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Today, the Church celebrates Saint Conrad of Piacenza. Conrad was born into a noble family in northern Italy. Conrad was born into a noble family in northern Italy. He married the daughter of a nobleman, Euphrosyne. One day, while he was hunting, Conrad ordered his attendants to make a fire. The wind carried the flames, which set fire to nearby fields, forests, towns and villages. Upon seeing this, Conrad ran away in fear. Because he ran, an innocent man was convicted for spreading the fire and was condemned to death as punishment. Upon hearing of this, Conrad stepped forth to accept the blame, saving the innocent man's life. He paid for the damaged property and he and his wife gave everything they owned to the poor in recompense. Conrad then left to join a group of Franciscan hermits, and his wife joined the Poor Clares. Word eventually spread of Conrad's holiness, piety and gift of healing. When many visitors began to destroy his life of silence and solitude, he moved to Sicily where he lived and prayed as a hermit for 36 years. Legends say that when the Bishop of Syracuse visited him, the bishop asked Conrad if he had any food to offer guests. Conrad went to his cell and returned with newly made cakes, which the bishop accepted as a miracle. Conrad visited the bishop later to make a general confession to him. As he arrived, Conrad was surrounded by fluttering birds. Conrad died kneeling before a crucifix.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-conrad-of-piacenza-152

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

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The balcony floor of a Catholic church in the Philippines collapsed during Ash Wednesday Mass on February 14, leaving one woman dead and dozens injured. According to the Public Information Office (PIO) of the city of San José del Monte in the Philippine province of Bulacan, around 7 am local time the balcony of Saint Peter the Apostle Church collapsed, creating fear and chaos among the faithful attending the Mass on the first day of Lent. According to the PIO, witnesses heard a loud noise and then screams from the people who fell from the balcony and from some who were on the first floor, all participating in the Mass. According to the Philippine newspaper PhilStar, 52 people were injured and immediately taken to different local hospitals. So far, an 80-year-old woman died in the collapse.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256849/church-floor-in-philippines-collapses-on-ash-wednesday-killing-1-and-injuring-dozens

The Vatican Press Office reported February 15 that Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Cardinal José Luis Lacunza Maestrojuán as bishop of the Diocese of David in Panama, two weeks after his yet-to-be-explained disappearance, and named Father Luis Enrique Saldaña Guerra as his successor. The appointment occurs a few days before Lacunza turns 80 on February 24, the day on which he will cease to be an elector in a possible conclave to elect Pope Francis’ successor should he die or resign. On the morning of February 1, the Catholic Church in Panama reported that Lacunza had been missing since January 30. On February 4, the cardinal apologized for what had happened, although he did not explain what transpired. It is still not known precisely what happened to Lacunza or why the Catholic Church and civil authorities remain silent about it. Nor is it known what the cardinal’s “prank” may have been, as he himself described what took place.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256848/pope-francis-accepts-resignation-of-panamanian-cardinal-who-went-missing

The theme for the fourth World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, which will be celebrated on July 28, has been chosen by Pope Francis.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256843/world-day-for-grandparents-and-the-elderly-highlights-loneliness-throwaway-culture

Bishop Peter Muhich of the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota, announced Wednesday he will be moving soon into hospice care amid treatment for esophogeal and lymphatic cancer.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256850/rapid-city-bishop-says-he-will-move-to-hospice-amid-cancer-fight

Following a shooting in downtown Kansas City yesterday afternoon during a packed Super Bowl victory rally, nearly two dozen people were injured. The lone fatality was Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a local radio DJ and a parishioner at Sacred Heart-Guadalupe Parish in Kansas City.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256847/catholic-mother-killed-in-shooting-at-kansas-city-chiefs-victory-parade

Today, the Church celebrates Saint Onesimus, a slave to Philemon, an influential man who had been converted by Saint Paul. Onesimus offended Philemon and fled in order to escape any sort of retribution. He then met Saint Paul while Paul was in a Roman prison. Shortly after, Onesimus was baptized and later was martyred.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-onesimus-149

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

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The unveiling process for the newly rebuilt spire of Paris’ legendary Notre Dame Cathedral began this week, with the process expected to be completed in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics in July. The cathedral has been closed ever since a devastating fire April 15, 2019, saw the spire crash through the centuries-old timber roof. Deconstruction of the scaffolding surrounding the spire — which reaches 330 feet in height — will take several months. The spire’s new cross was mounted on December 6, 2023, and on December 16 a golden rooster — a symbol of France — was blessed and added, replacing one that was destroyed in the fire. The spire was not original to the 800-year-old structure, having been added during a 19th-century renovation.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256836/notre-dame-cathedral-spire-to-be-unveiled-nearly-five-years-after-devastating-fire

Nearly three dozen Christians have lost their lives in the Gaza Strip since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war last October, a Christian aid group in the region said this week.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256828/nearly-3-dozen-christians-have-died-in-gaza-strip-amid-israel-hamas-war-aid-group-says

Pope Francis will become the first pope to visit the prestigious Venice Biennale art exhibition when he travels to the “city of canals” this spring.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256826/pope-francis-to-visit-prestigious-venice-biennale-art-exhibition

A local police investigation into the vandalization of a Blessed Virgin Mary statue outside a Catholic charitable group’s headquarters in Nebraska is currently listed as “inactive” after police were unable to identify the perpetrator, even though one of the building’s security cameras caught the vandal on video. Katie Patrick, executive director of Catholic Social Services, told CNA that this was the first time an incident such as this had occurred on their campus.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256834/police-drop-investigation-into-vandalization-of-nebraska-blessed-mother-statue

Today, the Church celebrates Saint Claude de la Colombière, the 17th century French Jesuit who authenticated and wrote about Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque's visions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-claude-de-la-colombiere-148

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

www.catholicnewsagency.com

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After serving as a museum for more than 79 years, the Turkish government is proceeding with plans to make the Church of the Holy Savior in Istanbul a mosque. Mirroring the 2020 reversion of the Hagia Sophia, prayers and Islamic rites will be performed once again in the ancient church, according to Fides, the information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies. The Church of the Holy Savior, also known as Chora Church, is recognized as one of the most important Byzantine gems in the world and is adorned with many unique icons and frescoes. The museum-to-mosque conversion project began in 2020, with plans to implement it by October of that year. Restoration work delayed the project. Sitting in the northeast of Istanbul’s historic center near Adrianople Byzantine Gate, the Church of the Holy Savior was built in the 12th century and restored in the early 14th century.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256813/another-byzantine-era-church-in-turkey-to-revert-to-mosque

Major expansions are coming to the Benedictine-run Belmont Abbey College after the North Carolina school quickly hit its fundraising goal of $100 million two years ahead of schedule.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256821/major-expansions-coming-to-belmont-abbey-college-after-fundraising-feat

Men and women who are married and who attend church regularly are among the happiest couples, according to data compiled by a prominent sociological professor.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256819/married-churchgoing-couples-among-the-happiest-data-says

A religious freedom advocate from Hong Kong is warning that proposed legislation could further restrict religious liberty and lead to the persecution of the Catholic Church and other Christians.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256822/hong-kong-activist-proposed-law-could-worsen-religious-liberty-persecute-catholics

Today, the Church celebrates Saints Cyril and Methodius, who are called the “Apostles of the Slavs” for their tireless work in spreading the Gospel throughout Eastern Europe in the ninth century. Such was their influence in Church history, through their evangelization efforts, that the late Pope John Paul II named the two brothers the patron saints of Europe along with fifth century monastic leader Saint Benedict. Cyril and Methodius' missionary work among the Slavs laid the essential foundation for the later Christianization of Ukraine and Russia in 988, when the Russian Prince Vladimir accepted Baptism.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/sts-cyril-and-methodius-147

Today is also Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256786/how-to-honor-valentines-day-on-ash-wednesday

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

www.catholicnewsagency.com

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Two missionary priests who were abducted from a parish rectory in Nigeria earlier this month have been released and admitted to the hospital for examination. Father Kenneth Kanwa and Father Jude Nwachukwu were taken from the rectory at St. Vincent de Paul Fier Parish in the Diocese of Pankshin in Plateau state on February 1. The two are members of the Congregation of Missionaries Sons of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (CMF), also known as the Claretians. Nigeria has been battling a surge of violence orchestrated by gangs, whose members carry out indiscriminate attacks, kidnapping for ransom, and in some cases, killing. Insurgency by Boko Haram, a group that allegedly aims to turn Africa’s most populous nation into an Islamic nation, has been a major challenge in the country since 2009.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256801/two-missionary-priests-who-were-kidnapped-in-nigeria-released

Pope Francis met with Argentine President Javier Milei in a highly anticipated private audience on Monday morning, showcasing a possible improvement to their relationship after the South American politician voiced sharp criticisms of the pontiff last year.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256802/meeting-between-pope-francis-and-argentine-president-signals-possible-turn-in-relationship

The Catholic prayer app Hallow aired its first-ever commercial during Super Bowl LVIII, which saw the Kansas City Chiefs win their second consecutive championship on February 11. Immediately following the airing of the ad, Hallow saw the biggest spike in downloads in its history, according to Alex Jones, CEO of Hallow. The 30-second ad was shown in 15 markets across the country.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256811/after-super-bowl-ad-catholic-prayer-app-hallow-sees-biggest-spike-in-its-history

A Nobel-prize winning biochemist and researcher who helped develop the mRNA technology used to create the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines — Katalin Karikó — is one of the newest members of the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life. Pope Francis announced the appointment of Karikó, who lectures at the University of Szeged in Hungary, in a news release on February 10.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256810/pope-names-biochemist-who-contributed-to-covid-vaccine-to-pontifical-academy-for-life

Today, the Church celebrates Saint Catherine de Ricci. The Ricci are an ancient family in Tuscany. Catherine was born at Florence in 1522, and called at her baptism Alexandrina, but she took the name of Catherine at her religious profession. One of the miracles that was documented for her canonization was her appearance many hundreds of miles away from where she was physically located.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-catherine-de-ricci-146