A girl sits near Christmas decorations in a basement used as a bomb shelter in Donetsk, Ukraine. CNS photo/Igor Tkachenko, Reuters ...read more

Nigerian Christians pray in the grotto of the Church of Nativity on Christmas Eve in Bethlehem, West Bank. CNS photo/Debbie Hill ...read more

Ukrainian Catholic Bishop Paul P. Chomnycky of Stamford, Conn., anoints a woman with holy oil after celebrating a Divine Liturgy marking the feast of the Nativity at St. George Ukrainian Catholic Church in New York. The parish follows the tradition of the church in Ukraine and celebrates Christmas according to the Julian calendar. CNS photo/Gregory ...read more

New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan blesses an inmate as he celebrates Christmas Eve Mass at Rikers Island correctional facility in New York Dec. 24, 2013. CNS photo/Lucas Jackson, Reuters ...read more

Families displaced by violence take shelter at the Don Bosco Catholic youth center in Bangui, Central African Republic, Christmas Day, 2013. CNS photo/Andrea Campeanu, Reuters ...read more

Devotees take part in a pre-dawn Mass, locally called “Misa de Gallo,” before Christmas at a church in Manila, Philippines, Dec. 16. The pre-dawn Mass is one of the most popular traditions among Filipinos during the Christmas season. CNS photo/Erik De Castro, Reuters ...read more

Iraqis re-enact the Nativity at Ainkawa refugee camp near Irbil, Iraq, Dec. 19, 2014. Christmas bells did not ring in Mosul and Christian villages last year for the first time in 1,600 years. CNS photo/Sahar Mansour ...read more

Last August, cameraman David Leross and I were in Vancouver for the CWL’s National Convention filming interviews for a special feature about the League called, Woman On A Mission. Here’s a little of what went on behind-the-scenes. One of the highlights of the Convention was Dr. Josephine Lombardi’s keynotes. As many of you already know, ...read more

Children return home after caroling on Christmas in Santa Rita de Castilla, a small town on the bank of the Maranon River in the Peruvian Amazon. CNS photo/Barbara Fraser ...read more

Choir members sing carols in front of a figure of Christ during Christmas Eve Mass at a Catholic church in Shenyang, China. CNS photo/Sheng Li, Reuters ...read more