Editorial: Thanks, Francis, but please say more about 'just war'

It is rare to witness the Catholic Church fundamentally change one of its long-held teachings. It is, after all, an institution that still prohibits use of birth control and continues to ban women from serving in ordained ministry.

All the more reason, then, to applaud Pope Francis for coming so close to tossing aside the just war theory.

We hope Francis might turn now to elaborating that positive vision. He could certainly ask for help from groups like Pax Christi International, which has co-hosted two important Vatican conferences in recent years on developing a Catholic ethic of nonviolence and just peace.

You can read the rest of our editorial here.

Bishops' debate over 'preeminence' of abortion goes public

With less than two weeks to go until Election Day, a number of U.S. bishops are weighing in, with some seeking to make the presidential election a referendum on candidates' stances on abortion, while others are arguing against single-issue voting.

What began last year as a debate among the bishops over what emphasis to place on abortion in their official voting guide continues to spill out into public through a series of virtual conferences, newspaper columns and on social media.

You can read the rest of the story here.

More headlines

At EarthBeat, at least a half dozen religious campaigns have honed in on climate change ahead of the election, and are mobilizing voters to keep the issue at the forefront.

ICYMI: The Vatican and China have renewed their provisional 2018 deal over the appointment of Catholic bishops in the communist country for a further two years.

ICYMI: Analysis of a clip in a new documentary in which Pope Francis expresses support for civil union laws for same-sex couples appears to indicate some of the pope's words came from an earlier interview.

The bishop of Tyler, Texas, said in an hourlong webinar that "What's getting broadcast around the world is Pope Francis' opinion on this, and I think that is confusing and very dangerous."

Final thoughts

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