The Vatican signed its first treaty with the "State of Palestine" last June when it called for moves to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and backed a two-state solution.
Even though he is already 97 years old, evangelist Billy Graham has proven that he can still lead the masses to Jesus Christ since he has just been named as one of the Gallup Poll's 10 Most Admired Men in America for the 59th consecutive time.
In many ways, Pope Francis revolutionized the Roman Catholic Church and made it possible for people from all walks of life to find an affinity with it.
For the eighth straight year, U.S. President Barack Obama ranked first in Gallup poll's annual list of most admirable men in the world, the result of which was released on Monday. But that's not the big story.
Pope Francis led the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics into Christmas on Thursday, urging those "intoxicated" by possessions and superficial appearances to return to the essential values of life.
The Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines warmly greeted the announcement from the Vatican that Mother Teresa was on her way to sainthood, with one bishop saying her canonisation will teach Filipinos to be more compassionate to the poor.