April 6, 2022

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 - Pope Francis will visit Lebanon in June, according to the president of the Middle Eastern country. President Michel Aoun said he was informed of the visit by the papal nuncio to Lebanon. Pope Francis has expressed his desire to travel to Lebanon on several occasions. In recent years, Lebanon has grappled with an influx of refugees from the war in Syria, a devastating financial crisis, a lack of stable governance, the August 2020 port explosion, and the impact of COVID-19. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is also threatening to trigger a food crisis in Lebanon, which depends on wheat imports from the East European nation. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/250890/breaking-pope-francis-to-visit-lebanon-in-june-says-president-aoun Nine Christian protesters in Egypt remain in detention, months after protests of the government’s apparent refusal to approve the rebuilding of a damaged church. The Coptic Orthodox St. Joseph and Abu Sefein Church was severely damaged by fire in 2016, and although authorities granted the requested permit to demolish the building, they never responded to a request for a permit to rebuild the church, an illegal delay. Dozens of Christian villagers demonstrated against the government in January, and nine were arrested. Christian communities have long faced difficulties under Egyptian law, and most applications to build or repair churches are rejected, especially requests from poor or rural areas or areas where Christians are a small minority. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/250896/months-later-nine-egyptian-christians-still-detained-after-protests-to-rebuild-church An American religious sister was reportedly kidnapped in Burkina Faso the night of April 4. Sister Suellen Tennyson, 83, a member of the Congregation of Marianite Sisters of the Holy Cross, has been s