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For Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, the love that teens showed for the Eucharist at Lucas Oil Stadium in November during a night of adoration and the closing Mass at the National Catholic Youth Conference in Indianapolis was a preview of the National Eucharistic Congress to be held in the same city and stadium July 17-21 next year.

For Kendra Tierney, a Catholic author and mother of 10, the Advent season leading up to Christmas is like preparing to give birth.

This December, when Catholic villagers in northern Ivory Coast are preparing for Christmas, many will be organizing Advent food and supplies for the nearly 42,000 refugees who have fled into their country from the Sahel, said the head of the Commission of Integral Human Development for the bishops of Ivory Coast.

"Waiting is one of the watchwords of the liturgical season of Advent, which we begin today," Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services told the faithful gathered for Mass Dec. 3, the first Sunday of Advent, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

The Christmas season can be challenging for those in addiction recovery, but sacramental grace and practical strategies can keep those seeking sobriety on track, pastoral experts told OSV News.

Over the last several years, one of the largest efforts in the history of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has been underway to listen and give voice to the faithful, said Jean Houghton, director of the Office of Mission Advancement.

Pouring his talents into faith-based projects has been a driving force for Jeromy Darling since his conversion to Catholicism five years ago. “I made a decision that my charisms were not to be used for anything other than the kingdom, and I could no longer be a cog in the machine for some capitalist company looking to make someone else rich,” said Darling, 42, a father of four and member of Holy Cross in Minneapolis.

The world needs people to build alliances that are not against others, but are in favor of everyone, Pope Francis told faith leaders at the U.N. Climate Change Conference being held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.