Exclusive: Martin Scorsese discusses his faith, his struggles, his films and “Silence.”
An exclusive interview with James Martin, S.J. and Martin Scorsese, the director of “Silence.”
Why has Chicago failed to honor the grave of Emmet Till?
After one of my own teenage students was murdered, Emmett Till’s grave became a place of occasional pilgrimage for me.
Of Many Things
Remembering the Jesuit who paved the way for Pope Francis
The Jesuits had lost their way, some thought, especially in Latin America, where the sons of Ignatius had embraced liberation theology.
Letters
Reply All: What our readers are saying
Follow what our readers have to say about our articles.
Editorials
Celebrating Christmas isn’t always easy. That’s the point.
To those who lived in that world of fear, it must have seemed absurd that an infant would be the answer to their fear.
Faith in Focus
I had given up on prayer. Depression taught me how much I needed it.
Without the weeks I spent easing back into prayer, I would not be alive today.
Books
Politics with vigilance, not vitriol: Heeding Cathleen Kaveny’s call
The brutal and bruising campaign of 2016 is finally behind us, but Kaveny’s call for a politics infused with vigilance, not vitriol, has by no means outlived its usefulness.
Too often the history of El Salvador’s civil war lets the United States off too easily
For some, El Salvador was a shameful episode, in which Washington backed the perpetrators of a death squad bloodbath in a failed attempt to militarily defeat a homegrown leftist insurgency.
America’s love-hate relationship with the nuclear bomb
This is not a history we Americans like to ponder.
Television
How ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ continues to defy common sense
Today the chances of selling a Christian-themed, anti-commercialism Christmas special would seem just as slim as they were in the 1960s.
Poetry
Adoration of the Christ Child: Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen, c. 1515
Sometimes it’s not the infant’s holy face that awes us
The Word
Keep and Ponder
Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart (Lk 2:19)
How to fulfill your Christmas duty
Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy! (Lk 2:10)
Columns
After a dispiriting election, accepting our not-so-greatness might be a saving grace
At the end of this election year, a time for silence seems sorely needed.
Current Comment
Social media: How social media helps us connect
Like any technology, it depends on how we use it.
The United States has a special obligation to take risks for refugees
No civilized society can remain indifferent to the clear suffering of so many at this time.
Trump has been fuzzy with data. That’s a problem when society relies on trustworthy data from its government.
One of the signs of a functioning democracy is confidence in data from the government.
Faith
Keep and Ponder
Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart (Lk 2:19)
How to fulfill your Christmas duty
Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy! (Lk 2:10)
An American Martyr
Pope Francis has recognized the martyrdom of the Rev. Stanley Rother of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, making him the first martyr born in the United States and clearing the way for his beatification. The Vatican made the announcement on Dec. 2. Father Rother, born March 27, 1935, on his family&r
Pope Francis: There will be no ‘reform of the reform’ of the liturgy.
Pope Francis: “At times, I find myself in front of persons who are very rigid. And I ask myself: How come such rigidity?”
A new standard for teachers: Are they respectful, tolerant and open to diversity?
Courage can erupt in the most unexpected corners.
Celebrating Christmas isn’t always easy. That’s the point.
To those who lived in that world of fear, it must have seemed absurd that an infant would be the answer to their fear.
I had given up on prayer. Depression taught me how much I needed it.
Without the weeks I spent easing back into prayer, I would not be alive today.
Remembering the Jesuit who paved the way for Pope Francis
The Jesuits had lost their way, some thought, especially in Latin America, where the sons of Ignatius had embraced liberation theology.
Jesuits: Models of reconciliation for a world in need of mercy
In a world of conflict, deeply in need of the mercy frequently implored by Pope Francis, Jesuits can be agents of reconciliation and dialogue, the Society’s new superior general said in an exclusive interview with America.Arturo Sosa, S.J., elected on Oct. 14 superior general for the Society o
Philosopher's Notebook
A new standard for teachers: Are they respectful, tolerant and open to diversity?
Courage can erupt in the most unexpected corners.
Signs Of the Times
A pledge to protect ‘Dreamers’
Presidents of 27 Jesuit colleges and universities pledged themselves to “protect to the fullest extent of the law undocumented students on our campuses” and to “promote retention of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program” in a statement released on Nov. 30. The pr
Post-Castro Church
Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami was one of the first Catholic Church officials to respond on Nov. 26 after the death of Fidel Castro. “The death of this figure should lead us to invoke the patroness of Cuba, the Virgin of Charity, calling for peace for Cuba and its people,” he said
An American Martyr
Pope Francis has recognized the martyrdom of the Rev. Stanley Rother of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, making him the first martyr born in the United States and clearing the way for his beatification. The Vatican made the announcement on Dec. 2. Father Rother, born March 27, 1935, on his family&r
Iraq Devastation
The Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan said he was horrified to see widespread devastation and what he called “ghost towns” during a recent visit to northern Iraq. He said by email that there was little left in some of the communities that he toured on Nov. 27-29 and that
News Briefs
Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S.J., who served from 1983 to 2008 as the 29th Superior General of the Society of Jesus, died in Beirut, Lebanon, on Nov. 26, just four days shy of his 88th birthday. • In a report released on Nov. 30, Caritas Europa charged that austerity policies have left 120 million p
Hidden homelessness spikes in a high rent New York
New Yorkers can be forgiven if they believed homelessness were a problem consigned to the past.
Jesuits: Models of reconciliation for a world in need of mercy
In a world of conflict, deeply in need of the mercy frequently implored by Pope Francis, Jesuits can be agents of reconciliation and dialogue, the Society’s new superior general said in an exclusive interview with America.Arturo Sosa, S.J., elected on Oct. 14 superior general for the Society o
Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis: There will be no ‘reform of the reform’ of the liturgy.
Pope Francis: “At times, I find myself in front of persons who are very rigid. And I ask myself: How come such rigidity?”
Politics
Faith
Culture
Vatican
Scripture
Podcasts