NEWS

Children dressed as angels react as they attend Christmas Mass at a Catholic church Dec. 24.

Embrace, be amazed by God's great gift of children, Pope says

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VATICAN CITY - Becoming a mother or father is a gift from God, but women and men have a duty to embrace that gift and be astonished by its beauty, Pope Francis said.

St. John Paul II sits with his would-be assassin, Mehmet Ali Agca, in Rome's Rebibbia prison in this 1983 photo. Mehmet Ali Agca laid a bunch of white roses at St. John Paul II's tomb exactly 31 years after the late Pope forgave him for shooting and trying to assassinate him.

Man who tried to kill John Paul II takes flowers to his tomb

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VATICAN CITY - Exactly 31 years after St. John Paul II personally forgave him for shooting and trying to assassinate him, Mehmet Ali Agca returned to the Vatican with a bunch of white roses and laid them at the late pope's tomb.

Kidnapped priest found dead on Christmas in southern Mexico

Kidnapped priest found dead on Christmas in southern Mexico

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MEXICO CITY - A Catholic priest was kidnapped from a seminary and found murdered in Guerrero, the same state in southern Mexico where 43 students were kidnapped and probably killed in September.

An Iraqi Christian refugee girl holds a souvenir of the Holy Family Dec. 12 as a boy looks on at a church in Hazmiyeh, near Beirut.

As some Mideast countries empty of Christians, Lebanese numbers swell

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SED EL BOUSHRIEH, Lebanon - Aramaic, Syriac and different Arabic dialects from Iraq and eastern Syria can be heard on the narrow hilly streets of Sed El Boushrieh. Strings of Christmas lights adorn neighborhood churches and hang from balconies of apartments, whose residents many never return to their own homes in Iraq and Syria.

People gather in Manger Square and the Church of Nativity on Christmas Eve in Bethlehem, West Bank.

Jesus' message resonates with Palestinians who seek justice, Abbas says

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JERUSALEM - Jesus' message of love and peace resonates among Palestinians seeking justice, said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in his Christmas message.

An artisan from Manos Amigas in Lima, Peru, creates an ornament that will be sold through fair trade retailer Ten Thousand Villages.

This Christmas, shop fair trade

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In Pope Benedict’s 2009 encyclical Caritas in Veritate, he wrote, “It is good for people to realize that purchasing is always a moral — and not simply economic — act. Hence the consumer has a specific social responsibility, which goes hand-in-hand with the social responsibility of the enterprise.”

Souvenirs are displayed in early November in preparation for Pope Francis' Jan. 13-15 papal visit to Sri Lanka, at the Catholic Bookshop in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Church officials confirmed the visit will proceed as scheduled, despite its proximity to presidential elections.

Papal visit on schedule, say Sri Lankan church officials

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NEW DELHI - Sri Lankan church officials confirmed that Pope Francis' January trip to the country is on schedule, despite calls by Catholic clergy and organizations to postpone the visit because it is being politicized as the country prepares for a presidential election.

An elderly woman in a wheelchair is pushed near an improvised church in the area occupied by pro-democracy protesters in Mongkok shopping district in Hong Kong Oct. 30.

Hong Kong Christian leaders urge reconciliation at Christmas

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HONG KONG - Hong Kong Christian leaders urged reconciliation in their Christmas messages, issued within a week of the end of a 79-day protest.

Fadi Hazboun, 20, takes a selfie of with his Catholic family from Nazareth in front of the Christmas tree in Manger Square outside the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, West Bank, Dec. 21. Pictured with him are his father, Afif, mother, Nardin, and his 8- year-old brother, Jowan.

For Arab Christians, getting to Bethlehem involves checks, imbalances

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BETHLEHEM, West Bank - Coming to Bethlehem during Christmas is like a family reunion for Afif Hazboun.

Vanessa Rasile serves food during Bishop Allen Academy’s annual Festive Dinner which brings those less fortunate in the community together to share a meal as one big family of friends.

Students’ eyes opened to real world problems

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TORONTO - At Bishop Allen Academy’s annual charity dinner for the community Dec. 8, Vanessa Rasile was served a cocktail of emotions.

Canadian theologian Moira McQueen is one of five women appointed to the new International Theological Commission.

Pope Francis bringing synodality back to Church

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TORONTO - Giving advice to the Pope is not a one-way street. It begins with Pope Francis giving advice to his advisors — including Canadian theologian Moira McQueen.

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