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Cardinal’s arrest draws concern from Vatican, condemnation from U.S. (CNN) Hong Kong’s national security police on Wednesday arrested Cardinal Joseph Zen, a 90-year-old former bishop and outspoken critic of China’s Communist Party, drawing concern from the Vatican and condemnation from the United States. The Vatican said it learned of the news with “concern” and that it is “following the evolution of the situation with extreme attention,” it told CNN in a statement. The arrests also prompted condemnation from the US and Europe. “In arresting these veteran activists, scholars and religious leaders under the so-called national security law, Hong Kong authorities have again demonstrated they will pursue all means necessary to stifle dissent and undercut protective rights and freedoms,” US State Department ​spokesperson Ned Price said at a press briefing Wednesday…

Pope expresses concern over declining birthrate (Vatican News) Addressing participants at the second edition of the “General State of Births” meeting held on Thursday at the Auditorium della Conciliazione in Rome, Pope Francis highlighted that the issue of the birthrate represents a real social emergency that is not immediately perceptible like other problems that occupy the news. “Fewer children are being born and this means impoverishing everyone’s future,” the Pope said. “Italy, Europe, and the West are impoverishing their future…”

Senate fails in bid to save Roe v. Wade (AP) The Senate fell far short Wednesday in a rushed effort toward enshrining Roe v. Wade abortion access as federal law, blocked by a Republican filibuster in a blunt display of the nation’s partisan divide over the landmark court decision and the limits of legislative action. The almost party-line tally promises to be just the first of several efforts in Congress to preserve the nearly 50-year-old court ruling, which declares a constitutional right to abortion services but is at serious risk of being overturned this summer by a conservative Supreme Court…

U.S. bishops respond to Senate vote on abortion (USCCB) Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities and Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, chairman of the Committee for Religious Liberty, issued the following statement:  “The ‘Women’s Health Protection Act’ (S. 4132) is an utterly unjust and extreme measure that would impose abortion on demand nationwide at any stage of pregnancy through federal statute. We are relieved that the Senate vote to advance this bill failed for the second time in less than three months…

Report identifies abuses of Native Americans in boarding schools (CNS) Hundreds of boarding schools supported by the U.S. government for 150 years sought to forcefully assimilate Native American and Indigenous children into white society, a first-of-its-kind report from the Interior Department said. The report, issued May 11, identified 408 schools in 37 states or territories that tens of thousands of children were forced to attend from 1819 to 1969. The period largely coincides with the forced removal of many tribes from ancestral lands…

Priest credits Titus Brandsma for healing (CNS) Father Driscoll received a relic of Father Brandsma and cherished it, especially during a critical time in his life. In 2004, Father Driscoll was diagnosed with advanced stage cancer. His prayerful response led him to hold the beloved relic and send up an intercessory prayer to Blessed Titus Brandsma, who was beatified in 1985 by St. John Paul II as a martyr of the faith. “I prayed (for his help) and said I was determined to fight,” said Father Driscoll, 80. “I put the relic up to my head, and told Titus to take care of me.” Eighteen years later, Father Driscoll credits the intercession of his fellow Carmelite for his good health: He has managed to remain healthy for nearly two decades. In thanksgiving, Father Driscoll will attend the canonization of Blessed Titus Brandsma May 15 at the Vatican…