Federal judge orders full restoration of DACA program
The Trump administration must fully restore the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, after the program that protects qualifying young adult immigrants from deportation was suspended this summer.
No pandemic can extinguish Christ’s light, pope says at Angelus
No pandemic and no kind of crisis can extinguish the light of Christ, Pope Francis said.
Bishops: Getting COVID-19 vaccine is ‘act of charity,’ supports the common good
The "gravity" of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and "the lack of availability of alternative vaccines," are "sufficiently serious" reasons to accept the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, the chairmen of the U.S. bishops' doctrine and pro-life committees said Dec. 14.
Ignoring the poor is a sin, head of Ukrainian Catholic Church says
Celebrating the birth of Jesus, Christians should remember that he is present in each person who is sick, homeless, frail, neglected or needs help, said the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church.
Pope again calls for diverting funds from weapons to fighting hunger
Appealing for a worldwide commitment to initiating a "culture of care" for one another and for the environment, Pope Francis again called on nations to divert money from their military budgets to create a global fund to end hunger and promote development in the world's poorest nations.
Death penalty hits historic low in U.S. ‘despite federal execution spree,’ says report
A new report Dec. 16 by the Death Penalty Information Center said the use of capital punishment reached a historic low this year in the United States even with the return of federal executions by the Trump administration.
Court sides with Colorado, New Jersey challenges to pandemic worship restrictions
The Supreme Court, once again siding with houses of worship opposed to pandemic-related restrictions, ordered lower federal courts in Colorado and New Jersey Dec. 15 to reexamine state-imposed indoor worship restrictions.
Netflix to release series illustrating pope’s call for ‘alliance’ of young, old
Netflix has announced that in 2021 it will release a documentary series based on "Sharing the Wisdom of Time," a book in which Pope Francis called for creating "an alliance between the young and old people" by sharing their stories.
In predominantly Christian Uganda, some still fear attacks
When Brenda Namutebi renounced Islam and accepted Christ as her savior in a local Catholic Church, her Muslim husband and neighbors subjected her to harsh conditions, hoping she might change her mind.
Away with the manger? Nativity scene at Vatican generates controversy
Especially in a year when the COVID-19 pandemic will rule out many people's favorite Christmas traditions, they have a right to express their dislike of the decidedly untraditional Nativity scene on display in the center of St. Peter's Square, said a priest who specializes in catechesis through art.
