Providing the Catholics of Illinois a voice in public policy
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We advance policies that promote marriage and strengthen the family.
Catholic Priorities in State Government
We represent the Catholic Church at the Illinois Capitol.
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We advocate for policies that respect the dignity of immigrants, workers, senior citizens, and low-income individuals and families.
Ad Hoc Committee
Prison and Jail Ministry
CCI coordinates a statewide effort of prison and jail ministry offered through the dioceses. Lay Catholics receive training to offer hope to inmates through the salvation of the Gospel.
Catholics in Illinois
The Latest News & Updates
Chicago, Joliet Catholic ministry leaders urge funding of Cook County immigrant legal services
Leaders of immigration ministry and Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago and the Joliet diocese today sent a letter to Cook County officials asking that legal services for noncitizen immigrants be funded in the county's fiscal year 2021 budget set to begin Dec. 1.
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Pope Francis names three new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Chicago
Pope Francis today announced that he has appointed three new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Chicago: Bishops-elect Kevin M. Birmingham, Jeffrey S. Grob and Robert J. Lombardo, CFR. The episcopal ordination of the bishops-elect will take place on the feast of St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, November 13, 2020.
“We are grateful to the Holy Father for the gift of these new auxiliary bishops,” said Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago. “Each of these fine priests has made a unique contribution to the life of the church and society, yet they share in common a solid record of pastoral service, fidelity to the Gospel and inspiring personal witness.”
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CCI Radio Hour: Aug. 17, 2020
Dr. Michael Boyle, the new superintendent for the Diocese of Joliet Catholic Schools, joins Bob to talk about his new job. Next, Matt Dietrich, spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Elections, joins the show to discuss the state's expanded vote-by-mail program for the Nov. 3 general election amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Then, Tony Cube of USCCB's Justice for Immigrants Campaign talks about the federal government's recent changes to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Finally, Alex Jones, co-founder and CEO of the Hallow Catholic meditation and prayer app, discusses how the app was developed and how it just attained the status of the No. 1 Catholic app.
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Pope Francis names Auxiliary Bishop Ronald Hicks, vicar general of Archdiocese of Chicago, as Bishop of Diocese of Joliet
Pope Francis today announced that he has named Bishop Ronald A. Hicks, vicar general of the Archdiocese of Chicago, as the sixth bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Joliet, Ill. Pope Francis had previously accepted the resignation of Bishop Emeritus R. Daniel Conlon and had named Bishop Richard E. Pates as Apostolic Administrator of the diocese until a new bishop could be appointed. Bishop Hicks, 52, will be installed at the Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus in Joliet, Ill. on September 29, 2020.
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Little Sisters of the Poor score top court win on contraceptive mandate; legal saga could continue
The Little Sisters of the Poor today notched a big win in their fight for religious freedom, as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 against a challenge by two states that argued an exemption from the Affordable Care Act’s mandate to provide employee health insurance coverage of contraceptives violated federal law. But the victory may be short-lived, since the court left open the possibility for opponents to challenge in lower courts the exemption as arbitrary and capricious. Any further litigation will most assuredly continue past the 2020 election, which could bring a new U.S. president and his perspective on the issue.
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Nation’s high court upholds ‘ministerial exception’ in Catholic school discrimination case
The U.S. Supreme Court today looked to a 2012 decision establishing the doctrine of “ministerial exception” in ruling that Catholic school teachers could not sue for employment discrimination. In writing the majority opinion in the 7-2 decision in Our Lady of Guadalupe School vs. Morrissey-Berru, Justice Samuel Alito expanded upon the concept of “ministerial exception” created in Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School vs. EEOC. In the 2012 case, the court ruled that ministers could not sue churches and religious institutions for employment discrimination. The high court today agreed the exception applied to two Catholic school teachers because they played a key role in educating their students in the faith.
read moreU.S. Supreme Court strikes down Louisiana abortion law
The U.S. Supreme Court today in a 5-4 vote ruled against a Louisiana law requiring doctors who perform abortions in the state to have admitting privileges in nearby hospitals, four years after striking down an almost-identical Texas law. Chief Justice John Roberts voted with the four liberal-leaning justices in rebuffing the Louisiana law, pointing in a separate concurring opinion to the legal doctrine of stare decisis – the idea that courts should generally not overrule their rulings made in prior cases.
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U.S. Supreme Court rules DACA elimination ‘arbitrary and capricious’; program stands for now
The U.S. Supreme Court today in a 5-4 vote ruled against the Trump administration’s decision to end a popular program safeguarding young, working undocumented immigrants from deportation, stating the 2017 rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program was “arbitrary and capricious.” The USCCB welcomed the ruling and urged President Trump to maintain the program while also encouraging the U.S. Senate to immediately pass legislation providing a path to citizenship for Dreamers.
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U.S., Illinois bishops issue statements on death of George Floyd
Several statements have been issued by bishops from across the country and Illinois on the death of George Floyd and the nationwide protests that have ensued. Floyd was an African-American resident of Minneapolis who died on Mon., May 25 while handcuffed and lying on a city street during an arrest made by Derek Chauvin, a white Minneapolis police officer. Floyd was accused of using a counterfeit $20 bill at a market.
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Bishop Pates of Joliet issues statement of compassion and solidarity with the incarcerated during pandemic
Bishop Richard E. Pates, apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Joliet, today called on state corrections officials to ease the spread of COVID-19 in Illinois prisons by releasing some prisoners early, distributing masks and cleaning supplies among inmates and staff, and issuing accurate infection data. He also urged the shuttering of a reopened unit of Stateville Correctional Center.
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Find out who are your elected officials, and how to contact them. Learn who is in the state leadership positions, and who sits on relevant committees in the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives.