Pope Francis has declared as saints 16 Carmelite martyrs executed by guillotine during the French Revolution and confirmed the martyrdom and heroic virtues of five others in a series of decrees published Dec. 18.

A Reflection for Friday of the Third Week of Advent, by Joe Hoover, S.J.

In their “Faithful Citizenship” document, the bishops should recognize options like the American Solidarity Party and challenge the assumption that we must choose between Democrats and Republicans.

We are not only the family of God because of an act of love but, because he was born as one of us, we are now also biologically like God. We are genetically related to him because he became one of us.

Sotheby’s is facilitating the sale of what it says is an approximately 1,500-year-old tablet, which it describes as “the only complete tablet of the Ten Commandments still extant from this early era.”

A Reflection for Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent, by Grace Lenahan

Today in The New York Times, Pope Francis praised the value of joy, humor and laughter, and noted “jokes about and told by Jesuits are in a class of their own.” Here are 5 of my favorite.

Oscar Hijuelos's 'Mr. Ives' Christmas' doesn't start out as a cheery story—but in the end, this parable of good will lost and good will regained is a perfect Christmas tale.

A Reflection for Thursday of the Third Week of Advent, by Cecilia González-Andrieu

A Reflection for Saturday of the Third Week of Advent, by Eric Gregory

In a new autobiography, Pope Francis revealed that he escaped two assassination attempts during his visit to Iraq in March 2021, including one involving a young woman who was believed to be attempting a suicide bombing.

In my 40 years being homeless and working with the unhoused, I have learned that there is no one major reason why people become homeless.

A Reflection for Monday of the Third Week of Advent, by Kerry Weber

On the final episode of Hark! this season, prepare yourselves for a wee bit of scandal because we’re looking at a tune that began as a bawdy love song and has long been associated with an evil monarch, but which, over the course of three centuries, finds its redemption as a Christmas carol. This is the story behind, “What Child Is This?”

The Incarnation is a pivotal moment in salvation history, but it is also placed within family history.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 13 agreed to hear a case from the Catholic Charities Bureau of the Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin, in which the agency argued a decision by the Wisconsin Supreme Court discounted its religious identity.

Police in Madison said Dec. 16 they are investigating a shooting at that city's Abundant Life Christian School that left multiple people dead and injured.

Pope Francis, on his first visit to Corsica, praised the island people's deep faith and tradition of popular piety. On December 5, thousands of Corsicans gathered in Ajaccio to welcome the first pope ever to visit the island.

While “What Child Is This?” is an explicitly Christmas song, the tune speaks to the mystery of identity and purpose—questions that transcend religious boundaries and appeal to the human experience.