Baptism Transforms Your Soul the Way Christmas Transformed the World...
The Christmas season is officially over this Sunday on the The Baptism of the Lord (Year A). In our house, that means the decorations come down (see this special prayer). The house goes from glistening with beauty and mystery to an ordinary-looking home again. The good news is that Christmas, with its the grace and wonder, won’t go away; it will just move deeper inside, down in the basement of the house, and into the hearts of the family. That’s what baptism does...
5 Takeaways From Pope Leo’s First ‘State of the World’ Address...
Break’s Over, Leo’s Law, and the Freedom of Red Trousers...
As much as I enjoy and look forward to the annual Christmas break, by the end I am genuinely eager to get back into the ordinary swing of things. Indeed, this Sunday closes the liturgical season with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, after which we find ourselves once again in Ordinary Time, an easily misunderstood season and one which I try to give its proper due every January.
How James Garfield’s 1881 Assassination Gave Birth to the American News Cycle...
Why your early 2000s photos are probably lost forever — and how to protect what you have...
5 Reasons Why the Past Success Of Your Parish May Be Your Biggest Problem...
A parish built on the successes of past generations may actually be in trouble today because of those successes. That may sound strange—even ungrateful. After all, many of our parishes were built by faithful Catholics who sacrificed, prayed, and served generously. We inherited schools, buildings, programs, and traditions that once bore tremendous fruit...
Blessed Pauline-Marie Jaricot, the Young Laywoman Who Reignited the Church’s Missionary Zeal...
Last weekend, spread across three locations, 26,000 young adults gathered for SEEK, the annual conference sponsored by FOCUS (the Fellowship of Catholic University Students), to learn and celebrate the faith, to adore the Eucharistic Jesus, and to be inspired to live as missionary disciples. They showed what several popes and scores of youth ministers...
Take 5 Minutes to Pray St. Elizabeth of the Trinity’s ‘Oblation to the Blessed Trinity’...
After ICE Shooting of U.S. Citizen, Minneapolis Archbishop Pleads for Prayers, Calm...
First Things First: What the Consistory Reveals About Pope Leo’s Priorities...
When Pope Leo XIV announced this week’s consistory in Rome — somewhat earlier and more unexpectedly than most Vatican watchers predicted — it sent ripples of surprise and speculation through the Church. Yet perhaps the consistory shouldn’t surprise us at all. In fact, it may well offer a window into the inner logic of a pontificate that is only beginning to reveal its shape.
Facing Impending Death, Dilbert Cartoonist Scott Adams Announces Conversion to Christianity...
Do the Stars Really Stand in Attendance?
Yesterday I experienced once again the astounding Byzantine liturgy of Epiphany. Among other things, there was the special blessing of water, wherein the entire natural world is invoked as a chorus of witnesses to its Creator. This gives occasion to ask whether we really see the natural world for what it is, or has our perception been dulled by a pervasive bad science, or our lack of attention, or some other cause.
“Christmas Is Over!” Scowled the Stranger Who Taught Me That It Never Really Is...
How to Deal With the ‘Sundown Scaries,’ When Your Problems Seem Bigger at Night...
Why wait a week for disappointment when you can lose the lottery every second?
Arthur Brooks at SEEK 2026: ‘Your Job Isn’t to Win Arguments, It’s to Win a Soul’...
Anointed Ones: A Reflection on the Baptism of the Lord...
Jesus presents himself for baptism in today’s Gospel not because He is a sinner, but to fulfill the word of God proclaimed by His prophets. He must be baptized to reveal that He is the Christ (“anointed one”)—the Spirit-endowed Servant promised by Isaiah in today’s First Reading. His baptism marks the start of a new world, a new creation...
The 4-Word Trick to Avoiding an Awkward Goodbye...
A Consistory to Revitalize the College of Cardinals...
How To Get Along With (Almost) Everybody...
Priest who spread holy water in end zone gets credit for Steelers win...
Indiana’s Star QB Fernando Mendoza: Meet the Heisman Trophy Winner Who Never Misses Sunday Mass...
From Franz Schubert to Roger Staubach: The Hail Mary Through History...
Pope Leo XIV Ends 2025 Urging Catholics to Examine Conscience and Entrust the New Year to God...
Jan. 1 Mass Readings: Follow Mary, Mother of God, and Mary of ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’...
More Than 3 Million Faithful Visited the Vatican in 2025, Says Papal Household...
4 Habits to Help You Get Along Better With Others...
The Day Our Daughter Disappeared...
Ranked: The World’s 30 Largest Cities by Population...
The Family That Prays Together Grows Holy Together...
On Feast of the Holy Family, Pope Leo XIV Warns Against the ‘Herods’ That Threaten Families Today...
Cardinal Reina Closes Holy Door at St. John Lateran, Urges Rome to Live Jubilee’s Mercy...
When does Christmas really end?
Theophany Night at the Museum: A Church Comes to Life...
“Christ is baptized ... in the Jordan!” So rang out the liturgy on Jan. 6 ... at the Canadian Museum of History. Both the place and the time would have surprised most (Latin-rite) Catholics in Canada. But not Ukrainian Catholics, who have their own distinctive calendar. And local Ukrainian Catholics in Ottawa know that once a year for “Theophany” (“Epiphany”), their Divine Liturgy is celebrated at the museum...
Looking to the East for Liturgical Peace...
You’re Not Abandoned in the Hardest Moments...
When most people think about where God is, they look to the sky or point to a mountaintop. God is ON HIGH. But the reality of the incarnation flips that vision upside down. Christ dwelt among us. God came to the lowest of places to meet us in our brokenness and heal our sin. Did you know the spot where Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River is literally one of the lowest places on earth? That can't be an accident...
Pope decries abuse of political power in ‘State of the World’ address...
“War is back in vogue and the zeal for war is spreading,” Pope Leo XIV said in a January 9 speech to the Vatican diplomatic corps. Basing his address on the thought of St. Augustine, the Pontiff made an appeal for a new approach to international collaboration, which “cannot depend on mere circumstances and military or strategic interests.” The annual audience at which the Roman Pontiff speaks to the diplomats...
The 5 Tallest Skyscrapers in the World, and the Kilometer-High Colossus Still Rising...
‘State of the World’: Address to Members of the Diplomatic Corps Accredited to the Holy See...
I would like to thank His Excellency Ambassador George Poulides, dean of the Diplomatic Corps, for his kind and respectful words on your behalf. I welcome all of you to this meeting for the exchange of greetings at the beginning of the new year. This is a traditional occasion in the life of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See; but it is a new experience for me...
The Solemnity of the Epiphany and What We Know About the Three Wise Men...
Epiphany means “manifestation.” Traditionally this feast is observed twelve days after Christmas on January 6, although in the United States it is typically moved to the nearest Sunday. The Epiphany is a very ancient part of the Church’s liturgical calendar—even older than the celebration of Christmas...
Pope Leo XIV Announces Plan to Hold Annual Consistories Beginning in June...
Liturgy Sidestepped at Pope Leo XIV’s First Consistory...
Some cardinals and faithful who have a devotion to the traditional Roman rite have expressed concern that the liturgy appears to be sidelined in the extraordinary consistory currently underway at the Vatican after the cardinals voted to give priority to other issues on the agenda. In his opening address to the consistory yesterday...
Leo’s Consistory, Francis’ Legacy...
When Movie Stars Face Mortality...
Reject Sameness. It’s the Key to Preserving Marriage...
The idea that marriage is simply a kind of equal partnership between a man and woman is a model that Western culture purchased a long time ago and at a high price. Such a pattern isn’t a model for integrating a family together into an organic unit but is a road map for divorce with divisions from the start. Separate responsibilities, career goals, and bank accounts make it a challenge to truly weave a couple together...
Grok’s Not Sorry, The News, and 20-Year Advice...
God Desires Constant, Loving Communication With You — So Listen...
Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication Launches New ‘Pray With the Pope’ Project...
Cardinals Gather in Rome for First Extraordinary Consistory of Pope Leo XIV...
Russell Shaw, Veteran Catholic Journalist and Author, Dies at 90...
Cutting Off Contact With Your Parents Is Identity Politics, Not ‘Boundaries’...
Roman generals gave kittens and piglets as gifts to their pet monkeys...
From Stars to Stable: Augustine, Astrology, and the True Light of Christmas...
How Can Angels and Demons Fight if They Don’t Have Bodies?
Pope Leo XIV Closes St. Peter’s Holy Door, Concluding Jubilee of Hope...
Live Updates: US Strikes Venezuela, Captures Maduro...
Pope Leo XIV Surprises SEEK26 Attendees With Message: ‘What Do You Seek?’...
The Top 25 National Catholic Register Stories of 2025...
It happened again: Why would anyone want to edit ‘It’s a Wonderful Life?’...
Keeping the Heat On: How Finances Work in the Diocese of Fairbanks...
US Executions Rise in 2025 Amid Shifting Public Opinion...
Secularism, Security, and ‘Civilizational Erasure’...
South Korea is choosing self-destruction — and the world should learn its lesson...
Surviving Your Current Chaos With Confidence...
This Sunday: Mary and Joseph Reveal the High Purpose and Hard Work of Family Life...
Architect Frank Gehry and the Cathedral That Might Have Been...
What are plenary indulgences and how can I get TWO this New Year’s?
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The Complete List of Popes
- St. Peter (32-67)
- St. Linus (67-76)
- St. Anacletus (Cletus) (76-88)
- St. Clement I (88-97)
- St. Evaristus (97-105)
- St. Alexander I (105-115)
- St. Sixtus I (115-125)
- St. Telesphorus (125-136)
- St. Hyginus (136-140)
- St. Pius I (140-155)
- St. Anicetus (155-166)
- St. Soter (166-175)
- St. Eleutherius (175-189)
- St. Victor I (189-199)
- St. Zephyrinus (199-217)
- St. Callistus I (217-22)
- St. Urban I (222-30)
- St. Pontian (230-35)
- St. Anterus (235-36)
- St. Fabian (236-50)
- St. Cornelius (251-53)
- St. Lucius I (253-54)
- St. Stephen I (254-257)
- St. Sixtus II (257-258)
- St. Dionysius (260-268)
- St. Felix I (269-274)
- St. Eutychian (275-283)
- St. Caius (283-296)
- St. Marcellinus (296-304)
- St. Marcellus I (308-309)
- St. Eusebius (309 or 310)
- St. Miltiades (311-14)
- St. Sylvester I (314-35)
- St. Marcus (336)
- St. Julius I (337-52)
- Liberius (352-66)
- St. Damasus I (366-84)
- St. Siricius (384-99)
- St. Anastasius I (399-401)
- St. Innocent I (401-17)
- St. Zosimus (417-18)
- St. Boniface I (418-22)
- St. Celestine I (422-32)
- St. Sixtus III (432-40)
- St. Leo I (the Great) (440-61)
- St. Hilarius (461-68)
- St. Simplicius (468-83)
- St. Felix III (II) (483-92)
- St. Gelasius I (492-96)
- Anastasius II (496-98)
- St. Symmachus (498-514)
- St. Hormisdas (514-23)
- St. John I (523-26)
- St. Felix IV (III) (526-30)
- Boniface II (530-32)
- John II (533-35)
- St. Agapetus I (535-36)
- St. Silverius (536-37)
- Vigilius (537-55)
- Pelagius I (556-61)
- John III (561-74)
- Benedict I (575-79)
- Pelagius II (579-90)
- St. Gregory I (the Great) (590-604)
- Sabinian (604-606)
- Boniface III (607)
- St. Boniface IV (608-15)
- St. Deusdedit (Adeodatus I) (615-18)
- Boniface V (619-25)
- Honorius I (625-38)
- Severinus (640)
- John IV (640-42)
- Theodore I (642-49)
- St. Martin I (649-55)
- St. Eugene I (655-57)
- St. Vitalian (657-72)
- Adeodatus (II) (672-76)
- Donus (676-78)
- St. Agatho (678-81)
- St. Leo II (682-83)
- St. Benedict II (684-85)
- John V (685-86)
- Conon (686-87)
- St. Sergius I (687-701)
- John VI (701-05)
- John VII (705-07)
- Sisinnius (708)
- Constantine (708-15)
- St. Gregory II (715-31)
- St. Gregory III (731-41)
- St. Zachary (741-52)
- Stephen II (III) (752-57)
- St. Paul I (757-67)
- Stephen III (IV) (767-72)
- Adrian I (772-95)
- St. Leo III (795-816)
- Stephen IV (V) (816-17)
- St. Paschal I (817-24)
- Eugene II (824-27)
- Valentine (827)
- Gregory IV (827-44)
- Sergius II (844-47)
- St. Leo IV (847-55)
- Benedict III (855-58)
- St. Nicholas I (the Great) (858-67)
- Adrian II (867-72)
- John VIII (872-82)
- Marinus I (882-84)
- St. Adrian III (884-85)
- Stephen V (VI) (885-91)
- Formosus (891-96)
- Boniface VI (896)
- Stephen VI (VII) (896-97)
- Romanus (897)
- Theodore II (897)
- John IX (898-900)
- Benedict IV (900-03)
- Leo V (903)
- Sergius III (904-11)
- Anastasius III (911-13)
- Lando (913-14)
- John X (914-28)
- Leo VI (928)
- Stephen VIII (929-31)
- John XI (931-35)
- Leo VII (936-39)
- Stephen IX (939-42)
- Marinus II (942-46)
- Agapetus II (946-55)
- John XII (955-63)
- Leo VIII (963-64)
- Benedict V (964)
- John XIII (965-72)
- Benedict VI (973-74)
- Benedict VII (974-83)
- John XIV (983-84)
- John XV (985-96)
- Gregory V (996-99)
- Sylvester II (999-1003)
- John XVII (1003)
- John XVIII (1003-09)
- Sergius IV (1009-12)
- Benedict VIII (1012-24)
- John XIX (1024-32)
- Benedict IX (1032-45)
- Sylvester III (1045)
- Benedict IX (1045)
- Gregory VI (1045-46)
- Clement II (1046-47)
- Benedict IX (1047-48)
- Damasus II (1048)
- St. Leo IX (1049-54)
- Victor II (1055-57)
- Stephen X (1057-58)
- Nicholas II (1058-61)
- Alexander II (1061-73)
- St. Gregory VII (1073-85)
- Blessed Victor III (1086-87)
- Blessed Urban II (1088-99)
- Paschal II (1099-1118)
- Gelasius II (1118-19)
- Callistus II (1119-24)
- Honorius II (1124-30)
- Innocent II (1130-43)
- Celestine II (1143-44)
- Lucius II (1144-45)
- Blessed Eugene III (1145-53)
- Anastasius IV (1153-54)
- Adrian IV (1154-59)
- Alexander III (1159-81)
- Lucius III (1181-85)
- Urban III (1185-87)
- Gregory VIII (1187)
- Clement III (1187-91)
- Celestine III (1191-98)
- Innocent III (1198-1216)
- Honorius III (1216-27)
- Gregory IX (1227-41)
- Celestine IV (1241)
- Innocent IV (1243-54)
- Alexander IV (1254-61)
- Urban IV (1261-64)
- Clement IV (1265-68)
- Blessed Gregory X (1271-76)
- Blessed Innocent V (1276)
- Adrian V (1276)
- John XXI (1276-77)
- Nicholas III (1277-80)
- Martin IV (1281-85)
- Honorius IV (1285-87)
- Nicholas IV (1288-92)
- St. Celestine V (1294)
- Boniface VIII (1294-1303)
- Blessed Benedict XI (1303-04)
- Clement V (1305-14)
- John XXII (1316-34)
- Benedict XII (1334-42)
- Clement VI (1342-52)
- Innocent VI (1352-62)
- Blessed Urban V (1362-70)
- Gregory XI (1370-78)
- Urban VI (1378-89)
- Boniface IX (1389-1404)
- Innocent VII (1404-06)
- Gregory XII (1406-15)
- Martin V (1417-31)
- Eugene IV (1431-47)
- Nicholas V (1447-55)
- Callistus III (1455-58)
- Pius II (1458-64)
- Paul II (1464-71)
- Sixtus IV (1471-84)
- Innocent VIII (1484-92)
- Alexander VI (1492-1503)
- Pius III (1503)
- Julius II (1503-13)
- Leo X (1513-21)
- Adrian VI (1522-23)
- Clement VII (1523-34)
- Paul III (1534-49)
- Julius III (1550-55)
- Marcellus II (1555)
- Paul IV (1555-59)
- Pius IV (1559-65)
- St. Pius V (1566-72)
- Gregory XIII (1572-85)
- Sixtus V (1585-90)
- Urban VII (1590)
- Gregory XIV (1590-91)
- Innocent IX (1591)
- Clement VIII (1592-1605)
- Leo XI (1605)
- Paul V (1605-21)
- Gregory XV (1621-23)
- Urban VIII (1623-44)
- Innocent X (1644-55)
- Alexander VII (1655-67)
- Clement IX (1667-69)
- Clement X (1670-76)
- Blessed Innocent XI (1676-89)
- Alexander VIII (1689-91)
- Innocent XII (1691-1700)
- Clement XI (1700-21)
- Innocent XIII (1721-24)
- Benedict XIII (1724-30)
- Clement XII (1730-40)
- Benedict XIV (1740-58)
- Clement XIII (1758-69)
- Clement XIV (1769-74)
- Pius VI (1775-99)
- Pius VII (1800-23)
- Leo XII (1823-29)
- Pius VIII (1829-30)
- Gregory XVI (1831-46)
- Blessed Pius IX (1846-78)
- Leo XIII (1878-1903)
- St. Pius X (1903-14)
- Benedict XV (1914-22)
- Pius XI (1922-39)
- Pius XII (1939-58)
- St. John XXIII (1958-63)
- St. Paul VI (1963-78)
- John Paul I (1978)
- St. John Paul II (1978-2005)
- Benedict XVI (2005-2013)
- Francis (2013-2025)
- Leo XIV (2025—)
