A Catholic parish in the Diocese of Lansing has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court to protect its right to hire parish employees and staff for its grade school who uphold the tenets of the Catholic faith.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis Dec. 9 permanently blocked a transgender mandate the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had implemented as a revision to the Affordable Care Act.

Despite an uptick in violence between the Israeli army and Palestinians in the northern West Bank, the pre-Christmas atmosphere in Bethlehem was festive and optimistic and, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, Bethlehem hotels reported near full capacity during the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Pope Francis offered a little prayer for firefighters: “Lord, let them not have work.”

Christians working with people who have a physical disability must be motivated by a sense of solidarity, not pity, and they should promote people’s active participation, not their passive reception of assistance, Pope Francis said.

Decrying what he described as “hostile times” when antisemitism and violence against Christians are on the rise, Pope Francis said a renewed commitment to Catholic-Jewish dialogue is needed.

Pope Francis is writing to all the heads of state around the world, asking them to consider granting some prisoners clemency at Christmas.

Preparing for the priesthood, seminarians must remember both the joy of being called by God and the real sacrifices they will be called to make, Pope Francis told young men preparing for the priesthood at the seminary of Barcelona, Spain.

Even the most fervent believers go through moments of doubt and questioning about God, and it is a good thing, Pope Francis said, because it helps one see that God does not fit into the little box people make for him.

It was after receiving a Bible in the mail that Jennifer Hubbard began to understand her own purpose, grace and healing.