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Catholic Rituals and Ceremonies

Visual documentation of significant Catholic ceremonies and rituals, capturing moments of devotion, tradition, and community worship across diverse settings.

Pope Francis during his weekly general audience at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on March 20, 2024.
Pope Francis during his weekly general audience at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on March 20, 2024.
154 assets in this story
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Saint Nicolas church. Catholic mass. Procession. France.
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Coronavirus epidemic (Covid-19), Celebration of the Pentecost Mass after lockdown, Holy Communion, Saint Louis de Novel Church, Annecy, Haute Savoie, France, Europe
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PAPA FRANCISCO in IN VIAGGIO: THE TRAVELS OF POPE FRANCIS -Original title: IN VIAGGIO-, directed by GIANFRANCO ROSI.
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Madrid, 09/09/2021. Headquarters of the Spanish Episcopal Conference. Cardinal and Bishop Juan José Omella presents the pastoral plan of the Episcopal Conference at a press conference. The general secretary, Luis Argüello, attends. Photo: Guillermo Navarro. ARCHDC.
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Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken meets with Pope Francis, in Vatican City, the Holy See on June 28, 2021.
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Severe Storms and Tornadoes, Atlanta, GA, March 27, 2008 FEMA Community Relations Lead Officer Gene Autry speaks at a Town Hall Meeting held in downtown Atlanta to residents affected by the tornado that struck this neighborhood. Councilman Ivory Young (L) and church representatives (R) are also on stage at this multi-organization event. Robert Kaufmann/FEMA.. Photographs Relating to Disasters and Emergency Management Programs, Activities, and Officials
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Portrait of Priest
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Nunavut, Canada. 29th July, 2022. Pope Francis attends a meeting with Inuit people in Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada, on July 29, 2022. Pope Francis flew to the Canadian Arctic to meet Inuit survivors of Catholic-run schools where Indigenous children were abused over a span of decades, in the final stop of a landmark tour apologizing for the Church's role. Photo by Vatican Media /ABACAPRESS.COM Credit: Abaca Press/Alamy Live News
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Valencia, 07/08/2006. Pope Benedict XVI blesses a chalice held by the Archbishop of Valencia, Agustín García Gasco, during his visit to the Chapel of the Holy Chalice, in the Cathedral of Valencia. Photo: Rober Solsona ARCHDC.
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Basilica of Our Lady of La Vang. Catholic mass. Priest celebrating the Eucharist.. Vietnam.
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The Polish pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyla) visiting the village hit by the earthquake. A crowd of believers surrounds him. Balvano, 1980
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February 14, 2016; Mexico City, Mexico. Pope Francis riding in a Chrysler Jeep Wrangler popemobile speeds past crowds of waving Mexicans along a major avenue in Mexico City during his second full day of activities in the Mexican capital. Pope Francis spent 5 days in Mexico visiting cities all across Mexico recently torn by a brutal drug war, corruption, and economic problems.
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Mass in Saint Peters catholic church, Kibuye/Karongi, Rwanda.
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Mother Theresa, 1982. Mother Teresa (August 26, 1910 - September 5, 1997) was an Albanian-Indian Roman Catholic nun and missionary. In 1950 she founded the Missionaries of Charity. At the time of her death, the Missionaries of Charity had over 4,000 sisters and an associated brotherhood of 300 members operating 610 missions in 123 countries. The congregation manages homes for people dying of HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis; soup kitchens; dispensaries and mobile clinics; children's- and family-counselling programmes; orphanages, and schools. Members, who take vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience, also profess a fourth vow: to give "wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor". She received a number of honors, including the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize. She was canonized in 2016, and the anniversary of her death (September 5) is her feast day. A controversial figure during her life and after her death, Teresa was admired by many for her charitable work. She was praised and cri
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Knight of the Knights Hospitallers
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madrid, 4-12-2013.-interview with jose maria gil tamayo, secretary general of the episcopal conference.-photo ernesto acute.archdc.
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Madrid, 02/03/2020. Presentation of Rouco Varela's book "The family in the face of the challenge of secularization." Cardinal Rouco was accompanied in the presentation by Monsignor Martínez Camino and Rafael Sánchez Saus, among others. Photo: Isabel Permuy. ARCHDC.
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Madrid, 11/24/2011. Interview with the bishop of Solsona, Xavier Novell, the youngest in Spain. Photo: De San Bernardo. ARCHDC.
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Salamanca, 05/17/2022. Monsignor José Luis Retana, Bishop of Ciudad Rodrigo and Salamanca. He has very recently been commissioned to occupy the position of Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical University of Salamanca. Photo: Heras. ARCHDC.
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Vatican, Vatican. 27th July, 2022. Canada, Quebec City, 2022/07/27 P(L-R) Pope Francis (L) and Governor General of Canada Mary Simon (C) listen as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a meeting with civil authorities, representatives of Indigenous peoples, and members of the diplomatic corps at the Citadelle de Québec in Quebec City, Quebec, CanadaPhotograph by Vatican Mediia/Catholic Press Photo . RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. Credit: Independent Photo Agency/Alamy Live News
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Vatican, Vatican. 27th July, 2022. Canada, Quebec City, 2022/07/27 P(L-R) Pope Francis (L) and Governor General of Canada Mary Simon (C) listen as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a meeting with civil authorities, representatives of Indigenous peoples, and members of the diplomatic corps at the Citadelle de Québec in Quebec City, Quebec, CanadaPhotograph by Vatican Mediia/Catholic Press Photo . RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. Credit: Independent Photo Agency/Alamy Live News
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Pope Leo XIV is pictured at the end of his first weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on May 21, 2025.
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The Polish pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyla) visiting the village hit by the earthquake. A crowd of believers applauding him. Balvano, 1980
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Madrid, 04/03/2024. Spanish Episcopal Conference. Plenary Assembly of the Episcopal Conference. Meeting of archbishops and diocesan bishops; military archbishop; coadjutors and auxiliaries; apostolic and diocesan administrators; and the archbishops, titular bishops and emeritus bishops who perform a special function at the national level, entrusted by the Holy See or by the Episcopal Conference. The Apostolic Nuncio in Spain attends. Bishop Francisco César García Magán and Cardinal Juan José Omella. Photo: De San Bernardo. ARCHDC.
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Madrid, 06/03/2019. Interview with Father Alfonso Simón, author of the book El Paraíso Abierto. Photo: Isabel Permuy ARCHDC.
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Vatican, Vatican city, close-up of postcards with image of popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II
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Madrid, 03/14/2017. Ricardo Vázquez re-elected president of the Episcopal Conference. Photo: Ignacio Gil ARCHDC.
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Madrid, 03/03/2020. Press conference of the newly elected president of the Episcopal Conference, Juan José Omella, accompanied by the outgoing president, Ricardo Blázquez and José Gabriel Vera. Photo: Guillermo Navarro. ARCHDC.
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Archbishop Christopher M. Cardone delivers the invocation for the anniversary of the Battle of Guadalcanal at the Guadalcanal American Memorial in the Solomon Islands, Aug. 7, 2022. The ceremony commemorated the 80th anniversary of the battle, and served to honor the fallen and strengthen the U.S. relationship with the Solomon Islands and other Pacific allies and partners. The historic battle was codenamed Operation Watchtower and was the first major offensive and decisive victory for the allied forces in the Pacific theater.
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Madrid, 01/09/2020. Headquarters of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, on Añastro street, Arturo Soria. Press conference Together on the road + Q2, with the bishop of Bilbao, Mario Iceta, and the couple formed by Francisco Albalá and Toñi Caro. Photo: Guillermo Navarro. ARCHDC.
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Church, priest and man with bible, gospel and preacher with book for sermon, holy or spiritual. Worship, God and mature person with faith for ceremony, catholic and prayer with belief or Christianity
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AGUSTIN GONZALEZ in ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN (1995) -Original title: ASI EN EL CIELO COMO EN LA TIERRA-, directed by JOSE LUIS CUERDA.
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An Orthodox Priest blesses members of the media at the Baikonur Cosmodrome launch pad, Friday, July 19, 2019 in Kazakhstan. Expedition 60 Soyuz Commander Alexander Skvortsov of Roscosmos, flight engineer Andrew Morgan of NASA, and flight engineer Luca Parmitano of ESA (European Space Agency) are scheduled to launch to the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft on July 20.
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Vatican, Vatican. 24th July, 2022. Canada, Alberta, 2022/07/24 Pope Francis meets members of an indigenous tribe during his welcoming ceremony at Edmonton International Airport in Alberta, western Canada Photograph by Vatican Mediia/Catholic Press Photo. RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. Credit: Independent Photo Agency/Alamy Live News
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Madrid, 3/19/2012. The priest Santiago Martin Archdc.
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Deplaning cardinals, papal visit of Benedikt XVI, Altoetting, Bavaria, Germany, Europe
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Priest using laptop
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A priest points to the cross during Christmas mass in Wau, southern Sudan.
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Rose Hudson-Wilkin, bishop of Dover, standing in the Jesus chapel in Canterbury cathedral, Kent, England, U.K.
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Córdoba, 01/29/2024. Assembly of the Bishops of the South at the House of Spirituality of San Antonio. Photo: Valerio Merino. ARCHCOR.
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A portrait of a Russian priest on Olkhon Island, Siberia, Russia.
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Young priest uising mobile
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speech by Pope Francis in the Vatican, during the COVID-19 pandemic
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Madrid, October 26, 2014. Press conference by Carlos Osoro, new archbishop of Madrid. Photo: IGNACIO GIL....archdc.
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Sept. 24, 2015 His Holiness Pope Francis, with the Vice President and House Speaker John Boehner and the rest of the Escort Committee, delivers remarks from the Speaker’s balcony following a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol.”
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Christianity, pastor and preaching in church, religion and praying with microphone for faith or gospel. Podium, preacher and mature man with speech for Easter service, belief or sermon to worship God
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Huesca, 07/06/2016. Interview with Damián Iguacen Borau, bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Tenerife. At 100 years old, he is one of the oldest bishops in the Church. Photo: Fabián Simón ARCHDC.
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Minister in Church
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Pope John Paul II circling Crowd during Papal Mass, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York City, New York, USA, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, October 2, 1979
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Christianity, pastor and praying in church, belief and preaching with microphone for faith or gospel. Podium, preacher and mature man with speech for religion, Easter service or sermon to worship God
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Madrid, 03/03/2020. Press conference of the newly elected president of the Episcopal Conference, Juan José Omella, accompanied by the outgoing president, Ricardo Blázquez and José Gabriel Vera. Photo: Guillermo Navarro. ARCHDC.
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Madrid, 03/03/2020. Press conference of the newly elected president of the Episcopal Conference, Juan José Omella, accompanied by the outgoing president, Ricardo Blázquez and José Gabriel Vera. Photo: Guillermo Navarro. ARCHDC.
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The Walter Reed Facility Dogs along with the Red Cross Volunteer and patient service dogs (and their handlers and owners) assembled at the flagpole in front of Building 1 (The Tower) for the annual Blessing of the Dogs Ceremony on Tuesday, 18 October 2022. This marks the 16th year that this ceremony has taken place at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC).Officiating at this years ceremony were Chaplains Br. David W. Schlatter, and MAJ Robert W. Fry, USA, MEDCOM, both from the Department of Pastoral Care at WRNMMC.The ceremony is associated with Saint Francis of Assisi, whose patronage of animals and the natural environment made it customary for churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on or near his feast day of 4 October.(DoD Photographs by Harvey A. Duze - Office of Command Communications, WRNMMC)
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Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). Italian Dominican friar and Doctor of the Church. Engraving.