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When Relatives Visit
Lorraine V. Murray
The screen door flew open and in they stampeded: my sister, my brother-in-law, my grown niece and her husband, and their three boysone only six months old. And don’t forget the dog. Suddenly our house had shrunk in size. There were bags everywhere, plus cameras, baby equipment, toys and diaper
Grant Her Your Spirit
Phyllis Zagano
The Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Greece voted in Athens on Oct. 8, 2004, to restore the female diaconate. All the members of the Holy Synod125 metropolitans and bishops and Archbishop Christodoulos, the head of the church of Greecehad considered the topic. The decision does not directly affe
Film
Flying Solo: The Aviator
Richard A. Blake
The Catholicism in Martin Scorsese’s films involves much more than crucifixes on the walls of his Italian-American characters. It lies at the heart of the conflicts faced by his tragic heroes. These are men (sic) who because of their own actions find themselves separated from the community tha
FaithThe Word
Merciful and Gracious
Dianne Bergant
The psalm response for the First Sunday of Lent sets the tone for the entire season It is one of the most familiar biblical prayers for divine mercy ldquo Have mercy on me O God in your goodness In the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense rdquo In this simple verse we find two tec
Arts & CultureBooks
Shadow Land
James S. Torresn
Postmodern poetry these days as practiced by some leaders of poetic taste shows little interest in communication It juxtaposes unconnected bits that surprise us by their odd change of direction Stuart Dybek rsquo s slim volume comes as welcome relief His poems actually compute Dybek a professo
Editorials
Innocence and the Death Penalty
The Editors
Despite high-profile death sentences like Scott Peterson’s in California, public support for the death penalty is falling. The reasons lie partly in mounting evidence that innocent people have been condemned andin some casesput to death. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor said in
FaithFeatures
He Held These Truths
Robert W. McElroy
John Courtney Murray is the most significant Catholic theologian the church in the United States has ever produced.
Secrets Behind The Forbidden Books
Tom Heneghan
It was the most ambitious censorship drive the world has ever known, and the Rev. Hubert Wolf wants to reveal its secrets. Not only that, he wants to turn the Index of Forbidden Books inside out, posting on the Internet for all to see a guide to the confidential debates that lay behind it. Wolf is a
Letters
Letters

Continue to Inspire

On behalf of the National Religious Vocation Conference, I want to congratulate and to thank you for the positive portrayal of women religious you have featured in recent issues of America (e.g., 11/15/04, 1/3/05, 1/17/05). The American church owes tremendous gratitude to our religious sisters, who with profound faith, hard work, little money and great ingenuity substantially contributed to the Catholic institutions and ministries we proudly celebrate today.

Although they are now fewer in number, they continue to inspire us with their stories of love, fidelity and sacrifice in the service of God’s people. In a culture that promotes a distorted value system of sex, greed and power, may the stories of these generous, faith-filled women encourage others to consider religious life as an alternative life option that, when lived with joy and integrity, can be both exciting and fulfilling.

Paul Bednarczyk, C.S.C.

Editorials
From Terror to Torture
The Editors
The scandal of torture and abuse symbolized by Abu Ghraib took a turn for the better at the end of last year with news of a Justice Department draft memorandum reaffirming the responsibilities of the United States under the Geneva Conventions and the Convention Against Torture. After a succession of
Prudence and Eucharistic Sanctions
Robert W. McElroy
Now that the turbulence surrounding the 2004 presidential election has abated, it is critical to revisit a question that deeply divided both the Catholic bishops and the Catholic laity during the heated months of summer: Should Catholic public officials who endorse the continued legalization of abor
Poetry
Impressionism
Barbara Crooker
I’m sitting here doing nothing, soaking up
The Word
Earth to Earth
Dianne Bergant
Ash Wednesday launches us into the season of Lent The themes of the day are quite sobering The ashes placed on our foreheads are meant to call to mind the inevitability of death as one of the accompanying prayers reminds us ldquo You are dust and to dust you shall return rdquo Ash Wednesday
News
Signs of the Times
From AP, CNS, RNS, Staff and other sources
Vatican May Reopen Old Abuse ComplaintsA previously dormant case against Marcial Maciel Degollado, L.C., founder of the Legionaries of Christ, could be reopened at the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, a Vatican lawyer said in a letter to three former members of the Legionaries who
Film
Surfaces: Closer
Richard A. Blake
Each of the four characters in Closer, Mike Nichols’s adaptation of Patrick Marber’s play, inhabits a world of surfaces. Larry (Clive Owen) is a dermatologist, who by the nature of his specialization avoids the inner workings of his patients, and can even rearrange appearances to suit hi
Letters
Letters

Government and Religion

Edward F. Harrington, in The Metaphorical Wall (1/17), effectively debunks the prevailing mythology about government and religion. The framers of the Constitution quite clearly sought to insulate religion from the reach of government; they did not seek to inoculate society from religious expression. But as Terry Golway points out in the same issue, Matters of Which We Dare Not Speak, the invocation of separation of church and state may be the preferred legal strategy, but it is fear and outright loathing of public expressions of religion and faith that is really at work. In short, there is more than flawed jurisprudential reasoning that is driving this issue.

William Donohue

Arts & CultureBooks
50's Lit
Robert Emmet Long
Authors love to write their memoirs of the 1950 rsquo s when they came of age and were apt to have a copy of The Catcher in the Rye in their jacket pocket I started out in this way myself as an English major at Columbia College The atmosphere in the English department in Hamilton Hall reflected t
The Ocean of Life
John F. Kavanaugh
A great weight was settling on me during Christmas week. There were deaths among friends, Jesuit brothers and family, but the most haunting face of death came with an ocean of destruction called the tsunami. In a matter of hours, it killed over 150,000 people, most of them children. At noon on Jan.
Talking to Techies
Guy Consolmagno
During the French Revolution, a bishop was brought to the guillotine for execution. But when the blade flew down, it stopped an inch short of cutting off his head. “It’s a miracle,” cried the crowd, and the bishop was released. Next, a philosopher was brought forward; but again, th
The Word
This Little Light of Mine...
Dianne Bergant
Who has not heard or even sung the ditty ldquo This little light of mine I rsquo m gonna let it shine rdquo Children learn it and sing it with delight As simple as the words may be and as airy the melody the message is profound In fact it can be fully understood only by adults for it is a