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Today, Catholics are invited to take part in a day of prayer and fasting for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land, as war continues to devastate that region. The day of prayer comes amid the second week of war between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas, the latter of which launched a surprise attack on Israel October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,300 Israelis and international civilians.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255703/us-bishops-urge-faithful-to-join-in-day-of-prayer-and-fasting-for-peace-in-holy-land
Catholic Relief Services on Saturday called for “immediate humanitarian access” in the Gaza Strip as the war between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas continues to unfold after Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel earlier this month.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255701/catholic-relief-services-calls-for-immediate-humanitarian-access-to-gaza-strip
The bishop of Arras, France, Olivier Leborgne, condemned the murder of a teacher in an Islamist terrorist attack in which two other people were seriously wounded.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255704/islamist-kills-teacher-at-french-high-school-bishop-condemns-the-terrorist-attack
The latest full season of the hit Christian series “The Chosen” will be shown exclusively in theaters before its release on streaming services.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255705/the-chosen-announces-season-4-theatrical-release-new-trailer
Today the Church celebrates the early Church Father, bishop, and martyr Saint Ignatius of Antioch, whose writings attest to the sacramental and hierarchical nature of the Church from its earliest days. Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians celebrate his memory on December 20. Born in Syria in the middle of the first century AD, Ignatius is said to have been personally instructed – along with another future martyr, Saint Polycarp – by the Apostle Saint John. When Ignatius became the Bishop of Antioch around the year 70, he assumed leadership of a local church that was, according to tradition, first led by Saint Peter before his move to Rome. Although Saint Peter transmitted his Papal primacy to the bishops of Rome rather than Antioch, the city played an important role in the life of the early Church. Located in present-day Turkey, it was a chief city of the Roman Empire, and was also the location where the believers in Jesus' teachings and his resurrection were first called “Christians.” Saint Ignatius of Antioch bore witness to Christ publicly for the last time in Rome's Flavian Amphitheater, where he was mauled to death by lions. “I am the wheat of the Lord,” he had declared, before facing them. “I must be ground by the teeth of these beasts to be made the pure bread of Christ.”
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-ignatius-of-antioch-396