Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
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
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
Letters
Good of the Church
My head shook in disbelief upon reading in The Rights of God’s People by Rev. Kevin E. McKenna (2/19). Canon 212.3 states that the faithful have the right and even at times the duty to manifest their opinion on matters that pertain to the good of the church and to make their opinion on such matters known to the rest of the faithful.
This is empty assurance in the face of the long and particularly recent trail of brilliant theologians and religious leaders who have either been silenced, demoted or excommunicated for expressing opinions on matters pertaining to the good of the church.
Tom French-Corbett
Of Many Things
I hope you will not think it hopelessly chauvinistic if I suggest that we no longer celebrate St. Patrick’s Day but St. Patrick’s season, at least in the Northeast. On the day itself, March 17, New York City will hold its oldest and grandest parade. But because so many neighboring towns
Arts & CultureBooks
These nine tales show sons no longer connecting with mothers, mothers no longer close to their sons. A grand storyteller, Colm Tóibín uncovers dark truths about family relationships in today’s Ireland and, in a long final story, in Spain’s Catalonia.
News
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 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:
"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
The Word
Three great themes run through the Sunday readings for Lent this year the exodus the justice and mercy of God and the paschal mystery the saving significance of Jesus rsquo death and resurrection This Sunday rsquo s readings develop and deepen those themes nbsp Today rsquo s Old Testament
Arts & CultureBooks
Viktor Frankenstein created the Monster Walt Disney created Walt Disney but the outcome was pretty much the same The creation takes control of the creator Even more chilling in Neal Gabler rsquo s unspoken subtext is the suggestion that the Disney empire provides a cautionary tale for America M
Letters
Into the Richness
Kudos for selecting a beautiful piece of artwork from the award-winning and gifted Janet McKenzie for the cover of America on Feb. 19. The painting of Mary Magdalene and Jesus provoked for me such a lengthy meditation that it was quite a while before I opened the artistic door to delve into the richness of the printed word in the rest of the issue. Thank you for a wonderful beginning to Lent.
Daryl Olszewski
News
Vatican Rejects Appeal Against ExcommunicationThe Vatican’s highest court said it has no jurisdiction over a decision in March 1996 by Bishop Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Neb., that Catholics in his diocese who are members of Call to Action Nebraska and 10 other organizations were automati
Last May in Oaxaca, one of Mexico’s poorest states, members of the national teachers’ union began a strike for higher salaries, which led to an encampment in the city’s central square. The Mexican government initiated a repression of the teachers’ struggle, which then expande
Arts & CultureBooks
Two churchmen made headlines in 2006 with their comments about mandatory celibacy for Latin rite Catholic priests Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo of Zambia dropped from sight in Rome and appeared in the United States with his wife Maria Sung In July he founded Married Priests Now an association of m
Editorials
The 12 jurors responsible for deciding the fate of I. Lewis Libby Jr., former chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney, faced a perplexing task. Mr. Libby was charged with obstruction of justice, lying to federal agents and perjuring himself before a grand jury during an investigation to determ
The Word
One of the most beloved parts of the Bible is the parable of the prodigal son In the context of Luke 15 it serves to explain why Jesus spent so much time and energy on ministering to such religiously marginal persons as tax collectors and sinners While the parable can be approached from many angle
Of Many Things
Back in the 19th and early 20th centuries, when a group of like-minded individuals wanted to found a movement, they usually started by founding a magazine. The Atlantic Monthly was the brainchild of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Ralph Waldo Emerson and other Boston luminaries who wanted to create a place t
Columns
More than a quarter-century ago, the Archdiocese of Chicago embarked on what must have seemed a radical idea at the time: catechetical barhopping. Well, that’s probably a bit too glib and irreverent. But it’s also not far from the truth. The program, after all, was called Theology on Tap
Faith
Catholic tradition helps me navigate the dangerous waters of medical decision-making.
Arts & CultureBooks
De gustibus non est disputandum is a snippet of medieval wisdom mostly honored in the breach as evidenced by Michael Kammen 8217 s Visual Shock a cheerful history of more than a century and a half of arguments about art Kammen is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian of American culture and his re