Catholic News Service

The Taizé community's annual end-of-year ecumenical prayer gathering, which moved online Dec. 28-31 and was supported by prayers and messages from Pope Francis, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and other leaders.

In situations of extreme poverty, war or civil tensions, 22 Catholic church workers were murdered in 2021.

 Pope Francis this year invited Catholics both in the mainstream of church life and on the margins to express their dreams, ideas and concerns in preparation for the Synod of Bishops in 2023.

For most migrants and their supporters, 2021 looks as if it will end much like it started.

A retired priest of the Diocese of Arlington, who for seven years oversaw the diocese's program on protecting minors from clerical sexual abuse, was indicted shortly before Christmas on two counts of sexually abusing a minor.

A life-sized bronze sculpture of migrants and refugees crowded onto a boat has stood in St. Peter's Square, but just before Christmas a small QR code was placed on the boat's stern to give onlookers information about the work.

Richard H. Hirsch, a former secretary of communications for the U.S. bishops, died in his sleep Dec. 24 in his Florida home. 

Christians cannot close their eyes to the fact that too many people in the world today also feel forced to flee their homelands, Pope Francis said.

Patriarchs of the Middle East urged their faithful, overwhelmed with suffering, to hold on more tightly to hope this Christmas.

This past year was busy for the nation's high court, particularly with issues of interest to Catholics regarding abortion, religious liberty, COVID-19 vaccine mandates and the death penalty.

The COVID-19 pandemic remained a significant concern for parishes and schools, as Catholics navigated changing policies and partisan views on mask and vaccine mandates. Despite the pope's urging, millions of Catholics have refused to get vaccinated.

Aid agencies including Catholic Charities and Catholic Relief Services responded this year to natural disasters including wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods and winter storms.

Pope Francis has dismissed from the priesthood a Cleveland man who is serving a life sentence in prison for sexually exploiting children.

Preparations for the Holy Year 2025 have already begun, and Pope Francis has asked the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization to take charge of the efforts.

From a vaccination clinic in the Vatican to a visit to the ancient Iraqi city of Ur and later to a refugee camp in Lesbos, Greece, Pope Francis demonstrated throughout 2021 what he means by seeing all people as brothers or sisters.

The Francis Chronicles: The COVID-19 pandemic has been tough on families, but with extra patience and faith, bonds can grow stronger, Pope Francis wrote in a letter released on the feast of the Holy Family.

Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the retired Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, died in Cape Town Dec. 26 at the age of 90.

Pope Francis invited Catholics — and anyone else interested — to join a seven-year journey to widen the reach of his 2015 encyclical on the environment in a time of global climate change.

After the election of Joe Biden as the second Catholic president of the United States, U.S. bishops planned a document broadly seen as an attempt to deny Communion to the pro-choice politician. The resulting document "endeavors to explain the centrality of the Eucharist in the life of the church."

Among the most vulnerable victims of the COVID-19 pandemic are children and adolescents.