Citing mounting concerns over the financial impact of clergy sex abuse settlements and the coronavirus pandemic, the Archdiocese of New Orleans filed for Chapter 11 reorganization of the finances of its administrative offices May 1 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

The suspension of public Masses, the closing of schools and the limiting of public gatherings has helped slow the spread of COVID-19, but it also has resulted in financial and business challenges for churches and schools in the Diocese of Phoenix.

It is both appropriate and responsible for the Catholic Church to add its voice to those calling for a thorough and comprehensive understanding of the underlying causes and the effects of this virus on these communities, which continue to suffer from longstanding inequities in basic human rights such as access to quality healthcare,” Archbishop Lori said.

If we know the voice of the Lord Jesus well, and we continue to respond to it, then we know what follows it: an abiding peace and confident hope that cannot be taken away.

Lena Vendetti Petrik’s instinct to care for others doesn’t stop when she finishes a shift at Mercy Medical Center’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.