January 12, 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 funeral Mass of Cardinal George Pell will be held in Saint Peter’s Basilica at 11:30 am on Saturday, January 14, the Vatican announced Thursday. Pell, the prefect emeritus of the Secretariat for the Economy, died suddenly in Rome on January 10, at the age of 81. The funeral will be celebrated at the Altar of the Chair by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the deacon of the College of Cardinals, with other cardinals and bishops concelebrating. Pope Francis will preside over the rite of Final Commendation and Farewell. Following the funeral, Pell’s body will be brought back to Australia, where he will be buried in Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney. Pell served for many years as archbishop of Melbourne and then Sydney before Pope Francis appointed him to lead the Vatican’s economy department in 2014. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253329/funeral-of-cardinal-george-pell-to-be-at-vatican-on-saturday The Standing Council of the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference condemned the murder of a policeman burned alive by a mob during violent protests taking place in the Puno region in the country’s south. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253325/church-in-peru-condemns-murder-of-police-officer-burned-alive-no-more-deaths Dozens of abductees are still being held in captivity following the Christmas Day attack on Angwan Aku Village in Kaduna, a state located in the north of Nigeria, a Catholic priest in the West African country has told ACI Africa in an interview. On Christmas Day 2022, militant Fulani herdsmen and other terrorists attacked Angwan Aku village, reportedly killing one person and abducting 53 others. In a Tuesday interview with ACI Africa, Father Justine John Dyikuk confirmed the December 25 attack, saying: “We got the sad news of the Christmas Day attack on Angwan village with dozens kidn