Friday’s News & Ideas - 4/24/2026
- Court allows 10 Commandments in schools
- Pope Leo press conference
- Support for abortion access
- Catholic college to close
- Sarah Jakes Roberts injured
- Ancient ‘kraken-like’ giant octopuses crunched bones
Texas Ten Commandments law likely headed to US Supreme Court
Baptist News Global: Texas’ Ten Commandments law may be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court after an appellate court ruled it does not violate church-state separation under the U.S. Constitution.
Pope Leo: 'I cannot be in favor of war,' talks migration, same-sex blessings, in press conference
National Catholic Reporter: Returning to Rome, the pope took questions from journalists in the traditional post-trip, in-flight press conference on topics of war, migration, same-sex blessings and the nature of his visits with the authoritarian leaders throughout Africa.
Most US adults still support abortion access, despite declines for some Christians
Religion News Service: In a survey conducted throughout much of 2025, 57% of white Catholics said abortion should be legal in all or most cases — down from 62% in 2024.
Anna Maria College announces closure
InsideHigherEd: Anna Maria College is closing due to insurmountable financial challenges, said officials at the Catholic institution in rural Massachusetts.
Dallas pastor Sarah Jakes Roberts says trampoline accident nearly paralyzed her: “I heard several pops in my neck.”
CBS News: Sarah Jakes Roberts, who is a co-senior pastor of Potter's House, faces a weeks-long recovery.
The Spark
‘Kraken-like’ giant octopuses 100m years ago crunched bones of prey
Little has been known about ancient octopuses, whose soft bodies are rarely preserved as fossils. A new study relied on detailed analysis of fossilized beaks, The Guardian says.
