By now most of our readers have heard of this book and author a Jesuit priest and founder of Homeboy Industries mdash the largest gang intervention program in the country It rsquo s tough it rsquo s wrenching but it is also deeply inspiring and leaves the reader with a measured hope that these

In the church's new birth this Pentecost, a birth by fire, some things must die.

How moral theologians help set Catholics on the right course

W.W.J.D. Thank you for the small photo in News Briefs (5/10). The image of Bishop Edward J. Slattery in his crimson robe with yards of train borne by some flunky speaks volumes about how far the Catholic Church has strayed from being the creation of Jesus. Evangelicals asked a question decades ago:

It isn rsquo t every day that I come upon a word that I don rsquo t know nbsp Not that I rsquo m some sort of super-genius or a wordsmith like the late William Safire or even a crossword puzzle maven who finishes the Sunday Times rsquo puzzle in ink nbsp I can barely finish it in pencil nb

The town council of L eacute rida in northern Spain has become the first in that country to ban the veil In a motion passed Friday the council voted to prohibit the use of the veil and other clothes and accessories which cover the face and prevent identification in buildings and installations of

Cambridge MA May 27 was graduation day at Harvard a splendid ceremonial event as well as occasion of myriad smaller personal and family instances of celebration and thanksgiving as a truly global community descended upon Harvard Yard for the main ceremonies But of still greater interest to me

An unusually long astute nbsp and searching pastoral letter from Mark Coleridge archbishop of Canberra and Goulborn in Australia on sexual abuse nbsp He lists several factors among others behind the abuse Oslash nbsp One factor was a poor understanding and communication of the Church rsqu

We were able to snag a preview copy of the new HBO drama The Special Relationship airing nbsp this Saturday which stars Michael Sheen as again Tony Blair and Dennnis Quaid as Bill Clinton nbsp The show looks at the complicated political and personal relationship between the two with a stand

The producer of a popular TV drama series about a Spanish village priest is seeking a Benedict XVI double nbsp Voz Audiovisual makers of the longrunning Galician series Padre Casares says applicants should have a striking physical resemblance to the Pontiff but don t need previous experience o

Our friends at Catholics United issued a press release yesterday announcing that they had dropped off a petition at the chancery offices of the Archdiocese of Boston The petition reads simply ldquo To His Eminence Cardinal Sean O rsquo Malley We the undersigned believe that every child should

Last week I was diagnosed with pneumonia I had been tired for a few weeks but had not suspected why I had been so lethargic not to mention moribund and feverish I am going to bow out of writing for the Good Word for the summer though not from reading the blog or the Word itself as one means

In the name of the order I acknowledge with shame and guilt our failure Fr Stefan Dartmann SJ the German Jesuit provincial said today I ask for forgiveness His comments came as the Society of Jesus released a report into abuse at its schools over many decades The report which records 205

St Vincent s Hospital has always occupied a special place in the memory of Catholic New Yorkers Full disclosure I like Kevin Clarke was born there Founded by the Sisters of Charity St Vincent s served lower Manhattan and beyond for over 150 years It acted as a trauma center in the afterma

Ten years ago there were a number of injuries amputations and deaths occurring in the New York Subway system when persons displaying severe and untreated mental illness pushed unsuspecting commuters onto the tracks One victim was Kendra--her family organizations for the mentally ill civic group

Eureka Street the Australian Jesuits online magazine has an disturbing article this week about the increase in violence towards women in bordertown Juarez Mexico as an indirect result of the North American Free Trade Agreement nbsp Since the North American Free Trade Agreement NAFTA was sig

The President will hold a press conference later today Many of the questions will not doubt focus on the administration rsquo s response to the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico That response has been fitful uncoordinated and unsuccessful so the President deserves to be grilled on what he will be