To Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Arturo Cepeda, the topic of immigration isn’t an issue that should divide Catholics, despite the political football it’s become in recent years. That’s because when it comes to Catholic identity, as he puts it, “what we believe about human dignity crosses borders.” Read more…

On August 1, the Administration’s contraceptive and sterilization mandate went into effect for most employers. Congress must take action now to protect religious liberty and conscience rights. During the August recess, please contact your Representative and two Senators. Urge Members to support and work for enactment of the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act (H.R. 1179, S. 1467) this year, whether as a free-standing bill or as part of other legislation. [Link no longer available —Ed.]

The purpose of this FOCUS publication is to expand upon those primary issues of concern to the Church, especially religious freedom, and to present additional information with which Catholics can absorb and research this election season in light of the Church’s call to Faithful Citizenship. Read more…

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has addressed the constitutional holding of the federal health care law by calling upon Congress to fix the problems with federal funding of abortion, the lack of proper conscience protections and how immigrant workers and their families are treated. The news release states that the “decision of the Supreme Court neither diminishes the moral imperative to ensure decent health care for all, nor eliminates the need to correct the fundamental flaws.” Read more…

WASHINGTON—The U.S. bishops greeted with hope and caution the June 25 Supreme Court decision to strike down provisions of an Arizona immigration law that would have allowed warrantless arrests of people suspected of an offense that is deportable, that would have made it a crime to seek work in the state and that would have made undocumented presence a state crime. Read more…

The purpose of this FOCUS publication is to highlight foster care in Michigan and across the country, and to identify agencies in the state that can provide opportunities and answer questions for those with interest. Indeed, foster care parents are extending the love of our father in Heaven. Read more…

“Our First, Most Cherished Liberty,” released April 12, urges the laity to work to protect the First Freedom of the Bill of Rights, and itemizes numerous instances at home and abroad where religious liberty has come under attack. According to the statement: “What is at stake is whether America will continue to have a free, creative, and robust civil society—or whether the state alone will determine who gets to contribute to the common good, and how they get to do it.” Read more…

Detroit—Upwards of 1,000 people enthusiastically cheered when Fr. Stephen Pullis took the microphone in downtown Detroit with a simple but forceful message. “We cannot give up, we cannot back down, and we cannot be silent,” he said to a roar. Among those speaking at the rally was Most. Rev. Michael Byrnes, auxiliary bishop of the Detroit archdiocese, pictured above. Read more…

The Administrative Committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), gathering for its March 2012 meeting, called for a nationwide prayer effort to support the ongoing struggle to protect religious freedom and conscience rights from various threats, including the coercive HHS contraception/sterilization mandate. [Link no longer available —Ed.]

Following its meeting, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops Administrative Committee released this statement in defense of religious freedom and conscience rights that are under attack from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The statement also lays out next steps and dispels common myths about the HHS mandate. Read more…