German bishops respond to deadly Magdeburg market attack, call for prayer and peace

Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg in Germany / Magdeburg DioceseCNA Newsroom, Dec 21, 2024 / 07:30 am (CNA).The president of the German Bishops' Conference and the local bishop of Magdeburg have expressed their shock and offered prayers after a car attack at a Christmas market in eastern Germany on Friday left five people dead and more than 200 injured.The "attack in Magdeburg leaves us speechless. The horror, grief, and sympathy are felt today by many people throughout Germany and worldwide," Bishop Georg Bätzing said, CNA Deutsch reported."Our thoughts and prayers are in Magdeburg during these hours. As churches, we mourn with the relatives of the victims of this terrible attack and pray for the injured and the deceased, as well as for their relatives who now fear for their loved ones."Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg issued a statement immediately after the attack on Friday evening local time: "I think of those affected, their relatives, and the emergency services and inclu...

A visual tour of the Holy Doors Pope Francis will open for the 2025 Jubilee

The Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN NewsACI Prensa Staff, Dec 21, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).The rite of opening the Holy Doors of the main basilicas of Rome to inaugurate the 2025 Jubilee Year is perhaps one of the most solemn events of the Catholic Church, with centuries of tradition.The pilgrimage to the Holy Doors of the papal basilicas in Rome is a central act of the jubilee. Passing through them during the holy year symbolizes entry into a new life in Christ and the beginning of a journey of conversion.On Dec. 24 at 7 p.m. local time, Pope Francis will open the first and most important of them, that of St. Peter's Basilica, beginning the Jubilee of Hope 2025, in which 30 million people are expected to participate. Later that evening he will celebrate Christmas Mass, the Nativity of Our Lord.Pope Francis is scheduled to officially inaugurate the 2025 Jubilee with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica. Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN New...

Pope Francis warns against gossip, celebrates family life in Vatican Christmas messages

Pope Francis addresses cardinals and senior Vatican officials during his annual Christmas speech to the Roman Curia, Dec. 21, 2024. / Credit: Vatican MediaCNA Newsroom, Dec 21, 2024 / 10:30 am (CNA).Pope Francis delivered two Christmas messages at the Vatican on Saturday, warning against gossip's "destructive effects" while celebrating the importance of family life and humble service."An ecclesial community lives in joyful and fraternal harmony to the extent that its members walk in the way of humility, refusing to think and speak ill of one another," the pope said in his annual Christmas address to the Roman Curia on Dec. 21.The pope warned that gossip "damages social bonds, poisons hearts, and leads nowhere," as he addressed cardinals and senior Vatican officials. He urged them to practice self-accusation rather than accusation of others, drawing on the teachings of early Christian spiritual masters.The Vatican announced late Saturday that due to inclement weather and cold sy...

Two arms of Brazilian bishops' conference: Throw the book against alleged coup plotters

Former Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro and 35 other people, including a Catholic priest, were charged by the country's Federal Police on Nov. 21, 2024, on suspicion of the crimes of violent abolition of the democratic rule of law. / Credit: Fabio Rodrigues Pozzebom/Agência Brasil, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsBrasilia, Brazil, Dec 21, 2024 / 09:00 am (CNA).The Brazilian Commission for Justice and Peace and the National Council of the Laity of Brazil, both organs of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB), are spearheading a petition calling on the authorities to "hold all perpetrators of violence against the Democratic State of Law legally, rigorously, and exemplarily accountable, so that coup attempts against the Brazilian people are never articulated again in this country."The document rejects "any initiative aimed at the impunity of the coup plotters" who allegedly planned, in 2022, to prevent the inauguration of then-president-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da S...

Major religious freedom win for Nigeria: Christian mother acquitted of blasphemy charges 

Nigerian Christian mother of five Rhoda Jatau was acquitted of blasphemy charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ADF InternationalWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 20, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).A Nigerian Christian mother of five has been fully acquitted of "blasphemy" charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. A judge in the northeast Bauchi state in Nigeria has granted Rhoda Jatau, 47, full acquittal of blasphemy charges, according to a Dec. 19 press release from her legal team at ADF International. Bauchi practices a form of Sharia law, under which blasphemy is a crime punishable by execution. "We are thankful to God for Rhoda's full acquittal and an end to the ordeal she has endured for far too long," stated Sean Nelson, legal counsel for ADF International, in the release. "No person should be punished for peaceful expression, and we are grateful that Rhoda Jatau has been fully acquitted. But Rhoda should never ...

Trump picks CatholicVote president Brian Burch as ambassador to Vatican

CatholicVote president Brian Burch appears on "EWTN News Nightly" on Jan. 9, 2024. / Credit: "EWTN News Nightly" screenshotWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 20, 2024 / 15:05 pm (CNA).President-elect Donald Trump selected CatholicVote president and co-founder Brian Burch to serve as the United States ambassador to the Holy See, he announced on Truth Social Friday afternoon."Brian is a devout Catholic, a father of nine, and president of CatholicVote," Trump wrote in the Dec. 20 post. "He has received numerous awards and demonstrated exceptional leadership, helping build one of the largest Catholic advocacy groups in the country."CatholicVote is a political advocacy group that endorsed Trump in January and ran advertisements in support the president-elect during his campaign. According to CatholicVote, the organization spent over $10 million on the 2024 elections.Some of CatholicVote's ads, running in key swing states, accused Vice Pr...

Pope Francis appoints 5 new auxiliary bishops for Chicago Archdiocese

Pope Francis with Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago on Sept. 2, 2015. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Dec 20, 2024 / 14:35 pm (CNA).Pope Francis has appointed five new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Chicago and assigned each bishop-elect a titular see in the Middle East and North Africa region, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, announced Dec. 20.Archbishop of Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich expressed his gratitude to the Holy Father on Friday for the appointments of bishops-elect Father Timothy J. O'Malley, Father Lawrence J. Sullivan, Father José Maria Garcia Maldonado, Father Robert Fedek, and Father John S. Siemianowski."These fine archdiocesan priests reflect the people of this particular Church and the many talents of our local presbyterate," Cupich shared in a Dec. 20 news release."Each has a solid and notable record of pastoral service rooted in their shared fidelity to the Gospel and their generosity in using their unique g...

Rector of Notre Dame Cathedral blesses creche ahead of Christmas celebrations

Archpriest of Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral Monsignor Olivier Ribadeau Dumas blesses a Nativity scene in the recently reopened cathedral on Dec. 20, 2024, in Paris. / Credit: Kiran Ridley/Getty ImagesWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 20, 2024 / 14:05 pm (CNA).The rector of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris has blessed the Nativity scene at the historic French landmark church ahead of the first Christmas celebrations since its restoration after a devastating 2019 fire."You know, for the past 10 days, we've been feeling very joyful," said Notre Dame rector Monsignor Olivier Ribadeau Dumas during the ceremony. "My greatest joy is to see people happy because they have a cathedral again, not only because they see these stones again but also because it's a place for prayer that they got back."During the ceremonial blessing of the 17th-century-style creche, Dumas shook an olive branch soaked in holy water over the Nativity scene, while those of the faithful in attendance prayed and...

PHOTOS: Christmas in Rome as first Jubilee pilgrims arrive in Eternal City

Christmas lights line a street in Rome, Italy, Dec. 17, 2024. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNARome Newsroom, Dec 20, 2024 / 13:35 pm (CNA).Rome during the Christmas season is a feast for the senses. Twinkling lights drape over the city's cobblestone streets, towering Christmas trees adorn piazzas, and Nativity scenes beckon from churches and storefronts alike.Against this dazzling backdrop, the first pilgrims for the Catholic Church's 2025 Jubilee, which begins on Christmas Eve, have the unique opportunity to enjoy the Eternal City's many Christmas traditions. Pope Francis will open five jubilee Holy Doors in the Christmas season between Dec. 24 and Jan. 6.And 38-year-old Immaculate Atieno, a jubilee pilgrim from Nairobi, Kenya, is hoping to witness all of the solemn door openings with the pope.Immaculate Atieno is seen in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. Credit: Photo courtesy of Immaculate Atieno"It's worth it," Atieno told CNA. "This is a once-in-every-25-years thing to ...

Pope Francis appoints Bishop Gregory Kelly as new bishop of Tyler, Texas

Bishop Gregory Kelly. / Credit: Scott Wagner Photo LLC, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsCNA Staff, Dec 20, 2024 / 12:45 pm (CNA).Pope Francis has appointed a new bishop to lead the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, more than a year after the Holy See removed its Bishop Joseph Strickland amid questions over management of the diocese. Dallas Auxiliary Bishop J. Gregory Kelly will lead the Tyler Diocese, apostolic nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre said on Friday. He will take over diocesan leadership from Austin Bishop Joe Vásquez, who has served as apostolic administrator in Tyler since last year. Pope Francis relieved Strickland from the Tyler bishopric last November after an apostolic visitation concluded it was "not feasible" for Strickland to remain in that position. Strickland had days earlier refused to submit his resignation voluntarily.Strickland, 65, had served as bishop of Tyler since 2012. The widely popular though polarizing Texas bishop had faced c...