An army of little violinists dressed in traditional attire of Polish highlanders, or “górale,” went viral playing their Christmas carol in a gorgeous church in southern Poland, making a local legendary children’s orchestra go global.

Looking back at the year, editors at OSV, in their longstanding tradition of shining a light on exemplary signs of faith, have named the following 10 individuals Catholics of the Year for 2024.

Like much else the Bible recounts, the star of the Magi was a special intervention in the world by God, probably carried out with the intermediation of one of his angels. It was a Christmas miracle.

Father Josef Mohr (1792-1848) was the pastor of St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Obendorf, Austria. In 1816 he composed the six verse lyrics to “Silent Night,” which would become one of the most popular Christmas carols of all time.

The Masses, called “Simbang Gabi” or “Night Mass,” are mostly on an evening anticipatory schedule. Filipino-Americans have brought the tradition to their adopted homeland and added some multicultural flair to their celebrations.

David Wainwright, a sound engineer and parishioner of St. Bernardine, was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter’s (NATAS-NCCB) prestigious Silver Circle this fall in Baltimore.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth — the world of “The Lord of the Rings” and now the new animated film “The War of the Rohirrim” — was born, first and foremost, from Tolkien’s intense and lifelong love for language.

An inscribed tablet of the Ten Commandments — claimed to be the world’s oldest known extant example — will go on auction Dec. 18 with expectations of garnering as much as $2 million.

Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, an award-winning poet, believes art can heal people, including prisoners, and can help them find the right path forward.

Firefighters and police officers formed a human chain to rescue the crown of thorns from the inferno at Notre Dame on April 15, 2019. On Dec. 13, 2024, this holiest relic of Paris’ cathedral was returned to its proper home on the Île de la Cité.