The "ever-more-complex situation of families in France" had made compiling Catholic documents "sometimes difficult," especially with baptisms.

The statement from Archbishop Gomez comes five days after the U.S. launched a drone strike that killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad.

Though the majority of the $6 million the fund raised in almost two decades went to charities, many priests and more than 60 cardinals and archbishops benefited from it.

Lawmakers recently agreed to begin the lengthy process of amending the state constitution to allow a two-year window for civil suits otherwise barred by the statute of limitations, but there's no guarantee that effort will bear fruit.

The Washington Post published the 60-page document on Dec. 23 on its website, which describes previously published accounts of alleged abuse and financial misconduct by retired Bishop Michael J. Bransfield, including "troubling incidents" that caused concern by some church workers that he may have targeted minor altar servers for abuse.

The measure, H.R. 4916, which now goes to the Senate for a vote, would improve conditions for immigrant farmworkers and their families