Filipino devotees honor Jesus statue
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Tens of thousands barefoot Filipino Catholic devotees jostled for a chance to touch a black statue of Jesus in an annual procession Wednesday, seeking blessings or forgiveness for their sins.
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Pope John Paul II invites believers to display symbols of their faith with pride, despite recent rows.
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BETHLEHEM, West Bank  - Pilgrims gathered in Bethlehem on Monday for a Christmas mass promoted by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Western powers as a chance to highlight the benefits of peacemaking.
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Guam&#39;s Filipino community yesterday mourned the passing of Fernando Poe Jr., a popular action star who almost became Philippine president.
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LORETO, Italy -- A frail Pope John Paul II put three more Roman Catholics on the road to sainthood during a visit to a hilltop shrine yesterday, struggling at times but cheered on by 200,000 pilgrims.
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In Bosnia, where one man&#39;s hero is often another man&#39;s villain, some citizens have decided to honour one whom Serbs, Croats and Muslims can all look up to - the kung fu great Bruce Lee.
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The Catholic Church has issued guidelines on what Filipinos should wear to mass in Manila after some parishioners complained about distracting skimpy attire.
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Encouraged by renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, Christian pilgrims from around the world converged on Jesus' traditional birthplace Monday to celebrate Christmas Â a palpable contrast to the sparse crowds of recent years.
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IKITSUKI ISLAND, Japan  - One by one, the sacred relics -- a medal of the Virgin Mary, a crucifix and other revered objects -- are taken from a cupboard and placed on an altar for a Christmas Eve rite passed down through centuries from Japan's earliest Christians.
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Christians around the world have begun celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, with observances marking Christmas Eve. In Bethlehem, the town of Jesus&#39;s birth, Israel has relaxed travel restrictions
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Authorities estimated that more than 2.3 million worshippers had traveled by bus, car, bicycle to participate in the annual observance honoring the nation&#39;s patron saint.
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Filipinos mourned movie legend Fernando Poe Jr, who died on Tuesday after the actor who nearly unseated Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in May's presidential election suffered a stroke.
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Filipinos mourned the death of movie legend Fernando Poe Jr on Tuesday after the actor who nearly unseated Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in May's presidential election suffered a stroke at the weekend.
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As memorial posters of Yasser Arafat fade fast in Bethlehem&#39;s Manger Square, Palestinians in the birthplace of Jesus dare to hope this Christmas will not be as bleak as the last few.
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Joseph Estrada, jailed former leader of the Philippines, came home to a hero's welcome on Friday as President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo faced criticism for pardoning the playboy movie star.
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worshipped the Virgin of Guadalupe on Sunday in much the same way that people of the Americas have honored her since the patron saint of the region first appeared to a poor Indian in Mexico in 1531.
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BETHLEHEM, West Bank  - Hundreds of millions around the world prepared Friday to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, a Christmas festival of religious joy for many and commercial excess for others, against a backdrop of continuing global security