Of Many Things
Is there room for civil dialogue in the comments section?
The last time Father Malone left this column in my care (4/3/17), I made an argument for reading the long form of the Gospel when the Lectionary gives us that option. Today I’m going to make an even more shocking reading recommendation: You should read the comments.
Your Take
Some of America’s top online comments from January 2020
A sampling of reader-submitted comments.
Editorials
The Editors: Congress has a duty to protect immigrants
Congress cannot continue to sit idly by while the executive branch continues to demolish our already broken immigration system. This body has been negligent for far too long in its duty to pass a fair and humane immigration reform.
Why Catholics should practice almsgiving this Lent (and every Lent)
Perhaps Catholics in the United States might redouble their efforts to give alms this Lent and to reflect in greater depth on the spiritual benefits the practice can bring.
Short Take
Ten ways to up your parish bulletin design (so people will actually read it)
Most parish bulletins look like someone’s junk drawer, writes Angelo Jesus Canta, but there are easy ways to make them more inviting to readers.
Dispatches
As tensions rise with Iran, Afghanistan becomes the longest war in U.S. history
If there is a lasting lesson to emerge from the experience of the United States in Afghanistan, it could be one shared by Ms. Cusimano Love: “It’s much easier to start a war than it is to finish it,” she said. “It’s much easier to get in than it is to achieve objectives by force.”
The Jesuit school that serves a predominantly Muslim community in Brussels
Jesuits in Belgium wanted to launch a new school that would reach less-affluent communities, but they were also keenly interested in connecting with “people from different cultural and religious backgrounds.”
A church shelter in Guatemala is threatened for assisting Central American migrants
More than 2,000 Central Americans, part of the latest migrant caravan attempting to reach the United States, passed by this Casa del Migrante as they fled a worsening situation of violence, state corruption and systemic poverty in their home nations.
Pastor executed as Boko Haram resurfaces in surge of violent attacks in Nigeria
The pastor’s murder is only the latest attacks in the West African nation. On Jan. 19, Boko Haram insurgents ambushed two separate Nigerian army patrols, killing 17, and slaughtered a bridal party on Dec. 27.
Features
How a Polish pastry reminds us we need to fast and feast, just in time for Lent
In Poland, paczki are eaten on the Thursday before Lent, but they are a Fat Tuesday tradition in Polish communities across the United States.
How should Catholics respond to fears of a climate change apocalypse?
These days, we frequently read headlines and wonder if it is already too late.
Faith in Focus
My black Catholic church was closed in the name of integration
I still feel the pain of what occurred more than 50 years ago, but the church—our church—has asked for forgiveness. I will give it another chance.
Books
Review: When politics becomes a brand
Lauren Duca counters the claim that Gen Z and millennial cohorts are detached from the political process with examples of people moved, primarily by the ascendency of Trump, to advocate for change.
Review: When grammar becomes a religion
For the title sisters in ‘The Grammarians,’ words are much more than words, and the rules that govern them must be upheld with a believer’s zeal.
Review: A wild war between zoos
J. W. Mohnhaupt’s first book, The Zookeepers’ War, is an earnest plunge into the extraordinary history behind Berlin’s competing zoos during the Cold War.
Review: Paul Mariani on why poetry sustains us
The “Catholic sacramental perspective,” as Mariani terms it, urges the poet to recognize in even “the meanest thing” some glimmer “of inestimable worth,” some sign of the Creator.
Film
‘The Cave’ Review: An oasis of hope amid Syria’s bloodshed
“The Cave” is something of a talking-dog movie: You’re astounded it exists, never mind what it has to say.
Music
We’re in the New Age of Protest Music
Several political artists were been nominated for Grammys this year, including Rhiannon Giddens, bluegrass outfit Che Apalache and Kenyan folk singer J.S. Ondara.
Theater
‘The Trojan Women’ speaks to the brutalities of war, in countries that know them all too well
Since 1975, a touring production of “The Trojan Women” staged by New York’s La MaMa Experimental Theater Club has played in more than 30 countries.
Poetry
Rising
There is a shadow swift as a rumor traveling the grass.
The Word
God’s love is unconditional. Is yours?
What does Jesus mean when he calls for perfection?
Lent reminds us that while sin and death exist, so does hope
Lent gives us an opportunity to work against temptations.
Last Take
How can our faith help how we manage our money?
A financial planner on how she uses her Catholic faith in her work.
Faith
Why Catholics should practice almsgiving this Lent (and every Lent)
Perhaps Catholics in the United States might redouble their efforts to give alms this Lent and to reflect in greater depth on the spiritual benefits the practice can bring.
How a Polish pastry reminds us we need to fast and feast, just in time for Lent
In Poland, paczki are eaten on the Thursday before Lent, but they are a Fat Tuesday tradition in Polish communities across the United States.
How should Catholics respond to fears of a climate change apocalypse?
These days, we frequently read headlines and wonder if it is already too late.
My black Catholic church was closed in the name of integration
I still feel the pain of what occurred more than 50 years ago, but the church—our church—has asked for forgiveness. I will give it another chance.
How can our faith help how we manage our money?
A financial planner on how she uses her Catholic faith in her work.
God’s love is unconditional. Is yours?
What does Jesus mean when he calls for perfection?
Lent reminds us that while sin and death exist, so does hope
Lent gives us an opportunity to work against temptations.
Ten ways to up your parish bulletin design (so people will actually read it)
Most parish bulletins look like someone’s junk drawer, writes Angelo Jesus Canta, but there are easy ways to make them more inviting to readers.
Politics
Faith
Culture
Vatican
Scripture
Podcasts