New from the MeatEater Podcast Network: Long-time western author Dan Flores presents a big picture history of an American West you've never encountered Covering a vast time span in a western America whose landscapes and wild animals drew people from around the world this podcast tells a new story of our most fascinating region Subscribe now wherever you listen to podcasts Don't miss episode one coming out May 6th Subscribe to The MeatEater Podcast Network on YouTube Shop MeatEater Merch ROME—At a Synod assembly press conference the other day bishop made the comment that “Perspective is not the enemy of truth.” is not only a delegate to the Synod assembly Conference of Catholic Bishops’ synodal work—and is chair of the Conference’s Committee on Doctrine—so his own perspective is a unique one since he is someone who has been steeped in synodal practices for at least the last few years Bishop Flores went on to state that he believes “perspective is the way of the church.” While I loved this idea that perspective and truth are not enemies I was a little more skeptical about this second notion To say that perspective is the way of the church sounds like a bit of a stretch From the days of Plato and birth of Western philosophy and challenging various perspectives has been a time-honored way of getting to the truth and it is the process that Socrates uses during the conversations that he had which are presented in Plato’s famous dialogues I am all in favor of appreciating various perspectives As someone who has studied rhetoric in graduate school I heartily believe in the power of persuasion and discussion the greatest of the ancient Roman rhetoricians I believe that it is by the airing of various viewpoints the comparison of similarities and differences among different positions All perspectives presented in good faith would be honored and respected Disagreements can possibly be ironed out by finding common values which underlie opposing views that would be the ideal of how the Catholic Church should always operate Except that I know that hasn’t been the reality in which I have lived For people of my own and past generations who have longed for a discussion of LGBTQ+ issues the reality that we have lived has been one of rejection And those exclusionary practices were all justified by the idea that there was only one perspective–that of the pope and the Magisterium–that was authentically Catholic when New Ways Ministry requested a meeting with Cardinal Francis George then the executive director of the conference’s Committee on Doctrine Weinandy informed me that Cardinal George would not meet with me and he gave the following as part of his reason: meaningful dialogue for members of the Church can only take place within the context of an affirmation of the Church’s teaching Bishops are not going to enter into negotiations concerning the content of Church teaching and they will avoid situations which might give the impression that they are doing so Dialogue about helping bring others to Christ his Church and her teaching can be fruitful only if such dialogue affirms and accepts the definitive teaching of the Church and also recognizes the role of bishops in authoritatively articulating authentic faith and morals.” Don’t get me wrong: I am delighted that this repressive kind of Catholicism seems to be on the wane it does seem that Catholicism is becoming a church which is beginning to value perspective repressive measures have not been eradicated in all or even in many places Which is why I bristle when I hear a bishop now saying that perspective is the face of the church I don’t think Bishop Flores was dissimulating I sincerely believe that he sincerely hopes that the Catholic Church will become a church which doesn’t see perspective as an enemy of truth it must be acknowledged that the Church is not there yet Here is a list of items that we would see if perspective really was valued: These are just a few of the things that come to my mind when I think of a church that values perspective Such policies exist in precious few places May the spirit of synodality which Pope Francis is awakening take root in our church in these concrete ways and many others like them Thank You for challanging this deeply imbedded Myth thank you so much for this especially the list of six perspectives you suggest if perspective were turely honored in the catholic church It seems that what Bishop Flores said to you through his spokesperson in that letter you quoted above is one of those typical stones of “doctrine” that regularly are hurled at LGBTQ+ persons It is time to start talking and discussing for such a clear and historical way to grapple with this issue Thank you so much for this and all your valuable synod updates! and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply 2025 at 3:42 pm CT.css-79elbk{position:relative;}Daniel "Danny" Flores is running for Orland Township Trustee in the April 1 (Courtesy of Wehmeier Portraits)ORLAND TOWNSHIP and Orland Township leadership will inevitably see a shakeup Three separate slates will vie for Township spots including supervisor Twelve candidates are jockeying for four trustee spots Incumbent Orland Township Supervisor Paul O'Grady and his Orland Township Together slate includes clerk candidate Reem Odeh highway commissioner candidate John Lynch (a current trustee) and trustee candidates Michael Maratea (incumbent) current Orland Township Assessor Rich Kelly tops the ticket as supervisor candidate current highway commissioner Antonio Rubino for assessor Several declared Republican candidates are trying for spots Appearing as Republican candidate for clerk is Shannon Olson Competing for highway commissioner is Republican candidate William Brennan Patch provided candidates with a questionnaire Their answers are now published in candidate profiles Orland Township United Does anyone in your family work in politics or government This includes any relatives who work in the government you're running for I am a retired Locomotive Engineer and former Assistant Supervisor of Locomotive Engineers at METRA with decades of experience in transportation I also served as the General Chairman of The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers representing and negotiating for workers' rights I have experience as a part-time police officer in Chicago Ridge and Phoenix further demonstrating my commitment to public service Previous or current elected or appointed office: The most pressing issues facing our township are _______ and this is what I intend to do about them One of the most pressing issues in our township is ensuring responsible fiscal management while maintaining essential services for residents and I will advocate for strong community policing initiatives and collaboration between local law enforcement and community leaders I will focus on responsible development to support both residential and commercial growth that benefits the community What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post I have firsthand experience advocating for workers My leadership experience has taught me how to collaborate and make tough decisions for the benefit of the community in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency) I believe the community deserves more engagement from its leaders and I will work to ensure open communication Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform Beyond fiscal responsibility and public safety I am committed to strengthening infrastructure and advocating for policies that benefit working families What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job As General Chairman of The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers My leadership in both the railroad industry and law enforcement has equipped me with the skills to handle complex issues and make decisions that benefit the community and commitment to fairness speaks for itself and I will always prioritize the needs of the community what accomplishment would make your term in office as a success A successful term in office would mean improving transparency in government government spending and the handling of taxpayer dollars in the office you are seeking I believe in responsible spending and ensuring taxpayer dollars are used efficiently and the budget should prioritize essential services such as public safety What are your thoughts on the crime rate in your community and what more can be done to combat crime — especially violent crime — in town Crime remains a concern in many communities and I believe in a proactive approach to law enforcement This includes strengthening community policing efforts providing law enforcement with the necessary resources and fostering collaboration between police and local organizations to prevent crime before it happens What is your view of the city's/village's approach to commercial and residential development Development should be balanced and strategic to support the needs of residents and local businesses what are some key areas for improvement or additions you feel are most wanted by residents What will need to be done to make this happen Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions I am a lifelong advocate for working families Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol arrested one individual following a fatal crash in Morrill County earlier this week NSP officials say shortly before 2:30 pm Tuesday troopers were called to a crash on Highway 385 about five miles north of Angora finding a 2020 Chevrolet Express delivery van had been traveling southbound when it failed to slow down for a stopped southbound Ford F-150 that was waiting for cattle to cross the road The investigation found the driver of the delivery van attempted to switch lanes to avoid the pickup however the van struck the stopped vehicle was administered CPR and transported to Morrill County Community Hospital was arrested for motor vehicle homicide and careless driving Authorities say seat belts were in use by both drivers NSP was assisted on scene by the Morrill County Sheriff’s Office and the Morrill County Attorney’s Office © 2025 Nebraska Rural Radio Association. All rights reserved. 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Copyright Information Website ©2025 Nebraska Rural Radio Association | All rights reserved. | Website developed by Hollman Media you will be automatically redirected here whenever you go to https://ruralradio.com you can click the "Clear home" link in the footer of the site Calif (FOX26) — Three men who are known gang members were arrested in Visalia on Friday VPD says the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEU) and the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Tulare Area Gang and Narcotics Enforcement Team (T.A.G.N.E.T) conducted parole and probation searches in Visalia [RELATED] Man hospitalized after stabbing outside Visalia Nightclub The three who were arrested are listed below All three were booked into the Tulare County Adult pre-Trial Facility We have the address for the funeral home & the family on file If you're not happy with your card we'll send a replacement or refund your money The family of Maria Teresa Cortez created this Life Tributes page to make it easy to share your memories Maria Teresa Flores Cortez (Terry) went to her eter.. © 2025 Mission Park Funeral Chapels & Cemeteries Made with love by funeralOne Lake and McHenry County Scanner A former employee of a swim school in Lake in the Hills has been found guilty of repeatedly inappropriately touching a female teenager who was a co-worker of his was charged in February 2022 with four counts of aggravated battery in a public place unlawful restraint and four counts of battery The Lake in the Hills Police Department was notified by the Bear Paddle Swim School about an incident involving two of their employees Prosecutors said the swim school became aware of inappropriate touching by Flores against another employee and learned that she had been assigned to shadow Flores as part of her training to become a swim instructor Flores touched her multiple times in the pool and in the men’s and women’s restrooms Two other employees witnessed the incidents involving Flores and the victim One employee observed the touching occur in the restroom A grand jury indictment said Flores held the woman against a sink with his hands and placed his hands on her neck on September 30 The indictment said Flores unlawfully restrained the victim by bending her over a sink in the restroom He also grabbed her buttocks and slapped her buttocks on the same day A two-day bench trial was held beginning on August 14 and concluding on September 5 in front of McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt Gerhardt announced his decision in the case He found Flores guilty of all nine charges “McHenry County will remain a safe place for people to work without fear of harassment,” McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally said following the verdict A sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 22 No part of this website may be reproduced or stored in any form without written permission from Lake and McHenry County Scanner To keep you informed about the latest news across Lake and McHenry counties as it happens gathered in the Paul VI Hall on Friday evening to engage directly with leaders of the Secretariat of the Synod titled “University Students in Dialogue with Synod Leaders,” featured a series of relevant questions posed by the students and answered by Cardinal Mario Grech Chancellor of the Diocese of San Bernardino and Bishop Daniel Flores of the Diocese of Brownsville in south Texas which mirrored that of the ongoing 2nd Session of the Synod on Synodality symbolized Pope Francis' vision for the Church to walk together on a journey of listening and engagement who expressed her struggle to express her faith in a different culture and asked how the Church could improve future consultations to ensure more voices are heard acknowledging the challenge and sharing that the Church's current synodal process is unprecedented in its scope of listening He noted that while there is still room for improvement this synod has involved significantly more people than previous ones “During the Synod on the Family” the Cardinal said “Only 80 out of 114 Bishops’ Conferences participated This time 112 out of 114 submitted their report: that means a good chunk of people have been heard.” He also noted that this time more than 20,000 people participated on a digital platform so “Participation has been very good and promises to be better in future.” stressing the importance of hearing not only opinions but also the Holy Spirit's guidance in a process that “will help the Church become more synodal creating a culture of encounter rooted in listening to both God and to each other.” a Venezuelan student who grew up in the Middle East asked why young people not engaged with the Church should care about synodality and how the Church could create spaces for those who feel hurt by it Cardinal Hollerich emphasized the importance of listening to people He pointed to the clash of opinions that currently characterizes the USA and said “polarization is a way of thinking very far from synodality where you only follow people who have the same opinions as you – and if you disagree it becomes very oppositional.” “A person with a different opinion is not an enemy; we are part of the same humanity it is easier because we are sisters and brothers; we share the same Baptism “I think the world can learn from that,” he said “and it would be nice if we could open up to other beliefs and religions to discuss in global fraternity the big issues of our world” as synodality offers a way to bring people together could learn from the Church’s approach to synodality particularly in creating spaces for respectful dialogue that addresses global issues like peace raised concerns about how the emphasis on experience in the synodal process might affect faithfulness to tradition and truth Bishop Flores responded by reassuring her that synodality does not compromise the Church’s mission to proclaim the Gospel He acknowledged the challenge of listening to those with different views but affirmed that it is essential to understanding the realities people face.  "How do you remain faithful to the Church I do not worry that the faith of the Church will be compromised if we listen to each other," he said helps deepen understanding without undermining the Church’s core teachings a student from New Orleans involved in youth ministry asked how the synod could transform discussions into concrete action Leticia Salazar emphasized the transformative nature of the synodal process Ignatius of Loyola’s invitation to experience scripture as if one were present in the scene Sitting at the same tables as synod participants is a powerful experience that fosters communion and transformation Sr Leticia expressed hope that the students would carry this experience back to their communities She added that the process is not merely theoretical but a way of discerning and building together as one Church “What is going to happen after this time here It will continue in San Bernardino and hopefully in the whole Church,” she said “It is a way of finding Jesus in one another it is building together and discerning together God’s will.” “Synodality has a gentle way of announcing the Good News in a very respectful way.” “I am very hopeful for the United States to see you here,” she concluded Pope Francis does not want to do his mission by himself; he called the whole Church to do it with him asked how seminaries and theological schools could foster synodality Bishop Flores responded by encouraging theologians and seminarians to engage with the realities of the people they serve He stressed the importance of stepping out of academic environments to experience the lives of those on the margins Cardinal Grech added that seminaries and theological programs must be re-evaluated through a synodal lens He invited students and theologians to contribute to this ongoing conversation underscoring that synodality must permeate every level of Church formation Mika from Cincinnati asked the 6th and last question regarding how the Church could support the laity in promoting interfaith dialogue and what lessons synodality could learn from other faith traditions Cardinal Hollerich reflected on his experience in Japan where he taught students of various religions He shared how this encounter helped him recognize that God is already present in all cultures and religions The Cardinal emphasized that synodality can teach the world that religion should not be a source of conflict but rather a path to greater fraternity and called for the Church to act together with other faith traditions to address global challenges as brothers and sisters united by a common mission love and friendship and take action for the good of humanity and part of that mission is also proclaiming God,” he said the students presented a mosaic artwork representing the prayers and questions that had arisen during their time in Rome Each of the panellists was invited to contribute a prayer symbolizing the collective hope for a more synodal Thank you for reading our article. You can keep up-to-date by subscribing to our daily newsletter. Just click here We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Please use the button below to manage your account. Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading. Welcome! We hope that you enjoy our free content. Thank you for signing in! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content. Sorry, no promotional deals were found matching that code. A jury has convicted a man of first-degree murder and aggravated assault in connection with the 2022 shooting death of a teenager. Following a five-day trial in New Mexico's 5th Judicial District Court, jurors returned with a guilty verdict against Daniel Flores, 21. Most of the evidence against Flores was indirect evidence. But after three hours of deliberation, the jury found that what was presented was sufficient enough for them to conclude Flores was either the shooter or an accomplice in the shooting that claimed the life of 15-year-old Damyn Rodriguez. “At the end of the day, the facts presented spoke for themselves and proved the case beyond a reasonable doubt,” District Attorney Dianna Luce said in an email to the Roswell Daily Record on Wednesday. Gary Mitchell, Flores' attorney, did not return a call by press time about his response to the case and whether his client planned to appeal the verdict. Though the prosecution initially claimed that Flores was the gunman in the shooting, Luce and Deputy District Attorney Timothy Wyatt, who prosecuted the case, later told jurors even if Flores did not pull the trigger, he could still be guilty of first-degree murder. Instructions provided by the jury stated that Flores would also be guilty of first-degree murder if the jury determined beyond a reasonable doubt that he “helped, encouraged, or caused the crime to happen.” Rodriguez was shot and killed at about 2:30 a.m. on July 24, 2022, at the East Tilden Street house of Flores' ex-girlfriend. The shooting happened soon after Flores' ex-girlfriend and another woman brought Rodriguez and two other teenage boys back to the house. As they were consuming alcohol and doing drugs, a vehicle pulled up in front of the residence with its lights on. A man dressed in all black and wearing a mask then entered the residence and fired six shots, one of which struck Rodriguez in the neck, killing him. The other two teenagers were shot but survived. One of the two wounded men was hit four times in the chest and the other once in the arm. The ex-girlfriend also sustained a minor wound. Police say the shooter then fled on foot. Flores was arrested by U.S. Marshals six days later while visiting his mother and stepfather in Glendale, Arizona. Luce and Wyatt claimed that the shooting happened because Flores became jealous and angry that his ex-girlfriend had brought the three boys back to her house with her. Prosecutors portrayed Flores as possessive and as someone who frequently threatened his former girlfriend. In her closing arguments, Luce said that in Flores' mind, his ex-girlfriend was “his to control, his to dominate and his to decide when to throw away.” She cited as an example an instance where Flores once told his ex-girlfriend that if he found her with another man, “I'll put you where your mom is,” a reference to the fact that the woman's mother is dead. Prosecutors noted that after the shooting, but before the gunman left, the shooter told the ex-girlfriend to watch out and said, “I will put you where your mom is, in the dirt.” A green F-150 pickup truck was central to the prosecution's case. Flores had such a vehicle that was registered to his grandfather and was parked in front of the house after the shooting with its headlights still on. The ex-girlfriend told police that the vehicle had not been at the house when she brought her guests back to her residence shortly before the shooting happened. Although the ex-girlfriend drove the pickup when she and Flores were a couple, Luce noted that the former girlfriend did not have the keys when the shooting happened. When they searched the pickup, investigators found mail addressed to the residence where Flores lived and some .38 caliber rounds. Police believe that the bullets fired in the shooting came from a revolver that could have been a .38 caliber. Prosecutors also noted that before the shooting, surveillance cameras at an intersection within the neighborhood of the Tilden Street house showed a pickup circling the area and though it was dark, prosecutors said it appeared that more than one person was inside. Other evidence included DNA from Flores that was found on a cigarette butt near the house, a cell phone in Flores' name that was discovered a short time after the shooting in a nearby alley, and some black clothes found in an alley dumpster not far from the house. Mitchell said no evidence tied his client directly to the shooting. Flores had claimed to be at his sister's house when the shooting happened. He also noted that no one had identified Flores as the shooter and, aside from the cigarette butt, no DNA or fingerprints from Flores were found near the scene. He noted that Flores had lived at the house until sometime before the shooting, so the discovery of a cigarette butt with his DNA was not all that surprising. The cellphone that was found, Mitchell said, was not just used by Flores but also by several other people. No text messages were recovered that showed there was an intention to carry out the shooting, and Mitchell said there was no evidence that Flores had possession or use of the phone after 10 p.m. on July 23, 2022. Mitchell also noted that Flores did not have a driver's license and did not know how to drive the pickup. When he took the stand at trial, Flores said he was given the pickup when he and his ex-girlfriend were together so she could drive it. Prosecutors also said that Flores had fled to Arizona to distance himself from the shooting. But Mitchell claimed that Flores' trip to Arizona had been planned well before the shooting so he could stay with his mother and stepfather while looking for work. Court records indicate that Flores will be sentenced in the case on Aug. 15. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: A man convicted of gunning down a teenager and wounding three other people two years ago received a sentence of life in prison plus six-and-a-half years. New Mexico 5th Judicial District Judge James Hudson followed the prosecution's recommendation when he handed down the sentence against Daniel Flores, 21, on Wednesday at a hearing in Roswell. Flores received a life sentence on a first-degree murder charge, and will be eligible for parole after 30 years under New Mexico law. He also received an 18-month sentence on an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge. Hudson enhanced the sentence by five years because Flores discharged a firearm during the commission of that crime. The sentence for aggravated assault will run consecutive to the one for first-degree murder. District Attorney Dianna Luce said Flores, who has been in pre-trial detention since August 2022, has two years and 58 days of credit for time served. Following a five-day trial in June, a jury convicted Flores in July on charges related to a shooting on July 24, 2022, at his ex-girlfriend's 1400 block of East Tilden Street residence, in which 15-year-old Damyn Rodriguez died from a gunshot wound, and three other people were injured. A criminal complaint filed in the case said the shooting happened shortly before 2:30 a.m. when Flores' ex-girlfriend and another woman brought Rodriguez and two other teenage boys back to the house. While they were inside, a vehicle pulled up outside the house with its lights on before a man wearing all black and a mask entered the residence and fired six shots. In addition to Rodriguez, two other teenagers and one of the women at the scene was wounded by the gunfire. Flores was found six days later by U.S. Marshals in Glendale, Arizona. Prosecutors claimed Flores carried out the shooting because he was angry that his ex-girlfriend had brought boys back to her house. The defense argued at trial that the case against Flores was based on indirect evidence, and that he was not at the house the night of the shooting. Gary Mitchell, Flores' attorney, confirmed that he will file an appeal in the case with the New Mexico Supreme Court. Four members of Rodriguez's family gave statements, telling the court how Rodriguez's death upended their lives. “There are no words that can express the amount of devastation this person has done to our family,” Diana Toldeo, Rodriguez's aunt, said of Flores as she stood before the court. She described her nephew as someone who was smart, athletic and had boundless potential. “The heartache and trauma we feel each day is never ending,” she added. Toldeo said that during the two years since the shooting, Flores has never expressed remorse for his actions. Shawna Sandoval, Rodriguez's mother, told the court that her son's violent death has had a continued catastrophic impact on her life. “I miss Damyn more than words can express,” she stated. When she stood before the court, Sandoval repeatedly referred to Flores' actions as cowardly, and said that he "has taken a piece of my life, my heart, my soul off this earth.” Michael Sandoval, Rodriguez's grandfather, noted that according to police Flores had never met his grandson before shooting him to death. “Judge, because of this person, my grandson is dead and is at the cemetery forever,” Michael Sandoval said of Flores. He added that it would be unfair for Hudson to impose anything less than a life sentence. Neither Flores nor any of his family members chose to address the court. Mitchell noted that under New Mexico law, Hudson can not impose anything other than a life sentence for the crime of first-degree murder. However, he did ask the court to suspend at least part of the sentence for the aggravated assault charge and allow it to run concurrently with the sentence for murder. Electronic court records indicate that Flores is also awaiting trial on one count of battery upon a peace officer for allegedly punching an officer at the Chaves County Detention Center on Sept. 4, 2023. A trial in that case is scheduled for Nov. 13. Notifications can be managed in browser preferences. A motive for the killing has not been released I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Nearly 20 years after two Marine brothers were shot to death police say their suspect killer has been apprehended This week, police in Cicero, Illinois with two counts of first-degree murder in connection to the deaths of 22-year-old John Fields and his 19-year-old brother Authorities found the two men both shot on 50th Court in Cicero "John Fields had recently completed his service with the United States Marine Corps, while Michael Fields, who had followed in his brother's footsteps, was actively serving in the Marines, and was home on furlough after completing a tour of duty in Japan," Cicero Police Supt. Thomas Boyle said, according to CBS News However, the investigation went cold for years The suspect identified Flores as a suspect in the killings, according to WGN. A motive for the killing has not been released. In March 2016, an arrest warrant was issued for Flores. But it wasn't until 2023 when Flores was apprehended in Mexico. Flores fought extradition to the U.S., but was returned to Illinois on April 9 to face the charges. "I want to express my gratitude to the dedicated detectives and everyone else involved in this case who never gave up," Boyle said. Daniel Flores, 49, has been charged with murder nearly two decades after the killing of Marine brothers John (top right) and Michel (bottom right) Fields govt and politics/armed forces/marines"},{"score":0.733834,"label":"/law govt and politics/law enforcement"},{"score":0.627099,"label":"/society/crime/personal offense/kidnapping"},{"score":0.581535,"label":"/society/crime/personal offense/assault"},{"score":0.572324,"label":"/society/crime/property crime/robbery"},{"score":0.562103,"label":"/law So how do we approach that dialogue as Catholics And what are some of the tools from our faith tradition that we can use in overcoming polarization This episode of “The Gloria Purvis Podcast” features a panel discussion between Cardinal Robert McElroy of San Diego The conversation includes reflections on their roles as shepherds and leaders in their dioceses and in the U.S and on important topics such as the Synod on Synodality a spirit of encounter and where to find hope amid polarization This conversation originally aired as a virtual event co-sponsored by the U.S Glenmary Home Missioners and the Jesuit Conference initiative in response to Pope Francis’ invitation to a better kind of politics in which Catholics are called to seek the truth build bridges and find solutions for the common good together Please consider supporting this podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Media at www.americamagazine.com/subscribe The Gloria Purvis Podcast is a podcast from America Media hosted by radio personality and Catholic commentator Gloria Purvis stories and experiences of individuals who have been marginalized in the Catholic Church and in society Password reset instructions will be sent to your registered email address As a frequent reader of our website, you know how important America’s voice is in the conversation about the church and the world. We can't do it without you—America Media relies on generous support from our readers. Please visit our membership page to learn how you can invest in our work by subscribing to the magazine or making a donation If you’re already a subscriber or donor, thank you! If you login and register your print subscription number with your account, you’ll have unlimited access to the website. Please contact us at members@americamedia.org with any questions Update Saturday at 12:37 P.M.: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Missing Person Unit is advising Missing Person Daniel Ramos-Flores has been located.Thank you to the public and deputy personnel for their tireless efforts in the search for Daniel.March 14 2025 – Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department officials report that the Missing Persons Detail is asking for the public’s help locating At-Risk Missing Person in the area of 166th Street and Pioneer Boulevard in the city of Artesia Ramos-Flores is described as a 49-year-old Hispanic male adult He was last seen wearing a navy blue and white striped collared shirt Ramos-Flores' family is concerned for his well-being and are asking for the public’s help in locating him Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department If you prefer to provide information anonymously, you may call "Crime Stoppers" by dialing (800) 222-TIPS (8477), use your smartphone by downloading the “P3 Tips” Mobile APP on Google play or the Apple App Store or by using the website https://lacrimestoppers.org Source: Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department The Bishop of the Diocese of Brownsville joined the Archbishop of San Antonio in calling for immigration reform Bishop Daniel Flores was also joined by more than a dozen Catholic bishops from dioceses along the border to push for migrant support Their statement was made during the Bi-annual Tex-Mex bishops meeting "For decades we have expressed our concern that the United States which does not correspond to the President reality We hope and strongly urge our political leaders to fulfill their duty to reform it," the bishops said in their statement The pope also took a similar stance on immigration earlier this month This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription Your current subscription does not provide access to this content Please use the button below to manage your account or sign up for a new account to continue reading We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content no promotional deals were found matching that code A five-day murder trial has begun in the case of a man who allegedly shot to death a teenager in 2022 during a party the prosecution and defense presented their opening arguments to a jury in the trial of Daniel Flores Flores is charged with one count each of first-degree murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon Prosecutors allege that Flores shot to death 15-year-old Damyn Rodriguez and left two other teenagers seriously wounded when he allegedly opened fire on a crowd at the house of his ex-girlfriend in the 1400 block of East Tilden Street at about 2:30 a.m Flores is alleged to have fled the scene but was located and arrested six days later by U.S Marshals at the house of his mother in Glendale He has been in pre-trial detention since his capture Electronic court records indicate that the 5th Judicial District Attorney Dianna Luce and Assistant District Attorney Timothy Wyatt could call as many as 47 witnesses to the stand forensic experts and people who were in the apartment when Flores reportedly opened fire In his opening statement on behalf of the prosecution Wyatt portrayed the shooting as the action of a jealous and overly possessive ex-boyfriend who was angry that his former girlfriend and another woman had brought three men back to her house with her that night He noted that Flores and the woman who lived at the house had ended their years-long relationship just before the shooting Wyatt alleged that Flores had previously threatened the ex-girlfriend on several occasions especially if she brought men over to her house The ex-girlfriend and another woman had brought Rodriguez and two other teenage men to the Tilden Street house shortly before the shooting Wyatt said that the five people at the residence were consuming alcohol and smoking cannabis when a man dressed in black “Immediately upon stepping onto the property Rodriguez was reportedly shot in the neck while in the kitchen and was dead when police arrived The two other men who were in the apartment were both struck by gunfire and began pounding on the doors of neighbors to try to get them to contact police One of the wounded men was shot four times and the other once Investigators say that Flores left the house on foot before police arrived Wyatt said that the absence of shell casings at the scene of the crime and the number of shots fired led investigators to believe that a revolver was used in the shooting Other items later recovered by investigators included a cigarette butt with Flores’ DNA on it a cellphone that was in Flores’ name found in a nearby alley and a Ford F-150 pickup truck registered to Flores’ grandfather parked in front of the house where the shooting happened Investigators believe that Flores left the scene of the shooting on foot Flores’ former girlfriend later told police that the truck had not been in front of the house when she and her guests had returned to her residence before the shooting happened Wyatt said they found mail addressed to the residence where Flores lives Wyatt told jurors they would see surveillance video from intersections near the Tilden Street house which shows a green pickup driving around the area between 1 a.m you will see the defendant’s truck circling the neighborhood,” he said Prosecutors admitted that they were never able to find the gun used in the shooting and only the shooter knows what happened to it,” Wyatt said “Let us begin with this fact: not a single witness is going to identify Daniel (Flores) as the shooter in the early hours of July 24 2022,” Mitchell said to the jury in his opening statement None of the surviving victims or anyone else in the house Mitchell dismissed the importance of the cigarette butt found noting that Flores had lived at the residence until recently before the shooting He noted that no other DNA or fingerprints from Flores were found Mitchell said that Flores’ grandfather and mother allowed him to use it but that Flores did not have a driver’s license Numerous people also confirmed to police that he did not know how to drive it Mitchell alleged that text message conversations would confirm that Flores’ ex-girlfriend often drove it when they were together Mitchell said that Flores’ ex-girlfriend did not have access to another vehicle He referenced a text message conversation where Flores’ ex-girlfriend talked about picking someone up and needing to get gas “The only vehicle she had to put gas in was the F-150 because that is the only vehicle they had,” Mitchell said On the security camera footage at intersections Mitchell claimed that no one could identify who was in the vehicle Mitchell claims that Flores was at the house of his sister He also said that Flores did not flee to Arizona because of a homicide but that he had been planning before the shooting so that he could find work and possibly attend trade school Email notifications are only sent once a day Box Butte County’s Only Family-Owned Newspaper Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol have arrested one individual following a fatal crash in Morrill County troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol received a report of a crash on Highway 385 near mile marker 93 A preliminary investigation shows that a 2020 Chevrolet Express delivery van was traveling southbound on Highway 385 when it failed to slow down for a stopped southbound Ford F-150 that was waiting for cattle to cross the road The delivery van attempted to switch lanes to avoid the vehicle however the driver struck the stopped vehicle Following a transfer from Knoxville Catholic to Daniel Boone midseason a year ago Andrea Flores' name has emerged in the local basketball circles since Upon a commitment to Boston College in September before her junior season tipped-off And once the calendar flipped to late December Flores has put on a show - putting up monster numbers and unlocking her talent to help lead the Trail Blazers to some big wins at the turn of the new year in a dominating win over Volunteer - this off the heels of leading the Blazers to a win over rival David Crockett on Friday night All of this earning Flores the next News 5 Player of the Week honors IL — A 24-year-old Cary man has been found guilty of inappropriately touching a teenage co-worker at Bear Paddle Swim School Daniel Flores was convicted on charges of aggravated battery unlawful restraint and battery during a bench trial in McHenry County according to a news release from the McHenry County State's Attorney's Office Flores was charged in October 2021 after the Lake in the Hills Police Department received a call from the Bear Paddle Swim School regarding an employee Bear Paddle employees told police Flores had been inappropriately touching another employee Police learned the girl had been assigned to shadow Flores as part of her training to become a swim instructor he touched her multiple times in the pool and in the men’s and women’s bathrooms Two separate employees observed the interactions between Flores and the girl with one employee observing the touching occur in the bathroom Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. 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Tap to enable a layout that focuses on the article About 12 people attended the “Know Your Rights Ride Out” event Feb organized by 33-year-old Boyle Heights resident Daniel Flores Resendiz An unregistered vehicle ran into four bicyclists on the 600 block of South Lorena Street around 7:45 p.m., a LAPD spokesperson told the Boyle Heights Beat Surveillance video shows the car slowing down and knocking over the bikers but we all had lights on and were riding in the right lane and we are legally allowed to ride and take the full lane,” Resendiz said “I was the only one trying to stop the vehicle and had thrown my bike under it and she had run it over and that gave us enough time for the folks in the back to grab the plates.” Three women were struck by the car and one man, Irvin Flores, was sent to the hospital with head lacerations, Resendiz said. One of the victims, Nancy Lopez, told Fox 11 that her impact broke off one of the driver’s rear mirrors and caused a dent on the car. The car is believed to be a 2016 Kia sedan with the plate number 8GAN606, police said. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department told The Times this week that no update is available for this incident. Anyone with information about the vehicle or the driver can call the LAPD at (877) 527-3247. Jasmine “Jaz” Mendez is an editorial assistant at the Los Angeles Times. She previously was a reporting intern for the Metro Desk, covering housing in Los Angeles. Mendez graduated from Cal State Northridge with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a minor in Spanish-language journalism. California Subscribe for unlimited accessSite Map nearly a third of America’s archdioceses will be led by an ordinary awaiting retirement — and  three more metropolitan archbishops are due to turn 75 within a year’s time and elsewhere wait to hear who will next lead them speculation about bishops likely to be promoted has become a frequent topic of conversation But with massive turnover among the metropolitans in the offing who are some of the American bishops most likely to see themselves receiving an archbishop’s pallium The Pillar looks at five men possibly on the move Flores, 62, has led the diocese of Brownsville, Texas, for nearly 15 years, having been before that an auxiliary bishop of Detroit, and a priest of Corpus Christi. With a theology doctorate from the Angelicum and a reputation as a Thomist, Flores has been a diocesan chancellor, and a seminary professor. At the same time, Flores has been a visible part of the Church’s Eucharistic Revival initiative, serving as a board member of the nonprofit overseeing the Eucharistic Congress, and helping to launch from his diocese one route of the Eucharistic pilgrimages traversing the country this summer Because of the wide scope of his involvement in ecclesiastical affairs and the widely-perceived independence of his thinking the bishop has been frequently discussed as a likely candidate for a metropolitan see Flores is a strong candidate for eventual appointment to the Archdiocese of Houston-Galveston where Cardinal Daniel DiNardo turned 75 last month and has suffered some health problems since his 2019 stroke where Archbishop Allen Vigneron is already 75 and where Flores spent three years as an auxiliary Ordained a priest of the Dallas diocese in 1980 Seitz was a professor at the University of Dallas worked in seminary formation and as a pastor and eventually became a Dallas auxiliary before heading to old El Paso especially as he aims to defend the Church’s humanitarian assistance for migrants and refugees — including those who cross the border illegally In the summer of 2020, Seitz drew attention for joining in El Paso protests against racism, discrimination, and police brutality, especially when a photograph circulated of the bishop kneeling while holding a sign reading “Black Lives Matter.” Bishop Mark Seitz prays at El Paso’s Memorial Park, June 1, 2020. Credit: Diocese of El Paso.Seitz has also long been outspoken about the Catholic call to be “unambiguously pro-life, in support of the life of the unborn and every human being,” and has said that he has “knelt in prayer before abortion clinics regularly throughout my life.” The El Paso diocese is a relatively large one, with nearly 700,000 Catholics, and Seitz has been several times praised by Pope Francis. In a recent CBS News interview, the pontiff described Seitz as a “great bishop,” while noting his work with migrants on the border. With that kind of papal attention, Seitz remains for many observers in the conversation for a metropolitan see, even while he has only five years before he will need to submit a letter of resignation to Pope Francis. The 55-year-old bishop of Jefferson City, Missouri, has led a diocese of fewer than 100,000 Catholics since he was consecrated a bishop in 2018, at the relatively young age of 49. Bishop Shawn McKnight. Credit: Diocese of Jefferson City.A priest of the Wichita diocese, McKnight is formerly director of the USCCB’s Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, and was a candidate to become USCCB general secretary in 2016.  While he was not elected by the U.S. bishops to that position, McKnight became a bishop less than two years later, and has generally been regarded as being close in recent years to an American bishop at the Vatican’s Dicastery for Bishops — Cardinal Blase Cupich, who was rector of the Josephinum while McKnight was a seminarian there. McKnight, who has done scholarly work on the permanent diaconate, has also in recent years advocated for a U.S. implementation of the pope’s plan to create a more stable office for catechists, and has been characterized as a “bridge-builder” by National Catholic Reporter columnist Michael Sean Winters.  McKnight was defeated in a USCCB election last year to chair the national collections committee, but is mentioned often as a likely candidate for promotion to a bigger see, given his connections and frequent outspokenness at the bishops’ conference. The oldest serving diocesan bishop in the United States right now is Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, who will turn 80 years old at the end of June, on the feast of St. Peter and Paul. In Boston, and farther afield, there has been rampant speculation about who might replace O’Malley, in one of the most historically significant sees in American Catholicism — a diocese which is especially regarded by many Romans as particularly important in the landscape of the U.S. Church. Among the most high profile names mentioned is Cardinal Robert McElroy, whom many Vatican-watchers have suggested will be eventually transferred from his San Diego diocese to a metropolitan see.  And while McElroy reportedly distanced himself from talk about Boston, Vatican sources have confirmed to The Pillar that Cardinals Blase Cupich and Donald Wuerl have both lobbied Pope Francis for McElroy make a move to Beantown — but it’s not yet clear that the Holy Father is actually inclined towards that move. And while McElroy gets the press, some sources in Boston say the smart bet — albeit less flashy — could be on Bishop O’Connell, who has been a Boston auxiliary since 2016, and has been O’Malley vicar general and moderator of the curia since January 2023. Bishop Mark O’Connell. Credit: Archdiocese of Boston. Unassuming, but quite capable, the bishop is a canon lawyer with both seminary and diocesan administration experience, as well as time served as a parish pastor. O’Connell is said to be well liked and respected by many in Boston’s presbyterate, and by O’Malley personally. Whether he becomes Boston’s next archbishop — and whether Boston’s archbishop will continue becoming cardinals — remains to be seen.   But O’Connell, 59, is the sort of auxiliary who is likely to see some kind of move in the years to come — especially if he has O’Malley urging that he be given more responsibility. Archbishop Thompson, 63, is an accountant with a canon law degree, pastoral experience, and 13 years experience as a diocesan bishop.  Thompson is not the bishop organizing National Eucharistic Congress, but as host, he’s worked on the organizing committee, and worked to get his own diocese prepared to roll out the welcome mat. Those efforts are likely to be appreciated both by apostolic nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre, and by Thompson’s fellow bishops, who in 2022 elected the archbishop to chair the USCCB’s evangelization and catechesis committee. A moderate when it comes to conference politics, Thompson has navigated complicated issues, seeing a religious liberty fight, with a heavy dose of Vatican involvement, come to his front door after he directed in 2017 three Catholic high schools not to renew the contracts of teachers who had entered same-sex marriages. One of those schools, Brebeuf Jesuit, appealed his decision, in a public dispute which has not yet been officially resolved.  But through all of that, Thompson has seemed to navigate a careful tightrope, without attracting the kind of profile which might put him out of favor in Rome, while holding the line in his diocese in key issues. That skill set could be seen as an asset in the archdioceses where cardinals are now awaiting retirement. He may not be everyone's cup of tea (politically) but I have mad respect for him. ReplyShare1 reply54 more comments...LatestNo posts When Archbishop George Lucas of Omaha turns 75 on Wednesday, he will be one of 10 U.S. metropolitan archbishops serving past the formal retirement age for diocesan bishops. nearly a third of America\u2019s archdioceses will be led by an ordinary awaiting retirement \u2014 and  three more metropolitan archbishops are due to turn 75 within a year\u2019s time speculation about bishops likely to be promoted has become a frequent topic of conversation.  who are some of the American bishops most likely to see themselves receiving an archbishop\u2019s pallium?  Flores, 62, has led the diocese of Brownsville, Texas, for nearly 15 years, having been before that an auxiliary bishop of Detroit, and a priest of Corpus Christi. With a theology doctorate from the Angelicum and a reputation as a Thomist, Flores has been a diocesan chancellor, and a seminary professor. At the same time, Flores has been a visible part of the Church\u2019s Eucharistic Revival initiative, serving as a board member of the nonprofit overseeing the Eucharistic Congress, and helping to launch from his diocese one route of the Eucharistic pilgrimages traversing the country this summer the bishop has been frequently discussed as a likely candidate for a metropolitan see.  and has suffered some health problems since his 2019 stroke.  especially as he aims to defend the Church\u2019s humanitarian assistance for migrants and refugees \u2014 including those who cross the border illegally In the summer of 2020, Seitz drew attention for joining in El Paso protests against racism, discrimination, and police brutality, especially when a photograph circulated of the bishop kneeling while holding a sign reading \u201CBlack Lives Matter.\u201D Bishop Mark Seitz prays at El Paso\u2019s Memorial Park, June 1, 2020. Credit: Diocese of El Paso.Seitz has also long been outspoken about the Catholic call to be \u201Cunambiguously pro-life, in support of the life of the unborn and every human being,\u201D and has said that he has \u201Cknelt in prayer before abortion clinics regularly throughout my life.\u201D The El Paso diocese is a relatively large one, with nearly 700,000 Catholics, and Seitz has been several times praised by Pope Francis. In a recent CBS News interview, the pontiff described Seitz as a \u201Cgreat bishop,\u201D while noting his work with migrants on the border. Bishop Shawn McKnight. Credit: Diocese of Jefferson City.A priest of the Wichita diocese, McKnight is formerly director of the USCCB\u2019s Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, and was a candidate to become USCCB general secretary in 2016.  While he was not elected by the U.S. bishops to that position, McKnight became a bishop less than two years later, and has generally been regarded as being close in recent years to an American bishop at the Vatican\u2019s Dicastery for Bishops \u2014 Cardinal Blase Cupich, who was rector of the Josephinum while McKnight was a seminarian there. McKnight, who has done scholarly work on the permanent diaconate, has also in recent years advocated for a U.S. implementation of the pope\u2019s plan to create a more stable office for catechists, and has been characterized as a \u201Cbridge-builder\u201D by National Catholic Reporter columnist Michael Sean Winters.  McKnight was defeated in a USCCB election last year to chair the national collections committee, but is mentioned often as a likely candidate for promotion to a bigger see, given his connections and frequent outspokenness at the bishops\u2019 conference. The oldest serving diocesan bishop in the United States right now is Cardinal Sean O\u2019Malley of Boston, who will turn 80 years old at the end of June, on the feast of St. Peter and Paul. In Boston, and farther afield, there has been rampant speculation about who might replace O\u2019Malley, in one of the most historically significant sees in American Catholicism \u2014 a diocese which is especially regarded by many Romans as particularly important in the landscape of the U.S. Church. Among the most high profile names mentioned is Cardinal Robert McElroy, whom many Vatican-watchers have suggested will be eventually transferred from his San Diego diocese to a metropolitan see.  And while McElroy reportedly distanced himself from talk about Boston, Vatican sources have confirmed to The Pillar that Cardinals Blase Cupich and Donald Wuerl have both lobbied Pope Francis for McElroy make a move to Beantown \u2014 but it\u2019s not yet clear that the Holy Father is actually inclined towards that move. And while McElroy gets the press, some sources in Boston say the smart bet \u2014 albeit less flashy \u2014 could be on Bishop O\u2019Connell, who has been a Boston auxiliary since 2016, and has been O\u2019Malley vicar general and moderator of the curia since January 2023. Bishop Mark O\u2019Connell. Credit: Archdiocese of Boston. Unassuming, but quite capable, the bishop is a canon lawyer with both seminary and diocesan administration experience, as well as time served as a parish pastor. O\u2019Connell is said to be well liked and respected by many in Boston\u2019s presbyterate, and by O\u2019Malley personally. Whether he becomes Boston\u2019s next archbishop \u2014 and whether Boston\u2019s archbishop will continue becoming cardinals \u2014 remains to be seen.   But O\u2019Connell, 59, is the sort of auxiliary who is likely to see some kind of move in the years to come \u2014 especially if he has O\u2019Malley urging that he be given more responsibility. Archbishop Thompson, 63, is an accountant with a canon law degree, pastoral experience, and 13 years experience as a diocesan bishop.  Thompson is not the bishop organizing National Eucharistic Congress he\u2019s worked on the organizing committee and worked to get his own diocese prepared to roll out the welcome mat Those efforts are likely to be appreciated both by apostolic nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre who in 2022 elected the archbishop to chair the USCCB\u2019s evangelization and catechesis committee A moderate when it comes to conference politics come to his front door after he directed in 2017 three Catholic high schools not to renew the contracts of teachers who had entered same-sex marriages in a public dispute which has not yet been officially resolved.  Thompson has seemed to navigate a careful tightrope without attracting the kind of profile which might put him out of favor in Rome while holding the line in his diocese in key issues That skill set could be seen as an asset in the archdioceses where cardinals are now awaiting retirement Subscribe now The increasing reliance on technology within higher education necessitates a thorough examination of artificial intelligence’s (AI) application in academic research. This analysis aims to elucidate both the advantages and challenges associated with AI utilization, thereby paving the way for future inquiries. Such studies will be instrumental in delineating strategies for the effective integration of AI tools in scholarly research, ensuring their optimal use in advancing the field. The purpose of this research is to identify the benefits and challenges of the use of AI in the field of scientific research by analyzing experiences that have implemented AI in scientific research carried out at the university level through a systematic literature review. The analysis allowed findings such as the usefulness of ChatGPT in different disciplinary areas, challenges such as being able to identify artificial intelligence resources limitations and benefits such as being able to make processes of different kinds more efficient. It was possible to establish that although the studies analyzed identified advantages in the application of AI in scientific research, it was also detected that it is necessary to have a critical and creative look to make use of AI resources, such as ChatGPT, in order to use them only as support tools and thus be able to take care of the rigor and quality in the elaboration of scientific texts. Volume 9 - 2024 | https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1391485 Introduction: The increasing reliance on technology within higher education necessitates a thorough examination of artificial intelligence’s (AI) application in academic research This analysis aims to elucidate both the advantages and challenges associated with AI utilization thereby paving the way for future inquiries Such studies will be instrumental in delineating strategies for the effective integration of AI tools in scholarly research ensuring their optimal use in advancing the field Objective: The purpose of this research is to identify the benefits and challenges of the use of AI in the field of scientific research by analyzing experiences that have implemented AI in scientific research carried out at the university level through a systematic literature review Method: The research questions that guided the systematic literature review were as follows: (1) What are the benefits of using AI in research (2) What are the challenges of using AI in research (3) What are the use and benefits of AI in scientific writing including limitations (4) What are the main lines of research identified in studies that address scientific practice with artificial intelligence in the university context The articles analyzed were published in 2023 After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria Results: The analysis allowed findings such as the usefulness of ChatGPT in different disciplinary areas challenges such as being able to identify artificial intelligence resources limitations and benefits such as being able to make processes of different kinds more efficient Discussion: It was possible to establish that although the studies analyzed identified advantages in the application of AI in scientific research it was also detected that it is necessary to have a critical and creative look to make use of AI resources in order to use them only as support tools and thus be able to take care of the rigor and quality in the elaboration of scientific texts This paper explores the impact of AI on scientific research in higher education through a systematic literature review of databases such as Scopus and Web of Science These platforms were selected for their rigorous peer review processes ensuring the quality of the information analyzed The study not only outlines emerging research trajectories but also discusses the benefits and challenges associated with AI with a particular focus on ethical considerations the paper reviews the identified advantages of using this technology at different stages of the research process who underline the imperative need to monitor the processes where AI is employed this study begins with a comprehensive literature review with the aim of identifying nascent research trajectories or emerging clusters around this topic and elucidating the advantages of integrating AI within research methodologies it scrutinizes the challenges previously identified in this area it lays the groundwork for uncovering knowledge gaps and research problems that demand attention in future research efforts The importance of this study lies in its contribution to the ongoing dialogue on the role of AI in the scientific research landscape The structure of this study is developed as follows: the introduction outlines the context and objectives of the research establishing a basis for understanding its significance within the educational field of scientific research in the AI era the methodology section details the process of generating the search equation and describes the inclusion and exclusion criteria The subsequent segment presents the findings in response to the research questions: What are the main research trajectories identified in studies investigating the application of artificial intelligence in the context of scientific practice at the university level; what discoveries have been made; what advantages does the use of AI offer within the field of academic research; and what challenges are encountered when employing AI in academic research what challenges are encountered when employing AI in this field leading to the articulation of conclusions and the original contributions of the study on the role of AI in scientific research in higher education settings This approach not only contextualizes the study within the broader academic dialogue but also highlights its potential to inform future research The research method followed was a systematic literature review (SLR), based on the method proposed by Kitchenham and Charters (2007) This method involves specifying the research question in a protocol before starting the review systematic reviews adhere to rigorous standards encompassing the formulation of search strategies They frequently include several researchers to guarantee impartiality and reliability Systematic reviews are appreciated for offering dependable evidence to aid in decision-making across different sectors Four specific questions were established to conduct the systematic literature review (Figure 1) The process outlined by the PRISMA statement for conducting a systematic literature review entails the following phases: PRISMA declaration for the process of searching and filtering The general research question was: What are the experiences based on artificial intelligence used in the practice of scientific research carried out in the university context Four specific questions were established to conduct the systematic literature review: RQ1-What are the benefits of using AI in research? RQ2-What are the challenges of using AI in research? RQ3-What are the use and benefits of AI in scientific writing including limitations? and RQ4-What are the main lines of research identified in studies that address scientific practice with artificial intelligence in the university context From the 256 articles that emerged from the search process conducted for the previous LMS (CITA) in the Web of Science (97) and Scopus (159) databases it was decided to use the following filters for the selection of the articles to be handled in the systematic literature review in both databases: artificial intelligence The inclusion and exclusion criteria must capture and incorporate the questions that the SLR seeks to answer and the criteria must also be practical to apply The following inclusion criteria were considered: (a) Studies on the use of AI or ChatGPT in tasks related to scientific research in higher education in the WoS and Scopus databases (b) Articles published in the period 2020 to 2024 (c) Is the research carried out in educational institutions (HEIs) The following exclusion criteria were considered: (a) Studies that are not related to the use of AI in tasks related to scientific research (b) Documents that come from book chapters or in the press and that consist of reports (c) Articles where artificial intelligence is treated as an object of study and not as a resource for scientific research In conducting a systematic literature review, crucial elements of quality standards involve evaluating the pertinence, dependability, validity, and utility of the studies considered (Coeytaux et al., 2014) Tools for assessing quality are employed to appraise the methodological integrity of various research designs These instruments facilitate the rating of each paper according to particular benchmarks Selecting an appropriate quality assessment tool that aligns with the anticipated study types in the review is vital for an exhaustive assessment there were 85 articles left to be analyzed in the SLR The criteria used in the quality assessment of Systematic Literature Review was the following: Is a focused research question clearly stated Are the search methods used to identify relevant studies clearly described Was a comprehensive literature search performed Was there duplicate study selection and data extraction Were the characteristics of the included studies provided Was the scientific quality of the included studies assessed and documented Were the methods used to combine the findings of studies appropriate Was the scientific quality of the included studies used appropriately in formulating conclusions Are the stated conclusions supported by the data presented In this study we focused on four research questions RQ1-What are the benefits of using AI in research?; RQ2-What are the challenges of using AI in research?; RQ3-What are the use and benefits of AI in scientific writing including limitations?; and finally RQ4-What are the main lines of research identified in studies that address scientific practice with artificial intelligence in the university context In total 35 scientific articles from Scopus database and 50 empirical articles from Web of Science (WoS) have been taken for the purpose of analysis in this study The articles represent a broad variety of disciplines In all these articles the common factor was AI with different uses Regarding RQ1-What are the benefits of using AI in research? The analysis (see Figure 2) shows that 26 articles refer to time saving as the most common advantage of AI in the disciplines consulted followed by 16 articles that link the benefits to strategies for teaching and learning 12 articles mentioned academic achievement as the main gain while 7 indicated larger productivity as an important benefit Overview findings of the benefits of using AI in research Potential for research on new technologies, to streamline tourism processes, benefits in financial research, transformation, to foster academic productivity, content development and automatic monitoring are the least mentioned benefits when it comes to using AI in research. In terms of analyzing the challenges of using AI in research (RQ2) (see Figure 3) the most common challenge (N = 21) is the need to address ethics and the lack of transparency when using AI awareness of possible risks and limitations of the use of these technologies is mentioned N = 18 times as it is relevant to draw attention to AI possibilities as a not fully known tool in research providing valuable information has been found 11 times in the articles consulted Valuable information in the context of these articles is mainly addressed in the context of health care to help make decisions as an instance Advantages in idea generation and possibilities for further research have been both mentioned 9 times Advantages in idea generation are mainly included in articles related to education research in writing and alike; while possibilities for further research refers to a broader range of disciplines decrease workload and facilitates research and objectivity and repeatability in research processes Overview of the challenges of using AI in research With regards to the RQ3-What are the use and benefits of AI in scientific writing and limitations? The study shows (see Figure 4) that 22 articles refer to the limitations address the challenges and the need for human supervision the same number as Impact and challenges of Generative AI in Scientific Communication; followed by the Use and benefits of AI in scientific writing (N = 20) together with Ethical considerations (N = 16) In a lower number of mentions in the scientific articles investigated AI content detection; and impact of stress and mental health on students Overview of uses and benefits of AI in scientific writing and limitations Finally, regarding RQ4-What are the findings of the categories of research articles? In this study it is also attention paid to the different research lines (see Figure 5) Some of the disciplines and research lines are Specific AI applications in disciplines and thematic areas (N = 18); education and personalized support through AI (N = 9); Ethics impact and normative considerations of AI (N = 7) In small numbers the following themes are found Research and scientific publications with AI Evaluation and validation of content generated by AI; and Tools and applications in research and scientific education There are also N = 40 articles that do not mention a research line Overview of the categories of research lines not only in enhancing academic productivity but also in addressing the challenge of plagiarism in academic assignments The use of artificial intelligence must bring with it a responsible attitude to be clear that it must be used as a support and not to replace human work The writing of scientific articles has benefited from AI, but strategies must be put in place to avoid fraud. In relation to RQ3-What are the use and benefits of AI in scientific writing and limitations? What is most mentioned is the need for human supervision. The study by Ariyaratne et al. (2023) establishes a comparison between articles produced by humans and articles produced by AI The authors reflect on the need to validate or oversee the processes where AI is employed because AI can be very persuasive in its presentation but can convey false information that affects the content and accuracy of citations Human supervision is still necessary to be able to establish with a critical eye and a thorough analysis when items have been produced with artificial intelligence in their entirety and therefore that have delved into the challenges of ensuring data integrity in AI-driven research Adapting to technological evolution is important as it can be a great support to help us reduce time and thus make the performance of various activities more efficient but the responsible use of technology must be present to avoid committing ethical faults Another limitation of this study is that the methods used to investigate the use and challenges of AI are mainly qualitative methods This may respond to the fact that AI is a relatively new tool which is still used to conduct experiments the data contained in the articles included in this study are in an incipient phase of experimentation Studying AI with quantitative methods to prove effectiveness takes longer periods of time reports the benefits of the use of AI in various disciplinary areas The study reveals interesting insights of recent experiments with AI that shed light on the use and challenges in different fields It also identifies challenges such as avoiding plagiarism as well as the great support it can be to streamline scientific writing but also the great responsibility to continue with careful monitoring to prevent fraud a basis for further research on the integration of AI in the scientific and academic ecosystem and in multiple areas This study acknowledges the possibility of using artificial intelligence in academic writing and other research areas but unanimously points out the need for human supervision in these tasks Despite the interesting results provided in this study there is a need to conduct experimental quantitative research to understand deeper the use and benefits of AI The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research The authors wish to acknowledge the financial and technical support of WritingLab The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher A comparison of ChatGPT-generated articles with human-written articles Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar From human writing to artificial intelligence generated text: examining the prospects and potential threats of ChatGPT in academic writing Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Comparing scientific abstracts generated by ChatGPT to real abstracts with detectors and blinded human reviewers Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar PubMed Abstract | Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Systematic review of literature with different types of designs Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar The PRISMA 2020 statement: an updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar Gómez-Puente SM and Vite-León VO (2024) AI in higher education: a systematic literature review Received: 25 February 2024; Accepted: 07 June 2024; Published: 27 August 2024 Copyright © 2024 Castillo-Martínez, Flores-Bueno, Gómez-Puente and Vite-León. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited in accordance with accepted academic practice distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms *Correspondence: Isolda Margarita Castillo-Martínez, aXNvbGRhbWNtQGhvdG1haWwuY29t Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish A USCCB virtual event streaming live Tuesday Robert W McElroy was born in San Francisco on February 5 Bishop McElroy lived until he was ten years old in Daly City attending Our Lady Of Mercy Elementary School where he and his three sisters and brother attended and graduated from Our Lady Of Angels School During these years Bishop McElroy felt called to the Catholic priesthood and thus after eighth grade he entered Saint Joseph High School in Mountain View which was the high school seminary of the Archdiocese of San Francisco Bishop McElroy was still committed to seeking a life in the priesthood but concluded that it would be best to pursue his vocation in a college outside the seminary system in 1972 he entered Harvard College and graduated three years later with a degree in American history Bishop McElroy attended graduate school at Stanford and in 1976 received a master’s degree in American history Reentering the seminary in the Fall of 1976 Bishop McElroy attended Saint Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park California and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese on April 12 His first assignment was Saint Cecilia Parish in San Francisco which was the parish where both of his parents had grown up and attended grammar school In 1982 Bishop McElroy became the secretary to San Francisco Archbishop John Quinn who himself was a former auxiliary bishop of San Diego Archbishop Quinn asked Father McElroy to undertake graduate studies in the field of Catholic Social Teaching and thus Bishop McElroy obtained a licentiate in theology from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley a doctorate in moral theology from the Gregorian University in Rome and a doctorate in political science from Stanford in 1989 serving as a parochial vicar at Saint Pius Parish in Redwood City In 1995 Archbishop Quinn appointed Bishop McElroy vicar general of the Archdiocese a post he continued to hold under Cardinal William Levada In 1996 Bishop McElroy was made a prelate of honor by Saint John Paul II and appointed Pastor of Saint Gregory Parish in San Mateo by Cardinal Levada Bishop McElroy had the immense happiness of serving in this same parish for more than fifteen years Bishop McElroy was appointed auxiliary bishop of San Francisco by Pope Benedict XVI on July 6 and was ordained by Archbishop George Niederauer at Saint Mary’s Cathedral on September 7 He became the Archdiocesan Vicar for Parish Life and Development and has served in that role until his appointment to be the next Bishop of San Diego Bishop McElroy has written two books: The Search for an American Public Theology and Morality and American Foreign Policy he has written a series of articles in America magazine touching upon key elements of Catholic social teaching Pope Francis appointed Bishop McElroy to the College of Cardinals on May 29 Cardinal-Designate McElroy was installed in a consistory on Aug He is a member of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Laity Bishop Barron was ordained a priest in 1986 in the Archdiocese of Chicago and appointed to the theological faculty of Mundelein Seminary in 1992 He has served as a visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame and the Pontifical University of St He was twice scholar in residence at the Pontifical North American College at the Vatican He served as the Rector/President of Mundelein Seminary University of St Pope Francis appointed Bishop Barron to be Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Pope Francis appointed Bishop Robert Barron the ninth bishop of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester (Minnesota) Bishop Barron received a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from the Catholic University of America in 1982 and a doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Institut Catholique de Paris in 1992 Bishop Robert Barron is an acclaimed author, speaker, and theologian. He is also the founder of the global media ministry Word on Fire which reaches millions of people by utilizing the tools of new media to draw people into or back to the Catholic Faith Francis Cardinal George has described him as “one of the Church’s best messengers.” Bishop Barron and his growing Word on Fire team have released dozens of films, books, and study programs, along with an ever-growing collection of apparel and art. Bishop Barron has produced over 400 online video commentaries. The ministry strives to consistently produce high-quality productions including brief and lively theological reviews of contemporary culture in movies as a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Bishop Flores currently serves as Chairman of the Committee on Doctrine He has also served as a member to the following committees: Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty and the Committee for Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Affairs Host of The Gloria Purvis Podcast for America Magazine commentator and the host and executive producer of The Gloria Purvis Podcast she has been a strong Catholic voice for life issues She has appeared in numerous media outlets including The New York Times and Catholic Answers Live and hosted Morning Glory She presented a powerful video series entitled Racism Human Dignity and The Catholic Church through the Word on Fire Institute exclusive interview with Pope Francis with a delegation from America Media She is the Inaugural Pastoral Fellow at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at Notre Dame University and recently received Honorary Doctorates in Humane Letters from the University of Portland in Oregon and Saint Martin's and Saint Martin's University in Washington State Purvis is currently the Scholar in Residence at Saint Martin's University Learn more about the Civilize It initiative The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB’s) mission is to encounter the mercy of Christ and to accompany His people with joy ©2025 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Made possible by funding from  Daniel Flores is an economist and managing director of Quadrant Economics in Washington Dr Flores has spent the past three decades teaching conducting research and consulting in the field of economics He has taught economics at the University of Barcelona His research and consulting activities have included valuation and analysis of the economic effects of regulation and of anticompetitive conduct in a variety of industries Dr Flores has extensive experience in valuation and… Index Ranking: Global Elite Thought Leader Daniel Flores is widely recognised as a leading economist with vast experience providing valuation and damages analysis in matters involving the mining and natural resources sectors © Copyright 2006 - 2025 Law Business Research Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here After a May 24 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, killed 21 people, most of them children, a national conversation on guns began, as it often has after the mass shootings that punctuate American life. Flores attracted attention among Catholics when he weighed in May 25, with a tweet lamenting that Americans “sacralize death’s instruments, and then are surprised that death uses them.” Bishop Flores talked with The Pillar Wednesday about guns, human conversation, and the theological foundations of the U.S. bishops’ approach to gun control legislation. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. I think most people are aware that the bishops’ conference has a long history of advocating for specific gun control measures at the federal level and that bishops have done the same at the state level But less often discussed is the theological foundation for that advocacy What is the beginning of a theological approach to questions about guns and society?That’s a good perspective to spend time on because this conversation gets reduced very quickly to a political sense - to one party’s views as opposed to another It’s true that the [bishops’] conference has spoken about different policies and advocated for various kinds of reforms in terms of gun control is the Church’s expectation that civil society must seek after the common good - and that means protecting the vulnerable and exercising a reasonable prudence with regard to the order of things And that's a responsibility not primarily of the Church but for the human good that any society would have no matter what political system it happens to operate under There is a moral dimension to how we organize ourselves there are certain laws that need to be constructed in a way that promote the best possible stewardship of human life so that everyone can live in peace in their local communities and in their countries You go back to something like Mater et magistra and even to Pius XII talking about the responsibilities of civil society this is how you need to organize things.”  it’s the responsibility of the political order and the social order to deliberate and to take seriously the responsibility for the ordering of things the question of guns becomes a part of that with any kind of weaponry — there is a legitimate right of the state to exercise a vigilant and reasonable stewardship and control over the access to weapons or things which could potentially cause great damage to the good of the whole because it delineates the Church’s responsibility of forming her own people to be active and participatory in the political process that comes to a kind of consensus as to how we order things in a way that protects our children especially when it comes to the potential of violence And then we can look at each locality: each country It’s not just one size fits all necessarily The circumstances here in this country are different than they are necessarily in another country have to be most concerned about how we order things here and that's the issue in our frame of responsibility But there is a responsibility to govern these things and to order them Share I was referring to the fact that the discourse we’ve had now for decades about any attempt to control weapons that can cause grave damage — some of which moves have been enacted into law and others which have been resisted — is countered with a description that [gun ownership] is basically an individual’s sacred right And when I say “sacralized,” I mean that we make it seem almost as if it detracts from human dignity simply to say that we need to have some reasonable limit on these things To say something is sacralized is to say it’s almost taken out of any possibility for conversation but we do sometimes speak about things that way we have kind of sacralized the whole idea of the individual right It becomes an untouchable aspect in the discourse that the common concern for the good of the vulnerable is not in any way sufficient to limit the individual right to determine whether or not I want to own this kind of a gun you kind of make it basically closed for discussion because we practically treat it as if it were sacred but that’s the thing about an analogy: it’s not the same thing I hear the same language with regard to the state’s right to exercise the death penalty It becomes almost something that is seen as inviolable because it is simply the right of the state to do so And we know it’s almost an untouchable topic I think the Church would have us look at both those issues as a topic that should be reasonably discussed as to what the limits are Access to these weapons should be a discussion that is focused on how we both respect the legitimate concerns of people who want to protect themselves or not be severely limited when they go hunting but also the fact that some weapons out there pose a grave threat to the good of the whole And that discussion almost gets cut off when we've kind of elevated the individual right beyond proportion So that’s why I want to say that this is a topic in which we look for a consensus that protects the good of the whole The Church wants people of reasonable judgment to discuss this — that’s why we elect officials so that they can have that conversation and work out a way forward But it seems like we haven’t been able to move on this And that’s why people are now very frustrated And what can we do that this would not happen and so it is a question we have to ask as a society and not just sort of shut off — it needs to happen ‘The Pillar’ talks with the people who make a difference in the life of the Church How does that align with the Catholic vision of society one can say that a free people need to have the freedom to defend themselves but also question why somebody has to have a gun that’s able to kill so many people in a matter of seconds It’s not necessarily always an “either-or,” and one can kind of work through some of that But it is a different rhetoric than the Church would use the discussion of what is the common good that defends human dignity being human — not because it's Catholic or not because it's Christian or not because it's pagan —  simply because human beings being human beings have a responsibility to protect the vulnerable and to have a certain sense of order and safety in their communities And that’s a basic good against which other goods must be weighed When one is talking about the order of society it is at a certain level a question of order — and in the noblest sense of the term And the failure is that we haven’t been able to deal with it in a political way and in the noblest sense of what politics is supposed to be which is the gathering of a consensus within the community to fulfill our responsibilities for the whole A political question of order asks that people discuss this and come to consensus — just like immigration is a question of order — and you ask the politicians to do their job with a sense of responsibility to the common good and people are experiencing the frustration that it’s not being exercised Leave a comment are a part of the problem America is facing So how do you respond to those other viewpoints?Well there are a lot of elements to what’s going on right now Last night I was talking to the kids before a confirmation about what had happened just for a few minutes before the Mass started Because kids hear these things and they feel these things and they live in a socially afraid world and they grow up that way and they need help to kind of deal with it One of the factors is what you might call “atomization.” There has been a breakdown in communal sense of belonging to each other And I think that was something we took for granted in our local communities From the deeper Catholic theological position both nature and the human soul abhor a vacuum And a lot of young people feel an emptiness inside of them So I encourage young people to cultivate your sense of the presence of God in your life because neutral territory is vulnerable territory if we just kind of take our lives as if the whole question of God and of responsibility to each other in a religious sense is unimportant — the power of evil does not miss a chance And there are bigger things operating in the kind of evil the world has seen than we are often aware of And it’s often because we neglect to do and cultivate the good in the lives of other people It is a responsibility of the Church to form young people in a sense of hope That’s a teaching mission — that is at the heart of the Church’s teaching mission maybe we aren't as aware as we could be as to how crucial is the work that our catechists do day in and day out or the people in the parish who just hand on a sense of basic goodness to the next generation because really that's the first line of defense of the local community It's the strengths of the young person growing up with a sense of what life is about And life is either a gift and you protect it and you try to fill it with goodness And some of our young people make those decisions by the time they're 14 as to whether life is a joke or life is a gift and you need to kind of live it with respect for other people these are the deeper sort of frayings that I think we're seeing and then make certain things possible that wouldn't have been possible to even imagine Share The Pillar and those children turn around and kill our children in which the difference between life and death is negligible This is something that happens in the soul of a young person but it’s devastating to know a young person who has no hope and then feels that there's no difference between what's good in life and death And I'm just saying that there's a wider social danger that young people get sort of in that state How does a young person get to the point where they can go and buy a gun and then say to themselves “In two day Because this is a phenomenon that we need to attend —where does that come from — because it's very sort of tools in a society where despair is spreading And then they become the instruments of what we're seeing at all — rather one sort of facilitates the other I would make an encouragement to look at our mutual responsibility to say: “Can’t we talk about how we make this community Because in the end we're gonna have to come to some sense as to how to move forward together And so I would say that people should kind of step back — those who would say that there is partisan exploitation —I think sometimes people need to read the reactions: Everywhere Every parent I’ve talked to over the last couple of days says: “That could have been my son and I think that’s the question we need to ask each other Parents are writing me notes asking me how we can know that our schools are safe and so we try to reassure them that we try to do what we can I think that’s where the discussion starts I think we have to recognize that for what it is But there is a problem in the fraying of society in the sort of quiet despair that can take over young people and that makes them vulnerable to use guns in the way that we’ve seen them used — and one feeds on the other and start asking what we can do to start bolstering a better protection And protection that starts when they’re very young and I think there's a fundamental difference there God can open up spaces that we don't imagine are actually there And I think in some sort of mysterious way this is not unrelated to the whole synodal aspiration of the Holy Father because he wants to encourage -  not just here in this country but across the world - the local conversation can ultimately be resolved if you just jump straight to the national thing You have to talk locally: families talking to families but I think if we can have local conversations about it then maybe people can be actually quite creative as to what we can actually do Well, I think we facilitate it by kind of inculcating the habit of creating spaces where people can talk to each other, because there's not a habit in our communities at large, for the most part.  And so I think if we kind of create a space for the kind of discussion in which people first know how to listen without interrupting, and then to stop, and then to respond.  And you know not every conversation needs to be about our argument, And so I think we have to give an example, and I do think that's what the Holy Father's asking. Well, and it does become an example for the wider community that we could have some of these conversations. We are circumventing the human conversation, which I think is one of the deep issues that the Holy Father wants us, frankly, in this globalized world, to rediscover — the importance of those sorts of conversations that are respectful even when there is difference. Because it’s very easy to get mad at the person on the television, or on Facebook, but we can start with human conversations where things get heard past the screaming - which is very problematic. So I think the Church can be a catalyst of being helpful there, but, as any bishop who has done any synodal work can tell you, our churches - our own parishes - are microcosms of the political divisions going on in wider society.  And so if we can start these conversations and just talk, in a respectful way in the local community, maybe something unexpected will shake out. As many of you know, the only comment policy at The Pillar is the mandate of Christian charity. I would like to congratulate all of you on a mostly charitable discussion to this point, and on a contentious issue. The Pillar's readers are the best. You also know we have a small staff, so we probably won't be monitoring this much over the weekend. So my request is that you continue to observe the mandate of charity -- thank you! We're not able to address this issue, or many other pressing ones, because 35% of the country hates and fears another 35%, and vice versa. Probably 70% of the citizenry is convicted, deep down, that half of their fellow citizens are not just wrong or misguided, but dangerous and duplicitous, and need to be kept from power at all costs. You can't build off of consensus or even articulate a shared vision of a common good in such a situation. It's a fool's errand. ReplyShare5 replies73 more comments...LatestNo posts Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville, Texas, is chairman of the U.S. bishops\u2019 committee on doctrine, and is frequently hailed as a leading intellectual among the U.S. Catholic episcopate. Flores attracted attention among Catholics when he weighed in May 25, with a tweet lamenting that Americans \u201Csacralize death\u2019s instruments, and then are surprised that death uses them.\u201D Bishop Flores talked with The Pillar Wednesday about guns, human conversation, and the theological foundations of the U.S. bishops\u2019 approach to gun control legislation. I think most people are aware that the bishops\u2019 conference has a long history of advocating for specific gun control measures at the federal level and that bishops have done the same at the state level. But less often discussed is the theological foundation for that advocacy What is the beginning of a theological approach to questions about guns and society?That\u2019s a good perspective to spend time on because this conversation gets reduced very quickly to a political sense - to one party\u2019s views as opposed to another I think we have to look with a wider lens.  It\u2019s true that the [bishops\u2019] conference has spoken about different policies and advocated for various kinds of reforms in terms of gun control.  is the Church\u2019s expectation that civil society must seek after the common good - and that means protecting the vulnerable and exercising a reasonable prudence with regard to the order of things You go back to something like Mater et magistra and even to Pius XII talking about the responsibilities of civil society.  this is how you need to organize things.\u201D  it\u2019s the responsibility of the political order and the social order to deliberate and to take seriously the responsibility for the ordering of things So that\u2019s a moral responsibility.  with any kind of weaponry \u2014 there is a legitimate right of the state to exercise a vigilant and reasonable stewardship and control over the access to weapons or things which could potentially cause great damage to the good of the whole.    because it delineates the Church\u2019s responsibility of forming her own people to be active and participatory in the political process that comes to a kind of consensus as to how we order things in a way that protects our children It\u2019s not just one size fits all necessarily and that's the issue in our frame of responsibility.  Share I was referring to the fact that the discourse we\u2019ve had now for decades about any attempt to control weapons that can cause grave damage \u2014 some of which moves have been enacted into law and others which have been resisted \u2014 is countered with a description that [gun ownership] is basically an individual\u2019s sacred right And when I say \u201Csacralized,\u201D I mean that we make it seem almost as if it detracts from human dignity To say something is sacralized is to say it\u2019s almost taken out of any possibility for conversation but that\u2019s the thing about an analogy: it\u2019s not the same thing I hear the same language with regard to the state\u2019s right to exercise the death penalty And we know it\u2019s almost an untouchable topic And that discussion almost gets cut off when we've kind of elevated the individual right beyond proportion.  So that\u2019s why I want to say that this is a topic And that\u2019s what the Church would ask for The Church doesn\u2019t want to write the laws The Church wants people of reasonable judgment to discuss this \u2014 that\u2019s why we elect officials so that they can have that conversation and work out a way forward.  But it seems like we haven\u2019t been able to move on this And that\u2019s why people are now very frustrated It\u2019s a question that we have to discuss and not just sort of shut off \u2014 it needs to happen \u2018The Pillar\u2019 talks with the people who make a difference in the life of the Church but also question why somebody has to have a gun that\u2019s able to kill so many people in a matter of seconds It\u2019s not necessarily always an \u201Ceither-or,\u201D and one can kind of work through some of that being human \u2014 not because it's Catholic or not because it's Christian or not because it's pagan \u2014  simply because human beings being human beings have a responsibility to protect the vulnerable and to have a certain sense of order and safety in their communities And that\u2019s a basic good against which other goods must be weighed it is at a certain level a question of order \u2014 and in the noblest sense of the term And the failure is that we haven\u2019t been able to deal with it in a political way to fulfill our responsibilities for the whole.  A political question of order asks that people discuss this and come to consensus \u2014 just like immigration is a question of order \u2014 and you ask the politicians to do their job And it\u2019s a question of political prudence and people are experiencing the frustration that it\u2019s not being exercised.  Leave a comment there are a lot of elements to what\u2019s going on right now the social fabric is much different.  and they need help to kind of deal with it.  One of the factors is what you might call \u201Catomization.\u201D There has been a breakdown in communal sense of belonging to each other if we just kind of take our lives as if the whole question of God and of responsibility to each other in a religious sense is unimportant \u2014 the power of evil does not miss a chance.  And it\u2019s often because we neglect to do and cultivate the good in the lives of other people defending what\u2019s good and what\u2019s noble That\u2019s a teaching mission \u2014 that is at the heart of the Church\u2019s teaching mission because really that's the first line of defense of the local community.  It's the strengths of the young person growing up with a sense of what life is about.  and you need to kind of live it with respect for other people.  Share The Pillar This is something that happens in the soul of a young person.  but it\u2019s devastating to know a young person who has no hope and then feels that there's no difference between what's good in life and death and so they just treat life cavalierly.  How does a young person get to the point where they can go and buy a gun and then say to themselves \u201CIn two day Because this is a phenomenon that we need to attend \u2014where does that come from \u2014 because it's very at all \u2014 rather one sort of facilitates the other and whether you\u2019re one party or another to say: \u201CCan\u2019t we talk about how we make this community Because in the end we're gonna have to come to some sense as to how to move forward together.  And so I would say that people should kind of step back \u2014 those who would say that there is partisan exploitation \u2014I think sometimes people need to read the reactions: Everywhere there is great pain and frustration.  Every parent I\u2019ve talked to over the last couple of days says: \u201CThat could have been my son because nothing\u2019s going to change?\u201D and I think that\u2019s the question we need to ask each other I think that\u2019s where the discussion starts I think we have to recognize that for what it is.  and that makes them vulnerable to use guns in the way that we\u2019ve seen them used \u2014 and one feeds on the other And protection that starts when they\u2019re very young and I think there's a fundamental difference there.  because he wants to encourage -  not just here in this country can ultimately be resolved if you just jump straight to the national thing.  I think we facilitate it by kind of inculcating the habit of creating spaces where people can talk to each other because there's not a habit in our communities at large And so I think if we kind of create a space for the kind of discussion in which people first know how to listen without interrupting And you know not every conversation needs to be about our argument and I do think that's what the Holy Father's asking and it does become an example for the wider community that we could have some of these conversations We are circumventing the human conversation which I think is one of the deep issues that the Holy Father wants us to rediscover \u2014 the importance of those sorts of conversations that are respectful even when there is difference Because it\u2019s very easy to get mad at the person on the television but we can start with human conversations where things get heard past the screaming - which is very problematic So I think the Church can be a catalyst of being helpful there as any bishop who has done any synodal work can tell you our churches - our own parishes - are microcosms of the political divisions going on in wider society.  And so if we can start these conversations and just talk in a respectful way in the local community Please select what you would like included for printing: Copy the text below and then paste that into your favorite email application Patrick married Amanda Hancock on January 21st 2022 in Centennial Colorado This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors Gloria Purvis, the host of America Media’s “The Gloria Purvis Podcast,” moderated a roundtable online discussion joined by Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Diocese of San Diego, Bishop Robert Barron of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester and Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville on May 14. The discussion, “Civilize It: Unifying a Divided Church,” focused on ways polarization is affecting the U.S The panelists discussed the different ideologies they encountered in their own dioceses how the synodal way could be a tool to help mitigate polarization and best practices for recognizing when to disengage from a toxic exchange During a question-and-answer session with the audience the bishops were asked if they experienced polarization and tribalism in their own dioceses Bishop Flores said that polarization is not just an issue parish to parish but can even be a problem “Mass to Mass.” Churchgoers often “settle into different strata” in the celebration of the Mass choosing priests that they best align with ideologically should be to “create wider circles,” reflecting that the church is one body with diverse perspectives All  three  bishops have written or spoken about countering the rise of polarization in the church Purvis asked what best characterized “toxic polarization” and why Catholics should care about it Bishop Flores said a common practice within toxic dialogues is making caricatures of those one may disagree with Bishop Barron was quick to point out that there have been disagreements among Christ’s followers “since day one,” but those disagreements did not lead to the ostracization of the other side—something that feels commonplace today Ms. Purvis recalled Pope Francis’ 2020 encyclical “Fratelli Tutti,” which explores the challenges of encounter among people Purvis pointed out how the encyclical’s insistence on relationship especially feels missing in social media now a primary source of news and analysis for many Catholics A Pew Research Center survey found that 64 percent of Americans believe social media has “a mostly negative effect on the way things are going in the U.S Bishop Barron, who is active on social media platforms said that Catholics should seek to “stress truth and beauty” online He suggested that before contemporary Catholics join an online discussion they should ask: “Is this comment an act of love?” Noting that social media exchanges can often quickly turn fiery and uncharitable Bishop Flores said that when confirming members of the church he does not ask the young people of his diocese “What would Jesus do?” but challenges them to answer “What would Jesus not do?,” suggesting that Jesus would not commit an injustice in an online dialogue even to promote a greater good To the point that empathy is often missing from online exchanges Conference of Catholic Bishops conducted a poll 12 years ago in which participants were asked what was the best practice for uniting Catholics The overwhelming answer was “compassion,” a value that Cardinal McElroy referred to as a “bridging virtue” that can “build solidarity amongst people.”  which aims to learn how the church can be a body that listens better Purvis suggested the synodal way could be an example of “self-mastery of our passions,” a way to practice tolerance when engaging with others we may not agree with Bishop Flores said the synodal process has been an effective “diagnosis of the culture” of both the church and society at large By seeing ideological disagreements on both church issues and society at large firsthand at the synod Bishop Flores and other participants have been further informed on issues that play a direct role in their respective dioceses Cardinal McElroy noted that the synod’s sessions helped to identify the “joys participants were able to “encounter each other as disciples,” which gave them an appreciation of the full humanity of a dialogue partner that proved helpful when discussions got heated Purvis noted that conversations like the ones experienced at the synod could indeed be fruitful and inspiring but wondered if there were times when it was best to disengage from someone who may be purely seeking to be antagonistic Cardinal McElroy agreed that there are encounters that are “meant to be confrontational” from the start when anger overshadows the humanity of the disputants Bishop Flores noted that one person who knew when it was best to not engage in pointless dialogue was Jesus, who “was able to detect when people were not sincere in their approach,” recalling how Jesus was asked by Pilate if he were the King of the Jews Jesus knew of his impending condemnation before his exchange with Pilate and instead of railing against him reminded Pilate of his own preconceived notion of Christ Perhaps engaging in a hostile disagreement in a similar way is the most prudent course Bishop Barron likened exchanges of differing opinions to sporting games that are driven by competition Sometimes it is “best if we stop playing for a while,” he said suggesting taking a moment for one partner or the other in a dialogue to sit in a penalty box if a debate crosses the line He described those hostile exchanges that seem doomed from the start as “evangelically disedifying”—dialogues based not on compassionate persuasion but on rhetorical brute force You can watch the full conversation here Correction (May 20): A previous version of this story included misspellings of Cardinal Robert McElroy's name The story has been updated to reflect these corrections Bishop Daniel Flores has been leading the synod process for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Bishop Flores is the Bishop of Brownsville in Texas which is the largest diocese in the United States with a Catholic population of 1.2 million as of December 2021 Brownsville became a diocese in 1965 and consists of four counties bordering Mexico and a place of welcome to many migrants crossing the US border in search of a better life Bishop Flores spoke about his experience leading the synodal process in the United States what he thinks a more synodal Church might look like in the future and some personal insights he has had during the synod process I was first asked by then-President of the USCCB as Chairman of the Doctrine Committee for the USCCB would also take under my care the synod processes that would be unfolding in the United States – to give resources I'll be happy to…,’ without really realizing what it would fully entail “It's been a great sort of eye opener because it's involved me in helping to communicate the basic message of the synod to the different dioceses speaking to the different delegates that were appointed by their bishops to help coordinate in the local dioceses So just getting to know the different situations “And it certainly impacted me as we were planning our own diocesan synodal activities in the Diocese of Brownsville It allowed me to speak to a lot of people and to learn a lot of things about how diverse even the Church in the United States is in terms of how very creatively different dioceses were adapting to be able to gather synodal consultations and to be able to adjust to different languages and even the efforts made to reach those who are not easily in contact with the Church “The People of God have a deep reverence for the mystery of Christ and that we need to listen to how that reverence manifests itself.” “I think this is a very important question My mind goes through the experiences that I've had I've been very touched and impressed by how sincerely local parishes and local dioceses have really tried to establish settings in the local community where people could feel free to speak and to have a prayerful spiritual conversation about issues that are of great importance to us as Catholics and that whole opening up of a space that I think the Holy Father has been asking us to do more intentionally – spaces where people can pray together If we can keep that as a style that continues to work its way through the structure of the Church The Church in the United States is very well structured – we’re not the only ones – but I think it's very important that we kind of breathe some air into it that creates more space for more participation in the conversation It is a stylistic thing – style in a very heavy sense a theological sense – even of allowing the Holy Spirit to manifest in the hearts of the faithful that perspective without which it's very difficult for any of us to understand what the challenges are and how to face them we should never lose sight of the importance of the local initiative of synodality and I've been encouraging other bishops to continue that There are certain things we could have done a lot better “And then as it moves up into the national we understand that our particular issues on a local level that we're trying to deal with pastorally are not necessarily identical to or the sum total of all the challenges in the Church I was very moved when reading the Continental Document that came back to us about some of the experiences of some of the newer Churches I think that's very important for us in the United States to be aware of some of the challenges that are hard for us to imagine and some of the circumstances that are affecting the survival of families and peoples in very places of great conflict – and yet trying to give a Christian witness “Inasmuch as we can open that up and that we are more aware of the life of the Church around the world I think we are living more deeply our communion that's what the heart of this is – to make our communion more real and effective because certainly I would say that we have been lacking in an ability to encourage people to listen We tend to talk at each other and across each other it's made me much more aware of a couple of things One is I'm very grateful for what of the synodal style was already present in my diocese It's [Brownsville] a fairly poor diocese and our parishes are fairly poor What I have learned is that I need to be much more intentional and active in being in places where I can hear what people’s experiences are and what they're struggling with in their local communities I've always taken to heart what the Holy Father says – you have to walk sometimes behind the sheep And that's a thing that I have taken to heart And I think the synodal process has made that much more lively in terms of walking amongst the People of God “It has also deepened my awareness that when a bishop is asked to participate on the national level in the synodal process that we are really carrying our people with us And it's a tender responsibility to remember those voices and to carry them into the wider dialogue of the communion of the Church But you do try by the help of the Holy Spirit to carry it and always go back to your people to hear more from them There's always a movement from the particular to the universal There's a movement to the universal that looks at the bigger picture and tries to synthesize it in the sense of the communion of the Church but there's always a return back to the lived reality of the people I have great confidence and it's deepened my confidence that the People of God have a deep reverence for the mystery of Christ and that we need to listen to how that reverence manifests itself And sometimes we have to adjust our ears because it's not that it's not being expressed It's that sometimes our ears aren't attuned to how it's expressing itself I see it in some of the popular devotion with young people I appreciate so much it's the young people who do the living Stations of the Cross They have so much joy in participating in this and giving it as a gift to the parish That is a great gift as part of the faith of the Church expressing itself Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker This work, What I’ve Learned: Daniel Flores, by Sgt Medina Ayala-Lo, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright a 17-year-old catcher who signed with the Boston Red Sox this summer has passed away of complications during treatment for cancer the team confirmed via statement Wednesday."Everyone at the Red Sox was shocked to hear of Daniel's tragic passing," president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said in the the team confirmed via statement Wednesday."Everyone at the Red Sox was shocked to hear of Daniel's tragic passing," president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said in the statement "To see the life of a young man with so much promise cut short is extremely saddening for all of us I would like to extend our deepest sympathies and condolences to Daniel's family." garnering a $3.1 signing bonus in the process He had reportedly come to Boston recently to receive treatment A statement from the #RedSox regarding the passing of minor league catcher Daniel Flores: pic.twitter.com/6CQuJNW9bi "Every member of organization who got to know Daniel absolutely loved him always with a smile on his face," Red Sox senior vice president and assistant general manager Eddie Romero said in the statement "He cared for his teammates and was a natural leader Daniel was an impressive young man with limitless potential and his life was cut far too short."My condolences go out to Daniel's mother and sister Daniel will always be a part of the Red Sox family."The switch-hitter trained this summer at Boston's academy in the Dominican Republic and had been expected to play in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League in the 2018 season Josh Jackson is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow and interact with him on Twitter, @JoshJacksonMiLB.