News Briefs

In 2011, 26 pastoral care workers were killed worldwide—18 priests, 4 religious sisters, 4 laypeople—as victims of crimes or in retribution for their activities on behalf of marginalized people. • A grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation will underwrite a survey of Catholic youth by the Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations to identify cultural traits that affect openness to a call to a vocation. • At St. Augustine High School in New Orleans, disciplinary paddling is officially over, as is a legal struggle over control of the school following an out-of-court settlement on Dec. 23, 2011. • The bishops of the Philippines are seeking funding for the construction of 1,000 houses for the victims of flooding in December that has claimed the lives of more than 1,200 people and left hundreds of thousands displaced. • Pope Benedict XVI will meet with Cuba’s President Raul Castro and Mexico’s President Felipe Calderón when he visits Cuba and Mexico on March 23-28. • Having celebrated their 75th birthdays, two U.S. cardinals and 20 other U.S. bishops will be eligible for retirement in the coming year.