From Nietzsche and Heidegger to Charles Taylor, Dostoevsky and the Gospels, one believer’s journey to faith.
Features
Posted inFaith, Features
The joy and the pain of being a Catholic foster parent
If foster care works as it is designed to, that sacrifice will lead to goodbyes. The tension can be brutal. It’s also profoundly Christlike.
Posted inFaith, Features
Pope Francis’ Argentina: Lessons for the global church from the pope’s homeland
A trip to Argentina shows not only Francis’ legacy here, but also the model of ministry that shaped him.
Posted inFaith, Features
Lay volunteers are often the backbone of Catholic parishes. But they need support, too.
External realities are complicating the traditional structures on which parishes have relied for decades.
Posted inFaith, Features
Contemplative caretaking: What mothers like me can learn from monastic life
Is it possible to be a contemplative caretaker?
Posted inFeatures, Politics & Society
A lesson from Punxsutawney: The United States will always be divided—and that’s O.K.
With Pennsylvania widely considered the most crucial of the seven 2024 swing states and America feeling stuck in a winter of discord haunted by the specter of political violence, I decided to report on the election from Punxsutawney.
Posted inFaith, Features
‘Let justice prevail’: Biblical prophets’ lessons for modern life
Here are five qualities that today’s prophetic voices share with our predecessors.
Posted inFaith, Features
Vatican II—and its media coverage—has a lesson for today’s synod: Don’t expect immediate results
A look back at the Second Vatican Council through the coverage offered by America and Commonweal offers two lessons: First, we should not expect the journey of the church after the Synod on Synodality to be smooth sailing. Second, the church is very much capable of getting through such turmoil, and emerging stronger from it.
Posted inFaith, Features
The future of single-sex Catholic education: Can a traditional model thrive in the 21st century?
Although critics might argue single-sex schools are a relic of the past, the people I spoke with argued that single-sex Catholic schools are uniquely poised to help their students navigate ideas of service, gender, equality and faith in our world today.
Posted inFaith, Features
Catholic disability ministry is personal to me. Here’s where it’s thriving today—and where it still needs to grow.
People with intellectual and developmental disabilities have a part to play in the church’s work.