RT Presents… Catholics Around the World Celebrate Christmas

Thousands of believers gathered in the biblical town of Bethlehem (Bethlehem Governorate. PALESTINE) in the West Bank to celebrate Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve at the Church of the Nativity.

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Pilgrims prayed inside a grotto where Christians believe the Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus, under the Church of Nativity in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, during Christmas Eve Midnight Mass.

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Catholic clergy waiting for the arrival of Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal at the Church of the Nativity.

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Pope Francisco Bergoglio served a traditional Christmas Eve Midnight Mass at St Peter Basilica at the Vatican, urging the world to find courage, warmth, and tenderness.

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Pope Francisco venerated a statue of the Baby Jesus as he arrived to serve Christmas Eve Mass at St Peter Basilica at the Vatican.

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Christmas Eve Midnight Mass at Sacred Heart parish in Baghdad (Baghdad Governorate) IRAQ.

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At Sacred Heart parish in Baghdad, they sang “Praise Jesus our Lord, O Praise Him”. Worshippers remembered the thousands of Christians displaced by Islamic State militants this year.

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Refugee Iraqi Christians gather for Christmas Eve Midnight Mass in Amman (Amman Governorate) JORDAN.

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Iraqi refugees at St George the all-Victorious Catholic Church in Amman JORDAN for Christmas Eve Midnight Mass.

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25 December 2014

RT

http://rt.com/in-vision/catholics-world-celebrate-christmas/

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Sputnik International Presents… Christmas Spirit in Every Corner of the World

Volunteers clad in Santa Claus costumes throw their hats in the air as they gather to deliver gifts to the poor in downtown Seoul (Seoul National Capital Area) ROK.

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Christmas at St Adalbert of Prague Roman Catholic parish in Kaliningrad (Kaliningrad Oblast. Northwestern Federal District) RF.

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British travellers Liam Wadeson (left), Jemma Wild and Ashley Colotta, (right), frolic in the waves as they celebrate Christmas Day at Bondi Beach in Sydney (Sydney Region. New South Wales) AUSTRALIA.

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The choir at Shrine of Mary Help of Christian Church sings during Christmas Mass in Nairobi (Nairobi County. Nairobi Metro Area) KENYA.

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A Chinese man prays during Christmas Eve mass of at the South Cathedral official Catholic church in Beijing (Beijing Municipality) PRC.

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Members of a local parachute club wearing Santa Claus costumes fly past residential buildings dropping presents to pedestrians during a promotional event celebrating Christmas in Guiyang (Guizhou Province) PRC.

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A Pakistani Christian family gathers around a fire to warm themselves from the evening cold in an alley of a Christian neighbourhood decorated with festive lights for Christmas in Islamabad (Islamabad Capital Area) PAKISTAN.

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Men look at a Christmas tree, with pictures of the 43 missing trainee teachers, in the Ayotzinapa Teacher Training Raul Isidro Burgos College in Ayotzinapa, on the outskirts of Chilpancingo de los Bravo (Guerrero) MEXICO.

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On Christmas Eve, a Palestinian dressed as Santa Claus holds balloons at Manger Square, outside the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem (Bethlehem Governorate) PALESTINE.

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A man exits an illuminated Church on Christmas Eve in Ahmedabad (Ahmedabad District. Gujarat State) INDIA.

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Archbishop Paolo Pezzi (centre) during Midnight Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Moscow (Federal City of Moscow. Central Federal District) RF.

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Indian girls pose for photos near decorative statues of Santa Claus outside a church on Christmas in Mumbai (Mumbai City District. Maharashtra State) INDIA.

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A US Army soldier from the 3 Cavalry Regiment dressed as Santa Claus greets fellow soldiers eating Christmas lunch at Forward Operating Base Gamberi in Laghman Province of Afghanistan.

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Pope Francisco Bergoglio kissed the statue of baby Jesus as he arrived to lead Christmas Midnight Mass at St Peter Basilica in Vatican City. He prayed for peace in the Ukraine and decried the “brutal persecution” of Christians and other religious minorities in Iraq and Syria in his traditional Christmas address, known as the Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world).

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Christmas is one of the main Christian holidays. It’s an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus, observed as a religious and cultural tradition among billions of people across the world. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world’s nations, and a great number of non-Christian people celebrate it. According to the Gregorian calendar, the Roman Catholic Church and most Protestant churches celebrate Christmas on 25 December. Roman Emperor Theodosius II made the decision to celebrate Christmas on 25 December at the Third Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in 431.

Advent precedes Christmas, which starts four weeks before Christmas. This period is supposed to prepare the faithful the birth of Jesus. The festive customs associated in various countries with Christmas mix pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and origins. Popular customs of the holiday include gift giving, completing an Advent calendar, Christmas music and carolling, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas decorations, such as Christmas trees, Christmas lights, and garlands.

Christmas is associated with Santa Claus, also known as also known as St Nicholas and Father Christmas, a cultural figure with legendary, folkloric, and historic origins. In many Western cultures, folklore has it that Santa Claus brings presents to the homes of good children the night before Christmas. According to early Roman Christian traditions, three special liturgies are served on Christmas… a midnight Mass, a Mass at dawn, and a Mass during the day. In the Roman Catholic Church, Christmas celebrations last for eight days, from 25 December to 1 January, a period known as the Octave.

The North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) tracks Santa Claus when he leaves his official residence in the North Pole and flies around the world in his sleigh. NORAD has tracked Santa’s journey for more than 50 years. As gift-giving and many other Christmas customs involve heightened economic activity, the holiday became a key sales period for retailers and businesses all around the world. Groups and schools often perform Nativity plays and Christmas pageants during the holiday period. They depict the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. The tradition dates from the 10th-century Roman Empire.

25 December 2014

Sputnik International

http://sputniknews.com/photo/20141225/1016225951.html

Pope Francisco Enthroned

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On Tuesday, Pope Francisco Bergoglio was enthroned in the Vatican as the 266th Pope of Rome. After accepting the key symbols of the papacy… the Fisherman’s Ring and the pallium… the pope, former Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio addressed the thousands of believers gathered in St Peter’s Square, many of whom waited hours for the ceremony and a glimpse of the new pope. Pope Francisco, clad in white papal robes, looked slightly embarrassed as he toured the square in his open popemobile, with the usual bulletproof glass screens removed. He gave his greetings to all who approached him. Even at such a time, the head of the entire Catholic world did an amazing thing. Seeing a disabled man, he ordered the car to pull over, and he got out to greet him. The crowd burst into a storm of applause.

Ricardo, a self-described staunch atheist, shared his impressions of the pope’s inauguration with VOR, “I’ve always been remote from religion and faith. However, when the conclave elected Pope Francisco, and when I saw him on television, it deeply affected me. That’s why I decided to come here today… to greet the new pope. For me, it’s a historic moment, and it may even be a turning point in my life”. There were flags of many countries, greetings in hundreds of languages, smiles of joy wreathed every face in sight… then, the gathered crowd began to shout, “Viva il Papa Francisco! (Long Live Pope Francisco!)”. His presence seemed to revive the faith and hopes of all those present on the Square. Firanella, a resident of Venice, was very excited and emotional as she said, “I admire him so much that I don’t have the words to express it. Until now, I was very critical of faith and religion, so, I almost never went to church, but now I’ve decided to come back to faith definitively. Pope Francisco led me back”.

One could watch the entire inauguration in St Peter’s Basilica on large screens installed in the square. One could see the solemn procession of the cardinals, the vesting of the new pope in his papal vestments, and the prayer of Pope Francisco at the tomb of Apostle St Peter. Later, on the square itself, in a modest ceremony, Pope Francisco received the principal symbols of his office… the Fisherman’s Ring and the papal pallium. The Fisherman’s Ring made for Pope Francisco isn’t made of solid gold, it’s fashioned from gold-plated silver. Sceptics dismissed the pontiff’s modesty as an affectation. They said that it was only a sham… done to appeal to the hoi polloi. Others feared that Pope Francisco is a reformer who might try to change Catholic doctrine gradually. However, the majority are convinced that he’s a modest man in actuality, that he’s truly simple and unpretentious. After all, Francisco’s still taken aback by all the adulation directed at him. If believers expect any change, it’s only change for the better.

Louis is a seminarian from the Congo, he’s in Rome for the first time, but he’s not as anxious to see the Eternal City as he is to see the pope, he said, “I’m very happy that Pope Francisco is on the throne. He’s a simple and compassionate person. That’s what our church should be like. I’m sure that Pope Francisco will return the Catholic world to Christian traditions and strengthen our faith in Christ”. Clarissa is from Gabon in Central Africa, and she said, “He’ll continue the tradition of his predecessors John Paul II and Benedict XVI. He won’t allow same-sex marriage, abortion, or euthanasia. That’s impossible… not because the pope doesn’t want it, but it’s impossible because God doesn’t want it. After all, God installed our pope”.

After the inauguration, Pope Francisco served a Holy Mass of Thanksgiving, attended by official delegations from more than 180 countries. His first appeal to believers began with, “Keep Christ in your hearts!” In his inaugural homily, he spoke these words of peace and charity, “To protect Jesus with Mary, to protect the whole of creation, to protect each person, especially the poorest, to protect ourselves… this is a service that the Bishop of Rome is called to carry out, yet, it’s one to which all of us are called, so that the star of hope will shine brightly. Let us protect with love all that God has given us!” After the end of the liturgy, bells throughout Rome rang out in a cacophonous tribute.

19 March 2013

Milena Faustova

Voice of Russia World Service

http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_03_19/Pope-Francis-enthroned/

http://rus.ruvr.ru/2013_03_19/Intronizacija-papi-Franciska-266-go-pontifika-VIDEO-FOTO/

12 March 2013. RIA-Novosti Infographics. How a Conclave Elects a Pope of Rome

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On 12 March, at the Vatican, the first meeting will begin conclave to elect a new pope will hold its first session. The election will bring together 115 cardinal-electors, whose average age is 72. The colour of the smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel reveals the result of the voting. Learn more about an election of the Pope of Rome in this Infographic.

On the first day of the conclave, after Mass, the cardinals, dressed in red vestments and capes, over white surplices (liturgical overtunic), gather in the Hall of Blessings of the Apostolic Palace. They process with the cross and the gospel to the Sistine Chapel, singing a Litany of the Saints. On arrival in the chapel, the cardinal-electors pray that God sends down to them the gift of the Holy Spirit, singing the hymn Veni Creator, then, take an oath to reveal nothing that occurs in the conclave. The rules allow journalists and official Vatican press aides to be in the Sistine Chapel to cover this event.

Possible successors to Pope Benedict >>

After the oath, the Master of Ceremonies says, “Extra omnes” (“All others, leave”), and those who aren’t conclave participants must leave the Chapel. Only the cardinal-electors may be in the Chapel during the balloting, so, soon after the distribution of ballots, the Master of Ceremonies must leave, too. Then, one of the cardinal-deacons locks the door behind him with a key.

Who will lead the Vatican? >>

The only valid form of voting is by secret ballot. An election is valid if any of the candidates achieves a two-thirds majority. If the number of electors participating in the conclave is not a multiple of three, the election of a new pope requires a two-thirds majority plus one.

12 March 2013

RIA-Novosti

http://en.ria.ru/infographics/20130312/179735572.html

http://ria.ru/infografika/20130312/926816111.html