietnam War raged and peaceful figures such as Martin Luther King, Jr., lost their lives at assassins’ hands, cities across the United States were convulsed by riots. In the midst …
The 8 days of Christmas? A look at the Christmas octave
by Kevin J. Jones Denver, Colo., Dec 25, 2022 / 08:00 am The Catholic calendar has several ways to divide the Christmas season. The Church’s Western liturgical tradition sees Christmas as an octave, an eight-day celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. The octave of Christmas begins on Christmas itself, the feast …
This Santa rides a camel around Jerusalem every year. Here’s why
By Hannah Brockhaus, ACI MENA Rome Newsroom, Dec 23, 2022 / 10:00 am Every year on the feast of St. Nicholas, Issa Anis Kassisieh dons a red suit, black boots, and a thick white beard. He mounts a camel in the outskirts of Jerusalem and rides into the streets of the Old …
Full text: Pope Francis’ Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing 2022
By Pope Francis Vatican City, Dec 25, 2022 / 07:00 am On Christmas Day 2022, Pope Francis delivered his “Urbi et Orbi” address and blessing from the central balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square. The following is the full text of the pope’s Christmas message. Dear brothers and sisters in Rome and …
St. Francis and the story of the first Nativity scene
By Hannah Brockhaus Rome Newsroom, Dec 23, 2022 / 08:00 am It’s a well-known origin story: how the young and wealthy Francis of Assisi freely abandoned his noble patrimony to serve Christ’s Church as a poor, itinerant preacher. One of the world’s most beloved saints, the founder of the Franciscan order …
What does it mean to be laicized, defrocked, or dismissed from the clerical state?
By CNA Staff Denver, Colo., Dec 22, 2022 / 06:43 am On Nov. 9, Cardinal Lazzaro You Heung Sik, prefect for the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Clergy, laicized Father Frank Pavone from the priesthood for “blasphemous communications on social media” and “persistent disobedience of lawful instructions of his diocesan bishop.” But what does …
With Zelenskyy in the U.S., faith leaders sign petition calling for a ‘Christmas truce’
By Katie Yoder Washington D.C., Dec 21, 2022 / 16:20 pm As Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits the United States, about 1,000 faith leaders, including some Catholics, are calling for a Christmas truce in his country. Led by The Fellowship of Reconciliation-USA, the National Council of Elders, CODEPINK, and the Peace …
Vatican: Benedict XVI’s condition serious but stable
by Hannah Brockhaus Vatican City, Dec 29, 2022 / 06:35 am Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s condition is serious but stable, the Vatican said on Thursday. “The Pope Emeritus was able to rest well last night; he is absolutely lucid and alert, and today, although his condition remains serious, the situation …
