A lot has happened in the world over the past week. Let’s catch up on the major news headlines:
Pope Francis dies at 88
The Catholic Church is mourning Pope Francis after his death was announced early on Easter Monday.
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, he became the church’s first Latin American pope when he was elected in 2013.
He was also the first from the Society of Jesus (the Jesuit Order), the first from the Americas and the Southern Hemisphere as well as the first pope to be born or raised outside of Europe since Gregory III in the eighth century.
Pope Francis was widely known for his compassion, empathy and inclusivity. As of April 23, he lies in St. Peter’s Basilica as thousands of people gather to pay their respects and cardinals assemble to begin the conclave.
Contenders for the new pope include Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Cardinal Péter Erdő, Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
Wildfire in New Jersey continues to wreak havoc
Citizens in Ocean County are evacuating as the Jones Road Wildfire continues to burn. What began in the Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management area on Tuesday morning has become a fire spanning 11,500 acres.
As of Wednesday, 5,000 people have been evacuated and there is no official cause. However, the warmer weather, tough winds and long-standing drought are believed to be key factors. 25 mile per hour winds are keeping the fire ablaze.
A state of emergency was declared by the acting New Jersey Gov. Tahesha Way that went into effect Wednesday at 7 a.m.
“…this could very well end up being the biggest wildfire in New Jersey in 20 years,” said Shawn M. LaTourette, New Jersey’s commissioner of environmental protection.
As the fire rages on, residents can expect to see a black smoke sky and sit in traffic. Although the fire is not fully contained, LaTourette has hope that the “heroic work of the good men and women of [the] New Jersey Forest Fire Service” will have control soon.
Second Signal chat leak
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been making headlines for a second Signal group chat that shared information about impending Yemen attacks with his wife, brother and personal lawyer.
The strikes happened in March but The New York Times broke the story on Monday, as people with knowledge of the chat came forward about the information being shared. Hegseth included information about flights intended to attack Houthis in Yemen.
This information is nearly identical to the plans he shared earlier on the same day on March 15 to a separate Signal chat that included the editor of The Atlantic.
Harvard University sues Trump administration
Harvard sued the Trump administration as they continue to threaten funding cuts to the university’s research programs. The Trump administration continues to battle with higher education institutions claiming that they allow antisemitic language and let harassment go unchecked on their campuses.
In a statement following the lawsuit, Harvard’s president, Alan M. Garber, said that the administration wants “improper control” over what is being taught in higher education institutions.
The lawsuit accuses the government of attacking higher education to “leverage to gain control of academic decision-making at Harvard,” according to The New York Times.
jhammer@ramapo.edu & ajones11@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Vatican Media
