Christmas Presence

Publisher's Note

We now count down the final days of Advent that culminate in Christmas, and I want to take a moment to extend my gratitude to you, our readers, who are true gifts to our ongoing mission here at the Register.

It’s important for us, as Catholics active in the New Evangelization, to cultivate the contemplative side of our faith. Our "Advent Guides" to daily prayer and living the basics of the faith on page B1 (see "Resources" online) offer useful tools.

After all, what better time than now, the last days of Advent, to reflect on God’s greatest gift to mankind, the Christ Child?

As we prepare to wrap up our final print issue of 2013, I assure all of you that you are continually in my prayers. We could not do all that we do without your readership and your faithful prayers. Without those, we wouldn’t have been able to meet and overcome many challenges we faced in the past 12 months. Thank you for your constant support and loyalty.

May God bless you and grant you a very merry Christmas season!

 

Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne attends a German Synodal Way assembly on March 9, 2023.

Four German Bishops Resist Push to Install Permanent ‘Synodal Council’

Given the Vatican’s repeated interventions against the German process, the bishops said they would instead look to the Synod of Bishops in Rome. Meanwhile, on Monday, German diocesan bishops approved the statutes for a synodal committee; and there are reports that the synodal committee will meet again in June.

Palestinian Christians celebrate Easter Sunday Mass at Holy Family Church in Gaza City on March 31, amid the ongoing battles Israel and the Hamas militant group.

People Explain ‘Why I Go to Mass’

‘Why go to Mass on Sundays? It is not enough to answer that it is a precept of the Church. … We Christians need to participate in Sunday Mass because only with the grace of Jesus, with his living presence in us and among us, can we put into practice his commandment, and thus be his credible witnesses.’ —Pope Francis