Hours after the Biden administration’s COVID-19 relief plan passed Wednesday, several U.S. Bishops Conference chairmen called it “unconscionable” that the bill didn’t include protections against taxpayer funding of abortion.
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Woman Religious Honored as One of International Women of Courage
Comboni Sister Alicia Vacas Moro, a Spanish missionary sister and registered nurse, was one of 14 women to receive this year’s International Women of Courage Award, an annual honor from the U.S. Department of State for women who have demonstrated leadership in their human rights work.
COVID-19 Pandemic Makes Human Trafficking Worse, Panel Says
Flor Molina crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with her trafficker in 2002. At the time, she was under the impression the trip would last six months, provide housing, and enough money to return to Mexico to open a sewing shop and provide for her three children.
Adapting an Irish Ballad for a New York Audience
Many of the Irish ballads we are familiar with are derived from Irish and English ballads of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The lyrics are sometimes changed, while the melodies often remain the same. That’s why you will often hear folk singers adding new words to centuries-old songs.
Evergreen Irish Ballads for This St. Patrick’s Day
Everyone familiar with the story of St. Patrick knows that he was a missionary who helped introduce Christianity to Ireland in the 5th century. Folks may also know about his renowned exploits such as banishing snakes from the country. What they may not know is that he was born in Great Britain and is venerated and celebrated by not only the Catholic Church but also the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Lutheran Church.
USCCB Administrative Committee’s Pastoral Message Marks Year of Pandemic
U.S. life has “dramatically changed” due to the yearlong pandemic, and alongside it, racial injustices and political divisions have shaken the nation, yet there is “comfort in God’s promise,” the U.S. bishops’ Administrative Committee said in a March 9 pastoral message.
As Scandal Grows, Cuomo Says ‘No Way I Resign’
As a top Democrat called on Governor Andrew Cuomo to resign and GOP assembly members drafted a resolution to impeach him, the governor received some support from rank-and-file Democrats in the assembly.
Doctors Seek Permanent Relief From Mandate to Do Transgender Surgeries
Attorneys for doctors and hospitals argued in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit March 3 that they shouldn’t be forced to perform gender-transition surgeries required under the Affordable Care Act, stressing this is an issue of conscience.
Filipino Expert Urges American Catholics to Rethink Rhetoric on Vaccines
As American Catholics continue to wrangle over the morality of COVID-19 vaccines using stem cell lines remotely derived from aborted fetuses, one Filipino Dominican priest, who’s both a moral theologian and an MIT-trained molecular biologist, is pleading with them to consider the potentially dangerous global consequences of their rhetoric.
Minnesota Faith Leaders Pray for Peace, Justice During Chauvin Trial
Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis prayed March 7 for peace and justice in the upcoming trial of a white former city police officer charged in the death of George Floyd, an African American. He died while in police custody last May.