NATION/WORLD

Petitions and letters to members of Congress and the Obama administration are among the measures being pursued by advocates urging humane treatment of the Central American children who are trying to migrate to the United States.

The situation in hospitals in the Gaza Strip is dire, and Palestinians are saying that medical supplies will soon run out, said a cardiologist who serves with the Near East Council of Churches in Gaza. By July 14, more than 170 people — about half civilians — had been killed in Gaza, and hundreds more were injured.

Spend some time in Indianapolis Community Court, talk with Judge David Certo and the stories start to flow about the steadfast hope and remarkable sense of human dignity that guide this court. It's a court that believes in helping people strive for a better life, has a strong influence of Catholic faith — including the leadership of former seminarian — and the compassion of numerous food pantry volunteers.

The Supreme Court's ruling in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby was barely out of the clerk's box June 30 before pundits, partisans and parties to related lawsuits were staking out claims about what the decision means.

More than a meeting and homily, Pope Francis laid out a clear road map for the church when he celebrated Mass and welcomed abuse survivors to the Vatican.

From the head of the U.S. agency in charge of the welfare of more than 50,000 Central American children who have been apprehended at the Mexican border, to the Honduran cardinal who heads the international Catholic relief agency, Caritas, the message was clear, those minors are as much refugees as the people fleeing upheaval in Syria or South Sudan.

Seven months after hiring a consulting firm to study the Vatican's communications structures, the Vatican has set up an 11-member committee -- which includes Our Sunday Visitor's Greg Erlandson -- to suggest ways to increase collaboration and cut costs.

Louisiana's Supreme Court has ruled that a priest may be compelled to testify as to what he heard in the confessional in 2008 concerning an abuse case. The priest faces automatic excommunication if he breaks the seal of the confessional. But he also could face jailing if found to be in contempt of the court should he refuse to testify.

Catholic leaders in the Holy Land called for an end to the cycle of violence and criticized Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and its collective punishment of Palestinians.

A new radio program launched in the Palm Beach Diocese in June with a focus on shedding light on pro-life issues, and sharing ways to get involved in promoting the culture of life in the not-so-pro-life world.