With this issue America begins its 100th year of publication, rounding out a century of service to Catholic intellectual life in the United States. Writing in the inaugural issue, dated April 17, 1909, the magazine’s founding editor, John J. Wynne, S.J., wrote that “the object, sc

Undocumented immigrants victimized by human traffickers are among the most vulnerable of the people affected by U.S. immigration policy. Many of them embark on their journey as hopeful migrants but run up against limits on legal migration and jobs. For the promise of honest work and earnings to shar

Its the water. The large windows that flank our sanctuary at Tautra Mariakloster in Norway look directly out on the Trondheim Fjord. Each of the seven of us Cistercian nuns here has felt our primordial connection with the water all around us. Being in our church is like being in a womb, with the wat

Vatican Comments on Muslim Convert When Pope Benedict XVI welcomed into the Catholic Church a Muslim-born journalist who has often been critical of Islam, it was not a sign that the pope accepts everything the journalist believes, said the Vatican spokesman. The Italian journalist, Magdi Allam, &ldq

A reflection on Cardinal Avery Dulles' McGinley lectures

Charles Morris has written several acclaimed books mdash on the Gilded Age financial crises the A A R P I B M the arms race New York City and the Catholic Church in America He writes like the best professor you ever had mdash no dumbing down presenting complex material in an engaging manner

The R Word Regulation. The word you thought would never cross Republican lips has been uttered by a cabinet-level official. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. announced March 26 that it is time for “us all to think more broadly about the regulatory and supervisory framework” for fin

What Sam Harris might learn from the mystics

When I lived in Philadelphia in my early 20s I was always impressed by the way Philly did things its own way The following story from NBC s Philadelphia affiliate is a reminder of that tradition Nun named head of Philadelphia-area chamber of commerce The sister in question Francesca Onle

Here s the first post from yours truly on the New York Times s special blog A Papal Discussion Be sure to check out the very first comment which shows that while dissent is frowned upon within the church in the blogosphere anything goes Great Expectations In addition to Laur

In the Star-Ledger today David Gibson religion journalist and author of The Rule of Benedict has a well-researched piece on the increasing regularity with which Benedict has been sporting far more traditional vesture Gibson on Benedict Keith Pecklers S J looked at the same phenomenon--m

Today Senator Barack Obama announced his national Catholic advisory committee The names are a fascinating mix of well Catholics--and include some regular and recent America contributors like Mary Jo Bane Lisa Cahill Richard Gaillardetz Cathy Kaveny and David O Brien And congratulations t

The Gospel selection for this fourth Sunday of Easter John 10 1-10 calls attention to at least these three points First Jesus identifies himself as the legitimate guide of Christians it is he who will lead them to have the deepest desire of their hearts As John s entire Gospel suggests the

Robert Ellsberg currently the publisher of Orbis Books has pulled off the journalistic equivalent of a double-play scoring recent cover articles in both Commonweal and The London Tablet The reason After several years of dedicated scholarship Ellsberg has put the finishing touches the first

Our most regular blogger Michael Sean Winters has a provocative article on Slate com on how Benedict s papacy has disappointed neo-cons and theo-cons Here s Winters Three years after Benedict s election as American Catholics prepare for the pope s visit next week those same conser

Some readers may have read A Jesuit Off-Broadway which tells the story of my six months with the LAByrinth Theater Company a New York-based acting troupe who were creating a new play about Jesus and Judas which premiered in April 2004 That play The Last Days of Judas Iscariot was writt

I have a friend of mine who is a great lover of classical music His knowledge of it is vast He only needs to hear a few bars of most musical works and he confidently declares Mozart s Piano Concerto in A or Stravinsky s Rite of Spring He s always right Another of his superfluous but

To read my previous posts on the Casa just click on my name above This is an appropriate time--during these five weeks of Easter--to think back on our experience of the liturgies of Holy Week Historically this is the season when new Christians just baptized and confirmed reflect on the myst

All this week we have been looking at the various ways politics has been corrupted by the rise of a professional class of campaign consultants They view candidates as puppets the electorate as a market and politics as an exercise in manipulation They induce a state of mind in candidates that re

Today we received a copy of the elegant booklet that includes the programs complete with prayers and readings for the pope s prayer services liturgies and Masses during his American visit There is an especially beautiful prayer for his visit to Ground Zero Also Latinists will be happy that