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Bridget Ryder is a freelance writer based in Spain.
French President Emmanuel Macron, center, and his wife Brigitte Macron, second right, visit the restored interiors of the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral on Nov. 29, 2024, in Paris. (Christophe Petit Tesson/Pool via AP)
FaithDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Notre-Dame, and many churches in France, are owned by the state and merely used by the church. That gave the French government, and President Macron, a big voice in the restoration project.
Pope Francis greets a Christian family from Syria at the nunciature in Brussels Sept. 28, 2024. As refugees, they had reached Belgium thanks to the help of the Rome-based Community of Sant'Egidio and its "humanitarian corridors." (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Many Syrians would return voluntarily to their homeland, Father Benedict Kiely believes, “but it’s a question of what they are returning to.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni applauds Pope Francis during a meeting about families and Italy's declining birthrate May 12, 2023, in Rome. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Pope Francis has condemned surrogacy as a form of “false compassion.” Now, in Italy, engaging in surrogacy in another country, even where it may be legal, will be a criminal offense for Italian citizens.
Resting at Castillo del Romeral beach after dozens of migrants arrived on Spain's Gran Canaria Island on Oct. 16, 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic. (CNS photo/Borja Suarez, Reuters)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
On Spain’s Canary Islands, arrivals of unaccompanied migrants are on track to reach a historic high this year, and caring for the migrant youth has become politically contentious.
The world's tallest cross dominates the scene above a Spanish Civil War cemetery and memorial in the Valley of the Fallen (renamed the Valley of Cuelgamuros) near Madrid, pictured in October 2019. (CNS photo/Emilio Naranjo, pool via Reuters)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Spanish media reports that the ministry of culture is drafting a law that will expel monks. But that task will not be easy. The 21 monks do not wish to leave their monastery.
A view of migrants behind the metal barrier border that Poland has erected along the border with Belarus, in Bialowieza Forest, on May 29. Poland says neighboring Belarus and its main supporter Russia are behind a surging push by migrants in Belarus toward the European Union. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Voting in the E.U. parliamentary elections, which begins on June 6, is expected to result in a strong swing to the political right, as parties running on anti-immigration platforms have surged across Europe in recent years.
Participants in the “March for Life” rally stand with banners reading “Every life is a gift,” “Life is life” and “Euthanasia no thanks” in Munich, Germany, on April 13, 2024. An independent experts commission has recommended that abortion in Germany should be made legal during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. (Uwe Lein/dpa via AP)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision in June 2022, overturning the Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion in 1973, has provoked supporters of abortion access in Europe to press for liberalization of abortion laws across the continent.
A pro-life activist wears a shirt that reads 'I love life' near the Palace of Versailles during the Congress session of both Houses of Parliament in Versailles, on March 4. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
After France became the first country in the world to enshrine abortion as a “guaranteed freedom” into its constitution, pro-life leaders say they are mobilizing to counteract the unprecedented move.
Pope Francis meets with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at Sándor Palace in Budapest, Hungary, on April 28, 2023. The pope was beginning a three-day trip to Hungary's capital with meetings with government officials. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Politics & SocietyDispatches
Bridget Ryder
Even as Prime Minister Victor Orban positions his government as one of the last defenders of Christian culture in Europe, religious affiliation in Hungary has dropped to a record low.
Christmas nativity hand made by religious in Spain
FaithDispatches
Bridget Ryder
The Christmas fair in Madrid was the work of Fundación Contemplare, a nonprofit set up to help Spain’s monasteries continue a legacy of gourmet baked goods and handmade candies but also, more importantly, to support contemplative life and reconnect monasteries with the world around them.