Happy Friday! As always, your weekly roundup:
A group of Colorado nuns said they will go to the US Supreme Court to appeal a ruling that allows their employees to receive birth control from a third party under the Affordable Care Act, fueling a combustible argument over contraception and religion ahead of next year’s presidential election.
A Christian group against poverty and hunger called Circle of Protection has asked U.S. presidential candidates a simple question: "What would you do as president to offer help and opportunity to hungry and poor people in the United States and around the world?" The group has already started receiving the first video responses from candidates on both ends of the political spectrum.
In May, the Rev. Warren Hall was abruptly dismissed from his position as the popular campus chaplain at Seton Hall University in New Jersey because the Catholic archbishop of Newark said his advocacy against anti-gay bullying, and his identity as a gay man, undermined church teaching. Now Hall has written to Pope Francis asking that when the pontiff visits the U.S. in September, he speak out against such actions because they are “alienating” gay Catholics and the many others who support them.
A new Dr. Seuss book has been published by Random House. The almost complete project was originally found in a pile of his papers alongside the orphaned sketches. Labeled “The Pet Shop,” the manuscript included 16 black-and-white illustrations, with text that he had typed on paper and taped to the drawings. The pages were stained and yellowed, but the story was all there, in Dr. Seuss’ unmistakable rollicking rhymes.
And now for the papal rapid fire roundup
This week, Pope Francis:
- became less popular in the United States.
- is the inspiration for a National Geographic photo story.
- met with Special Olympics athletes.
- took a "staycation."
