January 23, 2024

Catholic News

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 - The pro-life organization Susan B Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA) said in a press conference ahead of the March for Life that a main feature of its 2024 political plan to serve moms and save babies will be to focus on the work of pro-life pregnancy centers and maternity homes. The first type of state legislation SBA is promoting is financial support for mothers spanning from the beginning of their pregnancy to after the child’s birth. The group is also pushing for bills that offer “more child care solutions.” SBA supports expanding access to child care by promoting a tax credit for businesses that begin offering daycare services for employees. SBA is also supporting policies related to adoption services “for establishing a package of services and support for birth moms, and for establishing protections from online scams that target birth mothers and hopeful adoptive parents.” Fourth, the organization will promote “safe haven baby box legislation” along with funding to make the public aware of baby boxes. A baby box is a system in which a mother can leave her newborn baby in a box, typically found in a hospital or fire house, if for some reason she cannot take care of the child. Lastly, SBA will be promoting legislation that funds pro-life pregnancy centers and will advocate expanding tax credits for individuals and businesses that donate to the institutions. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256604/leading-pro-life-organization-lays-out-political-strategy-for-2024 British politician Lord David Alton of Liverpool has called on the UK government to urgently address persecution in Nigeria, starting with last year’s Christmas attacks that left more than 200 Christians in Nigeria’s Plateau state dead. Alton, who serves on Westminster’s Joint Committee on Human Rights, demanded urgent action to identify and bring to trial the perpetrators of the attacks that started on December 23, 2023, and continuing through Christmas, as well as other extremist atrocities in the West African country. The Catholic politician demanded that the 2022 Pentecost Sunday church massacre that left more than 50 Christians dead in Nigeria’s Ondo state also be looked into. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256606/british-catholic-politician-demands-justice-for-christians-killed-in-nigeria-at-christmas Today, the Church celebrates Saint Ildephonsus, Archbishop of Toledo, who died 23 January, 667. Ildephonsus had a strong devotion to the Blessd Mother, and it is said that one day he was praying before the relics of Saint Leocadia, when the martyr arose from her tomb and thanked the saint for the devotion he showed towards the Mother of God. It was also related that on another occasion the Blessed Virgin appeared to him in person and presented him with a priestly vestment, to reward him for his zeal in honoring her. The literary work of Ildephonsus is more widely known than the details of his life, and merits for him a distinguished place in the role of Spanish writers. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-ildephonsus-125