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NEW ORLEANS (RNS) Roman Catholic Archbishop Alfred Hughes has denounced a lawmaker’s proposal to pay poor people to undergo sterilization as “an egregious affront to those targeted and blatantly anti-life.” “Our lawmakers would do better to focus on policies that promote education and achievement to counteract poverty and the bigotry of low expectations, ” Hughes…

New York – Religious leaders are warning that the global financial crisis threatens progress made against poverty and world hunger, and urged political leaders not to ignore the poor while debating how to solve the current international financial panic. “It’s a teachable moment to move the agenda of hunger and inequality in the world,” said…

Beijing – China issued a government report Thursday praising its rule over Tibet and accusing the Dalai Lama of wanting to restore a backward feudal system in the Himalayan region. The white paper, published six months after riots and protests rocked Tibet, said the government had spent vast sums of money and manpower to protect…

In Parma, Ohio, an organizer for Barack Obama arrived at a recent “Catholic house party,” a campaign-sponsored chat about values, prepared to answer questions about abortion. The conversation instead lurched into the battered state of the local economy – not surprising in a community where laid-off Ford auto workers are now greeters at Wal-Mart. Across…

WASHINGTON – Several medical associations and 13 state attorneys general voiced their opposition Wednesday to a proposed federal rule that they fear would open the door for hospitals and physicians to deny access to contraception. In late August, the Bush administration proposed stronger job protections for doctors and other health care workers who refuse to…

RALEIGH, N.C. – What was supposed to be an honor – a cover story about a group of successful women pastors – has instead been tarnished for a Durham non-denominational church leader. Sheryl Brady, the 48-year-old pastor of The River Church, was featured among four other women pastors on the cover of Gospel Today, a…

WASHINGTON (RNS) Anti-Muslim discrimination reached an all-time high in 2007, according to a report released Wednesday (Sept. 24) by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). The District of Columbia and just nine other states account for 80 percent of the civil rights complaints. California leads with one in five complaints, followed by Washington, D.C., and…

Washington – The Presbyterian Church (USA) is inviting all Presbyterians to participate in a monthly church-wide fast for “repentance, reflection, and coordinated actions” to empathize with those suffering from hunger and famine around the world. Over the next year, the denomination will study aspects of the world hunger crisis, including trade policies, climate change and…

Fouke, Ark. – Six minors have been temporarily placed in state custody as part of a child porn investigation after a raid on a ministry run by a man who says “consent is puberty” when it comes to sex, officials said Sunday. The children will be in the custody of the Arkansas Department of Human…

Chicago – Each evening at about 6:30 p.m., Idrees Muhammad sets out a modest feast in Shan Foods, a part-eatery, part-convenience store on the city’s north side. A fleet of taxi cabs pulls up to the strip mall soon after. Sweetened milk, a container of dates, a tray of fruit tossed with cumin and cinnamon,…

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