A Catholic priest on Saturday said blessed palm fronds are not mere ornaments but a reminder to the faithful of the ...

JERUSALEM (AP) — Tens of thousands of people gathered at the holiest Jewish prayer site in Jerusalem on Tuesday for the traditional priestly blessing prayer.

The “Birkat Cohanim,” or Cohen’s blessing, is a ritual dating back to over 2,500 years ago when King Solomon’s Temple stood on the same site. The blessing is performed by Jewish men who can trace ...

Within Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and similar traditions, formal blessings of the church are performed by bishops, priests, and sometimes deacons, but as in many other religions ...

Learn about the annual Chrism Mass and its role in Holy Week as Bishop Brennan consecrates chrism oil for diocesan churches.

1. Any priest may confer the blessings of the Church, except those reserved to the Pope, to bishops, or to others. * A reserved blessing which is conferred by a priest who does not have the ...