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The Supreme Court halted the execution of a Texas death row inmate, who was scheduled to be executed last night. The inmate had requested his pastor be allowed to lay hands on him and pray in the execution chamber. Texas has a law prohibiting chaplains from vocal prayer and physical contact with inmates inside the execution chamber. The court agreed to hear the inmate’s case challenging that law.
In an unprecedented joint message, Pope Francis and the leaders of the Anglican and Orthodox churches called the climate crisis a devastating injustice. The Christian leaders warned there would be catastrophic consequences for future generations, unless the world took responsibility for environmental damage.
The archbishop of Washington said yesterday that Catholic President Joe Biden did not demonstrate Church teaching, when he said life does not begin at conception. Last week, Biden said that he did not agree that life begins at conception, and that he supports legalized abortion. Cardinal Wilton Gregory said that the Catholic Church teaches that human life begins at conception, and the president did not demonstrate Catholic teaching in his comments.
A 70-year-old priest was shot to death in northern Haiti this week. The priest was attacked by several people on motorcycles. He was shot outside a bank, where he had just completed a transaction. The attackers did not take the money he was carrying. Haiti has seen a surge of violence in recent years, including an increase in kidnappings for ransom.
Today, the Church celebrates Saint Peter Claver, a Jesuit missionary who spent his life in the service of African slaves brought against their will to South America, during the 17th century.