The Pope’s ambassador to Syria made an urgent appeal to the international community to lift the sanctions against the country in order to facilitate reconstruction.

In an interview with Vatican News, Cardinal Mario Zenari said that “a problem that has caused so much suffering has been solved. The decisive factor is that it happened without bloodshed”.

“In the first few hours, the rebels sought dialogue with the bishops in Aleppo and promised respect for religious diversity,” said the Apostolic Nuncio, who has been working in Syria since 2008.

“We hope that these promises will be honoured and that the international community will support the peaceful transition.”

According to estimates by religious experts, the proportion of Christians in Syria has recently fallen to less than 2% Before the start of the civil war in 2011, it was still 6%. Many Christians have left the country as a result of the ongoing violence.

UK authorities have introduced an indefinite ban on the use of so-called puberty blockers for under 18s.

The use of the drugs to repress the onset of puberty in children suffering with gender dysphoria has long been an issue of contention with critics arguing that the long term effects of their use is largely unknown.

Now UK health authorities say provisional emergency measures banning the sale and supply of puberty-suppressing hormones “will be made indefinite following official advice from medical experts”.

“The Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) has provided independent expert advice that there is currently an unacceptable safety risk in the continued prescription of puberty blockers to children. It recommends indefinite restrictions while work is done to ensure the safety of children and young people,” it said in a statement.

The number of births in the EU fell to 3,665,142 last year, the lowest since at least 1961 despite a much bigger population.

It marks a decline of 5.5pc from 2022, which was also the largest ever annual drop.

The worst affected EU countries suffered double-digit percentage falls in the number of children born, pointing to a growing demographic crisis.

In Romania, births fell by 13.9pc, in Poland 10.7pc and Czechia 10pc. All are at a record low.

Large wealthy European countries like France and Germany are also experiencing steep drops in the number of births, at respectively 6.6pc and 6.2pc.

Societies are ageing across the developed world. Fertility rates, which measure how many children women of childbearing age have on average, fell to a record low in England and Wales last year of 1.44. They are also at record lows in China and the US. The Irish fertility rate is now just 1.5, whereas the replacement rate is 2.1 children per woman.

North Korea is considered the “worst country in the world to be a Christian,” according to the latest report on religious freedom by the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

People in the totalitarian country are classified according to their loyalty to the state and “believers are automatically considered a ‘hostile class’ and subjected to relentless persecution.

In its report, ACN refers to the defectors who were repatriated in October 2023 and said there is cause for concern for those “who had interacted with Christians while they were outside the country. They were all sent to political prisoner camps, known for the harsh treatment of inmates there.”

The report notes that while many served reduced sentences, “those who came into contact with Christianity” were interned “in political prisoner camps, which is in fact a life sentence without parole”.

A Catholic missionary in Aleppo, Syria, sees reasons for hope, despite the fear many Christians have about Islamist groups.

Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the principal insurgent group, is formed by Sunni militants and led by a former member of Al Qaeda who cut ties with the Islamic radicals in 2016.

“In 2012, 2013, insurgent groups targeted Christians and other minorities in some regions. So, many people now feared that something like that could happen again and left their houses,” Argentinian-born Father Hugo Alaniz explained.

However, on Dec. 9, Alaniz and other religious leaders met with members of HTS. They were told that no church will be closed, and that Christians will be respected.

“They said that minorities will be treated well. Women will not be obliged to wear a hijab. The days off will be Thursdays and Fridays, but for Christian children they will remain Saturdays and Sundays,” Alaniz said.

“They apparently have good intentions. They told us that they will rule for the minorities. I hope so,” he said.

Bible sales are up 22% in the U.S. through the end of October, compared with the same period last year, according to book tracker Circana BookScan. By contrast, total U.S. print book sales were up less than 1% in that period.

The demand for Bibles is rising despite some evidence that the country is growing increasingly secularised.

The Pew Research Center found that about 28% of adults in the U.S. now consider themselves religiously unaffiliated. Yet Bible sales rose to 14.2 million in 2023 from 9.7 million in 2019, and hit 13.7 million in the first 10 months of this year. Readers are also stocking up on related titles that provide guidance, insights and context—even sets of stickers to flag particularly meaningful passages.

Publishers say the books are selling well at religious bookstores, but also on Amazon.com and at more mainstream retailers. People buy print copies to make notes in and highlight, but often supplement them with audiobooks as well.

Switzerland’s highest court has decided parents separated from their daughter for refusing to endorse her gender “transition” must enable their child’s legal “sex change” or face the possibility of criminal charges.

The parents argued that both the Swiss Federal Constitution and international law protected their right to act in their daughter’s best interest by not enabling the legal change.

But the Supreme Court has now rejected their appeal.

A further appeal to the European Court of Human Rights is being considered to protect the parents’ rights to care for their daughter without state interference.

The child’s father reacted to the ruling: “We are heartbroken. We love our daughter and only want what’s best for her. We know this decision is not in her best interest.

“That we could face criminal charges for simply trying to care for our daughter shows how deeply embedded transgender ideology is in Swiss institutions and the real harms it causes,” he said.

The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has said in a new report that Ireland’s rapidly ageing population is the foremost challenge facing the State, even ahead of the green energy transition.

However, it offered suggestions only on managing the financial fallout, rather than increasing the fertility rate. Ireland’s rate is now 1.5, well below the replacement level of 2.1.

The report, published last week, says the population aged 66 and over is set to almost double over the next 30 years. By contrast, the working age population will remain broadly stable. As a result, the number of workers for every pensioner is likely to fall from 3.5 to 3 by 2030 and to fall towards 2 by 2050.

“This transformation of the population is rapid by international standards,” the report warns, adding that it will put pressure on the state to provide more healthcare, long-term care and pension payments.

The report cautions that an older population will also mean slower growth in the economy, and hence in tax revenues. Under existing policies, it says this will push up Ireland’s debt ratio.

The report urges for “action sooner rather than later” because this will ultimately be less costly.

Fianna Fáil Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora, Sean Fleming, says he is “very honoured” to have been given a private audience with Pope Francis.

The meeting occurred during a visit to Rome and Vatican City on a diplomatic mission last week.

“I am very honoured to have a private audience with the Holy Father and to have the opportunity to recognise the role he and the Holy See plays in building peace,” Fleming said ahead of the trip, adding: “In an uncertain world, this work is more important than ever.”

He went on to highlight the deep historical connections between the Catholic faith and Irish culture.

“The people-to-people links between Ireland and Italy and the Vatican go back centuries,” he said.

Minister Fleming is also set to meet Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, to discuss bilateral relations and geopolitical matters.

A God-inspired sense of hope is necessary in our schools to combat the shadow of nihilism, according to a leading Catholic educationalist.

Speaking to The Irish Catholic, Sr Anne Neylon DC, Primary Diocesan Advisor, said: “That sense of nihilism in our world is erasing hope”.

 “To think that there are 250 million children globally without access to education is a terrible statistic. Some 250 million children and adolescents do not attend school.” She called on school leaders to remain “thirsty and have dreams.”

Ireland, Sr Anne said, has “a very good education system,” but faith must also be nurtured personally. “Taking personal responsibility for faith, taking time to reflect, and believing that God loves me as I am – it’s that simple.”

She also praised the example of saints, particularly Carlo Acutis, who she believes will inspire the young. “We need to avoid pessimism – it comes from secularism,” she said.

While acknowledging challenges in Ireland, including school closures, Sr Anne pointed the importance of collaboration between culture and education. “It takes each one of us to be responsible in our faith… The voice of God must be heard.”