Saving the farm: US heartland clergy train to prevent agriculture workers’ suicides
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of Associated Press, reports on an initiative in which states such as Minnesota and South Dakota are offering suicide prevention training to clergy – a crucial, trusted presence in rural America…
Canada’s Trudeau vows action after four freeze to death in “mind blowing” tragedy
Ottawa, CanadaReuters Canada is doing all it can stop people smuggling across the US border after a family of four froze to death in a “mind blowing’ tragedy, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday. US authorities have charged a US man with human trafficking after the four – a man, woman, baby and teenager […]
“A ministry of listening”: In the US, Minnesota churches caught in standoffs between protesters and police
JACK JENKINS, of Religion News Service, speaks with the leaders of two congregations in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Center which have found themselves at the centre of standoffs between police and racial justice demonstrators over the past week…
In Minnesota and beyond, faith leaders hope Chauvin verdict lifts racial justice work
AP Faith leaders in Minnesota and across the United States expressed hope that their advocacy work for racial justice will gain momentum from the guilty verdict rendered against Derek Chauvin, the former police officer convicted of killing George Floyd. “It’s very encouraging for our overall work around racial justice to see the system, in this […]
Pope asks US bishop to resign after cover-up investigation
Rome, ItalyAP A bishop in Minnesota resigned Tuesday at the request of Pope Francis after he was investigated by the Vatican for allegedly interfering with past investigations into clergy sexual abuse, officials said. The Vatican said Francis accepted the resignation of Crookston Bishop Michael Hoeppner and named a temporary replacement to run the diocese. Hoeppner […]
Faith and comfort amid protests: Guard chaplains reflect on Floyd protests, lessons learned
GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO, of The Associated Press, reports on the experiences of National Guard chaplains during recent unrest in the US…
Priest tapped to be next bishop in US diocese resigns amid probe
Duluth, Minnesota, USAP A priest recently tapped by Pope Francis to become a bishop for a northern Minnesota diocese has resigned after an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor in the 1980s surfaced before he could take up his post. The Vatican announced Monday that Francis had accepted the resignation of Bishop-elect Michel Mulloy, […]
More US churches sue to challenge COVID-19 restrictions
Updated: 2.30pm (AEST)AP Churches in California and Minnesota, backed by a conservative legal group, filed lawsuits this week against the governors of their states challenging restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak that they contend are violations of religious liberty. They’re the latest in a long series of legal challenges, many of them in California, […]
In the US, Minnesota governor extends occupancy for church services; New England Catholics look forward to Masses
Minneapolis, USAP Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on Saturday scrapped his 10-person limit on group gatherings and agreed to allow churches to open at 25 per cent occupancy if certain safety guidelines are met. Walz said the decision, coming on a day when the state reported a record number of COVID-19 cases, has been “a challenging […]
In the US state of Minnesota, Catholic, Lutheran churches to defy governor and hold services
Minneapolis, USAP Roman Catholic and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregations across Minnesota plan to resume worship services in defiance of the state’s ban on gatherings of more than 10 people, their leaders said Thursday, the strongest direct challenge to Governor Tim Walz’s restrictions to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The leaders said at a […]