July 11, 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 - Arrests were made Saturday in two separate vandalism incidents at Catholic churches in the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York. At Resurrection Church in Brooklyn, a white marble statue of the Blessed Mother was spray-painted with black graffiti on her face, shoulders, and hands. The word “fake” was written on the statue as well as what appears to be an upside-down cross. Jonathan Bulik, 37, of Brooklyn, was charged with criminal mischief as a hate crime in connection with the attack. He was seen spray-painting the statue by two parishioners who stopped him in the act on Saturday. Another incident occurred on Saturday at Saint Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church in Astoria by the same man who allegedly desecrated the church in early June. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/254762/two-arrests-made-in-vandalism-incidents-at-catholic-churches-in-brooklyn-diocese?utm_campaign=CNA%20Daily&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=265845133&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_HLd5-E7W1nVumuq-rbaaoWSkFUjLy7WrrSGkopnDVIprGrVA_g0L9pKSNWKnDRJuYJ2hHpNGR_Uj9KzC-nN7IhHWYIQ&utm_content=265845133&utm_source=hs_email The US bishops have reaffirmed the importance of education access for marginalized racial groups after the US Supreme Court ruled against affirmative action in higher education. “Education is a gift, an opportunity, and an important aspect of our democracy that is not always within the reach of all, especially racial and ethnic groups who find themselves on the margins,” Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Perry of Chicago, chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism, said in a July 7 statement. “It is our hope that our Catholic institutions of higher learning will continue to find ways to make education possible and affordable for everyone, regardless of their background.” The June 29 U.S. Supreme Court decision Stude