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Vatican publishes online edition of Annuario Pontificio (Vatican News)

The Vatican’s Secretariat of State and the Dicastery for Communication have, for the first time, made the Annuario Pontificio [Pontifical Yearbook] available online—for a fee of 68.10 euros per year ($79, before processing fees).

“In a time when communication is ever faster and more global, offering immediate and reliable access to information on the life of the Church—with certified data—means putting technology at the service of the ecclesial mission,” said Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, the Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State. “It is a sign of attentiveness, transparency, and responsibility towards the Catholic community and towards all those who seek to understand the reality of the Church in the world.”

Cardinal Parolin visits Islamist insurgency hotspot (Pillar)

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, is visiting Mozambique to mark the 30th anniversary of bilateral relations.

On December 8, he visited Pemba, the capital of Cabo Delgado province, the site of a brutal Islamist insurgency. “The Holy Father does not forget Cabo Delgado,” Cardinal Parolin said.

Mozambique, a Southeast African nation of 33.4 million (map), is 58% Christian (31% Catholic), 18% Muslim, and 24% ethnic religionist. Pope Francis made an apostolic journey there in 2019.

Papal message marks centenary of Taiwanese university (Vatican News)

In a message commemorating the 100th anniversary of the founding of Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan, Pope Leo XIV said that the university has the “distinction of being the only institution of higher learning established by the Holy See in the Mandarin-speaking world.”

The Pontiff expressed hope that the “seeds of faith, knowledge, and service that were planted a century ago will continue to bear fruit for future generations.”

Pope Leo: Martyrs of Chimbote show what is essential in Christianity (Dicastery for Communication)

The martyrs of Chimbote, Peru—slain by Communist rebels in 1991—“gave a glimpse of the essential message of Christianity,” Pope Leo XIV wrote in a message for the tenth anniversary of their beatification.

The blood of the three missionary priests “was not shed to serve personal plans or ideas, but as a unique offering of love to the Lord and to his people,” Pope Leo wrote. “Their martyrdom shows us—with the authority of life given—what true communion is.”

“As we face the pastoral and cultural challenges confronting the Church, their memory asks us to take a decisive step: to return to Jesus Christ as the measure of our choices, our words and our priorities,” the Pope added.

Pope encourages Rorate Masses (Dicastery for Communication (Italian))

At the conclusion of his recent jubilee audience, Pope Leo XIV encouraged the practice of the Rorate Mass, the pre-dawn Advent Mass.

“Frequent participation in the Holy Masses of Rorate may help, especially children and young people, to develop the virtue of hope in anticipation of Holy Christmas,” Pope Leo told Polish-speaking pilgrims.

The Holy See Press Office did not include these words of the Pope in its English translation of his remarks.

Vatican spokesman recalls 60th anniversary of Second Vatican Council's conclusion (Vatican News)

Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication, published an editorial yesterday marking the 60th anniversary of the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965).

“In the decades following Vatican II, its effects have been the subject of ideological debate and controversy—many of them still unresolved—between those who blame the Council for the Church’s crisis and for dechristianization, and those who believe the answer lies in adapting to the world,” Tornielli wrote.

A central insight of the Council, he added, is that “the Church does not shine with its own light; it does not radiate a light of its own; it is not the source of the proclamation. The Church can only seek to be transparent—allowing the light of Christ to pass through and shimmer.”

Pope, at jubilee audience, pays tribute to Blessed Alberto Marvelli (CWN)

In the tenth special jubilee audience of 2025, Pope Leo XIV paid tribute to Blessed Alberto Marvelli (1918-1946).

Memo to the White House: God Became Man 9 Months Before He Was Born

commentary

Pew Study: Religion Holds Steady in America

cna

Dec. 10 Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent; Opt Mem of Our Lady of Loreto, Weekday

In 2019 Pope Francis added the Optional Memorial of Our Lady of Loreto to the Universal Roman Calendar. The title Our Lady of Loreto refers to the Holy House of Loreto, the house in which Mary was born, and in which the Word was made flesh at the Annunciation. Tradition says that a band of angels scooped up the little house from the Holy Land, and transported it first to Tersato, Dalmatia in 1291, then Recanati, Italy in 1294, and finally to Loreto, Italy where it has been for centuries. It was this translation of the Holy House and the longstanding of the structure Our Lady of Loreto is the patron of builders, construction workers, and aviation. It is the first shrine of international renown dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, and has been known as a Marian center for centuries. Popes have always held the Shrine of Loreto in special esteem, and it is under their direct authority and protection. A replica of an ancient statue of Our Lady which is found there, one of the "Black Madonnas." The original statue made of cedar from Lebanon was destroyed in a fire in 1921.