Katie Collins Scott

Nearly four months after Archbishop Alexander Sample of Portland, Oregon, closed his Department of Catholic Schools, the prelate announced he has established an education office focused on evangelization.

Trinity Health Michigan, part of the third largest Catholic health care system in the U.S., faces accusations of bold anti-union tactics as its workers demand higher wages. The system called the allegations "baseless." 

In a departure from many diocesan policies on the topic, a new document from the Diocese of Davenport, Iowa, stresses the first response to LGBTQ individuals should be "one of welcome, love, and respect." 

Black, Latino, Indigenous, and Asian and Pacific Islander survivors of clergy sexual abuse often face additional barriers to reporting abuse. One survivor said coming forward "felt like I was completely assaulted again." 

Stories of Catholic clergy abuse survivors of color are largely untold, and church authorities rarely collect victims' racial and ethnic data. One scholar said that leads to disparities that are "just another level of abuse." 

Fr. Iván Montelongo, a priest from the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, is one of six non-bishop voting members from the U.S. who will participate in October's Synod of Bishops at the Vatican. He told NCR he is not coming with an agenda. "I want to listen to the people, and I want to be open to the Spirit," he said.

A new partnership between the Archdiocese of Newark and the New Jersey Reentry Corporation, backed by Cardinal Joseph Tobin, aims to assist those struggling with various forms of addiction.

The Portland Archdiocese is asserting that the unexpected decision to close its Catholic schools office is not connected to backlash over Archbishop Alexander Sample's new gender identity document for young people.

Portland Archbishop Alexander Sample has closed his archdiocesan Department of Catholic Schools following backlash over a new gender identity document for students. One parent called the decision "alarming and strange."

At the U.S. bishops' June assembly, Bishop Michael Olson said he had consulted with Dominican Sister of Peace Luisa Derouen before voting on trans health care issues. In an NCR interview, Derouen, a widely respected minister for transgender Catholics, contended that Olson had used her name in a misleading manner.

A multitude of faith-based groups are partnering with California authorities to assist the 36 asylum-seekers whom Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis arranged to transport from El Paso, Texas, to Sacramento.

After a monthslong campaign garnering support from students, faculty and the Catholic Labor Network, food service workers at Loyola University New Orleans won union representation with the local affiliate of Unite Here.

Four Catholic school teachers' contracts were not renewed. Alumni, parents, students and teachers claim it's because the educators support or belong to the LGBTQ community. School and diocesan leaders refute the claim. 

Many Catholic schools are abandoning sports mascots that use Native American nicknames or imagery. But as the principal at one school in Indiana told NCR, "There are really mixed feelings."

Maureen DiMilla has resigned from the committee charged with drafting gender identity guidelines for students in Boston Catholic schools, citing concerns about transparency and lack of input from transgender people.

In an open letter, more than 30 Catholic women scholars, theologians and advocates say the stringent anti-abortion activism of many U.S. Catholic leaders has ignored women's lived experience and personal discernment.

Some 4,000 individuals have participated in a parish-centered initiative that aims to identify, train and mentor immigrant leaders and to nurture relationships between immigrant and nonimmigrant communities.

U.S. bishops' new document rejects gender-affirming medical treatments for transgender individuals, reasserting that Catholic providers must not perform such procedures. Critics warn of the document's far-reaching consequences.

For insight into how Pope Francis is viewed among those with different faiths, or none, NCR invited the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, an atheist, a Muslim scholar and a rabbi to discuss him.

A new report by The Washington Post unearths key information about a Catholic news website's controversial use of mobile app tracking data two years ago to out a high-ranking official at the U.S. Catholic bishops' conference, which led to the priest's resignation.