Paris, France / Pedro Lastra / Unsplash (CC0)Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 9, 2023 / 15:10 pm (CNA).A 24-year-old Catholic Frenchman named Henri went viral Thursday as the "backpack hero" after he stopped a potentially deadly knife attack at a playground in southeastern France by chasing away the attacker with a backpack.French newspaper 20 Minutes reported on Henri s heroic response to the shocking attack.The perpetrator, only partially identified by French authorities as Abdalmasih H., is a 31-year-old Syrian refugee. On June 8 he unleashed a sudden stabbing attack on children and adults at a playground in the town of Annecy.Two adults, men over 70, and four children, all 3 years old and younger, were seriously injured and later hospitalized due to the attack.Henri, who did not give his last name to the media, told reporters he was in the town of Annecy as part of a nine-month pilgrimage to visit France s cathedrals on foot.When he saw the attack begin to unfold, Henri spr
Cross in the square of the church of San Martín, in Callosa de Segura, Spain. / Credit: Citizen Platform in Defense of the CrossACI Prensa Staff, Jun 9, 2023 / 15:40 pm (CNA).The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) has announced it has hired a law firm and a specialized association to clarify the alleged cases of abuse that occurred in its schools in Catalonia, Spain, and to accompany the complainants.The Jesuit delegate in Catalonia, Enric Puiggròs, has announced that the congregation has taken action in relation to the alleged cases of sexual abuse that may have been perpetrated in schools.In order to clarify the allegations, determine how they were handled, and identify those responsible for what reportedly took place, the Roca Junyent law firm has been hired.For the pastoral care and accompaniment of the alleged victims, the Jesuits have turned to the Association for Mediation, Encounter, and Listening (AMEE), an organization that specializes in this area and that facilitates restor.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are giving an award to a group of gay and transgender drag performers who mock the Catholic faith. / YouTube/Los Angeles Dodgers June 4, 2022, YouTube/60 Second Docs Dec. 27, 2021Washington D.C., Jun 9, 2023 / 13:38 pm (CNA).Prominent Catholics and other Christians, including baseball players and bishops, continue to denounce the Los Angeles Dodgers decision to honor an anti-Catholic drag group called the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" at a game on June 16.The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are a national drag queen group that impersonates nuns and uses Catholic religious imagery and themes in protests and sexualized performances to raise awareness and money for LGBTQ+ causes. The performers call themselves nuns and regularly use the images of Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and women religious.The Dodgers will be honoring the L.A. chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence with a "Community Hero Award" before a game against the San Francisc
Pope Francis at his general audience in St. Peter's Square on May 17, 2023. / Vatican MediaRome Newsroom, Jun 9, 2023 / 05:18 am (CNA).Pope Francis is "steadily improving" two days after he underwent abdominal surgery to correct an incisional hernia, a Vatican spokesman said Friday.According to Matteo Bruni, the pope rested during the night and on the morning of June 9 was able to eat breakfast and move from his hospital bed to an armchair."The medical team reports that the clinical picture is steadily improving and the post-operative progress is normal," he said in a brief statement released shortly before 1:00 p.m. Rome time.He added that Pope Francis was able to read the newspaper and do some work.Francis underwent a three-hour surgery for an incisional hernia on June 7. A team of surgeons removed scar tissue and operated on a hernia in the pope s abdominal wall at the site of a previous surgical incision.Dr. Sergio Alfieri, the pope s main surgeon, said at
Dr. Sergio Alfieri, the lead surgeon for Pope Francis' abdominal surgery, speaks at a press conference at Gemelli Hospital on June 7, 2023. / Andreas Thonhauser/EWTNRome Newsroom, Jun 7, 2023 / 13:15 pm (CNA).Pope Francis is awake after reacting well to both surgery and general anesthetic, an Italian surgeon said Wednesday afternoon.Pope Francis "is well, awake, alert, and already made his first joke 10 minutes ago," Dr. Sergio Alfieri said June 7 during a brief press conference at Rome s Gemelli Hospital, where Pope Francis is recovering following abdominal surgery.Alfieri, director of the hospital s abdominal surgery department, is the same surgeon who removed part of Pope Francis colon during an operation to treat diverticulitis in July 2021.The surgeon told journalists that from a medical point of view, there would be nothing preventing the pope from continuing with his planned travels to Portugal and Mongolia in August after his recovery.The conditions treated by t