In his Message for the World Day of Social Communications, His Holiness Pope Francis says listening is an indispensable first step in human communication, and a dimension of love.

By Christopher Wells

After focusing last year on seeing reality and conveying it to others, His Holiness Pope Francis in his 2022 Message for the World Communications Day emphasized the quality of listening, which he said “is decisive in the grammar of communication and is a condition for genuine dialogue.”

A conference on the themes of the Synod desired by the Pope is scheduled for March 15-17. Representatives from the dioceses, the Roman Curia, local and international charitable organisations will be present. Maronite Archbishop of Damascus: an opportunity "to rediscover our mission". The exodus of young people abroad shrinking an already tiny Christian minority.

On Wednesday 6/19 January 2022, the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem celebrated the Despotic feast of Theophany according to the Status Quo.

On the morning of the feast, the Service of the Sanctification of the water was observed at the Catholicon of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre by His Beatitude Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III…

His Holiness Pope Francis urges the journalists of The Holy Land Review to tell the world the story of fraternity among Christians and among all the children of Abraham.

By Devin Watkins

A group of around 50 journalists from The Holy Land Review, accompanied by Fr. Francesco Patton, OFM, the Custos of the Holy Land, met the Pope for a private audience on Monday 17 January 2022, morning.

HOLY LAND – During his pastoral visit to Jordan, His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, spoke about the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which opened on January 22nd and will end on January 30th.

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which was established in 1908, was first called the Octave of Christian Unity. It was renamed "Universal Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 1935, at the initiative of Fr. Paul Couturiers, a French priest later called the “father of spiritual ecumenism”.

On January 17, 2022, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, received a delegation from St. Ephrem Patriarchal Development Committee (EPDC), at the Patriarchate Headquarters in Bab Touma, Damascus, Syria.

For the forthcoming 2022 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Cardinal Mario Grech and Cardinal Kurt Koch invite all Christians to pray for unity and to continue to journey together.

By Vatican News

In a joint letter sent on 28 October 2021 to all bishops responsible for ecumenism, Cardinal Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and Cardinal Grech, General Secretary of the Synod of the Bishops, offered suggestions aimed at implementing the ecumenical dimension of the synodal process in the local churches.

On January 16, 2022, on the occasion of the Feast of the Blessing of the Virgin Mary on the Sowing (15 January), His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, celebrated the Holy Qurobo at St. Mary Church in Damascus, Syria.

On Friday, January 14, the Catholic Churches in Jordan marked the 22nd annual national and Christian pilgrimage to the Baptism Site during which Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa celebrated a festive Holy Mass at the Church of the Baptism of Christ.

On Thursday, 1/14 January 2022 the Patriarchate celebrated the Despotic feast of the circumcision according to the flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ and the commemoration of Saint Basil the Great, Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia.

This feast was celebrated with an All-night vigil at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, with Matins in the Catholicon and of the Church of the Resurrection and the Divine Liturgy at the All-holy Tomb.

On January 8, 2022, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, held a reception in honor of His Grace Bishop Zoltán Balog, Head of the Reformed Church in Hungary who is accompanied by a delegation from Hungary who is visiting Syria for a pilgrimage to the ancient Christian sites. The reception was held at the Patriarchate Headquarters in Bab Touma, Damascus - Syria.

On January 10, 2022, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, visited the construction site of the Latakia Community Center in Syria.

His Holiness Pope Francis dedicates his first prayer message of 2022 to combatting religious discrimination and persecution, reminding us that religious freedom is not limited to freedom of worship, but is tied to fraternity.

By Vatican News staff reporter

“How can we allow that in this society, which is so civilized, there are people who are persecuted simply because they publicly profess their faith?” asks His Holiness Pope Francis in the video for his monthly prayer intention for January 2022.

Rev. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus, World Council of Churches (WCC) interim deputy general secretary and director of Faith and Order, shares his insights on the upcoming Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, to be held 18-25 January. Churches across the globe will reflect on the hope and joy in Matthew 2:2, “We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him.” The Middle East Council of Churches, based in Beirut, Lebanon, was the convener for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022 drafting group.

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022

Jerusalem, January 22 - 30, 2022

Theme: “We saw the star in the east, and we came to worship him” (Mathew 2:2)
The appearance of the star in the sky leads the Magi, and indeed all peoples of the earth, to the place where the King and Saviour is revealed.

CCSM Director Fr. Dr. Rif'at Bader said that preparatory committees are working in full swing in order to ensure that the pilgrimage ceremony will be conducted smoothly and with extreme perfection.

The Catholic Center for Studies and Media (CCSM) in Jordan has announced that the 22nd pilgrimage ceremony of Catholic Churches to the Baptism Site will take place on Friday, January 14, during which Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem His Beatitude Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa will celebrate Holy Mass at the Church of the Baptism of Christ, whose construction is almost complete, in the presence of the Apostolic Nunciature personnel and heads of Catholic Churches in Jordan.

ZABABDEH - On January 6, 2022, for the Epiphany, His Beatitude Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, went to Zababdeh, Palestinian town, to celebrate Mass and meet with the local parish priest.

It actually used to be a tradition... now a little forgotten. Perhaps some parishioners remember: in the past, the Latin Patriarch regularly celebrated the Epiphany in Zababdeh.

In his letter of January 1, 2002, published on the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s website, His Beatitude Mgr Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, proposed to the parishes, different communities and individual faithful of the Diocese of Jerusalem the integral reading of the New Testament for January 23, the Sunday dedicated by Pope Francis to the "Word of God" (Motu proprio Aperuit illis).

As His Beatitude Mgr Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa wrote, we are all invited to participate according to our community and personal possibilities.

The Feast of Nativity and Theophany of our Lord Jesus Christ was marked at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias, Lebanon, on Thursday, January 6th, 2022. His Holiness Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I celebrated the Divine Liturgy and delivered the pontifical sermon. Archbishop Gomidas Ohanian and Archbishop Shahan Sarkissian served at the altar alongside His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, while Shnorhali choir, led by V. Rev. Fr. Zaven Nadjarian, sang the Liturgy.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

May the Lord give you peace!

Pope Francis, by the Motu Proprio Aperuit Illis of September 30, 2019, established that "the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time be dedicated to the celebration, reflection and dissemination of the Word of God" in order "to make the people of God grow in religious and assiduous familiarity with the Sacred Scriptures, just as the sacred author taught already in ancient times: 'This word is very close to you, it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may put it into practice' (Deut. 30:14)." (n. 15).