Morning Briefing

Syria Talks Yield Plan to Discuss Peace Conference

Pope Francis' outreach to atheists not as controversial as it seems

New NCR Feature: "Francis" the comic strip drawn by NCR contributor and Celebration editor Pat Marrin. It seems that Pope Francis himself has recognized the humor inherent in being pope. "Francis," the strip, picks up on that cue.

Dominican Republic -- Pedophilia scandal spurs protest at the Vatican embassy

Vatican City -- Vatican willing to hand over accused nuncio to Dominican Republic civil authorities

Pope Francis, Reform in the Church, and Organizational Ethics. This is a recording of a talk by NCR senior analyst Fr. Tom Reese at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University.

Minnesota -- Fired Catholic Teacher Speaks Out on the Danger of Silence. She was fired after she revealed she was in a lesbian relationship.

The New Yorker excerpts "the prayer journals" of Flannery O'Connor, which she began compiling at the age of twenty while studying at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. (Thanks, Commonweal, for the tip.

Official Texas Review: "Creation Science" Should Be Incorporated Into Every Biology Textbook

Kansas City, Mo. -- Federal judge sentences KC preist to 50 years for child porn. This is the Shawn Ratigan case, which got Bishop Robert Finn convicted of failing to report suspected child abuse, a criminal misdemeanor. Ratigan told the judge that God had forgiven him and "his soul was in a good place."

Dublin -- Censured Irish priest, Tony Flannery, will stop down as leader of Association of Catholic Priests in October.

Bishops defend Catholic Relief Services amid barrage of attacks

Canberra, Australia -- Archbishop-elect of Canberra says he will spend his first year listening. God gave me two ears and one mouth for a reason, he said.

More good news from the entertainment world: New app, called No Cyrus, blocks Miley Cyrus from showing up on your screen. And as a surprise bonus, it also appears to block Kim Kardashian.