(AP) — The Vatican’s declaration that same-sex unions are a sin the Roman Catholic Church cannot bless was no surprise for LGBTQ Catholics in the United States — yet it stung deeply nonetheless.

(AP) — The pandemic, said one assistant pastor, “has called us to rethink and re-imagine what our philosophy of ministering really is in the age of COVID.”

(RNS) — The bill maintains exemptions for houses of worship, but faith-based homeless shelters and adoption or foster-care agencies that get federal funding would not be permitted to discriminate against LGBTQ people.

(AP) — When it comes to marrying, divorcing and having kids, people have become more cautious amid the pandemic.

NEW YORK (AP) — Amid the pandemic and economic stress, enrollment in Roman Catholic schools in the United States saw the largest single-year decline in at least five decades.

(RNS) — The SBC’s national meeting in June cold be a crucial moment for Black pastors if delegates rebuff their views on systemic racism in the U.S.

(RNS) — While some preachers were defiant, one pastor said, ‘We must repent for making the person who occupies the White House more important than the one who occupies our hearts.’

(AP) — One outspoken foe of abortion based in Dallas, Southern Baptist megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress, has called the vaccines a “present from God.”

NEW YORK (AP) — Many are weighing how to make amends through financial investments and long-term programs benefiting African Americans.

NOEL, Missouri (RNS) — While the pastors both want to keep parishioners safe, they are determined to carry on with in-person services as long as members of their congregations are eager to attend.

(AP) — Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, Rhode Island, was one of the first conservative Catholic leaders to go public with criticism.

(AP) — Top leaders are encouraging Catholic schools to place a new emphasis on teaching about racial justice, as well as the history of Black Catholics.

NEW YORK (AP) — As protests against racism and police brutality continue nationwide, there are rising calls for huge new investment in Catholic schools serving Black communities.

(AP) — About 100 Catholic schools have announced in recent weeks that they won’t reopen this fall — that number could more than double in the coming months.

NEW YORK (AP) — Striking changes in Communion will take place at Catholic and Protestant churches across the United States over coming weeks as restrictions on large gatherings — imposed because of the coronavirus outbreak — are gradually eased.