Editorial: New LGBT nondiscrimination rule deserves applause

Jesuits tell their alumni in Congress: Protect border children

David Gibson Religion News Service | Aug. 4, 2014

American Jesuits are pushing members of Congress who were educated at the Catholic order's schools to pass aid for thousands of refugee children who have surged across the border in Texas in recent months, calling proposals to swiftly deport them "inhumane and an insult to American values."

"I ask you, as a leader, a parent, and a Catholic, to uphold an American tradition of which we are all proud," Fr. Thomas Smolich, head of the U.S. Jesuit conference, wrote to House Speaker John Boehner and 42 other House members who graduated from Jesuit high schools and colleges.

More than 100 religious, immigration activists arrested at White House

Adelle M. Banks Heather Adams Religion News Service | Aug. 1, 2014

More than 100 religious leaders and activists were arrested Thursday in a White House protest aimed at halting deportations and aiding immigrants living in the U.S. illegally.

The direct action sponsored by Church World Service and Casa de Maryland, an immigration advocacy group, brought leaders from New England to Hawaii to the nation's capital.

The U.S. Park Police completed the arrests of 112 people by 3 p.m., charging each with "blocking passage" on the sidewalk outside the White House, a misdemeanor, said Sidney Traynham, a spokesman for Church World Service.

Bishops' response to immigration crisis more compassionate than politicians'

Thomas Reese | Aug. 1, 2014

Faith and Justice: On immigration, the bishops, unlike politicians, show their concern for the poor and their clear attention to the root causes of the crisis.

Survey: Most Americans say U.S. should shelter, not rush to deport, child migrants

Cathy Lynn Grossman Religion News Service | Jul. 29, 2014

Immigration and the Church: These largely sympathetic views come from all points along the political and religious spectrum, according to a new survey.

Appeals court ruling clears way for gay marriage in the heart of Bible Belt

Richard Wolf USA Today | Jul. 29, 2014

A federal appeals court panel in Virginia became the second one this summer to strike down a state ban against same-sex marriage Monday, making it more likely that the Supreme Court will settle the issue as early as next year.

The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond ruled 2-1 that gay men and lesbians have a constitutional right to marry that is paramount to state marriage laws. The ruling affirmed a district judge's decision rendered in February.

Experts point to US role in migrants' flight

Vinnie Rotondaro | Jul. 29, 2014

So many children are coming from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala because of rampant economic inequality and social exclusion.

What our parish does about contraception and family planning

Fr. Peter Daly | Jul. 28, 2014

Parish Diary: What does our parish do about contraception? We teach as the church teaches. Are we having any significant impact? No.

What's next in the ongoing struggle between the bishops and Obama?

Thomas Reese | Jul. 25, 2014

Faith and Justice: Watching the U.S. Catholic bishops and the Obama administration fight each other has been a depressing experience. The two are natural allies on many issues.

Obama's executive order on LGBT discrimination gets mixed Catholic reaction

Vinnie Rotondaro | Jul. 25, 2014

"This is something that religious groups can work with," one person said. "[The] executive order is unprecedented and extreme," said the bishops.