News
Catholic presence at Battle of Gettysburg still shines 150 years later
They were Poles, Austrians, Germans, Czechs, Italians, Irish -- especially Irish -- and they had one thing in common. They were Catholics, many of them new immigrants but loyal Americans. Seven score and 10 years ago, as Abraham Lincoln might say, many of them participated in the crucial Battle of Gettysburg July 1-3, 1863. Certainly Catholicism was still very much a minority religion in 19th century America, but Catholics were there.
St. Gabriel’s Hall wins award for keeping resident boys healthy, fit
St. Gabriel’s Hall of Catholic Social Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia recently won a Silver Award and $1,000 from the HealthierUS School Challenge, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. As part of the challenge St. Gabriel’s improved the health of its students by offering healthy items on its school lunch menu […]
Ireland to pay women who worked in church’s ‘Magdalen laundries’
DUBLIN (CNS) -- The Irish Government will provide lump-sum compensation between $15,000 and $130,000 to former residents of church-run institutions. An independent report released in February found "significant" state involvement in the religious-run institutions, known as Magdalen laundries, where young women, many placed by the state, worked without pay.
Listening with heart gives one courage to tell truth of faith, nun says
Telling the truth means that media professionals must overcome the temptation to be shrewd and secretive, Mother Dolores Hart told Catholic journalists June 20 in Denver. Leaving her cloistered Benedictine monastery to promote her new book, "The Ear of the Heart," was like seeing a movie in color for the first time. But the promotional tour also has awakened her to some of the harsh realities the Catholic Church is facing in modern-day society, added the nun, who is still a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
U.S. bishops view Supreme Court’s rulings as ‘tragic day for marriage’
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- U.S. Catholic bishops said the U.S. Supreme Court's June 26 rulings on same-sex marriage were a "tragic day for marriage and our nation." Same-sex unions "copy marriage and family, and in the process, they compete with and diminish the uniquely important status of both," said Archbishop Charles Chaput in a statement. "The court got it wrong," said Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of San Francisco in a statement.
Supreme Court overturns federal marriage law on 5-4 vote
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The federal Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, defining marriage as between one man and one woman, is unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause, the Supreme Court ruled June 26 in a 5-4 opinion. In a separate case, the court declined to hear a challenge to California's Proposition 8, the voter-approved initiative barring same-sex marriage in that state. The apparent result is that same-sex marriage will again be legal in California as soon as the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals formally dismisses the case, as the high court instructed it.
CatholicPhilly.com wins two national Catholic awards
CatholicPhilly.com won two awards from the Catholic Press Association at a presentation June 21, part of the annual Catholic Media Convention in Denver, Colo. The official news website of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and digital successor to The Catholic Standard and Times won third place for “Best General Publisher Website.” The award citation noted CatholicPhilly.com’s […]
U.S. Supreme Court overturns key provision of Voting Rights Act
WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Supreme Court June 25 overturned the part of the Voting Rights Act used to determine that 15 states have had to comply with the law’s protections for minority voters. The 5-4 decision said: “Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional; its formula can no longer be used as a […]
Court kicks back college quotas case; takes clinic protests, visa cases
WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Supreme Court June 24 kicked back a university affirmative action case to a lower court and took cases for the next term dealing with buffer zones for protests at abortion clinics and whether the children of immigrants lose their place in line for visas when they turn 21. Remaining cases to […]
Salt+Light uses Internet to send Chinese programming to mainland
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Salt+Light TV, the Toronto-based Catholic television programmer, is using the Internet to send its Chinese-language programming to mainland China. And, unlike some of the North American giants of online services, Salt+Light's programming is not getting blocked by Chinese censors.