January 10, 2023

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 top two spots on Apple Podcasts are currently held by Catholic podcasts — “The Catechism in a Year” and “The Bible in a Year,” both produced by Catholic publisher Ascension. Father Mike Schmitz, a priest of the Diocese of Duluth, Minnesota, and host of both podcasts, told CNA last week that in the course of recording hundreds of episodes of the podcast, he has been struck by the “beautiful” composition of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, a hefty volume that serves as the definitive summary of the Church’s teaching. Although the Catechism is specific to the Catholic Church, Schmitz said he believes anyone can listen to his podcast and learn from it. Schmitz said reading through the Catechism has served as a helpful reminder to him, personally, about many aspects of Church teaching. “The Catechism in a Year” is a sequel of sorts to the wildly popular “Bible in a Year” podcast, which began on January 1, 2021. “The Bible in a Year” has gone on to be downloaded some 430 million times. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253292/catechism-in-a-year-podcast The US Catholic bishops are challenging the Biden administration after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced for the first time that pharmacies can distribute abortion drugs. Abortion pills account for half of all abortions in the US. “The Catholic Church is consistent in its teaching on upholding the dignity of all life, and that must include care for both women and their children,” the bishops continued. “We decry the continuing push for the destruction of innocent human lives and the loosening of vital safety standards for vulnerable women.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253299/catholic-bishops-condemn-biden-administrations-new-policy-on-abortion-pills The Catholic bishops of Brazil condemned the violent seizur