Religious News Service reporter Bobby Ross, Jr. recently asked this question, “When adoption agencies can turn away gay prospective parents, what happens to the kids?” With conflicts between religious based adoption and foster care agencies and government non-discrimination regulation

The 2015-2016 session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly officially closes on November 30. Here is the status of the several high priority bills that were on the legislative agenda of the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference. Pro-Life Legislation – House Bill 1948 would have banned barb

This week, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed House Bill 162. The measure would require the Pennsylvania Department of Health to provide a summary of an adoptee’s birth record without the consent of the birth parents. It would release the names of the birth parents, even

November is National Adoption Month, and no family is happier to celebrate it than the Roush family. On November 18, the siblings, ranging in age from 7 to 16, will be adopted by their aunt and uncle in Dauphin County in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  The adoption has been facilitated by

The Pennsylvania Senate Aging and Youth Committee amended House Bill 162, before voting it out of committee by a vote of 9-2. The legislation passed the House of Representatives in October 2013. The initial proposal would have required the Pennsylvania Department of Health to provide

Adoption is a life-giving, loving and courageous choice. The circumstances in each adoption are unique. No two are alike. In 2010, Pennsylvania reformed its adoption law implementing new procedures for voluntary open adoption agreements where the prospective adoptive parent can enter

Adoption is a deeply personal and emotional decision for birth parents. It is a loving and life affirming choice; but each adoption decision may be grounded in very different circumstances. Pennsylvania law allows for open adoptions but also establishes a mediation process where adopt

From the USCCB. Local Catholic Charities agencies around the country have long provided adoption and foster care services to the neediest children. Catholic Charities agencies often take on the most difficult placements, including older, abused children and children with disabilities

To mark National Adoption Month, the Catholic social service agencies across Pennsylvania launched www.adoptionpa.org, a website that connects mothers and families with a Catholic adoption agency in their area and also offers encouragement and support to those who experience unintende

Health care reform. Abortion. Adoption. Gay marriage. Education. These are among top issues tracked by the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference (PCC) in the 2009-2010 legislative session. What happened and where do we go from here?