Pennsylvania has long supported programs that help those in dire need, providing a sound, reasonable safety net for its citizens. As the state budget is debated in Harrisburg, there are three basic programs that should receive funding because of the important work they do in assisting

A rally held on Tuesday, April 3 at the Capitol building in Harrisburg highlighted the need for the restoration of funds to Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (HEMAP). Read more about funding in the state budget for programs that help the poor here. HEMAP offers short-te

Two hundred and five Pennsylvanians currently sit on death row. In Pennsylvania, even though hundreds of people have been sentenced to death, only three people – those who waived their right to appeal – have been executed since 1978 (the year the General Assembly reinstated the death

We know that the Gospel instructs us to care for the poor in our community. In fact, Catholics are renowned for their service to low- or no- income Pennsylvanians, assisting hundreds of thousands of our needy brothers and sisters each year through our charities. What we may not consid

When the economy turns down, foreclosures on homes go up. Reports last week in the Central Penn Business Journal and the Philadelphia Inquirer show that Pennsylvania is not exempt. Many Pennsylvanians are finding it difficult to make their monthly mortgage payments due to circumstance

The Catholic Bishops of Pennsylvania have called for Friday, March 30, 2012, to be a day of prayer, fasting and abstinence for religious liberty. Click here to send a message in support of religious liberty. Below is their letter to the faithful:     Brothers and Sisters in

“God loves these people. He gives them hope when they wake up each day.” A Catholic Relief Services (CRS) staff person in Kenya spoke these words to me when I visited Kenya in September 2011. Anyone who has encountered people who are poor or suffering in some way knows the truth of th

The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference (PCC) bids farewell today to former Archbishop of Philadelphia, Cardinal Anthony Bevilaqua, who died last week at the age of 88. The Solemn Funeral Mass for Cardinal Bevilacqua is scheduled to take place at 2:00 p.m. today, Tuesday, February 7, at

A coalition of 80 housing, religious, labor, legal, Latino, women’s and social services organizations called on Governor Corbett to restart the Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (HEMAP) by including adequate funding for the program in the 2012-13 state budget. HEMAP was

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, who also serves as Chairman of the PCC, wrote about the action necessary to pass school choice in his weekly column,   “In the coming week I’ll be writing every state senator and representative in the territory of the Archdiocese o