The modern Christmas themes of peace and joy were in short supply amid the ‘dislocation and danger’ of ancient Judea – as they are in today’s fractured world too.

At midnight on Christmas Eve, the hymn “The Night of Christmas” will ring out in Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity, built on the site where Christians believe Jesus was born BETHLEHEM, West Bank -- ...

Everyone is familiar with the general nativity story of Christmas, but what were the political and social conditions of Jesus' time?

Thousands flocked to Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas for the first time since the implementation of the U.S.-brokered Israel-Hamas peace deal. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who has served as the ...

Thousands of people flocked to Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Eve as families heralded a much-needed boost of holiday spirit. The giant Christmas tree that was absent during the Israel-Hamas ...

Thousands of people flocked to Bethlehem's Manger Square on Christmas Eve as families heralded a much-needed boost of holiday spirit. The giant Christmas tree that was absent during the Israel-Hamas ...

Professor Emerita of Christian Origins and Second Temple Judaism, and Honorary Professor of the Australian Catholic University, King's College London; Australian Catholic University Joan Taylor has ...

Archbishop Alexios stands in front of the bodies of Palestinian Christians Saad Salama and Foumia Ayyad, who were killed in ...

As familiar as the Christmas story of the baby born in a manger might be, it is also a cautionary tale for our age. The Roman Empire, a police state in its own right, had ordered that a census be ...

A file photo shows people visiting the Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square after Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Paul Haring) Every year we take out the nativity. We arrange it ...