“Children, inside and outside the womb, are uniquely vulnerable to environmental hazards and exposure to toxic pollutants in the environment. Their bodies, behaviors and size leave them more exposed than adults to such health hazards.”
— Bishop Stephen Blaire of Stockton, Calif., of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, speaking in support of a new federal rule to cut down on the amount of toxins emitted from coal- and oil-fired plants

“To educate the young for peace and justice is an obligation for all believers if they want to uproot violence from the world, at least that kind of violence that falsely cloaks itself with religious motivations.”
— Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, speaking in the aftermath of the Christmas bombings of churches and other targets in Nigeria

“Instead of putting energy into passing bills that are unconstitutional and build fear in communities, we should put energy into getting our federal delegation to do the right thing and reform the immigration system.”
— Kevin Appleby, director of migration policy for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, speaking about the need for comprehensive immigration reform on the federal level ahead of a Jan. 11-13 Catholic-sponsored conference on the issue