Pastor Charles Stoker looks over damage to Hi-Way Tabernacle Assembly of God Church after Hurricane Harvey in Cleveland, Texas, north of Houston. (Photo courtesy of Becket Law Firm.)

Hurricane-damaged houses of worship can receive FEMA aid

by Adelle Banks - Religion News Service January 4, 2018

President Trump tweeted in September that Texas churches should be “entitled to reimbursement from FEMA” for aiding Hurricane Harvey victims.

Parishioners point at a fallen tree uprooted on the grounds of St. Mary Cathedral in Miami after the passing of Hurricane Irma in September. (CNS photo/Marlene Quaroni, Florida Catholic newspaper)

Dispatches, Politics & Society

The elderly and disabled were left behind in Hurricane Irma. What will happen next time?

by Kate Stein January 3, 2018

It remains to be seen whether new efforts to address vulnerabilities faced by low-income, disabled and elderly people will result in meaningful changes.

Arts & Culture, Books

Daniel Ellsberg on the most dangerous threat we face

by Peter Steinfels December 27, 2017

To those of us who campaigned against the Vietnam War as unjust and unwinnable, Daniel Ellsberg was a hero.

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., right, shakes hands after presenting a pen to House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, left, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., second from left, watches after signing the final version of the GOP tax bill during an enrollment ceremony at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Editorials, Politics & Society

The Editors: Children’s health insurance deserves more than life support from Congress

by The Editors December 22, 2017

The willingness to use CHIP as a bargaining tactic highlight the misplaced priorities of the current congressional leadership.

In this Nov. 15 photo, Pedro Deschamps helps workers hired by FEMA to carry out the installation of a temporary awning roof at his house, which suffered damage during Hurricane Maria, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti)

Politics & Society, Short Take

Jesuit ethicist: Puerto Rico can no longer be a U.S. colony

by Jorge Ferrer December 21, 2017

Hurricane Maria removed the delusions of prosperity and first-world status that blinded so many to the realities of Puerto Rico, including the fragility of its infrastructure, its high levels of social inequality and its status as a U.S. colony.

Pro-life supporters protest in front of a Planned Parenthood center in early February in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed pro-life legislation that "would have strengthened" the state's Abortion Control Act "by banning the cruel and brutal practice of dismemberment abortions," said the state Catholic conference. (CNS photo/Charles Mostoller, Reuters

News, Politics & Society

‘Misinformation’ seen as reason for veto of Pennsylvania abortion bill

by Catholic News Service December 21, 2017

The legislation would have strengthened the ban on dismemberment abortions and abortions from the 20th week on during a pregnancy.

House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin leaves the House Chamber after voting on the Republican tax bill on Dec. 19. Republicans muscled the most sweeping rewrite of the nation's tax laws in more than three decades through the House. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

News Analysis, Politics & Society

U.S. bishops ask Trump to reconsider GOP tax plan as it heads to White House

by Kevin Clarke December 20, 2017

“We ask that [the president] take into account the full consequences of its provisions and work with Congress to remedy them before signing a tax bill into law.”