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JAKARTA, Indonesia – More than 90,000 police and soldiers and a moderate Muslim youth group will help guard nearly 50,000 churches across Indonesia, including some previously attacked by terrorists, during the Christmas period.

VATICAN – With Christmas just over a week away, visitors came to St. Peter's Square with their Baby Jesus figurines for a traditional blessing by the Pope.

An alumna of our Newman House chaplaincy at QueenöÏÓãÊÓƵapp University offers an inspiring model of reading — of actual books. 

VATICAN – Advent is a time for people to think about what they can change about themselves so that they can sow the seeds of peace, justice and fraternity in their daily lives, Pope Francis said.

Second Sunday in Advent (Year C) Dec. 9 (Baruch 5:1-9; Psalm 126; Philippians 1:3-6, 8-11; Luke 3:1-6)

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VATICAN – The annual unveiling of the VaticanöÏÓãÊÓƵapp Christmas tree and Nativity scene brought some much-needed warmth to peopleöÏÓãÊÓƵapp hearts as winter approached.

I love making lists. It is how I fall asleep at night. Sometimes I try to name every baseball club and at least one player from each team, or think of 10 music albums I would bring with me should I ever be sent to an offshore penal colony or to the opera.

VATICAN – Christians can turn Christmas into a "pagan" or "mundane" holiday by focusing on the gifts and the tree rather than on the birth of Jesus and his promise to come again, Pope Francis said.

As Christmas becomes more and more commercialized, parents like Robin Bredin are looking to the local parish for opportunities to show his children that Jesus is at the core of the celebration. 

As we begin a new liturgical year and also the season of Advent, here is a short quiz:

VATICAN – From the beach town of New Smyrna, Florida, just a stone's throw away from Daytona Beach, Rich Varano never imagined his unique talent of sculpting sand would take him to the heart of Christianity.

People around the world are poor for a lot of different reasons. 

When Pope Francis initiated the World Day of the Poor to be marked on the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time — Nov. 18 this year — it was easy for people to see this targeted at the familiar pictures that are all too real of Third World poverty.

Wanted: Christmas artists

The Catholic Register's popular children's drawing contest is back!

VATICAN – As the Christmas season draws near, the Vatican postal service prepared a unique set of commemorative stamps designed by a talented, yet unlikely, artist: a prisoner serving a life sentence.