The pope’s encyclical on the environment carries a profoundly religious message about care for the earth, wedded to a new call for activism, say religious scholars Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim.

Pope Francis will use his upcoming high-level visits to the U.S. and UN to press the concerns of the poor and marginalized, says expert Kenneth Himes.

Elizabeth C. Economy, the C.V. Starr senior fellow and director of Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, says there has been “a sea change” in the administration’s policies toward China. …

Don Oberdorfer, a leading Korea expert, says “important progress” has been made toward normalization of U.S.-North Korea relations.