Articles by Kevin J. Jones
Critics of Columbus Day get history wrong, scholar says
Oct 12, 2020 / 10:00 amThe historical legacy of Christopher Columbus is tarred by bad history in the quest to change Columbus Day, according to a researcher who has focused on Columbus’ religious motives for exploration.
Abortion is 'pre-eminent' human rights issue, St Augustine bishop says as election nears
Oct 11, 2020 / 14:01 pmAbortion is a “fundamental threat to the beginning of life itself” and Catholics can't be passive on the “pre-eminent” human rights issue, the right to life, Bishop Felipe Estevez of St. Augustine has said in a pre-election letter to his diocese's Catholics about the importance of conscientious political participation.
Amnesty International's expanded abortion advocacy gets human rights wrong, critic says
Oct 7, 2020 / 02:39 amAn international law expert has criticized Amnesty International’s new support for abortion access through all nine months of pregnancy and its claim that human rights protections “start at birth.”
Sainthood inquiry continues for Tennessee priest who died in yellow fever epidemic
Oct 3, 2020 / 05:26 amThe canonization cause is progressing for Father Patrick Ryan, a priest who sacrificed his life in a nineteenth century yellow fever epidemic to serve the sick. Bishop Richard Stika of Knoxville, Tenn., has launched an official tribunal to continue the inquiry into whether he should be declared 'venerable.'
New Jersey bill would preserve abortion protections, even if Roe overturned
Oct 2, 2020 / 16:26 pmAs change on the US Supreme Court puts the future of legal abortion in doubt, some political leaders in New Jersey are seeking to strengthen and expand legal abortion through proposed state legislation.
Vandal takes baseball bat to Catholic seminary in Texas, but none harmed
Sep 25, 2020 / 16:07 pmA man who wielded a baseball bat on the grounds of a Catholic seminary in Texas damaged a crucifix and several doors, but caused no harm to seminary students. The seminary asked for prayers for the unknown perpetrator and warned against a rush to judgment.
How Pius XII treated Jewish orphans after World War II
Sep 9, 2020 / 03:00 amScholars of Pope Pius XII have countered claims that the wartime pope and the Catholic Church hierarchy were complicit in a controversial post-war custody battle over two Jewish orphans who were baptized Christians in France, then hidden from their relatives.
Why organized labor is (still) a Catholic cause
Sep 7, 2020 / 03:49 amAt a time when labor unions are weak, Catholics still have a place in the labor movement, said a priest who emphasized the Church’s historic efforts to teach the rights of labor and train workers to organize.
Gun brandishing incident at Delaware abortion clinic won’t deter pro-life outreach
Aug 28, 2020 / 12:00 pmAfter the arrest of a man who allegedly threatened pro-life demonstrators with a gun, pro-life advocates say the incident is not typical and will not change their determination to engage in positive outreach.
Philadelphia archdiocese asks two priests to undo hasty church renovations
Aug 27, 2020 / 09:00 amTwo parish administrators at two different Philadelphia churches must work to undo church renovations that drew both objections from parishioners and corrections from church officials, who said the priests did not follow archdiocese guidelines.
Catholics in Iowa respond generously amid derecho storm recovery
Aug 24, 2020 / 18:19 pmTwo weeks after a major storm system caused massive damage in the Midwest, residents of Iowa and other affected states are working to rebuild.
Legal abortion 'above my pay grade,' says religious sister who will pray at DNC
Aug 20, 2020 / 09:52 amSister Simone Campbell, who is set to offer a prayer at the Democratic National Convention Thursday, has declined to take a stand on the morality of abortion protections, and a CNA examination finds donors to her organization, Network Lobby, have links to pro-abortion rights advocacy.
W Virginia's Catholic bishop says emeritus Bishop Bransfield not in contact
Aug 15, 2020 / 14:01 pmBishop Michael Bransfield, who headed West Virginia’s only Catholic diocese before retiring amid scandal, has not communicated with his successor in months. A plan to ensure he makes some reparation for financial and sexual misconduct has still not been implemented.
Questions of abuse cover-up directed at incoming St. Louis archbishop, but details unclear
Aug 7, 2020 / 16:21 pmArchbishop-designate Mitchell Rozanski is set to take over the Archdiocese of St. Louis, after heading the Diocese of Springfield in Massachusetts since 2014. Though Rozanski himself backed major changes in the Springfield diocese's handling of abuse, one unnamed abuse victim has asked for a Church investigation into whether the archbishop-designate was involved in covering up abuse.
Obama alum running for Congress denies defrauding progressive Catholic group
Aug 3, 2020 / 18:15 pmThe former executive director of a progressive Catholic political advocacy organization, who is now vying for a Congressional seat in Tennessee, has denied a former board member's allegations that he defrauded the organization and eventually left it bankrupt.
After challenging California officials, Catholic home for trafficked girls set to open
Aug 2, 2020 / 14:01 pmA Catholic charity that has prepared to open a home for underage victims of human trafficking has reached a resolution with California authorities after it was allegedly pressured to affirm LGBT sexuality, to inject sex hormones into any beneficiaries who identify as transgender, and to agree to drive minors to abortion clinics.
For first time, Courage apostolate publishes chaplain's handbook online
Jul 28, 2020 / 23:29 pmThe Catholic apostolate Courage has published online the latest edition of its chaplain’s handbook to better help clergy and others ministering to people with same-sex attractions and their families.
Priests for Life Fr. Frank Pavone resigns from Trump campaign roles
Jul 24, 2020 / 23:25 pmPriests for Life national director Fr. Frank Pavone has resigned from advisory positions in the reelection campaign of President Donald Trump. The priest resigned at the direction of Church authorities, he told CNA Friday.
Lawsuit claims McCarrick headed abusive ‘sex ring,’ names alleged ‘procurer’
Jul 22, 2020 / 17:08 pmA lawsuit filed Tuesday charges that former cardinal Theodore McCarrick sexually abused a boy and aided his abuse by several other priests, and claims that a principal at a Christian Brothers high school helped procure the victim for McCarrick and the other clergy abusers in the early 1980s.
St. Junipero Serra could soon be removed from California county seal
Jul 21, 2020 / 16:40 pmA proposal to remove St. Junipero Serra from Ventura County’s official seal is unwarranted, and elected officials need to know Serra’s true story, according to the priest who heads the final mission the sainted Spanish missionary founded in California.