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Sam Sawyer, S.J.
Sam Sawyer, S.J., is the editor in chief of America Media.
Posted inExplainer, Faith
Explainer: Why the Eucharist is confusing for many Catholics (and survey researchers)
Do Catholics truly believe in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the sacrament of the Eucharist? A recent survey says most don’t…but it’s complicated.
Posted inFaith, Short Take
U.S. bishops must address the crisis of pastoral courage
After a year of crisis, the U.S. bishops are still failing to respond adequately to the people they serve, writes Sam Sawyer, S.J.
Posted inNews Analysis, Politics & Society
How Trump is able to exploit the abortion issue, and why that’s bad for everyone
President Trump is leveraging the failure of the pro-choice movement to acknowledge Americans’ moral qualms about abortion.
Posted inExplainer, Politics & Society
Explainer: What New York’s new abortion law does and doesn’t do
Pro-life advocates argue that the New York law allows the most extreme forms of abortion. Pro-choice advocates respond that late-term abortions are rare and complicated. Both sides are right.
Posted inFaith, Short Take
How pastoral failures in communication are provoking a crisis of faith
The tragedy of the last week is that the faithful are left to read tea leaves to understand what their bishops and their pope are trying to do in the first place. The Vatican’s action, which in the past could have been interpreted and explained over time, instead provokes a crisis of faith in church leadership.
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
We must place our hope not with power or authority, but with abuse survivors
On the Feast of the Assumption and following more revelations of sexual abuse, a priest reflects on the hard work required for the church to “come to perfection.”
Posted inLast Take, Politics & Society
Would Jesus eat with Sarah Sanders?
The way Jesus used table fellowship in the Gospels was morally transformative—but by inclusion, not by exclusion.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Jesuit students inspired to protect life “from womb to tomb” at March for Life
Some students had reservations about politicians whose pro-life commitment was too narrow.
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
What does it mean to love our enemies in the abortion debate?
The Gospel we heard today is a tactical trainwreck. It tells us to offer no resistance to enemies and love them instead.