Blessed Is She

It was on a balmy day in early autumn, some 20 years ago, that I was privileged to meet Mother Teresa personally. She was in the United States making visitations to some of her Missionaries of Charity communities. At this particular time she was at their house on 145th Street in the South Bronx. Act

by Patricia A. Kossmann

Clash-Talk

As uncertainty and anxiety over global political, social and economic instability rise, so does the quest for the intellectual equivalent of comfort food. Conspiracy theory, reductionist interpretations of history and sweeping demonizations of whole ethnic and religious communities—in short, b

by John Renard

Vatican II and American Politics

During much of our history as a nation, many Americans wondered what their Catholic neighbors would do if someday they became the majority of the population. Would the teaching of their church require them to declare Catholicism the official religion of the country and to limit the religious freedom

by Thomas J. Shelley

Of Many Things

Movies have long been one of my passions, but considering the ticket prices—an average of $10—first-run films in New York City seldom find me in their audiences. As a child, I rarely missed the Saturday features at my hometown’s sole theater, the Milo, located across from the court

by George M. Anderson

Letters

Sisters Still Say…

As the chaplain at a large motherhouse of Dominican sisters, many of whom are elderly and infirm, I write to thank you for the extraordinary editorial Valiant Women (9/22).

It is a magnificent and well-deserved tribute to all sisters everywhere to whom the church in our country is so indebted. In the name of…

by Our readers

Editorials

Rape as a War Crime

Ethnic and regional wars, especially over the past two decades in Africa and the Balkans, have brought with them death and destruction on a massive scale. But these same destructive forces have also taken the form of widespread sexual violence as a deliberate strategy. In Sierra Leone, rape has been

by The Editors

Books

Source of Salvation

If you are looking for a concise and clear introduction to Christology look no further Like the fine teacher he must be as professor of theological studies and department chair at Loyola Marymount Los Angeles Thomas P Rausch S J uses the work of many scholars to wrestle with the question W

by Denise Lardner Carmody

Literary Road Map

If she rsquo s not careful Susan Wise Bauer will wind up a guru on PBS Her maiden name doesn rsquo t hurt her chances but neither do her ideas which are both erudite and down-to-earth wise yet in touch with the commonplace If she talks the way she writeswith spark and flair but also…

by Tom O

A Bridge Crossed

The Inner Experience is a significant addition to Thomas Merton rsquo s 1915-68 books in print In this text Merton the most prolific and widely read Christian spiritual author of the 20th century gives an orderly approach to his thought on contemplation available in no other text Further the

by Richard J. Hauser

150 Reasons to Reform

Is there a high school student in the United States who does not know the story of the Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire Thirty years ago the answer would have been obvious and emphatic No The terrible tale of the disaster that took place in a relatively few minutes on March 25 1911 was part of

by Terry Golway

Through an Urban Lens

Woody Allen has never been in the Spielberg or Lucas class of popularity with American audiences yet the critical literature surrounding the artist and his work continues to grow beyond any correlation to his box-office numbers With the possible exception of Hitchcock Allen may be the most scruti

by Richard A. Blake

Television

God and the New Fall Shows

This year the question of which new fall shows to review proves unusually easy. For two new series feature a character familiar to readers of this magazine: God. In CBS’s wonderfully inventive new drama Joan of Arcadia (Friday, 8-9 p.m. ET), the teenage Joan, daughter of the local police chief

by James Martin, S.J.