QASR AL-YAHUD, West Bank -- For the first time in 54 years, a Mass will be celebrated Jan. 10, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, at St. John the Baptist Chapel on the banks of the Jordan River.

BEIRUT – Amid the destruction in war-torn Syria, a community of Discalced Carmelites in Aleppo perseveres in its mission of continuous prayer and help to families in need.

Under the banner “Christians Can’t Survive Without You,” the Catholic Near East Welfare Association in Canada has launched a year-long fundraising campaign to help Christians remain in the Middle East.

BEIRUT – Pope Francis' naming of Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako as cardinal is a gift to the Chaldean Catholic church, which has been struggling in the face of terrorism, said an Iraqi archbishop.

There has been some positive news on the global religious freedom front over the last two years, but it is still far from peaceful.

OTTAWA – As the new year dawns, the prospect of a peaceful future for Christians in the Middle East seems as remote as ever.