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Cardinal George Basil Hume, Great Britain's 76 year-old ranking prelate, reveals he has advanced cancer
    A sadness and resignation has settled throughout Great Britain and the Church worldwide with the revelation by Cardinal George Basil Hume that he has advanced cancer. He had already submitted his resignation to the Holy Father because of the mandatory retirement age of 75 but will continue his duties as best he can in both preparing his successor and preparing for the inevitable of which he is totally at peace. For more, click on Cardinal's cancer.

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Nationalistic Hindu ideology which considered Christians second class citizens goes down to stunning defeat as Catholics rejoice
    After thirteen months of turmoil and persecution, the Hindu regime which had promoted a nationalistic ideology which prejudiced the citizens against Christians, failed to receive the necessary vote of confidence from the Indian parliament and the head of the Bharatiya Janata Party was forced to resign. It was cause for rejoicing among the Catholic laity and clergy as well as other Christian group. For more, click on India independence from tyranny.

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Missionaries of Charity and crippled children miraculously escape devastating fire at orphanage in New Delhi
    In the aftermath of the miraculous escape of the Sisters of the Missionaries of Charity along with sixty patients, either disabled or mentally deficient, from a burning orphanage in the slums of New Delhi Sunday, many suspect the Order's founder and candidate for beatification Mother Teresa was watching over them and, through her intercession, helped save all from certain death by prompting rescuers to come from all areas to help in the nick of time. For more, click on miracle at Mother Teresa's Orphanage.

For more headlines and articles, we suggest you go to the Catholic World News site at the CWN home page and Church News at Noticias Eclesiales Both CWN and NE are not affiliated with the Daily CATHOLIC but provides this service via e-mail to the Daily CATHOLIC Monday through Friday.

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Daily Dose of curious contents of the Church: Beginning of the Avignon Exile    Today is the 685th anniversary of the death of Pope Clement V, the Pontiff who played into the hands of the manipulative King Philip IV, also known as "Philip the Fair." The latter was anything but fair and would be remembered for his bitter disputes with many pontiffs, most notably the equally volatile Pope Boniface VIII. It was Clement who succumbed to the ploys of Philip and established the Holy See at Avignon in France where for the next seventy years the Papacy would be "in exile" - often called the "Babylonian Exile." It was only through prayer and the intercession of a holy woman named Saint Catherine of Siena and some help from Saint Brigid of Sweden that the Church would finally return to Rome but not without extra baggage that would take centuries to weed out. Avignon was known as a quiet fortress that Clement's successors would build on and purchase, providing a refuge that would become the focal point of future schisms as well. For more on Clement V, who convened the 15th Ecumenical Council at Vienne which abolished the Knights Templar, click on The beginning of the Avignon Exile. (sources: The Oxford Dictionary of Popes, J.N.D. Kelly, Oxford University Press).