1gridNATION
Defying Pope Leo XIV, traditionalists go ahead with bishop consecrations in Switzerland
ECONE, Switzerland | A group of traditionalist Catholics directly defied Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday by consecrating four bishops without his consent, dismissing the resulting excommunications and saying the break with the church was necessary to defend the Catholic faith. The Society of St. Pius X, which opposes modernizing reforms in the Catholic Church, went […]
Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship, rejecting Trump’s limits — COLORADO COMMENTS
WASHINGTON | A divided Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a broad conception of birthright citizenship, rejecting President Donald Trump’s executive order declaring that children born to people who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens. The justices relied on a long-settled understanding of the 14th Amendment, adopted after the Civil […]
Greece bets on space technology to contain wildfires
ATHENS, Greece | In the searing Mediterranean summer, wildfires turn dangerous in minutes. Greece has learned that at a terrible cost. In 2018, a blaze east of Athens moved with ferocious speed, killing more than 100 people. Five years later, a massive fire tore through a remote nature reserve; it was the largest wildfire ever […]
Pope begs breakaway traditionalist group to back off bishop consecrations
ROME | Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday begged a breakaway group of traditionalist Catholics to call off its plan to consecrate new bishops without his consent, calling the move a schismatic act and a “sin of extreme gravity.” “I plead with you and ask you with all my heart: please turn back!” Leo wrote in […]
Why most Black Americans say they never fly the American flag, according to a new AP-NORC poll
DETROIT | Jerry Esters proudly displays the American flag each day on his Detroit home. A few miles away, Yvonne Pistochini says there is no scenario under which she would allow the Stars and Stripes to cast its shadow where she lives. Both are Black. For Esters, the flag represents the opportunities that allowed the […]
Venezuelans search more earthquake ruins as attention turns to humanitarian crisis
LA GUAIRA, Venezuela | With the window for finding survivors shrinking fast, Venezuelans combed Monday through more ruins of buildings toppled by last week’s powerful back-to-back earthquakes, and attention turned to the country’s humanitarian crisis that could persist for years. Relief organizations say the first 72 hours after a natural disaster is the most crucial […]
Sweltering Midwest heat cancels outdoor plans as cooling centers open and the East braces
DES MOINES, Iowa | Summer camps and other outdoor activities were canceled Monday as tens of millions of people across the Midwest endured a heat wave that is expected to spread eastward this week. Communities opened cooling centers and urged people to take it easy and stay hydrated. Forty-seven million people across big chunks of […]
San Francisco Archdiocese agrees to pay $395 million to settle child sex abuse lawsuits
SAN FRANCISCO | The San Francisco Catholic Archdiocese has agreed to pay $395 million to settle more than 500 lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse by church officials, plaintiffs’ attorneys said Monday. San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone will have to write an apology letter to each survivor as part of the settlement. The settlement also requires […]
Israeli troops face resistance from residents as they push into a town in Syria
ABDIN, Syria | As Israeli troops and vehicles entered the town of Abdin in southern Syria, residents blocked the roads with rocks, and some young men and boys threw stones to push back the military patrol. Tensions in this part of the country created by a buffer zone occupied by Israeli forces have flared into […]
US envoys arrive in Qatar for meetings on Iran, with tensions high over Hormuz
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | Two U.S. envoys arrived in Qatar on Tuesday for talks with mediators about the implementation of an initial deal to end the war in Iran, an official said. The visit by Steve Witkoff, U.S. President Donald Trump’s special Mideast envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, comes after a weekend of […]