French Catholic Church will sell assets to compensate abuse victims (The New York Times) The Roman Catholic Church in France will sell some of its assets to compensate victims of sexual abuse, French bishops announced on Monday, one month after the release of a sweeping report on sexual abuse by the clergy that has fueled growing calls for reform. “We will ensure that no one is left behind,” Éric de Moulins-Beaufort, the archbishop of Reims and the president of the Bishops’ Conference of France, told reporters after a meeting of bishops over the past week in Lourdes, a popular Catholic pilgrimage site in southwestern France…

Some dioceses loosen restrictions on masks in schools (CNS) This fall, as the number of COVID-19 cases has decreased, some dioceses, particularly in the South, are loosening restrictions on mask mandates for Catholic schools. Diocesan leaders who announced these changes stressed that these decisions were made carefully and with the caveat they could always be reversed if cases increased…

A Solanus Casey miracle? (CNA) A married father of three from the Diocese of Lansing claims that Blessed Solanus Casey, the humble Capuchin friar and priest, visited him twice in hospital and hastened what he believes to be a miraculous recovery from COVID-19…

Allentown’s bishop has COVID (The Morning Call) Allentown Bishop Alfred A. Schlert has been diagnosed with COVID-19 and is isolating with mild symptoms, the diocese said. In a letter to diocese staff, Schlert — who is vaccinated and had been scheduled for a booster shot — said he was exposed to the virus last Wednesday during a confirmation service for the St. Anthony of Padua and Our Lady Of Mercy parishes in Easton…

Why is a pontifical college located in Ohio? (The Columbus Dispatch) The first mass at the new site of the Pontifical College Josephinum was held 90 years ago this week in 1931. The liberal arts college and Roman Catholic seminary is the only pontifical seminary in the world outside Italy, with “pontifical” meaning it is under the direct governance of the Holy See, or Vatican.   But why is it located in Ohio, and why so far north of Columbus? Let’s start at the beginning…