Month: December 2025
Pope Leo XIV warns against gambling, which ‘ruins many families’
Credit: Zolnierek/Shutterstock Dec 30, 2025 / 10:45 am (CNA). Pope Leo XIV warned about the danger that gambling poses to many families during a Dec. 29 audience with members of the National Association of Italian Municipalities. At the beginning of his address, delivered in the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican, the Holy Father explained that … Read more
PHOTOS: Unforgettable moments from the 2025 papal transition
The coffin of Pope Francis rests before the altar at the funeral Mass on St. Peter’s Square, April 26, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA Vatican City, Dec 30, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA). 2025 began with Catholics around the world uniting in prayer for Pope Francis’ health as he entered the hospital on Feb. 14. … Read more
Dec. 29 Fifth Day within the Octave of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas); Opt Mem of St. Thomas Becket, Bishop and Martyr, Opt. Mem.
Today is the Fifth day within the Octave of Christmas. The Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Thomas Becket (1118-1170), bishop and martyr. He was born in London and after studying in Paris, he first became chancellor to the king and then in 1162 was chosen Archbishop of Canterbury. He went from being “a … Read more
Dec. 28 Feast of the Holy Family, Feast
Today is the Fourth Day within the Octave of Christmas. The Feast of the Holy Family is a movable feast, assigned to the Sunday within the Octave of Christmas.
Pope Leo XIV sends 3 truckloads of humanitarian aid to Ukraine
Pope Leo XIV addresses pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican for recitation of the Angelus on Dec. 28, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media Vatican City, Dec 28, 2025 / 10:00 am (CNA). Pope Leo XIV has sent three trucks carrying humanitarian aid to parts of Ukraine hit hardest by bombardments, where residents … Read more
St. Augustine—May he who did not shrink from taking a beginning even like ours, …
May he who did not shrink from taking a beginning even like ours, perfect in us his gifts; and may he also make us children of God, he who for our sakes wished to become a child of man. — St. Augustine