Brian Fraga

2 days ago | ncronline.org | Michael Sean Winters |Katie Scott |Brian Fraga

Linda Ekstrom knelt in the front pew and prayed silently following the April 22 midday Mass at St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral in Fall River, Massachusetts. A few feet in front of her, a framed portrait of Pope Francis, surrounded by flowers, stood in front of the cathedral's sanctuary. Ekstrom, a resident of Tiverton, Rhode Island, said she prayed for the church and for Francis, who died at age 88 on April 21, Easter Monday. She said she was shocked to learn of the pope's death.

1 month ago | ncronline.org | Brian Fraga |Michael Sean Winters

"A new reality" is how Anita Hassell describes it. Catholic Charities in the St. Augustine Diocese in Florida has been operating in a difficult environment since Jan. 24, when the Trump administration froze all federal spending on foreign aid and refugee resettlement. "Basically, this really happened overnight, as soon as the executive order was issued," said Hassell, the CEO and diocesan director of Catholic Charities Bureau for the St. Augustine Diocese.

1 month ago | ncronline.org | Brian Fraga |Michael Sean Winters

A flyer advertises a parish event in Lexington, Kentucky, that was to feature a talk by Br. Christian Matson, a diocesan hermit who is transgender. Comments on social media prompted organizers to postpone the event. (Courtesy of Stan "JR" Zerkowski) A swarm of angry, vitriolic comments on social media prompted organizers in Lexington, Kentucky, to postpone a parish event that was to feature a talk by Br. Christian Matson, a diocesan hermit who is transgender.

1 month ago | ncronline.org | Brian Fraga |Kate Scanlon

Catholic resettlement agency is still owed about $13 million in reimbursements Refugees from El Salvador help distribute food during a Catholic Charities-hosted party marking World Refugee Day, June 20, 2019, at the agency's immigration services center in Amityville, New York. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops sued the second Trump administration Feb. 18 for its abrupt halt to funds for resettling refugees. (OSV News/Gregory A.

1 month ago | ncronline.org | Brian Fraga |Kate Scanlon

A federal judge has denied a request from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to compel the Trump Administration to reinstate its contracts with the conference and resume paying it for expenses incurred in resettling refugees in the United States.