Anything Else

“In this cohort study of 19887 participants from the Health and Retirement Study, with a mean follow-up of 9.1 years, when compared with never drinking, low to moderate drinking was associated with significantly better trajectories of higher cognition scores for mental status, word recall, and vocabulary and with lower rates of decline in each of these cognition domains.” - JAMA

“London-born computer programming teen, Carlo Acutis, is set to be beatified in October 2020.” - Fox

“A Vatican tribunal that deals with matters of conscience, including confession, called the Apostolic Penitentiary, issued a notice Friday, stating that though absolution of sin is the usual means through which sins are forgiven by a priest, in times of ‘grave necessity,’ such as now with the ongoing spread of the virus, other solutions are needed… Confession is considered a sacrament in the Catholic Church.” -

“Every week, thousands of Catholics from all walks of life swarm into St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican to participate in Mass with Pope Francis, who has put concern for the poor at the center of his papacy. But now, a few lucky people may have the opportunity to attend a private Mass with the pontiff. All they have to do is own a Rolls-Royce.

“On Feb. 15, the last of the Bible’s 66 books — the story of Job — was released in video on the Jehovah’s Witnesses website, completing what Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesman for the church, said is the only complete Bible in ASL.” - RNS

“… a talk that President Dallin Oaks gave in Chicago to a group of youth. In his remarks, he said he felt prompted to teach them something of great importance: ‘I had an impression from the Spirit of the Lord to teach something to each of you…. And today, I saw quite a few of the deacons take the sacrament with their left hand.

“One year after Pope Francis called for a summit of Catholic bishops at the Vatican, abuse survivors flocked to the Eternal City on Thursday (Feb. 20) to report a lack of progress and accountability in the fight against clergy sex abuse.” - RNS

“In the case of Bufallo’s Bishop Malone, none of the visitation’s findings have been shared publicly. In his official statement, Malone defended his handling of clergy abuses before explaining that ‘prayer and discernment’ had led him to resign.” - The Conversation

“This idea did not entirely originate in Silicon Valley. As a scholar who studies digital technology and religion, I’d argue that the motivations and benefits of dopamine fasting resemble what many religions have been teaching since ancient times.” - The Conversation