Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

Meatball the bear gets to keep his hair, thanks to Fish and Game's intervention. The famous bear was due for a haircut while waiting to be relocated to his new home.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The haircut was for charity, with the Lions, Tigers and Bears sanctuary pledging to auction off a lock of his hair on EBay, the popular online auction site. The money would have gone to help pay for the construction of his new habitat enclosure.

However, Fish and Game officials said that trimming the big fella's hair would be against the law. So the sanctuary, with permission from Fish and Game, will instead auction off one of Meatball's paw prints along with the orange ear tag he wore in the wild.

Meatball became a local celebrity when he wandered into a Glendale neighborhood earlier this year. After being relocated into the Angeles National Forest, the intrepid bear made his way back a second time.

 Wildlife officials decided to capture him and house him in a sanctuary for his safety.

The new sanctuary will cost $250,000 to build. Meatball's caregivers are hoping to raise $145,000 or more through the auction.

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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.