Cloning, by Whatever Name, Smells Bad
In this column I want to make three points. First, various state initiatives are rushing to fund embryonic stem cell research and therapeutic cloning. Second, the naughty word cloning is avoided, even though it is in fact the procedure described by the sanitized locution somatic cell nuclear transfe
Pushed to the Periphery
Christianity has a rich cultural seam in the Middle East. On the first Pentecost, when the disciples were blessed with tongues to tell the good news, one of the languages spoken was Arabic. So successful was the spread of Christianity across a region that now includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Palestine
The Ecumenical Landscape
"I take on as my primary task the duty to work tirelessly to rebuild the full and visible unity of all Christ’s followers,” said Benedict XVI in his first message after being elected. Primary task, one might well ask? Is this primary task of full, visible Christian unity something t
Of Many Things
Of Many Things
Backpacks did not figure in my life as a child. At school in Maryland, most students either carried their books in simple satchels of various sizes and shapes made of imitation leather or, in high school, symmetrically arranged on three-ring binders balanced against the hip. Even when theology studi
Letters
Letters
Get It?
I’ve been smiling off and on ever since I read Timothy Hanchin’s article, Messianic or Bourgeois? (5/8), about the young men who shortened man for others into the catch phrase M.F.O. Unlike Mr. Hanchin, I think this is something that should cause rejoicing, not concern. When I coordinated adult initiation groups, I told the…
Editorials
Toward More Intelligent Intelligence
The need to expand and better integrate the resources of the U.S. intelligence community was one of the central recommendations of the admirably bipartisan 9/11 commission. With the close of the cold war, Congress had reduced the resources available to the Central Intelligence Agency, as the traditi
Faith in Focus
Prayer and Pain
For almost five years now (since I was a young 74), I have entertained a friend who entered my life unexpectedly: daily physical pain. I am a diabetic, which is not painful in itself, but I eventually developed a condition known as neuropathy. In my case it causes continual pain in the bottom of my
Books
Religion and Policy
Religious faith exerts a powerful influence on life in the United States and throughout the world The Center for Moral Clarity established and operated by the Rev Rod Parsley of Columbus Ohio–one of 10 outreaches of his World Harvest Church–advocates against abortion pornography and same-sex m
And Proud of It
The authors of this book set out to correct what they describe as a widespread American perception that in effect Islam treats women at best as second-class citizens To counter this notion they cite the testimony of women in the United States who are eager to assert their identity as Muslims Th
Film
Broken Code: The Da Vinci Code
In all probability more people have read Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code in its Farsi translation than have read all my publications put together. No wonder. It is splendid junk, and I mean that as a positive remark, sort of. Brown has a flawless sense of his genre, and the book delivers exactly
Poetry
Grief
For the woman who died Tuesday of raging cancer and left two children.
The Word
Who Then Is This?
Today we rejoin Ordinary Time in the Sunday Lectionary cycle The reading from Mark rsquo s Gospel describes Jesus stilling a storm on the Sea of Galilee He and his disciples some of them professional fishermen are traveling by boat from their home base on the western shore to the eastern shore w
The Generosity of Jesus
In both narratives an inadequate understanding of Jesus’ power leads to a dramatic manifestation of his generosity.
Current Comment
Current Comment
A German Pope at AuschwitzAt the close of Pope Benedict XVI’s prayers at the concentration camps of Auschwitz-Birkenau, in Poland, storm clouds overhead gave way to sunshine and, improbably, a rainbow appeared.Unlike his predecessor, Benedict is not much of a world traveller. He has taken only
Faith
The Generosity of Jesus
In both narratives an inadequate understanding of Jesus’ power leads to a dramatic manifestation of his generosity.
News
Signs of the Times
U.S. Bishops to Vote on New Translation of MassThe U.S. bishops will be asked to approve a new translation of the Order of Mass when they meet in Los Angeles on June 15-17. If the new translation is adopted as proposed and subsequently approved by the Vatican, Catholics will have to learn a number o
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Culture
Vatican
Scripture
Podcasts