Holy See

The hammer that laid Europe’s foundations

as europe passed the poignant milestone of november 11, it could have escaped no one’s attention what inspired the project to unite the cont...

‘Beauty can lead to faith’ – an interview with the director of the Vatican Museums

barbara jatta, the first woman to direct the vatican museums in their 512-year history, says that she grew up amid the smells of solvent. he...

Desmond O'Grady

It’s been a bad year for human rights. But there are still reasons to hope

"the people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” with those words ...

Benedict Rogers

The plot to depose Henry VIII

if a zealous priest called gregory botolph had guarded his tongue more carefully in holy week of 1540, england might well be a catholic coun...

Jack Scarisbrick

Where next for Ukraine's new Orthodox Church?

urgent restoration work is under way at st sophia cathedral in kiev. with its stunning 11th-century frescoes and mosaics, it is here that th...

Konstantin von Eggert

The staggering artistic legacy of Pope Julius II

pope julius ii, born giuliano della rovere, has come down to us as “the warrior pope”. this is with good reason: his pontificate, which last...

Stephen Withnell

Letters & emails

the true significance of altar rails sir – mr b robinson (letter, december 7) asks whether we can have our altar rails back. the answer is i...

The Catholic Herald

The CDF has been marginalised. Will Archbishop Scicluna's appointment reverse that?

if there was a catholic “man of the year” for 2018, many people’s candidate would be archbishop charles scicluna of malta. or perhaps “firem...

Fr Raymond de Souza

Despite the superficial materialism, December in New York is still magical

The secular hijacking of Christmas can be frustrating, but beneath the glitter and sentimentality are love and happiness

Diary: Introducing Americans to the three-hour lunch

when the catholic herald team arrived to launch our 130-year-old magazine in america, i thought we were primarily on an intellectual mission...