Washington D.C., May 16, 2019 CNA.- Earlier this week, the state of Alabama passed legislation to make abortion a felony. The measure is the nation’s strongest prohibition on abortion. It directly contradicts Roe v. Wade and is intended as a challenge to the Supreme Court case that established a nationwide “right to abortion” in 1973.
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VIENNA, Va. (CNS) -- When her friend's daughter was diagnosed with cancer, Holly Christensen, an Alaskan mother and oncology nurse, decided to make the little girl something pretty to wear. She created a Rapunzel-style wig made of soft yellow yarn with flowers strewn throughout the long braid. The gift was a hit.
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (CNS) -- The sponsor of the Missouri bill to ban abortions after eight weeks of pregnancy described how the measure moved through the Legislature as being like human life itself.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The task of journalism is to seek the truth, which requires humility and freedom of the press, Pope Francis told foreign correspondents working in Italy. "At a time when many spread fake news, humility keeps you from peddling food spoiled by disinformation and invites you to offer the good bread of truth. The humble journalist is a free journalist: free from pressures, free from biases," he said, adding that such freedom also required courage.
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Five U.S. bishops, chairmen of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' committees or subcommittees, said May 17 they were "gravely disappointed" with the U.S. House of Representatives passage of the Equality Act.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican's highest court cleared a Vatican official accused of the crime of solicitation in the confessional. The court, the Apostolic Signature, the Vatican's highest court, said May 17 that it finished an "administrative penal process" of Father Hermann Geissler, an official at the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, who had been accused of "a grave delict."
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LOWELL ? The Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi held a celebration on April 28 to mark the retirement of two sisters and the end of 19 years of ministry through the San Damiano House of Prayer in Lowell.
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CHESTNUT HILL -- What happens when a small group of strangers gather to talk about faith? The Church in the 21st Century Center (C21 Center) has been learning the answer over the past year and is now launching an initiative to enable parishioners to find out for themselves.
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BOSTON -- The Red Sox will hold their annual Catholic Night at Fenway Park on June 24. The Red Sox are to play against the Chicago White Sox that night. The game will be preceded by a social on the Sam Adams Deck. There will be a pregame ceremony honoring clergy and members of the local Catholic community before the first pitch.
Read moreCardinal Seán P. O'Malley released the following statement May 9 on Vos estis lux mundi -- Editor. Following the international summit in Rome this past February, Pope Francis pledged "concrete measures" to respond to the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Church. Vos estis lux mundi is one means of fulfilling that pledge, establishing specific mandatory protocols and reporting systems for matters concerning such abuse.
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We were very sad to learn this week of the death of Jean Vanier after a long battle with cancer. His spirituality and his service to the developmentally disabled made such an impact, not just in our Church, but throughout the world through the L'Arche movement he began. It was my privilege to have met him on a number of different occasions -- he was someone whom I admired very, very much.
Read moreThe United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released the following Q and A May 9 -- Editor. Q. What does the new Motu Proprio do? A. The new Motu Proprio Vos estis lux mundi is a significant move forward for the universal Church, one that echoes many of the practices established in the U.S. Bishops' Essential Norms and the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People that have been in force in the United States since 2002. For example, it affirms the existing:
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PROVIDENCE (CNS) -- A bill that pro-life legal analysts said would have turned Rhode Island into an "abortion haven" failed to pass the Senate Judiciary Committee May 14. Hundreds of pro-life activists who gathered at the Statehouse erupted into cheers as news spread that the committee voted 5-4 against the Senate version of the bill that supporters claimed would have enshrined Roe v. Wade -- the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide -- into state law.
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LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- A bill making its way through the California Legislature would make the state the first since 1999 to require priests to choose between violating the law or violating the seal of the confessional.
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DALLAS (CNS) -- Dallas police executed search warrants at three sites in the Diocese of Dallas May 15, saying the process was an extension of their ongoing investigation of sexual abuse allegations into five current or former priests, including one accused of sexually abusing at least three minors and who is believed to have fled the country to his native Philippines.
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MONTGOMERY, Ala. (CNS) -- By passing a bill to ban abortion in nearly all circumstances, the Alabama Legislature has recognized that abortion is "the extinguishing of a unique human life," said the president and CEO of Americans United for Life.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- When Pope Francis makes his 30th international trip, visiting Romania in late May, he is likely to receive a different, more reserved welcome than St. John Paul II did 20 years ago, said an expert in Catholic-Orthodox relations.
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Montgomery, Ala., May 14, 2019 CNA.- The Alabama Senate approved a bill Thursday that will outlaw nearly all abortion in the state. The bill, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Kay Ivey, is intended to be a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that declared unconstitutional state measures prohibiting abortion.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Christians recognize life's great paradox that so much evil and temptation exist in the world, but that God is always present, too, ready to help and give people the strength to persevere, Pope Francis said.
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