On Ash Wednesday, Joe Biden urged Americans to hold in prayer those who have suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic while “look[ing] with hope and anticipation toward Easter and brighter days ahead.”
Dispatches
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Catholics are overrepresented in the 117th Congress, but where are the ‘nones’?
From 1965 to 2021, the Catholic share of the House rose from 22 percent to 31 percent, and the Catholic share of the Senate rose from 14 percent to 24 percent.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
‘Their tents are covered with ice.’ Texas Catholic Charities confront extreme cold and snow on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border
Rolling blackouts and more bad weather on the way have most Texans hunkering down under blankets and trying to stay as warm. Conditions on both sides of the border were challenging.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
The Catholic Church in Spain is losing the euthanasia debate. Can it re-enter the conversation if it becomes legal?
Spanish bishops published their own letter on the issue last December, “Sowers of Hope,” in which they reminded Catholics that “there is no one that can’t be cared for even if they are incurable.”
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Africa was winning the Covid-19 battle. Then came rising death rates (and waves of misinformation).
Leadership lapses and the spread of erroneous information and fear about possible treatments for the disease also threaten a successful Covid-19 response in Africa.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Los Angeles is struggling with vaccine distribution equity. Can the Catholic Church help?
Age-based, “first come, first serve” strategies appear impartial, but statistics indicate that everyone is not the same.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Virginia’s lawmakers vote to abolish the death penalty. Catholic activists helped make it happen.
Virginia is on its way to becoming the 23rd state to abolish the death penalty and, significantly, the first formerly Confederate state to achieve abolition.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Catholic hospitals launch health equity initiative to fight systemic racism
The plan places a particular emphasis on ensuring equal access to Covid-19 testing, treatment and vaccination.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
A church survey reveals how mothers in Brazil are struggling to care for newborns in prison.
The Brazilian Constitution secures the right of women who are incarcerated to breastfeed their babies for six months. The law also allows them to serve their time at home. The decision is left to a judge.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Were Orthodox Christians massacred in Ethiopia?
“It really does look like there was an atrocity and a massacre, but precisely the motivation and the details, I think we need to suspend judgment at the moment,” Laurie Nathan said.