Religion

The Christian Post reports: The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans has agreed to pay more than $1 million as part of a settlement over allegations of falsified Hurricane Katrina aid claims. The settlement came in response to allegations that the archdiocese had violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) …

From the Department of Justice: Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that Robert D. McWilliams, 41, of Strongsville, Ohio, was sentenced today by Judge Sara Lioi to life in prison. McWilliams, a Northeast Ohio-area Catholic Priest at the time of the offense conduct, previously pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, three counts of sexual …

The Christian Post reports: Liberty University is asking a federal court to stop a former employee from disclosing confidential information and documents amid a legal battle over claims that the evangelical Christian school wrongfully fired him for speaking out about how it handled sexual assault allegations. Scott Lamb, formerly the school’s senior vice president of communications, sued the Lynchburg-based university …

The Associated Press reports: France’s Catholic Church announced on Monday that it would financially compensate sex abuse victims by selling property assets or taking out a loan if needed. French bishops said in a written statement they will set up an “independent, national body” tasked with addressing compensation issues. They committed to allocating money to a specific fund “in order …

Religion News Service reports: Archbishop José H. Gomez, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, railed against “new social justice movements” during a speech Thursday (Nov. 4), decrying them as “pseudo-religions” that ultimately serve as “dangerous substitutes for true religion.” The prelate argued the United States, like Europe, has been subject to “aggressive secularization,” insisting “there has been a …

“This is actually referred to in the Bible. Saint Paul, when he was put on trial in  – I think it’s Caesarea – well, it was over in Palestine — uh, in Israel — he was  accused of some activity. “And he was a Roman citizen, which is not common, but he happened to have been a Roman citizen. So, …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday turned away healthcare workers seeking a religious exemption to Maine’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate in the latest battle over vaccination to reach the justices. The court rejected a request made by nine unnamed plaintiffs who identified themselves as healthcare workers who object to receiving the shots on religious grounds. The court previously rejected …

The New York Times reports: President Biden told reporters on Friday that Pope Francis had called him a “good Catholic” and said he should keep receiving communion, an unexpected development that appeared to put a papal finger on the scale in a debate raging in the United States’ Roman Catholic Church over whether the president and other Catholic politicians who …

The Guardian reports: Pope Francis has urged world leaders to take “radical decisions” at next week’s global environmental summit in a special message recorded for BBC Radio 4’s Thought for the Day. Leaders attending the Cop26 conference in Glasgow must offer “concrete hope to future generations”, the pontiff said. Francis is not attending the summit, despite earlier suggestions that he …

The Associated Press reports: Hours after arriving in Rome, President Joe Biden will meet with Pope Francis on Friday at the Vatican, where the world’s two most notable Roman Catholics plan to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change and poverty. On the eve of Biden’s visit, a leading U.S. conservative cardinal and Francis critic, Cardinal Raymond Burke, penned an impassioned …

The Christian Post reports: The Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University released the eighth report of its 2021 American Worldview Inventory Tuesday. The report was based on responses collected from 2,000 American adults in February as part of a more extensive survey with a margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points. A majority of Americans (54%) subscribe to …

Omaha’s NBC News affiliate reports: An Omaha priest was arrested Friday morning accused of stealing from an incapacitated retired priest who had willed his estate to the Archdiocese of Omaha, saying he was giving the money to a homeless man. The Rev. Michael F. Gutgsell was arrested at 7:35 a.m. Friday and taken to Douglas County Jail. He appeared in …

Reuters reports: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer on Tuesday night turned away a religious challenge to a requirement that healthcare workers in Maine be vaccinated against COVID-19, the latest such bid rejected by the nation’s top judicial body. In a brief order, Breyer wrote that the challengers – unnamed plaintiffs who said they are healthcare workers and object to …

From right wing commentator Erick Erickson: In my city, a crystal shop opened. It advertises itself as a “metaphysical/spiritual” store. You can get crystals to give you energy or calm you. You can learn to cast spells and explore astrology. You can delve into the magical arts long ago pushed aside by the Christian God. The old gods are coming …

Axios reports: Pope Francis called on pharmaceutical companies on Saturday to release patents to make COVID-19 vaccines more accessible to the poor. There is a stark divide between countries that have access to COVID-19 shots and those that don’t, and the gap has widened as some wealthier countries have begun distributing third doses. Just 2.2% of people in low-income countries, …

The Tennessean reports: Ronnie Floyd, the highest-ranking official of the Southern Baptist Convention executive committee announced his resignation Thursday evening, following weeks of contentious committee meetings about a sexual abuse inquiry. “Due to my personal integrity and the leadership responsibility entrusted to me, I will not and cannot any longer fulfill the duties placed upon me as the leader of …

The Guardian reports: Catholic priests must report all child sexual abuse allegations to police, including if they hear about it in the secrecy of the confession box, the French interior minister has said after reprimanding France’s top bishop for claiming that the secrecy of the Catholic confessional was “above the laws of the Republic”. France is reeling from the publication …

The Associated Press reports: Pope Francis expressed “shame” for himself and the Roman Catholic Church on Wednesday for the scale of child sexual abuse within the church in France and acknowledged failures in putting the needs of victims first. The pope spoke during his regular audience at the Vatican about a report released Tuesday that estimated some 330,000 French children …

The New Jersey Advance reports: A former Roman Catholic pastor has admitted he stole $30,000 from his Pennsylvania parish, money he spent on a beach house on the New Jersey shore and men with whom he had sexual relationships. Monsignor Joseph McLoone, 58, pleaded guilty Thursday to misdemeanor theft charges and was sentenced to five years of probation, the first …

Reuters reports: The Vatican City State said Tuesday that it would soon begin requiring all employees — including the highest members of the Catholic Church — to show proof of vaccination or of a recent negative coronavirus test. Those without the proper certificates, the Vatican said, will be considered “unjustly absent” — and will be paid no salary. Though the …