National News
Lawsuits over HHS mandate keep health reform law in court
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Although legal scholars and political observers will likely spend days parsing each line of the 193 pages of U.S. Supreme Court opinions and dissents on the health reform law, the court’s June 28 decision is not likely to be its final word on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. “It seems […]
Communicators hear how blogging helps Church to evangelize
INDIANAPOLIS (CNS) -- Blogging offers the Catholic Church one more way to evangelize for the faith while reaching new audiences, especially young people, a panel of Catholic bloggers told a packed room during the Catholic Media Conference in Indianapolis. The panelists, which included Bishop Christopher J. Coyne, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, a frequent user of Twitter, agreed that while not all bloggers are official Church representatives, the relatively new but quickly growing form of communication has influenced how the Church spreads its message.
Archbishop Lori takes Fortnight for Freedom to Rome
ROME (CNS) — On the same day that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Obama administration’s health care law, Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore warned an audience in Rome about what he characterized as the law’s threat to religious freedom. The archbishop, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Freedom, addressed […]
Christ Cathedral is name of Orange Diocese’s new cathedral
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Bishop Tod D. Brown of Orange, Calif., said June 9 that Christ Cathedral is the new name of the former Crystal Cathedral, now owned by the diocese and once home to the ministries of the Rev. Robert H. Schuller. He also announced Father Christopher Smith has been named episcopal vicar for the […]
Astronomy students watch Venus transit at Vatican Observatory
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — An international group of astronomy students watched Venus’ passage across the face of the sun from the roof of the papal summer villa in Castel Gandolfo. “It was a special thrill to be able to see it from the pope’s palace,” said Giannina Dalle Mese Zavala, a student from Mexico. “We […]
Bill on sex-selection abortion fails to get needed two-thirds majority in House
WASHINGTON (CNS) — A bill that would have prohibited abortions motivated by the gender of the unborn child failed to gain a needed two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives May 31. The vote to suspend the rules and pass the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act, sponsored by Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., and known as PRENDA, was […]
Franciscan University drops student health insurance plan
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, is discontinuing its student health insurance plan in the upcoming school year in opposition to the Obama administration’s mandate requiring most religious employers, including colleges, to provide no-cost contraceptive and sterilization coverage in its health insurance plans. The school made the announcement to its students in mid-April […]
Obama ‘accommodation’ offers no fundamental change, USCCB attorneys say
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Although the Obama administration’s proposed “accommodation” for religious employers to the mandate that contraceptives and sterilization be included in most health plans “may create an appearance of moderation and compromise,” it does not change the administration’s fundamental position, attorneys for the U.S. bishops said in comments filed May 15. “We are convinced […]
Dioceses defend against in vitro suits filed by former teachers
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Both the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., are defending themselves against lawsuits filed by Catholic school teachers who were fired for pursuing in vitro fertilization treatments. In the Indiana case, Emily Herx is suing the diocese after being fired from her teaching job of eight years […]
Chicago Archdiocese offers free burial services to indigents, unborn
CHICAGO (CNS) — Eighteen simple wooden caskets containing indigent adults and unborn babies sat atop graves at Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery awaiting burial April 25. Beside them stood funeral directors dressed in black and holding single white carnations. Just minutes before, each casket was removed from funeral hearses, which made a procession with a police […]