Politics

Rome Reports - Pope Francis met with members of the Global Catholic Climate Movement, which aims to bring the environmental values of the pope's encyclical, “Laudato si',” to life around the world… Cardinal Tagle introduced the movement to the pope, then opened the floor for members to speak directly to Pope Francis… This representative, in turn, gave Pope Francis a special rosary made by nuns and Laudato si' animators from the Ecuadorian Amazon… Finally, the pope thanked the group and said goodbye to each person. He made them chuckle with this final request… “Be greener!”

By Kevin Jones, CNA - Catholic priests in Minnesota have been advised not to vote in the state’s March 3 Super Tuesday presidential primary, because there is no guarantee their partisan ballot choice will be kept private, and because primary voting in the state requires voters to express support for a party’s principles… Minnesota Catholic Conference staff have told the state’s bishops that clerical participation in the primary election is “imprudent.”

By John Zmirak, The Stream - Catholics are a huge swing vote in crucial Midwestern “battleground” states. That is, the places which President Trump shocked Democrats by winning in 2016. But he won by narrow margins, small enough that the states could go either way in 2020. So the voting choices of large subgroups such as Catholics, and the intensity of their turnout, could spell the difference between a second term for Trump, and a socialist in the White House.