followed by the traditional Benedictio urbi et orbi – the “Blessing of the City and the World”.
Delivered from the central loggia – the balcony set in the middle of the upper level of the façade of St. Pater’s Basilica – the Holy Father’s remarks on the occasion focused on Christ’s perfect triumph

UnitedwithIsrael.org reports that the Jewish Agency for Israel has rescued about 200 Jews from Yemen in recent years.
The most recent rescue involved 19 Jews; 14 from the town of Raydah and a family of five from Sana’a.
The group arriving in Israel from Raydah included a rabbi who brought with hi

The airport confirmed it will remain closed on Thursday and there is no set date for reopening.
It issued a statement which read: "Because the forensic investigation is still under way we currently have no access to the building. Until we can assess the damage, it remains unclear when we can resume

The decision has been long-anticipated, and it is expected that Pope Francis will sign a decree approving her canonization and set a date for the official event.
A previously-scheduled ceremony to honor Mother Teresa has been set for September 5, so it is thought that the canonization will take pla

Open Doors USA estimates there are about 450,000 practicing Christians in Iran. Others estimate more than 1 million.
According to Fox News, The Pars Theological Center is training some 200 Iranian Christians to become the next generation of Iran’s Christian leaders.
"Pars sees this as a real chanc

ethnic Fulani cattle herders, largely Muslim, moving in on farmers, largely Christian. The long-running land conflict frequently is framed in economic terms, but it also has distinctive religious contours. Survivors quoted by Christian-rights advocates said the attackers specifically targeted Christ

Qadri had filed a mercy plea before President Mamnoon Hussain after Supreme Court maintained his conviction in October last year. Rumours started pouring in earlier today as his supporters started Twitter trend to call for protest against his expected hanging.

“Even a criminal has the inviolable right to life, a gift of God," Francis said during a speech marking the Year of Mercy at the Vatican.
"This issue has to be considered within the perspective of a penal justice, which is more and more in compliance with human dignity and God's plan for humanity a

Lombardi told Vatican Radio that the pope's comments, made to reporters during a flight back from Mexico in response to a specific question on Trump, were simply an affirmation of his long-standing belief that migrants should be helped rather than shut off behind walls.
"In no way was this a person

people in Mexico's gang-infested heartland on Tuesday to shun the lure of easy money and big cars offered by drug traffickers.
Gang wars over the methamphetamine trade have torn the western state of Michoacan apart. Widespread kidnapping and extortion by gangs have sparked an uprising by vigilante

President Enrique Pena Nieto greeted him at the capital's airport along with a mariachi band and a huge crowd, hours after Francis held a historic meeting in Cuba with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.
From the US border to the indigenous south, Pope Francis will visit some of the poorest an

Before the Mass begins, however, Francis is expected to walk to the edge of the Rio Grande, the river that separates the two nations, kneel, and pray for the more than 6,000 people who lost their lives trying to cross the border in the past 15 years.
Across the river in El Paso will be a group of a

The men met for 40 minutes and at the conclusion of the meeting Pope Francis said, “I thank you very much for this visit. I have high hopes in peace”, according to Catholic News Service.
In response, President Rouhani asked the Ponitff to pray for him, said it was a pleasure to meet him and wished

At least 21 people died when gunmen armed with grenades and Kalashnikovs attacked a university in Pakistan Wednesday, with all four attackers killed by security forces who moved in under thick fog to halt the bloodshed.
The assault was claimed by a Pakistani Taliban faction but branded "un-Islamic"

The Christian Post reports that the U.S. State Department’s Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, David Saperstein, denied that labeling the Islamic State’s atrocities against Christians as “genocide” will make a difference in how the U.S. is dealing with the Islamic State’s actions.
"Had