Parish roundup: ministry for people with disabilities; a welcome for LGBTQ Catholics

In the Diocese of Forth Worth, Texas, signs warning against carrying firearms have been removed outside churches. The reasons why are confusing, as the diocese still maintains a no-guns inside church policy. Removing the signs is supposed to enhance security.

SPRED, a program to include developmentally disabled adults in parish life begun in the Archdiocese of Chicago, comes to Newport News, Virginia.

The Diocese of Fresno, California, warns about bogus funeral ceremonies presided over by phony priests.

Is your church really open to people with disabilities? The answer goes beyond a ramp for wheelchairs. A checklist provides the right questions to ask.

St. Paul’s Church in Lexington, Kentucky, welcomes LGBTQ Catholics with a gay rights banner. The symbolic outreach has generated positive comments from parishioners.

A Maine pastor of six parishes is recognized upon his retirement for his social justice work, including outreach to Muslim immigrants.

The history of Black Catholics in Kentucky is explored in a documentary.

A parish in Michigan moves on after its longtime pastor is tried on embezzlement charges.

Parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Ohio, use the summer festival season as an opportunity for evangelization. It’s a place where non-Catholics and inactive Catholics come together. Social ministry programs such as refugee resettlement are highlighted and efforts are made to invite fairgoers into the Catholic parish tent.

[Peter Feuerherd is a correspondent for NCR's Field Hospital series on parish life and is a professor of journalism at St. John's University, New York.]

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