This is not the year—or the Christmas—we wanted. But God is still with us, and we can still reach out to our neighbors.
Jack Bentz, S.J.
Jack Bentz, S.J., lives in the Bronx and works with the Jesuit Conference.
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Dear fellow Catholics: As churches reopen, let’s not go back to the old ‘normal’
Did the old “normal” way of doing things exhaust all possibilities for communal celebration? Is that what we want to return to, even if doing so were possible?
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The best advice I can offer new priests
Yes, your life is focused on God but centered by the people God gives you to serve.
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How parishes can turn ‘Christmas Catholics’ into regular Massgoers
Christmas is the chance to welcome the stranger; to be the good innkeeper and not the bad one.
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So your pastor can’t preach. Now what?
Instead of skipping Mass, try these resources as a complement (not a substitute) to the homily.
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Vacation is a pro-life issue
Jesus would have definitely taken his paid days of vacation—all of them.
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The case for sending Jesuits to public universities
The Catholic student center at Boise State is not all things to all students. Rather, we are one thing to all students.
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Dear reluctant Mass-goers: You are the one your parish is waiting for.
The choice is yours: Will you be a church consumer or an investor in your parish?
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Was Pope Francis right to tell a child his atheist dad may be in heaven?
Francis showed us how to risk simply embracing the hurting world. No explaining, just loving.
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Dear regular Mass-goers: The seats at the end of the pew aren’t for you
I was raised Catholic. I know the strategy. The first-class seats are at the end of the pew.