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CNA Staff, May 12, 2025 / 16:06 pm (CNA).

California pregnancy centers filed an appeal last week asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit to stop the state from censoring pro-life pregnancy centers that provide abortion pill reversals.

The National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) and the SCV Pregnancy Center in Santa Clarita, California, are asking the court to stop the state of California from censoring pro-life pregnancy centers that provide information about abortion pill reversal. 

In 2023 California's attorney general, Rob Bonta, sued five pro-life pregnancy centers over their promotion of a drug that is meant to reverse chemical abortions. 

In the suit, Bonta accused the pregnancy centers of using fraudulent and misleading claims when advertising the abortion pill reversal drug. The lawsuit accused the pregnancy centers of violating California's False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition Law. 

The May 7 appeal alleges that California "targeted" pro-life organizations and violated the First Amendment right to freedom of speech as well as religious freedom, as NIFLA is a faith-based organization.

Abortion pill reversal entails taking progesterone within 72 hours of taking mifepristone, the first of two drugs taken for a chemical abortion. The progesterone can stop a chemical abortion. 

Progesterone, a vital hormone for maintaining pregnancy, has been used for decades to prevent miscarriage and preterm labor. Abortion pill reversal has potentially saved thousands of unborn lives, with some sources citing a 64%-68% success rate.

"Progesterone therapy offers these women hope and their babies a second chance at life," the appeal read.

Caleb Dalton, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, the nonprofit legal group arguing on behalf of the pregnancy centers, said that "access to information is a hallmark of a free society and is essential to making informed medical choices."

"Every woman should have the option to reconsider going through with a chemical abortion, and the pro-life pregnancy centers we represent truthfully inform women about that choice," Dalton said in a statement.

"We urge the court to affirm the pregnancy centers' freedom to tell the public about this lawful, life-saving treatment and end the attorney general's censorship," Dalton said. 

The appeal pointed to the story of two California mothers, Atoria Foley and Desirae Exendine, who "immediately regretted" taking the first abortion drug and "frantically sought an alternative." 

Through online searches, the women found a NIFLA pregnancy center. An OB-GYN on staff prescribed progesterone free of cost after diagnosing the women and obtaining their informed consent.

"The treatment worked: Atoria gave birth to a healthy daughter and Desirae to a healthy son," the appeal read.

"If I hadn't heard about abortion pill reversal, I firmly believe my baby girl would not be alive today," Foley testified in the appeal.  

"They gave me back my son's life. I believe all women should have the same second chance to save their babies," Exendine added.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 12, 2025 / 16:36 pm (CNA).

As the world celebrates the election of the first pope born in the United States, the president of the only U.S.-based charitable organization dedicated to carrying out the Holy Father's humanitarian aid projects speculates that Leo XIV's papacy could increase charitable giving within the Church. 

"I do think that because Pope Leo is American, he will have a special rapport with Americans that it should lead to increased donation for his causes of the poor and the vulnerable and the marginalized," said Ward Fitzgerald, the Papal Foundation's board president. 

Funded by donations from its "Stewards of St. Peter," the Papal Foundation supports humanitarian aid projects designated by the pope and the continuing education of priests and religious. "Ninety to 95% of these benefactors are American," according to Fitzgerald, who emphasized that none of their contributions go to the Vatican or the Holy See.

Part of the reason Fitzgerald believes the new pontiff's election could positively influence donations not only to the foundation but also to the Vatican is that the new Holy Father is a native English speaker. 

"Too often ... the pope feels a bit foreign to Americans," he said. "We are not owed as a society having [a pope] that speaks our language, just like no other countries are owed that. But it can be helpful in catalyzing the faith and catalyzing the Holy See's causes when communication can be better." 

"I think it's particularly important in an era, unfortunately, where people use video and phone constantly," he added.

Ultimately, he said, "I think communication through the verbal word as opposed to the written word is going to help Americans embrace the causes of the pope, which include the poor and the marginalized and the vulnerable." 

Fitzgerald, who has met Cardinal Robert Prevost — now Pope Leo XIV — described the new pontiff as politically neither right nor left but as a "compassionate conservative or conservative compassionate." 

He stated that the pontiff's philosophy rests on three pillars: an appreciation for the harmony of faith and reason, shaped by his study of Aquinas; a commitment to leading people to Christ, rooted in his Augustinian influences; and a deep concern for the poor and marginalized, reflected in his service in Peru.

Apart from serving as the foundation's board president, Fitzgerald is the CEO and founder of ExCorde Capital, a private equity firm that specializes in real estate debt and equity markets. One thing he said he hoped to see under Pope Leo XIV's pontificate is more transparency in Vatican finances and better stewardship of its real estate. 

"I think that the universal Church would be more charitable to the Vatican if it understood its finances," he said, noting the general impression many people have is that of waste and lack of oversight.

"I'm not saying it's true or false because I have no idea," he said. "But I think the impression is that if they can communicate clearly where the capital is going … I believe the world would support it."

"Again, because this pope is from America, and America happens to be a more affluent country than many countries, America will probably provide more than its fair share towards those goals," he added. 

In terms of Vatican real estate, Fitzgerald said that while sometimes Church property can be a true asset, other times it can be a "crutch and a burden."

"Now is the time to shed the burden of trying to maintain real estate that is not impactful towards the mission of the truth of the Church and for Jesus Christ," he said.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 12, 2025 / 17:06 pm (CNA).

A Catholic archbishop in Australia is calling attention to an ecumenical statement on human sexuality released last year as the group behind the project seeks to gain approval for the creed from "biblically orthodox leaders" worldwide.

Archbishop Julian Porteous of Hobart is among some 6,000 initial signatories of the "Australian Creed for Sexual Integrity," a statement affirming fundamental Christian ethics on sex and gender that was drafted last October by a team of over 100 Christian faith leaders, including Catholic clergy.

In a Catholic Weekly interview last week, Porteous explained his decision to back the initiative, saying: "I thought it was good ecumenically to show support. And from the Catholic point of view, I felt we had a lot to offer because we have been able to articulate a lot of this material through magisterial teaching, through the catechism and so on, and help them with terminology."

The creed outlines common Christian moral tenets on the creation of every person as male or female, marriage and sexuality as exclusively between men and women, the belief that every human life is sacred, and the call to chastity and faithfulness both in marriage and singleness. 

"We believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who designed sex as part of his loving plan for humanity and whose will for sexual integrity is clearly revealed in holy Scripture," the statement reads.

"We believe our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit," the statement adds, "that Christ calls and empowers us to repent from all sin, including sexual sin, that his mercy abounds to forgive and restore, and that by living with sexual integrity we glorify God and humbly embrace his wise and loving plan for human life."

"Every era has its particular heresies," the creed website states. "We believe the time has come for a new creed that affirms the timeless teachings of the church regarding sexual integrity and that articulates God's glorious design for sex and marriage as revealed in holy Scripture."

"Our hope and prayer," the website notes, "is that the Australian Creed for Sexual Integrity will gain global approval from biblically orthodox leaders in the Catholic Church, the Anglican/Episcopalian Church, the Lutheran Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Orthodox Church, evangelical and Pentecostal churches, and many more besides."

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 12, 2025 / 17:26 pm (CNA).

Louis Marius Prevost, the father of Pope Leo XIV, served on a D-Day landing ship during World War II and was a junior lieutenant in the United States Navy.

Since Pope Leo XIV became the new pontiff, the world has been eager to learn more about the first U.S.-born pope. The United States Department of Defense (DOD) released a statement about Pope Leo's late father and his role in the revered "greatest generation" that won World War II.

Prevost was born on July 28, 1920, in Chicago. After he graduated from college, he joined the Navy in November 1943 when he was 23 years old. 

According to the Department of Defense, Prevost became the executive officer of a tank landing ship and "participated in the D-Day landings in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944, as part of Operation Overlord." He was in charge of a landing craft that "the Allies used to land infantry soldiers and Marines onto beaches during the war."

On June 6, 1944, Prevost was involved in the Allied forces landing troops on Normandy beaches that "successfully executed the largest air, land, and sea invasion in history," according to the DOD.

The Normandy coastline would soon run out of capacity for the amount of materials needed "to keep the Allied momentum going." The U.S. Navy then sent Prevost and other landing ships to southern France on Aug. 15, 1944, to take part in Operation Dragoon, which "forced the Germans to defend a second front, diluting their effectiveness."

"By the end of August," the DOD said, "the Allies had captured the French ports of Marseille and Toulon, immediately using them to land supplies and equipment. In October 1944, more than a third of Allied cargo was shipped through those ports."

Prevost was overseas on active duty for 15 months. He attained the rank of lieutenant junior grade prior to the war ending on May 8, 1945.

After the war, Prevost returned home and became the head of an elementary school district in Glenwood, Illinois. He later took a job as a principal at Mount Carmel Elementary School in Chicago and also did work teaching "the principles of the Christian religion" as a catechist.

In 1949 Prevost married Mildred Martinez, who was a librarian at the time. 

The couple had three sons: John Joseph Prevost; Louis Martin Prevost, also a U.S. Navy veteran; and Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV.

Prevost passed away in Chicago due to natural causes on Nov. 8, 1997.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 12, 2025 / 18:06 pm (CNA).

Lawyers who represent the recently executed Mikal Mahdi are alleging that the South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC) "botched" their client's firing squad execution, which caused him to scream out in pain and remain conscious for nearly one minute until he eventually died.

Mahdi, who was convicted of murdering a police officer and a convenience store worker, died on April 11 at age 42 in South Carolina's second firing squad execution in the state's history, both of which occurred this year just five weeks apart.

Although firing squad executions in the United States are extremely rare, the state legalized this method of execution, along with executions by the electric chair, in 2021 amid shortages of the drugs needed for lethal injections. Death row inmates can now choose whether to die by firing squad, lethal injection, or the electric chair, according to current state law.

According to a status report filed by Mahdi's lawyers, the autopsy and eyewitness accounts of his death raise several questions about the execution. They note there are only two entrance wounds, despite three shots reportedly being fired, and allege that the shots "largely missed his heart," which resulted in an unnecessarily prolonged death.

The status report notes that Mahdi screamed and groaned immediately after he was shot and a second time nearly a minute after the shots were fired. Mahdi's lawyers said in the filing that his death was "far from painless and far from humane."

"The autopsy confirms what I saw and heard," David Weiss, one of Mahdi's lawyers, said in a statement. "Mikal suffered an excruciating death. We don't know what went wrong, but nothing about his execution was humane. The implications are horrifying for anyone facing the same choice as Mikal. South Carolina's refusal to acknowledge their failures with executions cannot continue."

Mahdi's autopsy listed his cause of death as "multiple gunshot wounds to the chest." It states that there are only two entrance wounds but that "it is believed" one of the gunshot wounds "represents two gunshot wound pathways," which would indicate three bullets entered his body.

However, an analysis of the autopsy by Arden Forensics commissioned by Mahdi's lawyers expressed doubt that three gunshots would leave only two entrance wounds, stating that the "passage of more than one bullet through a typical entrance wound is virtually unheard of."

"We currently have no evidence to explain why there were two, rather than three, entrance wounds," Jonathan Arden, who provided the analysis, said.

Although the autopsy found that the bullets struck Mahdi's heart, Arden's analysis states, "the entrance wounds were at the lowest area of the chest, just above the border with the abdomen, which is not an area largely overlying the heart." It notes that the downward trajectory of the bullets, found in the autopsy, suggests "the heart might not be injured severely (or even at all)." 

"The forensic medical evidence and the reported eyewitness observations of the execution corroborate that Mr. Mahdi was alive and reacting longer than was intended or expected," he continued. "Mr. Mahdi did experience excruciating conscious pain and suffering for about 30 to 60 seconds after he was shot."

A spokesperson for SCDC disputed the narrative from Mahdi's lawyers, telling CNA that "all three weapons fired simultaneously, and all three bullets struck Mahdi," adding: "Two bullets followed the same trajectory."

"All three bullets struck Mahdi's heart, per the autopsy report," the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that "multiple fragments were removed from Mahdi's body," "the autopsy report shows no exit wounds," and "no fragments were found in the room."

Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, the executive director of the Catholic Mobilizing Network, told CNA the reports suggest the "execution was botched, causing a very painful death." She said "this is a reminder that every execution — regardless of the method or the procedures that take place — is a violent act that disregards the dignity of life."

"This year, multiple states have instituted new execution methods including the firing squad — like in the case of Mr. Mahdi — and the newly developed method of nitrogen gas suffocation," Murphy added.

"It's hard not to look at these methods and think, 'How did we get here?' And how does our society think this inhumanity is somehow acceptable?" she said. "The reality is, those are the questions we should ask ourselves each time there is an execution, because the death penalty is contrary to human dignity and an affront to the sanctity of life."

"The outrage we feel toward these execution methods is a reminder that over time, the system of capital punishment has become all the more deceptive to make executions appear more palatable, sterile, and 'humane,'" Murphy continued. "But executions are never any of these things. Whether someone is shot, electrocuted, injected, or gassed each and every execution extinguishes a God-given life with inherent dignity and worth. Each and every execution is a blatant act of state-sanctioned violence."

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Vatican City, May 12, 2025 / 09:22 am (CNA).

In his first address to international media on Monday, Pope Leo XIV thanked journalists for their service to the truth and for communicating peace in difficult times.

"We are living in times that are both difficult to navigate and to recount. They present a challenge for all of us, but it is one that we should not run away from," Leo said in the Pope Paul VI Audience Hall on May 12. "On the contrary, they demand that each one of us, in our different roles and services, never give in to mediocrity."

"Thank you, dear friends, for your service to the truth," he said, also underlining the importance of preserving free speech and the free press.

In one of his first audiences, Pope Leo XIV met with several thousand members of the international press to thank them for their "long and tiring days" of work over the last few weeks as they reported on Pope Francis' death, funeral, and the conclave.

Before his prepared remarks in Italian, the new pope spoke in English, thanking everyone for the warm reception and the applause. 

"They say when they clap at the beginning it doesn't matter much… If you are still awake at the end, and still want to applaud… Thank you very much!" Leo said.

Turning to the present moment, Leo said: "The Church must face the challenges posed by the times. In the same way, communication and journalism do not exist outside of time and history. St. Augustine reminds of this when he said, 'Let us live well, and the times will be good. We are the times' (Discourse 311)."

The pontiff, elected May 8, also emphasized the important role of communications for promoting peace. 

"In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus proclaimed: 'Blessed are the peacemakers' (Mt 5:9). This is a beatitude that challenges all of us, but it is particularly relevant to you, calling each one of you to strive for a different kind of communication, one that does not seek consensus at all costs, does not use aggressive words, does not follow the culture of competition, and never separates the search for truth from the love with which we must humbly seek it," Leo said.

"Peace," he continued, "begins with each one of us: in the way we look at others, listen to others, and speak about others. In this sense, the way we communicate is of fundamental importance: We must say 'no' to the war of words and images, we must reject the paradigm of war."

According to the pope, one of the most important challenges for media today is promoting communication that moves away from the confusion of the "Tower of Babel" and the "loveless languages that are often ideological or partisan."

"Your service, with the words you use and the style you adopt, is crucial," he underlined. "As you know, communication is not only the transmission of information, but it is also the creation of a culture, of human and digital environments that become spaces for dialogue and discussion. In looking at how technology is developing, this mission becomes ever more necessary."

He mentioned in particular the responsibility and discernment needed in the use of artificial intelligence — a responsibility that involves everyone according to his or her age.

On the topic of truth, Leo XIV reiterated the Church's solidarity with journalists who have been imprisoned "for seeking to report the truth" and appealed for their release.

"The Church recognizes in these witnesses — I am thinking of those who report on war even at the cost of their lives — the courage of those who defend dignity, justice, and the right of people to be informed, because only informed individuals can make free choices," he said. "The suffering of these imprisoned journalists challenges the conscience of nations and the international community, calling on all of us to safeguard the precious gift of free speech and of the press."

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Bangalore, India, May 12, 2025 / 10:40 am (CNA).

A Catholic school and convent in India came under shelling from Pakistan military forces last week, with three students killed in the town of Poonch close to the Pakistan border, as fighting between the two countries' militaries broke out before ending quickly over the weekend.

"One shell fell near our Christ School campus at Poonch, killing a twin brother and sister. The siblings were our students," Jammu Bishop Ivan Pereira told CNA. The Jammu Diocese covers the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Another shell fell over the convent of the Carmelites of Mary Congregation. But it damaged only the water tank and solar panels. The school has been closed and the nuns have been moved to a distant convent," Pereira said.

"Now the priests, nuns, and laypeople are engaged in arranging safer places for the fleeing people and arranging them night shelters," he added.

Indian security forces launched aerial assaults against what they said were nine terrorist centers inside Pakistan early on May 7. The attack left 31 dead.

The government blamed Pakistan for allegedly supporting terrorists active on the Indian side of Kashmir, including the reported April 22 mass killing of 26 non-Muslim male tourists in the Pahalgam valley of Kashmir.

Following the Indian assault, Pakistani security forces intensified ongoing shelling in border areas, especially in the vulnerable Poonch township, located only eight miles from the border.

"The two students who died were hit by splinters from shelling when they were moving out to flee the area with their parents after their house was hit by a shell," Father Shijo Kanjirathingal, the principal of the Christ School in Pooch, told CNA.

"A third student from our school was hit on the head by splinters in a moving vehicle," the priest said.

"The shelling was very intense [on Wednesday morning] and shells hit the houses near the school compound. Though no shell hit our school buildings, a lot of glass panes have been shattered from splinters," Kanjirathingal said. 

"Thank God, nobody was injured in our compound, which houses over two dozen staff including 16 teachers," said the priest, who belongs to the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate congregation.

"To ensure their safety, all the resident staff hailing from outside the state have been moved out. Our second Christ School closer to the border also has been shut and staff were evacuated. We used the school bus to move the people," the priest said.

With the situation worsening and Pakistan vowing "retaliation" to Indian attacks, the government evacuated thousands of people from the villages along border areas as 18 people were killed amid Pakistani shelling.

Yet the two countries announced a cessation of hostilities over the weekend, with the conflict ending abruptly after just a few days of fighting. The agreement appeared to be holding into Monday morning. 

India and Pakistan have fought three bitter wars over the snow-capped Kashmir region in the Himalayas. The area was divided between India and Pakistan during the partition of the Indian subcontinent in 1947 into Muslim-majority Pakistan and Hindu-majority India, ending more than a century of colonial British rule.

The latest trigger for the worsening tension was an April 22 terrorist attack on tourists in the snow-capped Pahalgam tourist area in which 26 non-Muslims were killed.

Among 26 tourists shot dead by the Muslim militants was Susil Nathaniel, a Catholic who was executed in front of his wife and children reportedly for failing to recite a Muslim couplet.

Bishop Thomas Mathew of Indore in central India presided over the April 24 funeral of Nathaniel, describing the 57-year-old insurance company officer as a "double martyr" who laid down his life "for the nation and for the Catholic faith," UCA News reported.

Pope Leo XIV, meanwhile — in his first Regina Caeli address at St. Peter's Square on Sunday — hailed the cessation of hostilities announced by both countries over the weekend.

"I rejoice at the recent peace made between India and Pakistan," the pope said, adding that he hoped for a lasting accord.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 12, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Pro-life organizations are stepping up their campaign to defund "big abortion" as the reconciliation bill is expected to come up for debate in the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week. 

On Wednesday, May 7, digital billboards with ads from pro-life organization Live Action lit up Times Square, urging passers-by to help defund Planned Parenthood.

Since the Trump administration announced its plan to defund Planned Parenthood in March, pro-life leaders have been working with lawmakers and urging citizens to contact their representatives with the hope the reconciliation bill will defund federally defund the organization by Memorial Day. 

With that date only weeks away, activists are campaigning to make it happen.

"Although there are multiple reasons why Planned Parenthood deserves to be defunded," Live Action reported, "the billboard highlighted two main reasons that America's biggest abortion business should lose the $700 million it receives from federal tax dollars each year."

Live Action's billboard messages focused on how the organization provides cross-sex hormones to minors and "commits" thousands of abortions every week.

One billboard displayed the number "1076" in large type. According to Planned Parenthood's 2022-2023 annual report, that is the number of abortions the organization performs daily.

Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA) is also seeking to defund Planned Parenthood. On April 29, the organization held a gala in Washington, D.C., with pro-life supporters and legislators from across the country.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, told attendees there has "never been a more important moment to stand for this cause."

Johnson explained that the reconciliation bill would redirect funds from "big abortion" to "federally qualified health centers." 

Other federal legislators who attended included Sens. Jon Husted, R-Ohio; Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio; Tim Sheehy, R-Montana and Steve Daines, R-Montana.

The reconciliation bill cannot directly defund the abortions Planned Parenthood performs because under the Hyde Amendment, organizations already cannot use federal funds for abortion. However, the bill can stop taxpayer dollars from going toward Medicaid funds that Planned Parenthood and similar organizations use. 

Kelsey Pritchard, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America political communications director, told CNA that while President Donald Trump did reinstate the Hyde Amendment, the money is "fungible" and "Planned Parenthood's largest federal funding comes through Medicaid reimbursements."

Pritchard said former Planned Parenthood directors have told SBA that these funds support the abortion infrastructure by covering utilities, staffing, and patient intake for abortion-related operations rather than the women's cancer and health screenings the money is intended for. 

The money is what enables it "to do nearly 400,000 abortions annually, all while they're getting $2 million in tax money every single day. It's really allowing them to keep their doors open," she said.  

The pro-life movement is "unified" and "encouraged by the energy right now," according to Pritchard.

"It's a very popular move to get the American people out of the forced funding of abortion businesses. I think that's why we've seen so much support and why we're so hopeful that this is the time."

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CNA Deutsch, May 10, 2025 / 13:42 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV on Saturday visited and prayed at a Marian shrine outside of Rome, greeting the community there and urging them to "be faithful to the Mother."

The Holy Father visited the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano on Saturday afternoon. The sanctuary, located about an hour east of Rome, is run by the religious of the Order of St. Augustine and "houses an ancient image of the Virgin, dear to the Order and to the memory of Leo XIII," according to the Vatican.

The pope greeted the religious at the shrine before praying at both the altar and the Marian image there, according to the Vatican. The Holy Father also prayed St. John Paul II's prayer to the Mother of Good Counsel with the assembly.

"I wanted so much to come here in these first days of the new ministry that the Church has entrusted to me, to carry out this mission as the Successor of Peter," Leo told those present.

The pope told the community that the shrine was "such a great gift" to them.

"As the Mother never abandons her children, you must also be faithful to the Mother," he said. The Holy Father also offered a blessing to those present.

Leo on Saturday also visited the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where he prayed in front of the tomb of Pope Francis, his immediate predecessor.

Francis is one of eight popes buried in the papal basilica.

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CNA Newsroom, May 10, 2025 / 11:45 am (CNA).

An effort backed by the U.S. bishops to protect a centuries-old Native American religious site from destruction scored a win in federal court on Friday when a district judge blocked the sale of the location while the matter is considered by the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. District Judge Steven Logan said in the Friday order that the federal government would be prohibited from selling the Oak Flat site in Arizona while the coalition group Apache Stronghold waits for the Supreme Court to potentially consider its case.

The federal government several years ago moved to transfer Oak Flat to the mining company Resolution Copper after having protected the site for decades. The group's proposed mining operations would largely obliterate the site, which has been viewed as a sacred site by Apaches and other Native American groups for hundreds of years and has been used extensively for religious rituals. 

Apache Stronghold filed a challenge to the transfer, arguing that it violates both the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and an 1852 treaty protecting Apache territory. The religious liberty law group Becket is representing the group in the case. Several lower courts have already ruled against the Native American group.

Logan in his Friday ruling said he was persuaded by "the fundamental freedoms at stake in this case."

"It is undisputed that if the transfer goes forward and Resolution Copper's mining plans are effectuated, [the Native American groups] will suffer irreparable harm in the long term," he wrote. The injunction, meanwhile, would "not stop Resolution from mining a single ounce of copper should the transfer ultimately be upheld."

The "balance of equities" in the dispute is in favor of Apache Stronghold, Logan said, insofar as they have "established a likelihood of irreparable harm should the transfer proceed" and have raised "serious questions" about the merits of the case.

The injunction will hold until the Supreme Court either refuses to hear the case or else issues a decision should it take the case up, Logan ordered.

U.S. bishops say transfer 'jeopardizes religious liberty'

Last year the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) joined an amicus brief with the Christian Legal Society and the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, arguing that the lower court decisions allowing the sale represent "a grave misunderstanding of RFRA that fails to apply its protections in evaluating that destruction."

The transfer of the land "jeopardizes Native American religious practice and religious liberty more broadly," the groups argued.

The Knights of Columbus similarly filed a brief in support of the Apaches, arguing that the decision to allow the property to be mined "reads into RFRA an atextual constraint with no grounding in the statute itself."

The decision is devastating not just to the Apaches but to "the myriad religious adherents of all faiths and backgrounds who use federal lands every day for their religious exercise," they said. 

Religious liberty scholars from the Notre Dame Law School, Seton Hall University, and the University of St. Thomas School of Law also filed a brief backing the Native Americans. Numerous other religious groups also filed amicus briefs.

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