Ruth Graham

Catholic Group Sues Trump Administration for Access to Immigration Facility

"For more than a decade, Catholic nuns and clergy members visited the Broadview facility every Friday ... The coalition included Sister JoAnn Persch, who regularly visited the facility until her death last week at 91." www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/u...

Orthodox Church Pews Are Overflowing With Converts

“It’s so much harder than I thought it was going to be, but it speaks to me in a way that nothing else ever did.” I visited a growing Orthodox Christian parish in North Carolina to understand why so many young men are converting. Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/u...

Governor JB Pritzker, First Lady MK Pritzker, and Pope Leo XIV stand and smile for a photo.

Governor Pritzker and Pope Leo XIV meet.

Governor Pritzker and Pope Leo XIV shake hands.

It was an honor for MK and me to meet with Pope Leo XIV – a son of Illinois – to express the pride and reverence of the people of this great state. Pope Leo XIV’s message of hope, compassion, unity, and peace resonates with Illinoisans of all faiths and traditions.

!!!!

Congratulations, Brian!

Nice write-up from @adellembanks.bsky.social of my conversation with Bishop Curry at #TribFest25 last week.

Pope Leo Shares His Favorite Movies Ahead of Vatican Event The list leans heavily on uplifting classics.

Pope Leo has shared his four favorite movies of all time, as the Vatican prepares to host dozens of actors and directors in a “World of Cinema” gathering on Saturday at his official residence. See which films made the pope's list. nyti.ms/4p3exK9

Suits Accuse Camp Mystic of Gross Negligence in Children’s Deaths

Several families whose daughters died at Camp Mystic this summer filed suit yesterday against the camp and the Eastland family, who have operated Mystic for decades. “These young girls died because a for-profit camp put profit over safety,” the suit says. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...

Emboldened, Kennedy Allies Embrace a Label They Once Rejected: ‘Anti-Vax’

"God is an anti-vaxxer, and he needs you to speak up." www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...

They are Catholic bishops, so as a pastoral matter their comments on this specific issue are about making sure Catholic detainees have access to Catholic sacraments. I hope at some point you'll have a chance to read the article, it often includes extra context!

my doctor's office parking garage app immediately asking me to rate my experience

Nancy’s Natural Healing
Parker, SD

Bishops With Ties to Trump Commission Criticize Treatment of Immigrants

Two bishops with ties to Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, including Bishop Robert Barron, criticized the administration’s treatment of Catholics detained by immigration officials this week. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...

Mapping the Queer Landscape of Medieval Europe A new exhibition at The Met Cloisters makes the case that gender and sexual fluidity were an essential part of Medieval religious art.

this looks cool #medievalsky

hyperallergic.com/1054546/met-...

Would New York City Elect a Muslim Mayor? An Emphatic Yes.

"Now, the most prominent face of progressive religion in the Democratic Party is not a liberal Christian but a Muslim who practices his faith while also creating space for interfaith and secular morality." www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...

ACNA Archbishop Steve Wood takes leave of absence amid sexual misconduct claims (RNS) — A church investigation will determine whether there are reasonable grounds to put Wood to a church trial.

ACNA Archbishop Steve Wood takes leave of absence amid sexual misconduct claims religionnews.com/2025/11/04/a...

Episcopal priest has been detained by ICE in Texas, says diocese (RNS) — 'We do not know yet why he was targeted', said the Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle, who leads the Diocese of Texas.

NEW from me: An Episcopal priest — a Kenyan national who works with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice — has been detained by ICE, says diocese.

The area bishop, reached via email, told me church officials still “do not know yet why he was targeted.” religionnews.com/2025/11/02/e...

"Whom seeing not, we" clasp - Emily A remnant of a letter to Elizabeth Holland, in the Amherst Emily Dickinson Collection

“It is also November. The noons are more laconic and the sundowns sterner...November always seemed to me the Norway of the year.”

-Emily Dickinson, letter to Elizabeth Holland (Nov 1865)
#everynightapoem #november

What the Jewish Left Is Building for Itself

"People who feel committed to Jewish life have no choice but to create new Jewish communities.” From the great @emmagoldberg.bsky.social: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/s...

Chicago Auxiliary Bishop José María Garcia-Maldonado at ICE detention facility: “Being here is an act of holiness…soon we will seek access to the facility to bring the Eucharist to our brothers and sisters; if they say no again, we will keep praying.”

"There's a new moon, he sees scores of stars and a cloud suspended above them in silent expectation, and he marvels at his life, how trivial it is, and fleeting, and how busy it always keeps him nonetheless."

(From "The Remembered Soldier" by Anjet Daanje, please do not tell me how it ends!)

“Our students are about to turn subcognitive.”

Patricia Crowther, Who Brought Witchcraft Out of the Shadows, Dies at 97

keywords Wicca, hypnotism, Vegetarian Society, naked wedding, ventriloquism www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/s...

View of the upper part of the basilica with the Jesus tower centre and the Mary tower to L (liturgical east but actually NW)

Construction crews receiving the part of lower stem of the cross. Similar to all of the upper structure of the Jesus tower, it is a pre-fabricated section of reinforced concrete, clad with tiles and here, partly glazed.

Model of the cross which will crown the basilica. Notice the apertures at the base which is the glazed part.

Today La Sagrada Família is having the first part of the crowning cross of the Jesus Tower installed. This will finally take it past Ulm Minster's 161.5 metres (begun 1392, completed with octagon and spire 1885-90) as the tallest church in the world!

I'll be interviewing Bishop Michael Curry, former head of the Episcopal Church, on stage at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin in November. The entire festival lineup is killer, truly. Join me! festival.texastribune.org/event/c17d2d...

Arthur Waskow, 92, Influential Rabbi and Activist for Social Justice, Dies

“What is the holiest part of a tallit? It’s the fringes. Those that are on the fringes in a committed way bring a sacred aspect to Judaism.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/25/u...

It's in the subheadline and in the first sentence of the article.

Archbishop of U.S. Anglican Church Is Accused of Sexual Harassment

The highest-ranking prelate of the Anglican Church in North America has been formally accused of sexual harassment, plagiarism and bullying by former employees. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/u...

A Camp Mystic Security Guard Saved Dozens. He’s Still ‘Too Numb to Cry.’

"If I show that I am scared to death, that’s not going to do any good for the 9-year-old girls who were terrified." www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...

And here's the event info and link to tickets. Do ~not~ hire me for your social media needs. But do come to Austin! festival.texastribune.org/event/c17d2d...