海角大神

2025
August
30
Saturday

Monitor Daily Podcast

August 30, 2025
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Clayton Collins
Director of Editorial Innovation

鈥淪anctuary鈥 suggests a place of refuge that鈥檚 a kind of walled redoubt. That might be a limiting definition. As Sophie Hills reports today, it can also confer a protective peace 鈥撀爀ven out in the open.

That鈥檚 being demonstrated by faith leaders moved to lend an atmosphere of calm 鈥 of 鈥淚 am with you鈥 鈥 to the charged environment outside court hearings where, controversially, enforcement activity by federal officials can erupt. They also show it in efforts to soothe congregants for whom simply gathering for Mass brings risk. Why do they exhibit such courage?

鈥淚n this atmosphere, just being a person of faith is a resistance,鈥 the Rev. Scott Santarosa, a San Diego priest, tells Sophie. 鈥淚鈥檓 resisting the fear being put on me just by pursuing my faith.鈥


Have a peaceful weekend. We鈥檒l be back Tuesday, after the Labor Day holiday in the United States. As always, find our latest stories and news briefs on our homepage at .


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Today’s stories

And why we wrote them

Tim Evans/Reuters
Mourners attend an interfaith prayer service following a shooting at Annunciation Church, at the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis, Aug. 28, 2025.

The shooting of children at Annunciation Catholic School in Minnesota comes after a political assassination rocked the state earlier this summer. The events have surfaced divides over how to lower gun violence聽 鈥 and a desire to emerge stronger.

Sophie Hills/海角大神
The Rev. Scott Santarosa stands outside a federal building and courthouse in downtown San Diego, Aug. 13, 2025. Father Santarosa leads groups of volunteers who accompany people to immigration court appearances.

The idea of sanctuary has long been embraced by communities of faith. Religious leaders and volunteers are finding new ways to apply the concept, including by being present with immigrants at courthouse hearings.

Florence Lo/Reuters
T1 humanoid robots developed by Booster Robotics fight for the ball on a soccer field, during a practice in preparation for soccer competitions at the inaugural World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing, Aug. 1, 2025.

How far are humanlike robots from prime time? The U.S. and China are racing to build humanoid robots capable of performing many daily tasks 鈥 but the complexity of home and business environments makes that challenging.

A letter from

Delhi
Aakash Hassan
Workers and customers are seen at a post office in New Delhi following India's decision to suspend postal services to the United States, Aug. 28, 2025.

America鈥檚 Indian diaspora has never been larger 鈥撀爋r more dependent on mail from home. But the end of tax exemptions for small parcels entering the U.S. has post offices around the world suspending service. In New Delhi, this has added to tariff confusion, and left small businesses and families fretting.

Mark S. Kornbluth
Ann Toback and Kolya Borodulin stand on the shore of Sylvan Lake in New York. The two have been leading the Workers Circle's 鈥淭rip to Yiddishland,鈥 a weeklong Yiddish immersion retreat, for more than a decade.

The number of Yiddish speakers has declined dramatically since World War II. An annual camp in New York State is part of the effort to preserve it 鈥 engaging people who have spoken it for years, and a new generation that is just starting to learn.


Viewfinder

Alex Brandon/AP
People form a second line parade, a New Orleans tradition featuring dancers and brass instruments, during an event to commemorate post-Katrina resilience in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Aug. 29, 2025. The event marked 20 years since the Category 3 hurricane made landfall, bringing widespread flooding to the city when levees failed.

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2025
August
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Saturday

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