News Briefs

House Speaker Paul Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, became the highest-ranking politician to speak at a pro-life rally when he joined protesters outside the Supreme Court on March 2 as the justices were hearing oral arguments on a Texas law that imposes new restrictions on abortion clinics. • A Navy SEAL with a strong devotion to St. Michael the Archangel, Edward C. Byers Jr., of Ohio, rescued a civilian hostage in eastern Afghanistan in December 2012 and was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama for his heroic acts on Feb. 29. • Catholic leaders in Tennessee opposed a bill moving through the state legislature in late February that seeks to halt refugee resettlement by suing the federal government “for expenses the state makes in providing services to refugees.” • Archbishop William Lori and other religious leaders in Baltimore traveled to Rome on pilgrimage on March 3 to ask the pope to bless their work of reconciliation in Baltimore following the death of Freddie Gray. • Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing, Mich., appealed on Feb. 15 for local Catholics to “redouble both their prayers and their generosity” for the people of Flint, who are still struggling with unsafe drinking water.