As a religious organization, the Catholic diocese in northwest Wisconsin doesn’t have to pay unemployment taxes.
But when the diocese’s social ministry arm asked for the same exemption, it was denied. Wisconsin said the work done by Catholic Charities and four nonprofit organizations it manages that help people with disabilities was primarily secular, even if the services were religiously motivated. (Groppe, USA Today)
Read MoreChurches and cathedrals across Britain have embraced a digital revolution, prompted by the Covid pandemic, which has seen thousands of services streamed in the past five years. Some online services have led people to convert to Christianity and even become priests. (Pepinster, Religion Media Centre)
Read More[There are] an estimated 534,000 Haitians, Nicaraguans, Venezuelans and Cubans ordered to return to their home countries no later than April 24, the result of the U.S. ending the humanitarian parole program that had granted the individuals safe refuge here while their home countries broil in gang violence, governmental upheaval, poverty, religious persecution and other ills. (Chandler, Baptist Press)
Read MoreForces and teachers across Britain have issued parents with a “periodic table of sinister emojis” said to be used by under-18s to surreptitiously discuss violence, sex and extremism. The plot of Adolescence involves the use of emojis by children to spread hidden messages about toxic masculinity and misogyny. (Sigsworth, The Telegraph)
Read MoreGallup finds that average hours worked have dropped progressively since 2019 when U.S. employees reported working an average of 44.1 hours. In 2024, they work 42.9 hours per week. The decline in hours worked is more pronounced among younger (those younger than 35) than older workers (those aged 35 and older). Between 2019 and 2024, older employees have seen an average reduction of just under one hour per person per week, while younger employees have reduced their hours by nearly two hours. (Harter, Gallup)
Read MoreThe CIA used experimental intelligence methods to attempt to locate the Ark of the Covenant, but the revelations are about 25 years old. The Ark of the Covenant is more than a lost treasure for Indiana Jones to track down, it is also an important symbol in Jewish faith and history. In "recently resurfaced" documents, as reported by right-wing British outlet the Daily Mail, the CIA outlines how it used a "remote viewer" to mentally locate the site of the artifact, which has remained a mystery for centuries. (Crowley, USA Today)
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