Dodging Faiths Call
Sometimes a pope, a bishop or a national conference of bishops will issue a challenging statement on a matter of public policy. Topics like capital punishment, abortion, economic justice and the pre-emptive use of military force come readily to mind. Those who object to such interventions by religio
Bankruptcy Defeats
On Dec. 30, 2005, the Archdiocese of Portland, Ore., headed by Archbishop John Vlazny, lost an important preliminary round in its bankruptcy case. The diocese now finds itself facing hard choices, as does Spokane’s Bishop William Skylstad and his diocese, which suffered a major legal defeat in
A Voice for Peace in Northern Uganda: An Interview With John Baptist Odama
How and why did the massive displacement of almost two million people into camps begin? The government’s forced displacement of most of the population of northern Uganda from the villages in my area, the Gulu Province, began in 1996. It was intended as a way to isolate the rebels—es
Visible Means of Support?
Those bright yellow magnets are everywhere: Support Our Troops. Tiny arms looped like an embrace or hands joined in prayer. It’s a simple image and such an appealing one, and yet whenever I see it I get angry.Each day I see the death toll as I read my online newspaper, and sometimes I visit th
Of Many Things
Of Many Things
For as long as I can remember, a nearly two-foot-tall statue of the Sacred Heart has stood atop my mother’s bedroom dresser. I occasionally wondered whether there was a story to go with it, but never asked. It seemed odd to this child that people would place such a statue in their home. A rect
Letters
Letters
How to Help
I loved the editorial, The Meanest Cities (3/6). It reminded me of when I was stationed in New York City during one of the coldest periods in history and Mayor Edward Koch challenged the churches and synagogues to allow the homeless to sleep in these sacred places. When the churches and synagogues tried…
Editorials
Measuring Catholic Identity
The publication in 1990 of the apostolic constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae has been the inspiration for continuing conversation within the Catholic higher education community in the United States. The leadership of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities and its member institutions have
Features
Dialogue and Democracy
The Catholic Church is not, as many old hands in the Vatican are quick to say, a democracy. But that quick judgment may arise in part because those old hands have not sufficiently come to terms with modern democracy itself. The chapter titled Political Community in the Vatican’s recently publi
Faith in Focus
Almsgiving
It was a fascinating little church, tucked away in the back streets of Toronto. The guide pointed out with pride the frescoes and the stained glass windows of this hidden jewel. We arrived at a three-panelled window right at the back of the building. This is Faith, Hope and Charity,’ she said,
Books
Pilgrim’s Progress?
Once upon a time all Francophones were taught to write clearly and distinctly la Descartes nowadays it seems they are trying their best to write obscurely la Michel Foucault And Abdellah Hammoudi a Morocco-born Princeton anthropologist with a Ph D from the Sorbonne 1977 succeeds onl
Better Not to Believe?
As if religion did not have enough problems Sam Harris in The End of Faith condemns the three great Abrahamic religions as the cause of violence and war in the world A little shocking and indeed offensive to people who try to get through life rsquo s daily trials in a moral and faith-filled way…
The Word
The New Covenant
All our eucharistic prayers contain the phrase ldquo the blood of the new and everlasting covenant rdquo as part of the words of consecration As the sacrament of our ongoing relationship with God through Christ the Eucharist stands in the tradition of the meals at which ancient covenants were ra
Culture
Meet Jean Mambrino
Old age should burn and rave at close of day,” screamed Dylan Thomas, but he was only 37. W. B. Yeats’s “Old Pensioner” “spit into the face of Time/ That has transfigured me,” but Yeats was just 27. Shakespeare, dying at 52, knew better: his Lear and Prospero, in
Current Comment
Current Comment
Fresh Canadian AirThe Canadian Religious Conference, which represents more than 200 orders of men and women, in January presented to the bishops of Canada an exhaustive analysis of the situation of the church in that country. They outlined points of satisfaction and regret, and provided a wish-list
News
Signs of the Times
Conscience Must Concur With Moral PrinciplesResponding to a recent statement by Catholic Democrats in the House of Representatives affirming the primacy of conscience in their voting decisions, three key leaders of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said conscience must be consistent with funda
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Podcasts