Chris Herlinger

"Our hope was to be with the Hudson River and experience it as a living being, with its own right to exist, flourish and thrive," said Charity Sr. Carol De Angelo.

In the second of a two-part interview, two veteran congregational representatives further reflect on their long ministries at the U.N., and call for needed structural reforms to address pressing global needs.

When it comes to advocating for the marginalized, women religious "have the history even before some of the member states became members of the U.N.," Sr. Mary Jane Caspillo said.

Now retired, Sr. Winifred Doherty of Ireland and Sr. Teresa Kotturan of India remain passionate advocates for the causes they championed while in New York.

Plus, Indian sisters engage young people in their fight against human trafficking, and Catholic social justice lobby Network condemns a U.S. Supreme Court immigration order.

Ahead of the United Nations General Assembly, representatives and activists — including Catholic sisters — assessed the progress and shortcomings of the U.N.'s goals for 2030. 

Plus, LCWR plans pilgrimage to El Salvador and Honduras; sisters named among Lumen Christi award finalists; and the International Union of Superiors General will hold theological forum and Laudato Si' livestream.

The International Union of Superiors General has announced the retirement of Sr. Patricia Murray as executive secretary, with Sr. Roxanne Schares to succeed her Sept. 1.

A federal appeals court on Aug. 18 temporarily blocked a land exchange that would have advanced a copper mine on Apache sacred land in Arizona. 

The Mines Advisory Group, which focuses on removing landmines and working with affected communities, is the recipient of this year's Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize.

And Salesian sisters mark two international dates established by the United Nations — International Youth Day on Aug. 12 and World Humanitarian Day on Aug. 19.

"We don't have a national peace movement as it relates to nuclear weapons… It just went off people's radar," said Sr. Carol Gilbert, a prominent anti-nuclear activist.

Activists are fighting a copper mine planned for a site sacred to Apache people. "Religious freedom for Christians looks one way right now, and religious freedom for Native Americans another," said a Loretto Community co-member.

UNANIMA, a coalition of sister congregations at the United Nations that championed causes such as homelessness, anti-trafficking and women's health, will close by the end of the year.

In a farewell interview, former GSR editor Gail DeGeorge reflects on what media gets wrong about sisters, trends in religious life, and how sisters influenced her spirituality.

Plus, the Thai government honors Sr. Marie-Agenes Suwanna Buasap for her work against trafficking, and Catholic Extension nominates sisters for its Lumen Christi award.

They call the June 21 bombing immoral and illegal, saying it would do nothing to achieve peace between the U.S. and Iran and between Israel and Iran.

Theologians Sr. Maeve Heaney and Sr. Maria Cimperman discuss the continuities between Pope Francis and his predecessors, his relationship with liberation theology, and their hopes for Pope Leo XIV.

As theologians, Srs. Maeve Heaney and Maria Cimperman revisit Pope Francis' pastoral theology, the impact of his ecological encyclical Laudato Si', and his push for a synodal church.

The June 14 "No Kings" marches and rallies, held nationwide, were organized to protest the Trump administration's policies on immigration and the social safety net.