Latest Religion News
Cities worldwide hold subdued Christmas Eve celebrations amid conflicts
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Bethlehem marked another somber Christmas Eve on Tuesday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus under the shadow of war in Gaza. The cheer that typically descends on the West Bank during Christmas week were nowhere to be found. The festive lights and...
Pope Francis kicks off a yearlong Jubilee that will test his stamina and Rome's patience
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis kicked off the 2025 Holy Year on Tuesday, inaugurating a celebration of the Catholic Church that is expected to draw some 32 million pilgrims to Rome in a test of the pope's stamina and the ability of the Eternal City to welcome them. From his...
NFL players who use platform to share their faith say it's their duty to spread their love of Jesus
ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — Jake Bates was standing on the turf in his hometown of Houston when asked to reflect on an unlikely journey from learning how to sell bricks to making game-winning kicks for the Detroit Lions. Bates used his platform as an NFL player to spread his...
Seafarers move global trade — and Christmas gifts. These ministries bring them holiday cheer
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — On a balmy December evening, four Indian crew members, eager to go explore this Mediterranean city where their container ship docked for a few hours, turned for help to Stella Maris. It’s the largest of the faith-based organizations that minister to seafarers in hundreds...
Centuries-old angels uncovered at Boston church made famous by Paul Revere
BOSTON (AP) — Straddling the scaffolding high up in a historic Boston church, murals conservator Gianfranco Pocobene is working to uncover eight angels that were hidden under layers of paint for more than a century. The painted angels — with round childlike faces and wings —...
Florida requires teaching Black history. Some don't trust schools to do it justice
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Buried among Florida's manicured golf courses and sprawling suburbs are the artifacts of its slave-holding past: the long-lost cemeteries of enslaved people, the statues of Confederate soldiers that still stand watch over town squares, the old plantations turned into...
UN publishes new death toll for massacre of older people and Vodou religious leaders in Haiti
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The United Nations raised the death toll of a recent massacre in which dozens of older people and Vodou religious leaders were killed by a gang in Haiti, and called on officials to bring the perpetrators to justice. The U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti...
How faith communities can be welcoming of believers with disabilities this holiday season and beyond
The Rev. Shannon Blosser sees how his son loves church — the music, the singing, the communion. But the United Methodist pastor said his family hasn’t always felt like 11-year-old Noah, who is autistic, has been welcome. At one point, Blosser’s wife and the couple’s two sons...
A Holy Year is about to start in Rome. Here's what you need to know
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Tuesday formally inaugurates the 2025 Holy Year, reviving an ancient church tradition encouraging the faithful to make pilgrimages to Rome, amid new security fears following a Christmas market attack in Germany. At the start of Christmas Eve...
AP PHOTOS: Girls will be part of St. Paul's Cathedral choir on Christmas Day for first time
LONDON (AP) — For the first time in its 900-year history, girls will form part of the choir performing at the Christmas Day service on Wednesday at London’s majestic St. Paul’s Cathedral. The choir, which is made up of both adult and child choristers, will perform at services...
