Welcome to Tuesday. An AP investigation alleged the Roman Catholic Church collected billions in federal aid during the pandemic despite holding billions in assets, but some Catholic schools and parishes say the aid was a "lifeline." An NCR commentator says that all of us need to take stock in how we participated in the insurrection at the Capitol last month, whether through our action or inaction.
St. Frances Academy is not only the oldest Catholic school in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, but the oldest historically African American educational institution in the United States.
The school and its community were hit hard in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the school considered draconian measures, such as cutting student financial aid in order to keep its doors open, the federal government's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) provided a lifeline. St. Frances Academy received $350,000 in federal aid, which meant it did not have to make those difficult decisions.
A Feb. 4 Associated Press article reported that Catholic institutions throughout the country received at least $3 billion in aid from the Payroll Protection Program, a core component of the CARES Act passed by Congress in March 2020, which provided $349 billion dollars in payroll support.
The article also alleges that Roman Catholic Church was perhaps "the biggest beneficiary of the paycheck program" and that funds were collected from the program at a time when the church held over $10 billion in assets that could have been used to meet financial needs rather than utilizing federal aid.
Yet some church finance experts disagree with such a characterization, noting that the Catholic Church in the United States is made up of nearly 200 individual dioceses, thousands of individual parishes and schools, like that of St. Frances Academy, and that each entity faces its own particular financial profile and needs.
You can read more of the story here.
More background:
In a commentary for NCR, the Rev. Mary Foley, a Roman Catholic Womanpriest, says she was deeply affected by the insurrection on the Capitol building a month ago.
"I was traumatized by hearing people gleeful about the destruction, who were happy that members of Congress were terrorized," she writes. "Listening to some people in those moments, I felt like I was face to face with evil."
"During recent weeks, there has been action taken to hold President Donald Trump accountable, and calls to also hold accountable other politicians who participated in inflaming the people I have met before," she later writes. "Those in law enforcement who proclaim the need for law and order for some people but not for others, and those in Catholic and evangelical churches who proclaim respect for life but only for the unborn, should also be held accountable."
Foley says that all of us need to take stock in how we participated in what happened, whether through our action or inaction. Or we are just like them.
You can read more of the commentary here.
More headlines
- Students at Catholic University of America have released a series of letters and petitions protesting the school's decision to allow Abby Johnson, a prominent pro-life activist known for her public racism and support of Donald Trump, to speak in a lecture hosted by a student club.
- At EarthBeat, the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering shared how are Catholics and other faith communities are addressing issues related to climate change and environmental justice.
- At Global Sisters Report, a Q&A with Matthieu Brejon de Lavergnée of DePaul University in Chicago, whose latest book gives a lively account of the first two centuries of the existence of the Daughters of Charity.
- ICYMI: Pope Francis told global government leaders to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic focused on creating a fairer market economy, addressing the rapidly escalating dangers of climate change, and providing basic healthcare to their citizens.
Final thoughts
I want to take a moment to thank all of the new NCR Forward members who joined us during our annual Winter Member Drive. Welcome! We are so glad to have you. If you haven't signed up, it's not too late. Members get all kinds of perks, like invitations to member-only events, weekly newsletters written by NCR journalists and editors, and the opportunity to participate in polls and surveys. If you have a friend you think would be interested in becoming an NCR member, please forward them this email.
Until Wednesday,
Stephanie Yeagle
NCR Managing Editor
[email protected]
Twitter: @ncrSLY
