Three Kings parade Poland Three Kings parades went down the streets of 800 Polish towns and cities Jan. 6, 2023, for the feast of the Epiphany, with estimates of some 1.5 million people taking part in what is believed to be the largest street Nativity pageant in the world. | Justyna Galant/CNA
Three Kings parades Poland Three Kings parades went down the streets of 800 Polish towns and cities Jan. 6, 2023, for the feast of the Epiphany, with estimates of some 1.5 million people taking part in what is believed to be the largest street Nativity pageant in the world.
Three Kings parades went down the streets of 800 Polish towns and cities Jan. 6 for the feast of the Epiphany, with estimates of some 1.5 million people taking part in what is believed to be the largest street Nativity pageant in the world. This year, carols were sung not only in Polish but also in Ukrainian.
Jan. 6 is the feast of the Epiphany, which is commonly referred to as Three Kings Day, or the day of the three Magi. In Poland, it is a day off. In many cities across the country, colourful processions are held to commemorate the event, with participants remembering the journey of the three Wise Men who arrived in Bethlehem to pay homage to the new-born Jesus.

Patriarch Sako began his message by noting that, over the Christmas period, he listened to the sermons of various Eastern clergy, and watched their television interviews.
“I found,” he wrote, “that the ideas put forward are outdated, and that what they said does not communicate with the current reality (…). Therefore, it does not move the recipients, nor does it give them hope, nor does it give them a feeling of reassurance and refreshment.” Such preaching, he warned, discourages young people from coming to church, and, “if the situation continues as it is now, future generations will be without faith.”
Part of this problem, he said, is that the Eastern Catholic Churches “did not benefit much” from the Second Vatican Council or 2010’s Special Assembly on the Middle East.
What is the solution? Priests, Patriarch Sako said, should bear in mind the close relationship – insisted upon by the late Pope Benedict XVI – between faith and reason, and speak “honestly, transparently, [and] rationally.” The Church, he stressed, should respond to “cultural and social changes”, just as Christ did.
“Truth and renewal are at the heart of the Church’s nature,” the Patriarch emphasised.
Given the precarious state of the Eastern Churches, Patriarch Sako went on to say, “priority must be given to the issue of unity”, which is “the only guarantee of our survival.”
Such unity, he stressed, does not mean erasing the “spiritual, cultural, and theological heritage” of each particular Church. Rather, “unity is about accepting differences and respecting them through mutual humility and fraternal encounter, working together based on the Gospel.”
“In division there is no future for us, in unity and marching together the guarantee of our survival,” he wrote, urging the Eastern Churches to adopt a synodal style of co-operation.
The Patriarch concluded his letter by drawing a parallel between the current situation of Middle Eastern Churches and the city of Constantinople before its conquest by the Ottomans. As enemy forces were gathering at the gates, he wrote, “Byzantine theologians were arguing about the gender of angels.”

Every two years, Pew Research Centre analyzes the religious affiliation of members of the incoming Congress. This report is the eighth in the series, which started with the 111th Congress that began in 2009.
Data on members of Congress comes from CQ Roll Call, which surveys members about their demographic characteristics, including religious affiliation. Centre researchers then code the data so that Congress can be compared with U.S. adults overall. For example, members of Congress who tell CQ Roll Call they are “Southern Baptists” are coded under the broader “Baptists” category.
Data in this report covers voting members of Congress sworn in on Jan. 3, 2023. This analysis includes 534 members of Congress rather than the full 535 because Congressman Donald McEachin of Virginia’s 4th District was reelected in November but died before the swearing-in; his seat will go unfilled until a February special election.
Data for all U.S. adults comes from multiple sources, including Pew Research Center’s 2021 National Public Opinion Reference Survey (NPORS), conducted May 29-Aug. 25, 2021; a survey on the Center’s American Trends Panel conducted Sept. 20-26, 2021; and the Center’s survey of Jewish Americans conducted Nov. 19, 2019-June 3, 2020. Here is more information about how Pew Research Center measures the religious composition of the United States.

I am thrilled whenever a biblical archeological discovery is reported by the secular news. Here are four reasons why people with faith in Almighty God should celebrate such reports.
First, “affirming” physical evidence makes the Word of God less of a “fairy tale” — a phrase used by my deceased atheist sister, to describe the Bible. (God rest her soul.)
Second, excavations can spark biblical interest among academics or anyone who enjoys ancient history — even those without faith who would never pick up a Bible.
Third, a repeat from Vol. 126: ”What the Bible Says about Burnt Offerings” — relevant to today’s study passage:
“Decades ago, I heard a mega-church pastor say, ‘Archaeology has never disproved the Bible,’ and it resonated with me. Then, researching this study [Vol. 126], I found two confirming articles. First from Smithsonian Magazine: ‘An Archaeological Dig Reignites the Debate Over the Old Testament’s Historical Accuracy’ — and a quote grabbed my attention:
“ ‘This trend of archaeology corroborating Biblical accounts continued so consistently that in 1959 Rabbi Dr. Nelson Glueck declared ‘no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.’ Since then, the evidence has kept coming.
“The second article is from Newsweek (of all places), by celebrated writer Eric Metaxas titled, ‘Is Archaeology Proving the Bible?’ Metaxas wrote: ‘Archaeology has been pointing to the accuracy of the Hebrew scriptures for 170 years.’ “
Fourth, as technology advances, expect new techniques to yield more discoveries confirming the Bible. (Maybe even the “Ark of the Covenant,” but without Harrison Ford.)
And, on a personal note, this past summer in Jerusalem, my husband and I visited the Pool of Siloam, thus more excavations are welcome news.
Now, let’s take a quick dip into the Pool of Siloam and discuss the key takeaways from John: 9 — a miraculous two-part story. First, “Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind,” the subhead for verses 1-12. The second subhead for verses 13 – 41 is “The Pharisees Investigate the Healing.”

The Catholic bishops of Brazil condemned the violent seizure on Jan. 8 of Congress, the president’s office, and the Supreme Court in Brasilia, the country’s capital.
According to Globo TV, these three branches of the Brazilian government are already under the control of law enforcement. There are also dozens of detainees.
“The National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB), disconcerted by the serious and violent events in Brazil, calls for tranquility and peace, as well as the immediate cessation of criminal attacks on the democratic rule of law,” the prelates said on Twitter.
“These attacks must be immediately contained and their organizers and participants held accountable to the full extent of the law. Citizens and democracy must be protected,” the conference stressed.
A large crowd, presumably supporters of now former President Jair Bolsonaro, seized on Sunday various areas of the National Congress, the Federal Supreme Court, and Planalto Palace (the president’s workplace), which together comprise the seat of the Brazilian government.
Last October, Bolsonaro narrowly lost a bid for a second term as president to leftist Lula da Silva, who was sworn into office Jan. 1 and had previously served as Brazil’s president from 2003 to 2011.

Prominent Australians have paid tribute to Cardinal George Pell as local political leaders ruled out the possibility of a state funeral.
While former prime ministers of the country hailed Pell as a “great son” of Australia and an important figure in the nation’s intellectual and cultural life, the premiers of two Australian states — New South Wales and Victoria — said they would not be granting state funeral honours to Pell following the cardinal’s death in Rome on Jan. 10 at the age of 81.
In Victoria — which encompasses Melbourne, whose archdiocese Pell led from 1996 to 2001 — Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed that there would be no state memorial service and linked his announcement to the clerical abuse scandals of recent decades.
“I couldn’t think of anything that would be more distressing for victim-survivors than that,” he said Jan. 12, adding that he was unlikely to attend the cardinal’s memorial.
Some sections of Australian media and society have continued to link Pell’s legacy to his 2017 trial on charges of sexual abuse, despite the High Court acquitting him of all charges in 2020, after the cardinal had spent more than 400 days in solitary confinement.

In a final message before his death, a conservative cardinal excoriates Pope Francis’ upcoming Synod on Synodality as a “toxic nightmare.”
The Spectator published Cdl. George Pell’s posthumous article, which is entitled ”The Catholic Church must free itself from this ‘toxic nightmare.’” As a member of the pontiff’s council of cardinals and the former Vatican prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Pell was a close associate of the holy father.
Pell, who died unexpectedly on January 10 quips, “The Catholic Synod of Bishops is now busy constructing what they think of as ‘God’s dream’ of synodality. Unfortunately this divine dream has developed into a toxic nightmare despite the bishops’ professed good intentions.”
He blasted the Vatican’s 45-page working document for the continental stage of the synod process and pleaded with faithful bishops to take action before it’s too late.
“With no sense of irony, the document is entitled ‘Enlarge the Space of Your Tent’, and the aim of doing so is to accommodate, not the newly baptised — those who have answered the call to repent and believe — but anyone who might be interested enough to listen,” Pell declares.

The United States has expanded its list of the world’s worst violators of religious freedom.
Two new nations—Cuba and Nicaragua—were added  to the State Department’s list of Countries of Particular Concern (CPC). Two others—Vietnam and the Central African Republic (CAR)—were added to its Special Watch List (SWL). And one new organization was added to its list of Entities of Particular Concern (EPC): Russia’s mercenary Wagner group, due to its cited offenses in CAR.
“Around the world, governments and non-state actors harass, threaten, jail, and even kill individuals on account of their beliefs,” stated Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State. “The United States will not stand by in the face of these abuses.”
His own watchdog, however, is unconvinced.
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) tweeted its “outrage” over the non-inclusion of Nigeria and India. It is “inexplicable,” the independent bipartisan organization continued, given the State Department’s own reporting.
The sections on Nigeria and India were particularly lengthy.
“They each clearly meet the legal standards for designation,” stated Nury Turkel, USCIRF chair. “USCIRF is tremendously disappointed that the Secretary of State did not … recognize the severity of the religious freedom violations.”
Afghanistan — No. 1 on WWL, North Korea — No. 2, Eritrea — No. 6, Pakistan — No. 8
Iran — No. 9, Saudi Arabia — No. 11, Myanmar — No. 12, China — No. 17, Turkmenistan — No. 25, Cuba — No. 37, Tajikistan — No. 45

Rhoda Jatau, a Christian and mother of five, was charged with blasphemy in a Nigerian court on December 19 for forwarding a video defending a lynched Christian student.
During her arraignment on Monday, Jatau was officially charged with blasphemy, inciting a mob, and exciting contempt of religious creed.
She is being tried in the northeast Nigerian state of Bauchi’s high court. Bauchi practices a form of Sharia law, under which blasphemy is a crime punishable by execution.
Jatau, a 45-year-old medical worker, was arrested by Nigerian authorities on May 20 and has been held without the ability to communicate and without a trial for over six months, which is against both Nigerian and international law, according to religious rights advocates.
Jatau was arrested after forwarding a video of a Muslim denouncing the mob killing of Nigerian Christian college student Deborah Emmanuel.

Jatau forwarded the video defending Emmanuel via Whatsapp to her work colleagues at the Primary Healthcare Board of the town of Warji. Some of her co-workers reported the video and Jatau was subsequently accused of blasphemy.
According to local news source Light Bearer News, when news of Jatau’s actions reached the public many immediately called for her death. One Muslim group posted her photo online and called her “the one God has cursed.”

The Archdiocese of Guada-lajara, Mexico, has joined the Je-wish community to provide 40,000 Christmas dinners for the poor this Dec. 25 in an initiative called “10,000 Christmases in one.”
The event, which is being held for the fourth consecutive year, will bring food from 40 parishes and a shelter to those most in need in the Guadalajara metro-politan area.
Fr Javier Magdaleno Cueva, secretary chancellor of the Arch-diocese of Guadalajara, said at a press conference that this initia-tive seeks to “bring hope to those whose lives have been difficult or who have suffered that year.”
He also noted that the number of people who benefit from this event increases every year.
The first year, the organizers of “10,000 Christmases in one” set a goal of serving 10,000 people, and they ended up providing dinners to 13,000. By 2021, the projected number of beneficiaries was 20,000 people. However, they provided dinners to 30,000. This year, the estimated number of people that will be served by this initiative is 40,000.