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Human Rights in Catholic Thought
David Hollenbach
Over the past half-century, hopes that human rights could become truly effective standards of international behavior have risen and fallen like the tides. When the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights was proclaimed in 1948, many saw it as a genuine commitment to “never again&r
Advice and Consent
James F. Gill
Only the President of the United States, according to the U.S. Constitution, can nominate persons to the federal judiciary and appoint such persons, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The discussions that took place at the Constitutional Convention in the summer of 1787 make it clear that th
Arts & CultureBooks
The Paths Less Trod?
Mark E. Rondeau
Despite its title this book is not about controversial displays of the Ten Commandments in public buildings This issue is not even mentioned Rather Chris Hedges focuses on the life-giving force of the Ten Commandments in our lives as individuals and as a country The commandments are guideposts
Editorials
Election Reform
The Editors
Election reform is needed in the United States on several levels, both because of inequities in the present system and because of low voter turnoutone of the lowest in the world. The period from 1960 to 2000 marked a long decline: whereas 65 percent of the adult population voted in the 1960 presiden
Sexuality, Spirituality and the Song of Songs'
Christopher Pramuk
Only through the body does the way, the ascent to the life of blessedness, lie open to us.- St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song of SongsThe Song of Songs has long held a privileged place in the mystical theology and monastic tradition of the church. Commentary on this erotically charg
Faith in Focus
Challenge and Opportunity
Peter J. Vaghi
For someone who came onto the world stage over 26 years ago as a vibrant and active runner, swimmer and skier, Pope John Paul II’s suffering throughout his almost 85 years of life is especially memorable. Many of us, at difficult times in our lives, identified with him. His intense suffering i
Letters
Letters

Restorative Justice

Reading Of Many Things by George M. Anderson, S.J., in the October 10 issue was an uplifting and enjoyable experience. Not only was the human success story of Jos in overcoming his past problems and bad experiences heartwarming; it also offered a good example of peacemaking/humanistic criminology in action. Here we see restorative justice in living form.

I currently teach two undergraduate sections of Probation and Parole: Theory and Practice and will bring this piece to the attention of my students to demonstrate not only the moral philosophical aspect of this component of American corrections, but also the positive and uplifting attitude of Jos’s parole officer, who, when his client stumbled, did not initiate a revocation procedure but reached out to him saying, I’ll work with you.

Truly, with such stories as this, there is hope for our criminal justice system.

James J. Green

Arts & CultureBooks
Go and Make Disciples
Walter F. Modrys
A friend reports the story of a woman widowed from a Catholic husband with two small children Honoring her pledge to raise her children as Catholics she inquired whether she too might become a Catholic But she was discouraged from pursuing her interest by the indifference of the two priests she
Columns
Wanting It Both Ways
Terry Golway
While searching recently for a colorful quote about relations between church and state, I turned to a man who knew a thing or two about the subject: John Hughes, known to critics and admirers alike as Dagger John. Hughes, as most readers will know, was the bishop and then archbishop of New York from
Parent Power
Joseph A. Califano Jr.
The 10th annual survey of 12- to 17-year-olds by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) has a loud and clear message: Parents, if you want to raise drug-free kids, you cannot outsource your responsibility to their schools or law enforcement. The odds are t
FaithFaith in Focus
Wait til Next Year!
James N. Gelson
The other day I asked a friend of mine, an old-timer and a longtime baseball fan, if he remembered the 1955 World Series. He thought a moment, and said: "Oh, yeah, wasn't that a Dodger-Yankee series?" Yes, it was. But 1955 was special.
The Word
It's About Time!
Dianne Bergant
We are an impatient people and the advantages of the electronic age have only exacerbated this We have fast food instant replay and news bites We become anxious when we have to stand in line at a checkout counter and we complain when a homily is more than 10 minutes long I know people who will
Arts & CultureBooks
Man on the Run
Chris Byrd
For its ambitious scope the grace and beauty of its language and its compelling storytelling Cormac McCarthy rsquo s Border Trilogy - nbsp All the Pretty Horses The Crossing and Cities of the Plain - nbsp was a major literary achievement in American letters in the latter part of the 20th century
Of Many Things
Of Many Things
George M. Anderson
"A tamale, please, and a cup of atole,” I said to the Mexican woman on East 116th Street, in the heart of Spanish Harlem. It was 7:45 a.m. on a weekday morning, and people were headed toward the subway to get to work. The woman was standing beneath a blue and white umbrella that shielded
The Word
Who's Responsible Here?
Dianne Bergant
It was only a few months ago that we reflected on religious leadership Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time Today rsquo s readings place this theme before us again The frequency with which the Bible considers religious leadership points out both its importance and its challenge Because of human
Of Many Things
Of Many Things
George M. Anderson
A subway ride marks the beginning of my work days at America, and given the diversity of the nearly four million passengers who use New York City’s subway system each day, it offers an ever-varying picture of humanity. For commuters like me, the actual ride does not begin on the subway car its
Arts & CultureBooks
Flaws, Flaws
David G. Hunter
For more than 20 years James J O rsquo Donnell has been a leading figure in Augustinian studies Best known for his three-volume commentary on the Confessions Oxford 1992 O rsquo Donnell has also pioneered the use of the Internet for humanistic study A decade ago while professor of classics at
News
Signs of the Times
From AP, CNS, RNS, Staff and other sources
Newly Beatified German Cardinal Feared God More Than Man, Pope SaysCardinal Clemens August von Galen of Münster, Germany, an outspoken critic of Adolf Hitler’s regime, feared God more than man, Pope Benedict XVI said moments after the cardinal was beatified. All of us, but especially we Germa
Letters
Letters

Platform for Grace

As staff theologian for Cardinal Joseph Bernardin from 1985 until his death, I commend the editorial A Culture of Life (9/25) for reminding us once again of Cardinal Bernardin’s efforts with regard to a consistent ethic of life. In particular I applaud the observation that no one image or idea can bear the weight of the whole conversation. No one was more aware of this than the cardinal.

As regards images, for example, the cardinal spoke of his dying as his most important homily. The photos of the frail, dying cardinal anointing the sick, after having been anointed himself, and the stories of his ministry to fellow cancer patients evoked a sense of peace that only God could give and no homily could explain.

As regards ideas, the vocabulary of consistent ethic was complemented by other proposals such as the Common Ground Initiative. A church torn by acrimony could not be a credible witness or effective partner in public discourse about protecting and enhancing human dignity.

What held so much of this together was a hopefulness that was captured, in a small measure, in his pastoral on Catholic health care, A Sign of Hope, a hope sustained by the conviction that because of God’s love for us we can live with confidence in the midst of alienation and chaos. I would suggest that without hopefulness our attempts to explore symbols and stories, as you helpfully propose, will be less than effective. Bernardin’s hopefulness was quite personal: as inviting as his blue eyes and as robust as the operas he loved. But it also reflected his appropriation of the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, in particular the image of the church as leaven. Redemption was possible in a sinful world.

As this conciliar perspective is replaced by a profound pessimism about what some consider to be the moral bankruptcy of the United States and western Europe, Bernardin’s hopefulness is viewed as being outdated, if not dangerous. Without hopefulness, it is understandable that the complexity of a consistent ethic or the labors of Common Ground-type dialogue can seem to be a waste of time.

In a few weeks we will celebrate the ninth anniversary of Cardinal Bernardin’s death. Perhaps it is time for us to ask what does the Christian virtue of hope mean today. Is it nave to trust in that which is unseen, or is this the confidence that is an appropriate platform for God’s grace?

(Rev.) Michael D. Place

Progress in India
Michael Amaladoss
For the Catholic Church in India, Nostra Aetate came more as an encouragement than as a new beginning. In the 19th century, Hindus like Keshub Chandra Sen looked on Jesus as a guru who inspired them to reform their own religious tradition. One of them who became Christian, Brahmabandab Upadhyaya, th