In Brief

As record heat scorches the globe, climate advocates urge Catholics to take action

WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 80 million Americans are currently under dangerous heat advisories. Temperatures in California’s Death Valley hover around 120 degrees Fahrenheit at midnight. Setting a city record, Phoenix as of July 31 had seen 31 straight days of heat over 110 F, the cause of 25 deaths, as confirmed by health officials July 22. Spain, Greece and Italy have recorded all-time high temperatures. In several Middle Eastern countries, the heat index in mid-July reached 152 F, considered almost at the limit for human survival. But how do thermometer-bursting digits relate to wider concerns about climate change, a warming earth, and the call to action of Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’” – and can individual Catholics make a difference? Pope Francis referenced the recent heat headlines during his July 23 Sunday Angelus message in Rome, while making a global plea “to do something more concrete to limit polluting emissions” and “protect our common home.” José Aguto, executive director of the Washington-based Catholic Climate Covenant, said, “If we as Catholics believe in the fundamental life and dignity of every human person, we then have an obligation to protect the life and dignity of every human person – and that includes assuring a stable, thriving earth for them.”

Steven Coleman, a leader of the Catholic Action Team for the Citizens’ Climate Lobby and the Care for Creation Team at Madison’s St. Dennis Parish, said small, individual efforts – such as carpooling, recycling, water conservation, limiting use of plastics – should be a priority for people, including Catholics, but more important, he advised, is to “have the courage to talk about it.”

Catholic home-school experts say home learning feels more mainstream post-pandemic

FRONT ROYAL, Va. — According to the National Home Education Research Institute, the number of U.S. home-school students in grades kindergarten to 12 grew from 2.5 million in spring 2019 to 3.1 million, or roughly 6% of school-age children, in the 2021-2022 school year. Seton Home Study School, an accredited school for home learning and the largest provider of Catholic home-schooling materials in the U.S., saw a large enrollment boost during the pandemic, said Draper Warren, Seton’s admissions director. Home-schooling can mean a major lifestyle change for a family, which can feel scary, he said. Jenny Bales, a Texan who supports fellow Catholic homeschooling parents through her website, Heart of a Mother, said some Catholics choose to home-school because they don’t have access to Catholic schools or feel they can’t afford them, or because parents are concerned about their children encountering messages that are contrary to the church in traditional-school models. As the pandemic waned, Bales noted a rise in families choosing to home-school to benefit a child with a learning disability or neurodiversity diagnosis such as ADHD, who do better with one-on-one instruction. Maureen Wittmann, co-founder of Homeschool Connections, said home-schooling is also growing among minority families and more fathers appear to be taking the lead.

Knights of Peter Claver push back on DeSantis’ defense of Florida slavery teaching

NEW ORLEANS — The Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary, a historically Black Catholic fraternal organization, is pushing back on recent remarks by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican presidential hopeful, regarding his state’s controversial new standards for teaching about slavery. During a July 21 campaign stop in Salt Lake City, DeSantis defended a portion of Florida’s 2023 social studies curriculum standards that calls for instruction on “how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” In a July 26 statement, the Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary condemned both the remarks and the Florida curriculum. “The Bible teaches that man can only have one Master –and that Master is God,” said the organization in its statement. “Slavery was a non-Christ-like practice that only provided earthly benefit to the false masters who used false interpretations of the Bible and religion to justify their sinful greed, and complete devaluation of the sanctity of human life – God’s greatest gift. What Gov. DeSantis missed is that despite the sins of man, God will always continue to speak and bless His children,” said the statement. “It was not slavery that provided any benefit to the enslaved, but rather God’s unfiltered and unconditional love and reach.” The Knights stated, “The legacy of slavery continues to have a drastic negative impact on ALL AfricanAmericans – just as it did in its prime.”

Kerry Alys Robinson selected as next president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Kerry Alys Robinson has been named as the next president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, the organization representing the interests of its 167 member organizations dedicated to carrying out the domestic humanitarian work of the Catholic Church in the United States. When Robinson, currently an executive partner of Leadership Roundtable, begins her tenure Aug. 23, she will become the second layperson and second woman ever to lead CCUSA, the group said. In a July 25 statement, CCUSA board chair Neal Black said Robinson’s “entire professional life has been devoted to serving and bettering our Church.” In a July 25 statement, Robinson said, the Gospels “call Catholics and all people of good will to serve those most in need of our aid. The staff and volunteers of Catholic Charities agencies around the country answer that call every day: feeding the hungry, comforting the afflicted and welcoming the stranger,” Robinson said. “I am deeply honored and profoundly humbled to be a part of this life-giving mission.”

As tornado recovery continues, Kentucky community has groundbreaking for new church

DAWSON SPRINGS, Ky. — Eighteen months after devastating tornadoes ripped through western Kentucky, Resurrection Parish in Dawson Springs gathered people in the rain for a groundbreaking on the property where its church once stood. Resurrection Church, severely damaged by the tornado, was deemed a total loss. After months of hard work, planning, and adjustments, they finally gathered for a groundbreaking July 8. A new church will be constructed where the previous one stood. Bishop William F. Medley of Owensboro noted in his homily that the parish was “aptly named” and noticed that the city of Dawson Springs has already begun its “resurrection,” rebuilding the homes and businesses destroyed. For the past 18 months, parishioners have gathered for Mass at Rhonda and Donnie Mills’ shed on the property of their home, which was unscathed by the Dec. 10, 2021, storms. Rhonda Mills has “heard no complaints” about the setup, even when they celebrated first Communion under their carport. She said the community is “just glad to stay together.”

‘Never, never lose faith,’ says man whose miraculous cure as child led to St. Kateri Tekakwitha’s canonization

FERNDALE, Wash. — Jake Finkbonner first decided to become a medical doctor when he was in middle school. “I’d love to help people the same way that so many people have helped me,” the 23-year-old from Ferndale, Washington, said. The recent college graduate drew his inspiration from the doctors who rushed to rescue him from an aggressive flesheating bacteria that tore through his face more than 17 years ago. They had help: Finkbonner’s family and community turned to then-Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha to intercede for the 6-yearold’s life. The day after her relic entered his hospital room, the infection -- without explanation -- stopped. The cure became the second and final miracle needed for the canonization of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, a 17thcentury Kanien’kéha:ka (Mohawk) Catholic and the first Native American woman declared a saint. Finkbonner recently spoke with OSV News about the miracle, his apparent visit to heaven while hospitalized, his faith, and his special connection to St. Kateri Tekakwitha, including his own Native American heritage. When people hear his story, Finkbonner hopes that they first take away the importance of having faith. “I can’t really convey this message as well as my parents, but in listening to them tell their story of watching me and everything that they went through, I would say that it would be to never, never lose faith,” he said.