Magazine

Influx of Iraqis to Jordan Strains ResourcesThe enormous influx of Iraqis over the past five years has put a large burden on Jordan, said church aid officials who are trying to help the refugees. Though official estimates put the number of Iraqi refugees in Jordan at about 1 million, Catholic groups

On the day I write this column, The New York Times has published side by side on its front page two articles that embody the divergent possibilities of our future in Iraq. The United States, contrary to all previous statements, will join Iran and Syria in talks on Iraq. As the Iraq Study Group had e

As the 110th U.S. Congress convened, with great expectations of bipartisan cooperation, one of the top items on its ambitious legislative agenda was immigration. For several years the nation has debated the controversial issue, with all sides in agreement that the immigration system should be reform

On a stunning midwinter’s day, with blue sky above and a gentle breeze blowing, I stand on the banks of the River Jordan, a 30 minute walk from the Sea of Galilee. To my left is a small dam; the river stops, for all intents and purposes, here. To my right is the source of a nauseating stench:

A shard of bone from the body of St. Francis Xavier—I held it in my hand, gazing at this tiny remnant of a human body centuries old, contained under glass in its small reliquary. This particular relic belongs to one of two collections of relics with which Ihave become familiar at Jesuit parish

In view of the sexual abuse scandal that has shaken the Catholic Church, I think it is only fair to give an example of how most Catholic priests relate to the young. About 45 years ago, my son Michael was trying my patience, talking back, sassing his teachers and coming home bloodied from fist fight

"All of us long for a pentecostal church: a church in which the Spirit rules, and not the letter; a church in which understanding breaks down the fences we erect against each other. We are impatient with a church which seems so unpentecostal, so unspiritual, so narrow and fearful. Joseph Ratzinger s