Speaking to about 500 members of the suburban Islamic Society of Baltimore, Obama said he knows that Muslim Americans bear an outsized burden of religious bigotry in the U.S. and are called upon to condemn crimes committed by a few Muslims when the vast majority abhors violence.
News
Honduran cardinal and top papal adviser warns against abortion for Zika fetuses
Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Honduras, a top adviser to Pope Francis, has denounced the idea of “therapeutic abortions”—which are carried out because of fetal abnormalities—as a response to birth defects caused by the mosquito-borne Zika virus that is setting off ala
Jordan says it cannot continue to bear brunt of Syrian refugee crisis
King Abdullah II of Jordan has warned that his country is now at a “boiling point” as Syrians, Iraqis and others fleeing violence in the aftermath of the Arab Spring uprisings still seek shelter in the cash-strapped, oil-poor kingdom.
Vatican joins international appeals for increased aid to Syria
Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Vatican secretary for relations with states, attended the Syria Donors Conference in London Feb. 4 and said the Catholic Church would continue to help the region through its fundraising efforts.
A Paris butcher offers a lesson in interfaith ties
“We work well together,” says Philippe Zribi, a Tunisian-born Jew whose family runs the butcher’s store that employs eight people: three Jews, three Muslims and two Catholics.
Prayer breakfast: President Obama says faith is great cure for fear
“Fear does funny things. Fear can lead us to lash out against those who are different. Or lead us to try to get some sinister other under control,” Obama said at the annual National Prayer Breakfast.
Kentucky tops health coverage gains but GOP looks to remake Medicaid
“To be top of this list would be an achievement if it didn’t mean that one-third of Kentuckians are on government subsidies,” Gov. Bevin spokeswoman Jessica Ditto said.
Syrian family arrives in Italy in first humanitarian airlift, meant to discourage dangerous sea passage
The Rome-based Catholic Sant’Egidio Community and the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy lobbied the Italian government to grant 1,000 humanitarian visas for particularly vulnerable refugees.
Pope asks Mexican people for time alone with Our Lady of Guadalupe
“I’m going to Mexico not as a wise man bearing things, messages, ideas or solutions to problems…But I will seek the wealth of faith that you have; I want to come in contact with that wealth of faith.”
Sisters’ billboards bring pope’s environmental message to Iowa caucuses
“Our big hope is that people see that caring for the climate, caring for the earth is a moral obligation,” said Sister Joy Peterson. “It’s not political, even though we need to influence politicians, but it’s an issue so important to the future of all creation. We also want to stimulate further response to the encyclical reminding people of that message that earth is our common home.”
