LCWR past presidents reflect on Vatican mandate [1]

Afghanistan sees first drop in violence against civilians in 5 years, U.N. finds [2]

COMMENTARY -- The Second Vatican Council has already made us free [3] by Robert Blair Kaiser

Maryland -- Catholic Supporters of Same-Sex Marriage Speak Out [4]

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The government wants a judge to dismiss a lawsuit by a Roman Catholic school in Ohio about the federal mandate requiring most employers to cover birth control. [5]

Nuns' supporters gather as leadership conference mulls response to Vatican crackdown [6] See also the NCR blog Sisters Under Scrutiny [7]

The Bells of Hiroshima -- in Los Alamos [8]

Fargo, N.D. -- Peace Pole rededicated in memory of Hiroshima [9]The handcrafted Peace Pole located outside Nativity Catholic Church here has a message in four different languages engraved on its sides, each carrying the same translation: “May Peace Prevail on Earth.”

New claims of sexual abuse at the hands of Roman Catholic clergy are coming from the Blackfeet Indian reservation, bringing to at least 280 the total number of plaintiffs [10]in two lawsuits seeking damages from the diocese that oversees western Montana.

NCR's sister publication, Celebration, posts reflections on each day's Scripture reading. Here's a link: celebrationpublications.org/dailybread. [11]You may want to bookmark it. It's a great way to begin the day.