An archbishop of Newark groomed a 5-year-old girl by delivering food to her struggling family and regularly babysitting her, then sexually abusing her on multiple occasions in the 1970s, a lawsuit alleges.

Even in the exceedingly unlikely event that every bishop miraculously agreed on how to approach the question of Communion and abortion, it still would not resolve the political question of abortion in favor of the Catholic position.

Cardinal Luis F. Ladaria, S.J., the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has sent a letter to Archbishop José H. Gomez that may lead to a reconsideration of the plan of some bishops to get the conference to approve a document regarding “the worthiness to receive Communion” of Catholic politicians.

Decisions about administering the Eucharist rest solely on the bishop giving the sacrament, said Cardinal Michael Czerny.

The proposal to exclude pro-choice Catholic politicians from the Eucharist will bring tremendously destructive consequences—not because of what it says about abortion, but because of what it says about the Eucharist.

A pastoral letter issued May 1 by San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone focuses on the unborn, Communion and Catholics in public life.