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A nearly 150-year-old church in Beirut, Lebanon is due to reopen next month, after sustaining major damage in the port explosion last year. The Church of St. Joseph has been restored with funds from Aid to the Church in Need, a pontifical foundation. Located less than two miles from the port of Beirut, the church’s windows and wooden doors were destroyed by the explosion last August, which also damaged the pitched roof and lighting fixtures.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248126/beiruts-st-joseph-church-badly-damaged-in-port-explosion-to-reopen
The European Parliament voted Thursday in favor of a report describing abortion as “essential healthcare” and seeking to redefine conscientious objection as a “denial of medical care.” The report also declares that violations of “sexual and reproductive health and rights” are “a form of violence against women and girls.” Catholic leaders and pro-life groups had urged the European Parliament to reject the report, and Catholic bishops in Poland, and Ireland are already speaking out against it. The president of the European Parliament is expected to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248121/breaking-european-parliament-backs-extreme-abortion-report-despite-protests
The U.S. bishops’ conference on Thursday emphasized the need to welcome immigrants after the Supreme Court resolved a challenge to the Trump administration’s “Remain in Mexico” policy. The protocols, which the Biden administration ended earlier this month, required non-Mexican asylum-seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border to remain in Mexico while their requests were adjudicated in immigration court, which led to long waits in poor conditions at the border. However, the border remains closed to asylum-seekers due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248129/after-remain-in-mexico-policy-is-dismissed-usccb-urges-acceptance-of-migrants
A man who allegedly stole more than $250,000 from the cathedral in Lubbock, Texas, has been located in Colombia. The suspect managed the cathedral’s donations and its Venmo and PayPal accounts, and was allegedly embezzling the donations. The cathedral rector was not implicated in the theft, but resigned after its discovery. Federal officials have asked the Colombian government to detain the suspect through INTERPOL.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248135/lubbocks-catholic-cathedral-finds-250k-missing-fbi-finds-embezzlement-suspect-in-colombia
Today the Church honors St. William of Vercelli, an 11th-century noble who decided to dedicate his life to God as a hermit. While living as a hermit, he was credited with healing a blind man.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-william-of-vercelli-514