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Daily Readings from the USCCB“When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy that a child has been born into the world. So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” John 16:21–22When we live fully united to Christ, we can endure anguish with confidence and determination. Without Christ, even small, temporary trials become so burdensome...

The leader of an Eastern European neo-Nazi group has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for trying to recruit others to commit violent attacks against Jews and racial minorities, including one plot that would have involved dressing as Santa Claus to hand out poisoned candy to children.

A massive undersea firepower gap is looming, and the Navy’s aging Ohio-class submarines may be the only thing standing in its way. A routine fleet review in March 2026 surfaced a number Navy planners are still struggling to absorb. Over the next several years, four aging Ohio-class guided-missile submarines and a dozen Ticonderoga-class cruisers will reach their mandatory retirement dates. When they go, the fleet sheds 2,080 Vertical Launch System cells in one wave.

Michael B. Jordan closed out Amazon‘s Upfront presentation at the Beacon Theatre in New York on Monday not as an actor, but as a producer with a growing slate of major television projects. Through his production company Outlier Society, Jordan unveiled three series in development for Prime Video: The Greatest, Delphi, and Fourth Wing, each representing a different register of his ambitions behind the camera. The most culturally significant announcement of the three is The Greatest, a biographical series about Muhammad Ali that marks the first project about the boxing legend’s life to receive authorization from his estate. Created by...

Key FactsNew York lawmakers are planning the tax, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the state budget negotiations who noted the proposal would be levied at 1% of the buying price and be paid by buyers. The legislators are also considering expanding the tax to $1 million or more cash purchases in the state that would incorporate the suburbs and upstate New York, Bloomberg added. The tax in New York City alone could generate up to $160 million, according to the unnamed sources Bloomberg cited. A spokesperson for Gov. Kathy Hochul, D-N.Y., told Bloomberg she “announced a general agreement...

The FBI is offering a $200,000 reward for information leading to the apprehension and prosecution of Monica Witt, a former U.S. service member and counterintelligence agent.Witt was indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia in February 2019 on charges of espionage, including transmitting national defense information to the government of Iran.Witt, a former active-duty U.S. Air Force intelligence specialist and special agent for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, served in the military between 1997 and 2008 before working as a U.S. government contractor until 2010. FBI Washington Field Office Announces $200,000 Reward for Information...

"Aria" was 13 years old when she was sexually assaulted by an imam, who told her he was "healing" her. A respected faith leader at a mosque in East London, Abdul Halim Khan would tell young girls and their parents they needed "curing" from "bad spirits". After attacking them, he warned the girls that if they told anyone about the abuse, the so-called cure would be undone, they would be cursed, or that harm would come to them and their families from black magic. "I genuinely believed he had supernatural powers," says Aria, which is not her real name. She...

HAVANA (AP) — CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Cuban officials including Raúl Castro’s grandson during a high-level visit to the island Thursday, Cuban and U.S. officials said. Ratcliffe met with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, Interior Minister Lázaro Álvarez Casas and the head of Cuban intelligence services, and discussed intelligence cooperation, economic stability and security issues. A CIA official confirmed the meetings to the AP. Ratcliffe was there “to personally deliver President Donald Trump’s message that the United States is prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes,’' the CIA official said....

"They're looking to explore Alaska" is the latest word on how Communist China might reduce its dependence on uncertain Persian Gulf oil imports, according to a Fox News report on Thursday. As you must know by now, President Donald Trump and his impressive entourage are in Beijing for a two-day summit with Chinese Communist Party boss Xi Jinping, which always makes for great TV. I grew up watching presidents Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George H.W. Bush meet with an accelerating array of Soviet party bosses, usually so that they could agree that neither side would build more nuclear missiles...

The U.S. is taking steps to indict Raúl Castro, the 94-year-old former president of Cuba and brother of Fidel, in connection with the downing of planes 30 years ago, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter. The potential indictment — which would need to be approved by a grand jury — is expected to focus on Cuba's deadly 1996 shootdown of planes operated by humanitarian group Brothers to the Rescue. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment. The plan comes as the U.S. heaps pressure on the Cuban government. The Trump administration has threatened heavy tariffs on any country...

It's done: The Senate resolution, sponsored by Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), stripping senators of their pay during a government shutdown, has passed by a unanimous vote. That's good news, and it raises the immediate question: What about the House of Representatives? Until that gets addressed, though, this is still a win.🚨 JUST IN: US Senate unanimously BANS all senators from getting a single paycheck if the federal government is shutdown, filed by Sen. KennedyFINALLY! This should've already been the case 👏🏻Don't give them a DIME if they defund TSA and other crucial agencies.This is called… pic.twitter.com/WAuDOpvbrs— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May...

As we go toward the 2026 midterms, normally, the party out of power - in this case, the Democrats - would have the edge. But redistricting has made things much closer. On top of that, Democrats still have the problem that the voters don't think very highly of them, as we reported. CNN senior data analyst Harry Enten explained that, in addition to redistricting, which is likely to deliver more seats to Republicans, their generic Congressional ballot numbers have gotten worse since March, and they are now within the margin of error. Now the AP just dropped a piece about...

SSPX to Pope Leo XIV: “We Would Rather Die Than Renounce the Faith”In response to Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández’s warning that the SSPX’s upcoming July 1 episcopal consecrations could constitute a “schismatic act,” SSPX Superior General Don Davide Pagliarani has issued a sweeping Declaration of Catholic Faith addressed directly to Pope Leo XIV. Far from announcing a break with Rome, the SSPX insists its mission is to preserve the Traditional Mass, the Sacraments, and the perennial Catholic Faith amid what it sees as a profound crisis in the Church.Following Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández’s May 13 declaration that the upcoming episcopal...

Time travel movies often make for the most mind-numbing sci-fi films with paradoxes aplenty. But it’s those confusing temporal gymnastics that make them so fun. We’ve rounded up our favorites, from classic films like Back to the Future and Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure to more recent flicks like Arrival and Interstellar, which left our minds tangled in knots. These are the 35 best sci-fi films that explore the fluidity of time. 🤯 You love mind-bending science. So do we. Let’s nerd out over it together. ============================================================

Reform UK has already opened applications to be its candidate for the Makerfield by-election. Party members were emailed about the selection process this evening, and the deadline for applications is Sunday. “We’re determined”, said one senior party figure. “It’s going to be a tight fight.” The constituency on the western fringes of Greater Manchester has a Labour majority of 5,399 and has been a party stronghold for decades. Yet at last week's local elections, across the eight Makerfield wards that voted, about 50 per cent of people backed Reform UK

Islamist terrorists have claimed the killing of more than 80 Christians in several armed assaults in north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In the deadliest attack, an estimated 60 “Christian combatants” were killed by fighters from Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP) in a May 5 attack in Beni Territory on the border of North Kivu and Ituri provinces. In recent months, Islamic State propaganda has used the word “combatants” to describe Christians who have refused to accept either conversion to Islam or dhimmi status as subjugated people. In classical Islam, those who accept such a status must pay...

BREAKING: A federal judge has just REFUSED to block Tennessee's new maps from going into effect HUGE win!🔥 Dem. Rep. Justin Pearson, who went on a racist rant against Tennessee State troopers last week, filed the suit in an attempt to block the map He FAILED Sit down, loser

Senators unanimously voted Thursday for Republican Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy’s resolution to withhold their paychecks during government shutdowns. The Senate adopted the measure in a 99-0 voice vote, which allows senators to receive backpay only after a government shutdown ends. The resolution only impacts the Senate and would not prevent members of the House or other government workers from getting paid. The chamber voted to advance the resolution Wednesday. Republican Nebraska Sen. Pete Ricketts did not vote on the resolution. Kennedy said that if other government workers cannot get paid, then neither should the Senate. “It’s about shared sacrifice,” Kennedy...

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster officially calls Special Session to Redistrict which will begin tomorrow at 11:00 AM ET Current Map: 🔴 Republicans: 6 🔵 Democrats: 1 Proposed Map: 🔴 Republicans: 7 (+1) 🔵 Democrats: 0 (-1)

Claudine Longet, who has died aged 84, was an actress and chanteuse who became one of the few French female artists to have sold significant numbers of records in the US. But unlike compatriots such as Edith Piaf and Françoise Hardy, she was never acclaimed as a major figure in global popular music: her hits were anodyne cover versions of songs such as the Beatles’ Here There and Everywhere and Good Day Sunshine. She played the female lead, opposite Peter Sellers, in Blake Edwards’s 1968 film The Party, but she was best known for her appearances on the weekly television...