Population Research Institute— Most of Japan has a fertility rate that is below replacement, but one “miracle town” is untouched by this issue. As of 2019, the mountain town of Nagi was averaging 2.95 children per woman. This fertility success can be attributed to actions that were taken twenty years ago. In 2004, the local…
Born and raised in Japan, a third-generation Korean transplant, nestled in an area of Japan with a tight Zainichi Korean population, Hyangsu Park recounts her gripping first-hand account of the reality of North Korea, where her uncle had moved. In the Zainichi Korean schools in Japan, students were taught that North Korea was like “paradise…
Culled from LifeSite News, this well-captured Catholic Business profile of one of the most dedicated Catholic pro-lifers on the planet, and one of the sharpest lawyers too, is well-worth the read. Her work at the foundation she founded, Women’s Rights without Frontiers, is well-worth learning about and supporting, and the Rome Pro Life conference sponsored…
A Catholic parish in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is taking a legal battle to an appellate court amid fears that a state civil rights law could be used to restrict its religious liberty in matters related to gender identity and sexuality. Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish is asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th…
FBI targets serious Catholics. NYPost—Multiple FBI field offices were involved in drafting a controversial January 2023 internal memo suggesting traditionalist Catholic groups were potential hotbeds of domestic extremism, two Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee alleged Wednesday. A less redacted version of the memo obtained by the panel last month cited a “liaison contact” at…
CNA/CBJ—Iowa is the latest state to approve new abortion restrictions when the state’s governor signed a six-week abortion ban earlier in July 2023. A state judge temporarily halted its enforcement as the court weighs arguments about its compatibility with the state constitution. The law would prohibit abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. But…
CNA—The delegate for the Colombian Bishops’ Conference (CEC) for Church-state relations, Monsignor Héctor Fabio Henao Gaviria, explained the role of the Church as part of the monitoring and verification mechanism of the cease-fire between the government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) rebel group. The peace plan, so far The 180-day cease-fire will go into…
CNA—Mexican-born actor and filmmaker Eduardo Verástegui said he considers the success of his film “Sound of Freedom,” which opened in U.S. theaters on July 4, a miracle. “Sound of Freedom” is a film from Angel Studios that narrates the first mission of American federal agent Tim Ballard, played by Catholic actor Jim Caviezel, who also…
Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, unequivocally condemned the FDA’s approval of the first over-the-counter oral contraceptive “Opill” in a short but strongly worded statement released Thursday on behalf of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The use of artificial contraceptives of any kind is directly contradictory to Catholic moral teaching and is “intrinsically evil,” according to…
CNA—A federal appeals court ruled that a Catholic school in Indiana is allowed to hold its leaders to moral religious standards after the institution refused to renew an employee’s contract because she violated Catholic teaching. What happened? Roncalli High School, which is under the authority of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, refused to renew the contract…
What is the Battle? That is a reasonable question as there are multiple battles raging in society today at the same time, on different subjects – at the federal level, state level and local level. These battles are about issues that have been fought over for decades, some with a new twist these days and…
(July 13, 2023 – New Orleans, Louisiana) Thomas More Society attorneys have filed an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in a lawsuit seeking to block a Biden Administration directive that forces doctors to perform elective abortions in emergency rooms. The filing, made July 7, 2023, in the United States Court of Appeals for…
CNA—The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the First Amendment’s free speech clause protects a Colorado web designer who feared she would be prosecuted under state anti-discrimination law for her faith-based objections to designing websites that promote same-sex marriage or same-sex weddings. Lorie Smith, owner of the graphic and web design studio 303 Creative LLC,…
CNA—The pro-life movement could learn something from the New England Patriots and their future Hall of Fame coach Bill Belichick. At least, that’s what former Patriots tight end Ben Watson thinks. Watson, who officially retired from football in 2020 and currently serves as vice president of strategic relationships for the pro-life group Human Coalition —…
Discrimination complaint filed against Bud Light, Anheuser-Bush — Last week, America First Legal filed a federal civil rights complaint against Bud Light’s parent company, Anheuser-Busch (a division of InBev), for “illegal, racist and sexist hiring practices.” An interesting twist indeed to the recent marketing debacle that sent shares of the former #1 beer brand—once favored…
Will the Los Angeles Dodgers ever be the same? I doubt it. One of the most-storied sports brands in history is reeling. It’s the result of management’s foolish decision to invite an anti-Catholic hate group to an LGBT Pride night, then rescind the invitation after criticism from the right, only to re-invite the group after blowback from the left.…
Vatican News — “I encourage you to continue your efforts to contribute to a revival of faith in, and love for, the Holy Eucharist, the “source and summit of the Christian life.” With these words, Pope Francis expressed his gratitude to the members of the Committee preparing for the forthcoming National Eucharistic Congress in the…
“Love for his wife as mother of their children and love for the children themselves are for the man the natural way of understanding and fulfilling his own fatherhood. Above all where social and cultural conditions so easily encourage a father to be less concerned with his family or at any rate less involved in…
Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of San Francisco wrote a masterful summary of the history of violence against Catholics in the U.S., including felony crimes committed recently in San Francisco and other cities. Vandals get off with a misdemeanor charge for defacing a statue as police looked on. Below are clips of the original story that…
WSJ Obituary columnist James R. Hagerty’s book, Yours Truly: An Obituary Writer’s Guide to Telling Your Story, is a thought-provoking and engaging work that explores the importance of crafting our own obituary and telling our own story. Hagerty’s inspiration for writing this book comes from his own experience with his father’s passing. Like many people,…
