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November 14, 2025


 

Overview: The government shutdown ended Wednesday after 43 days when both houses of Congress passed a package to fund the government and the president signed it into law. This legislation includes three bipartisan, bicameral full-year appropriations measures, covering the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs; Legislative Branch; and Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration divisions. Also included is a continuing resolution to fund the remaining federal departments and agencies for another 11 weeks. SNAP benefits, which are part of the Agriculture bill, should begin rolling out in the coming weeks. You can read the bill text here ([link removed]) and a summary here ([link removed]).

Economy: The shutdown has ended but the Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly jobs report and figures for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims will take weeks to compile and share with the public.

Continuum of Care homelessness programs at risk: The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) plans to cut funding for a permanent housing program (See here: FY 2025 Continuum of Care Competition and Youth Homeless Demonstration Program Grants NOFO ([link removed])). At least 50% of FY2026 funding for HUD's Continuum of Care program (CoC), which is implemented by local organizations like Catholic Charities agencies that help people experiencing homelessness, will remove permanent housing assistance and focus on transitional housing assistance with some work or service requirements. The cuts could put more people at risk of homelessness. The application for the next grant cycle will close on Jan. 14, 2026, leaving little time for projects to apply for funding. Since this funding opportunity is happening so late in the year, many grants will have already expired. Please consider contacting your members of Congress and ask them to tell the administration to renew grants that were previously planned under a Congressionally authorized two-year notice of funding opportunity. Any policy changes to homelessness prevention programs should be implemented to avoid destabilizing the service given to at-risk populations, like those with mental disabilities, health problems, and senior citizens.

The Jubilee of the Poor: The Catholic Church is celebrating a Jubilee Year, which began on Christmas Eve 2024 and will conclude on the Feast of the Epiphany, January 6, 2026. This year's Jubilee theme is "Pilgrims of Hope." The Holy See also designated a number of Jubilee Days throughout 2025 to recognize and celebrate different groups of people and various ministries in the Church. The Jubilee of the Poor ([link removed]) will be held this Sunday, November 16, 2025, which is also the ninth World Day of the Poor. In honoring the preferential option for the poor and vulnerable during the Jubilee Year, we are celebrating the dignity of each person and the contributions each person makes to this world. Additional resources can be found on the USCCB website ([link removed]).

 

Catholic teaching ([link removed]) exhorts nations to recognize the fundamental dignity of all persons, including immigrants. We bishops advocate for a meaningful reform of our nation's immigration laws and procedures. Human dignity and national security are not in conflict. Both are possible if people of good will work together.

We recognize that nations have a responsibility to regulate their borders and establish a just and orderly immigration system for the sake of the common good. Without such processes, immigrants face the risk of trafficking and other forms of exploitation. Safe and legal pathways serve as an antidote to such risks. From a United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Special Message addressing their concern for the evolving situation impacting immigrants in the United States ([link removed])

 

Q. St. Elizabeth of Hungary's feast day is November 17. What is she remembered for?

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