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In 2017, the Church of Guam has been embroiled in accusations of sexual abuse brought to light, at least in part, by a backlash over the ascendance of Neocatechumenal Way, a global, lay Catholic movement that operates in many parishes on the island.

The island and Catholic cultures of Guam, a U.S. territory, are shaped by the legacy of the Chamorro people, the original settlers; by 200 years of Spanish rule that linked Guam to the Philippines and Mexico; and by more than a century of American influence.

In the days leading up to January 20, a number of churches in central Kerala are abuzz with activities to honor St. Sebastian. For many Catholics in the region, and some people from other faiths as well, St. Sebastian is regarded as the most powerful heavenly intercessor of all. Prayers to him are considered even more efficacious than those to Jesus and Mary. Accordingly, his parish feasts are among the most elaborate in Kerala, where annual parish feasts are an enormously important part of people’s religious lives. Why, of all the saints possible, an early Roman martyr-saint would garner that

Like Orthodox Christians, Ukrainian Catholics in Canada celebrate the Nativity according to the old Julian calendar, on January 6. The celebration of the Incarnation traditionally begins at home with a 12-course meal that starts on Christmas Eve, January 6, as soon as the youngest member of the family spots the first star in the evening sky.

Despite the recent reinstitution of church structures, unofficial places of worship have retained their popularity and are visited both en masse during seasonal pilgrimages and individually in times of difficulty and need.

Armenian Catholic churches are characterized by architectural simplicity. Most were built in the second half of the 19th century, after Armenian Catholics moved to the areas they now inhabit from Western Armenia, their historic homeland, which was then a part of the Ottoman Empire. The temples are usually hall churches, small in size, with stone walls and wooden roof structure. These humble buildings were erected from the meager funds of local rural communities. They traditionally have two entrances — one opposite the altar, the other on the side. In places where the old customs have been kept

After a period of persecutions in 1920-1930s, the Armenian Catholic Church was outlawed in Soviet Armenia and Georgia, and its believers were denied access to religious services. In Georgia, however, where a few local communities managed to save their churches from closure, people still gathered for common prayer. Since the late 1980s, when first Catholic priests returned to Armenia and Georgia, a difficult process of reestablishing parish communities and reviving devotional practices (such as receiving the sacraments or praying the Rosary) has started. Praying the Rosary is one of the most

Malolos is home to a revered image of the Santo Niño, but this feast is also notable because more than 200 other images of the Santo Niño, some traditional and some quite imaginative, are processed along with it.

A festive procession followed by high Mass celebrate the Santo Niño, the child Jesus, in Bustos, Bulacan on the third Sunday of January. Though not as large as the celebrations in Cebu and Malolos, the joyful feast in Bustos is important to local residents.

Outside the basilica year-round, tig sinulog women in yellow blouses and red skirts sell candles and pray to the Santo Niño on behalf of others, taking on the roles of “the spirit medium, the benign counselor, the friend, the grandmother, the servant, the withdrawn laborer.”