Although the Vatican knows Christmas may be very different this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it already has chosen its stamps and the Nativity scene and tree that will stand in St. Peter’s Square.

The Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums have launched an online subscription series of on-site interviews, live lectures and a Q&A “coffee hour” with experts to help supporters stay connected during the global pandemic.

After 20 years of restoration work and millions in funding from benefactors worldwide, the unveiling of the Pontifical Sanctuary of the Holy Stairs in Rome was supposed to be a grand, celebratory moment slated for this spring, in time for Holy Week and Easter.

In the run-up to next year’s 700th anniversary of the death of Dante Alighieri, Pope Francis said he hoped people would read the Italian poet’s work, especially the “Divine Comedy,” which still resonates today.

An Iraqi archbishop who helped save hundreds of ancient manuscripts from being destroyed by Islamic State militants was among the nominees for the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize.

As this unusual school year gets underway, Boston College freshmen were reminded that they’ve already been through a lot and were urged — as college graduating seniors usually are — that they have to go out and change the world.

“As a Christian, I joyfully agreed to provide my contribution to develop such a moving and crucial story for the big screen as it involves our heavenly Mother Mary, consoler and mediatrix,” said Bocelli

The event, coordinated by Rachel Harkins Ullmann, GIVEN’s executive director, sold out in 48 hours to local parishioners and families from as far as Washington, D.C.

“A residence hall is supposed to be the students’ home,” Father Linnane said. “If some of the students who live in that building find it to be unwelcoming and unsettling (to have it named for Flannery O’Connor), that has to be taken seriously.”

An concert honoring the centennial of St. John Paul II’s birth is now available online.