Kate Scanlon

After a man was shot and wounded by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 20, Bishop Daniel Garcia denounced the shooting and called for "a viable immigration policy that respects the rule of law while recognizing the dignity of every person."

More than a dozen U.S. bishops met with members of Congress on Sept. 16 to urge lawmakers to enact effective safety guardrails on artificial intelligence and to advocate for the passage of a bill that aims to protect children online.

President Donald Trump's new appointees to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom include Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, the commission said Sept. 16. Spokespersons for USCRIF and other religious freedom advocates previously told OSV News they were eager for Trump to make nominations to the commission after several previous commissioners reached the end of their terms in May.

Detainees at Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" were held in outdoor cages about the same size as telephone booths, according to a new report by the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General.

Theologians and representatives of Catholic advocacy organizations and religious orders described pastoral challenges of some hardline immigration enforcement policies as among the concerns Catholics should consider.

"[T]the Church's objection  … is an effort to stop the State from compelling Catholic health care providers to violate their conscience," Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago said in a statement.

Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich, two orders of nuns, and a pharmacist sued Illinois Sept. 3 over the state's physician-assisted suicide law, which permits physicians to aid terminally ill adults in dying by suicide.

Hundreds of faith leaders and organizations urged the Trump administration to extend Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador before it expires in September. A TPS designation grants the U.S. government the power to shield eligible migrants from deportation if they are from countries experiencing dangerous conditions such as war, disaster, or other unrest. 

The Catholic bishops of Florida issued a staunch defense of their ability to determine policies for Catholic schools after Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent them a letter demanding that Catholic schools in the Sunshine State adopt religious exemptions to vaccine requirements or risk their ability to participate in the state's school voucher program.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to the Catholic bishops of Florida demanding that Catholic schools in the Sunshine State adopt religious exemptions to vaccine requirements or risk their ability to participate in the state's school voucher program.

The groups sued the state July 17, arguing the law would require them to facilitate such deaths for their patients in violation of their faith.

Before Florida executed two inmates in one day July 28, the Catholic bishops of that state issued a pastoral letter urging Catholics to reflect on the Church's moral opposition to the practice.

The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops on July 21 urged Gov. Ron DeSantis to stay two executions scheduled for July 28.

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship on June 30, finding the order violated the 14th Amendment.

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 30 upheld West Virginia and Idaho state laws requiring student athletes to compete on sports teams that correspond to their biological sex rather than their self-identified gender.

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 25 ruled that the Trump administration can reimplement a policy of turning away asylum-seekers along the U.S.-Mexico border before they enter the country, known as "metering."

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 25 found the Trump administration can end a program temporarily shielding eligible Haitian and Syrian immigrants living in the U.S. from deportation.

President Donald Trump on June 24 canceled his plans to sign bipartisan legislation aimed at addressing the rising cost of housing, demanding that Congress pass a voter ID bill that lacks a clear path to passage in the Senate. 

"There will still be several points to settle, but it is always better to do so through dialogue, through negotiations, and not by returning to war," Pope Leo said.

A majority of U.S. Catholics view Pope Leo XIV favorably, and just over half say President Donald Trump has been too critical of the pontiff, according to new data from the Pew Research Center.