Francis meets heads of dicasteries for the traditional Christmas greetings, making an indirect reference to Vatileaks 2: reform is to go ahead with determination. Scandals cannot conceal “the efficiency of the Roman Curia’s dedicated service to the Pope and the whole Church”. We need to “return to what is essential”: the list of character traits required of those serving in the Vatican include: exemplarity, faithfulness, honesty, maturity, humility, trustworthiness and sobriety.

Jordan marks this year the 40th anniversary of the unification of the dates of two major Christian holidays, namely Christmas and Easter. As for the mechanism adopted by Jordan, the heads of Churches agreed since 1975 to have the faithful who follow the Gregorian calendar celebrate Easter alongside their brethren who follow the Julian calendar.

All the Churches celebrate Christmas on December 25 every year.

Pope Francis appealed for peace in Syria on Sunday, calling on the international community to realize in concrete action and genuine fact the endorsement of a UN-sponsored roadmap toward peace in the war-torn nation.

Pope Francis appealed for peace in Syria on Sunday, calling on the international community to realize in concrete action and genuine fact the endorsement of a UN-sponsored roadmap toward peace in the war-torn nation.

The canonization date, September 4, is to be announced at the upcoming Consistory. The miracle attributed to her intercession and recognised by doctors from the medical council of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints was approved by the dicastery’s cardinals and bishops and yesterday, Italian Catholic newspaper Avvenire announced that the Pope has now also given his approval.

The Archbishop of Calcutta says Mother Teresa “made of her life a corporal and spiritual work of mercy” and is an antidote to today’s “throwaway culture”.

For the first time in history, one of the resolutions enjoys a global consensus, without any opposition. A total of 195 countries participating in the Paris Climate Conference voted in favor of a historic agreement to save the Earth and to fight global warming.

In his audience with the new ambassadors of Guinea, Latvia, India and Bahrain, the Pope on Thursday,December 17, repeated the appeals he made in his World Day of Peace message, regarding the environment, unemployment, immigrants and prisoners.

Pope Francis has called on Catholics around the world to use the ongoing Jubilee year of mercy to “open wide” the doors of their hearts to forgive others and to work against social exclusion, even of those that may have caused them bother or upset.

In his weekly audience, in St. Peter’s Square Wednesday, December 16, the Pontiff said that walking through any of the holy doors open in dioceses around the world for the Jubilee year should be a sign of “true conversion of our heart.”

In this year’s Christmas message, the Patriarch of Jerusalem has invited the Holy Land’s parishes to switch off their Christmas tree lights for five minutes in solidarity with the those who tragically lost their lives in recent months. Addressing the Middle East which has been rocked to its core by wars and intifadas, he said: “Mercy is a political act par excellence”.

Marking the first anniversary of the forced displacement of the brethren who fled from Mosul and its environs to Jordan, Lebanon and the Western countries; coinciding with the numerous conferences being convened to discuss “the future of Christians” in the Orient; and after my return from “the intellectual retreat” held in Como, Italy--organized by the Catholic Center for Studies and Media in cooperation with the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, which is active in Amman, and attended by 17 intellectuals and specialists, mostly Arabs, living in various parts of the world or teaching in several univ