Each year as we celebrate Christmas, we read the story of the miraculous birth of Jesus. The Virgin Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the angels, and the Magi from the East are with us every year.

We, the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches of Jerusalem, greet you all in the name of the Babe of Bethlehem during this blessed and holy season of Christmas, the commemoration of the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

I am sure that we would have liked to celebrate this Christmas in a very different way. We would have preferred that Bethlehem might resound as it always has at this time of the year with joy and celebration in its streets, especially for our children.

BETHLEHEM, Palestine – Christmas this year is definitely different in the Holy Land, especially in Bethlehem. Since the start of the Advent season and amid the increases of COVID-19 cases in the country, Christmas festivities in the city were scaled down, last of which were the Christmas entrance and procession of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Midnight Mass at the Church of St. Catherine.

The Bible teaches us that God has visited his people throughout the ages, with fatherly tenderness, He made a covenant with them that their longing for a Messiah will be fulfilled with the birth of a child in the womb of the Virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit, as Saint Paul reminds us: « But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman… that we might receive the adoption as sons » (Gal 4: 4-5).

Mi dolor es grande cuando veo el sufrimiento y la ansiedad que sofocan el espíritu de iniciativa y vitalidad que se han multiplicado en el país de los Cedros. Lo que más duele es el secuestro de todas las queridas esperanzas de vivir en paz, de la supervivencia de la historia y del mundo, mensaje de libertad y testimonio de una vida digna en común.

Pope Francis writes a letter to the people of Lebanon expressing his closeness in this time of suffering, and appealing to political leaders and the international community to take action and help the nation overcome the crisis.

Seventeen years since the fall of Saddam Hussein, the fractious Iraqi nation—divided mostly between Sunni, Shiite, and Kurdish Muslims—remains unable to agree on a national day. But they can agree on Christmas. Last week, the parliament unanimously passed a law to make Christmas a “national holiday, with annual frequency.”

Encyclical Letter

Fratelli Tutti on Fraternity and Social Friendship

El Consejo Pontificio para la Promoción de la Unidad de los Cristianos publicó una guía para animar y ayudar a los obispos católicos a cumplir con sus responsabilidades ecuménicas.

The Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity publishes a guidebook to encourage and assist Catholic Bishops in fulfilling their ecumenical responsibilities.

Queridos amados,

"Gracia y paz en abundancia para ustedes" (1 Pedro 1, 2).

Me gustaría dirigirles esta carta con ocasión de la visita del Papa Francisco a Irak debido a su importancia nacional y eclesiástica:

Dear Beloved,

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance” (1 Peter: 1).

I would like to address this letter to you on the occasion of Pope Francis’ visit to Iraq due to its national and ecclesiastical significance

The Apostolic Penitentiary issues a Decree granting plenary indulgences for the year of St. Joseph proclaimed by Pope Francis on Tuesday. The special year will last from 8 December 2020 to 8 December 2021.

JERUSALEM - On Friday, December 4, 2020, a religious Jew started a fire inside the Basilica of All Nations (Agony) at Gethsemane in Jerusalem, causing damage to a number of pews.

"I want to assure my prayers for Nigeria, where blood has unfortunately been spilled once more in a terrorist attack." Pope Francis gave that assurance in remarks at the end of the Wednesday General Audience. He was referring to a massacre which took place on Saturday in the village of Zabarmari, in Borno State.

In a 23 November letter to Audrey Azoulay, director-general of UNESCO, World Council of Churches (WCC) interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca urged the protection of religious and cultural monuments the Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh region.

In the evening of Tuesday, 3 November 2020, reports indicate that Tigray regional special force attacked the northern command base of the Ethiopia Federal army. As a result, Ethiopia Federal military was deployed to restore law and order. The conflict has erupted and is ongoing and even escalating to affect Eritrea.

The protracted humanitarian crisis in Iraq remains one of the largest and most volatile in the world. The COVID-19 outbreak hit a country already facing a humanitarian crisis, further deepening vulnerabilities and disrupting on-going efforts to deliver aid to the most vulnerable people in acute need of humanitarian assistance.

Rome Newsroom, Nov 17, 2020 / 02:00 pm MT (CNA).- The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe published data Monday documenting more than 500 hate crimes against Christians in Europe in 2019.