Of Many Things
The real bubble protects elected officials
There is a bubble in American politics, but it is not separating Democratic and Republican voters; it is keeping political leaders of both parties from hearing the voices outside Washington.
Your Take
Shushed, scolded, and welcomed: Our readers tell us how kids are treated in their parishes
Seventy-two percent of our reader sample told America that, for good or ill, the way their children were welcomed had a critical effect on their own relationship with their parish.
The Letters
As a pro-life Democrat, I think the Democratic Party could become strong again if it would not insist that all the people who call themselves Democrats be pro-choice without exception.
Editorials
A lesson from Pope Francis: Evangelizing through pastoral accompaniment
Even though it is no longer a surprise, Pope Francis still makes news with his direct pastoral ministry, as he did in May, going door-to-door to bless homes in a public housing complex in the Roman suburbs.
The Editors: Trump’s budget pays for defense by weakening the social safety net
The U.S. bishops have raised some serious concerns about what this proposal says about our national values.
Short Take
As gay men are detained and killed in Chechnya, the Kremlin is slow to respond
The violence is brutal, the cruelty extreme and the anti-gay hostility extremely virulent.
Dispatches
Sister Carol Keehan: G.O.P. health care plan ‘cannot be fixed’
Congress is asking the nation to make “immoral choices,” said Sister Keehan, the president of the Catholic Health Association.
Cardinal Tobin urges solidarity with people facing deportation as immigration arrests spike
“They could bring nearly 12 million people out of the shadows, if they wanted to,” Cardinal Tobin said. “This isn’t about border security. It’s about being attentive to the reality of people who are already in our communities.”
Is statehood a way out of Puerto Rico’s fiscal crisis?
“Puerto Rico’s problem is that it’s an island of U.S. citizens who don’t have citizens’ rights—to vote in U.S. elections or have voting representatives in Congress.”
For French Catholics, the political future has more questions than answers
The Macron-Le Pen face-off posed a singular challenge to any Catholic trying to make a faith-informed vote.
Features
Why is the A.C.L.U. targeting Catholic hospitals?
Though the A.C.L.U. has not won in the courtroom so far, there is every indication these challenges will keep coming.
Why Democrats and Republicans (still) cannot agree on health care reform
The Affordable Care Act has changed our expectations for health care. It shifted the way we live, which may be shifting what we believe.
When the sick and marginalized are left behind, it’s Catholic health care providers who bring hope.
Those serving the homeless and other marginalized communities are living the pope’s vision of the church as a spiritual field hospital.
Faith in Focus
My son’s gift of organ donation taught me death is not the last word.
Christopher’s death gave five people the chance to live.
Ideas
What “S-Town” gets wrong about life in rural America
“S-Town” borders on being another American “poverty tour,” which rarely benefits those who are on display.
Books
Terry Eagleton: a man of many commitments
After over 40 books Eagleton’s work is still provocative, learned and captivating.
Is the American gun industry an amoral enterprise?
The Gunning of America points the problem of violence back on the gun industry.
A domestic whodunit
Barbara Curtin Miles reviews “The Loving Husband” by Christobel Kent.
Is democratic policing the answer to law enforcement abuses?
If we expect law enforcement personnel to do their jobs properly, radical change is necessary.
Television
In Netflix’s “The Keepers,” a nun’s unsolved murder tears apart a Catholic community
Sister Cathy Cesnik went missing one night in 1969. The case remains unsolved.
“Anne of Green Gables” becomes a gothic nightmare in Netflix’s “Anne With an E”
The new adaptation of “Anne of Green Gables” falls prey to the war on whimsy, the tired modern tactic of reworking the classics in order to make them “realistic.”
Poetry
Music Is Life and Life Is Poetry
Br. Joseph Hoover, S.J. reflects on this year’s Foley Poetry Contest.
The Rio Grande (South)
The editors of America are pleased to present the winner of the 2017 Foley Poetry Award.
The Word
A Life of Boldness
The fearless, risky speech of Jeremiah and Jesus is both an example and a command to the church throughout time.
Becoming the Body of Christ
Jesus’ body was a place of action. In his body, Jesus healed, fed, forgave, called and taught.
Last Take
Healing with God: Prayer helps both patients and caregivers face an uncertain future
Through prayer, we are able to talk over challenges and frustrations that are inherent in our health care environment while also understanding that knowing God is an incredible privilege.
Faith
A Life of Boldness
The fearless, risky speech of Jeremiah and Jesus is both an example and a command to the church throughout time.
Becoming the Body of Christ
Jesus’ body was a place of action. In his body, Jesus healed, fed, forgave, called and taught.
Shushed, scolded, and welcomed: Our readers tell us how kids are treated in their parishes
Seventy-two percent of our reader sample told America that, for good or ill, the way their children were welcomed had a critical effect on their own relationship with their parish.
A lesson from Pope Francis: Evangelizing through pastoral accompaniment
Even though it is no longer a surprise, Pope Francis still makes news with his direct pastoral ministry, as he did in May, going door-to-door to bless homes in a public housing complex in the Roman suburbs.
My son’s gift of organ donation taught me death is not the last word.
Christopher’s death gave five people the chance to live.
Magazine
The Letters
As a pro-life Democrat, I think the Democratic Party could become strong again if it would not insist that all the people who call themselves Democrats be pro-choice without exception.
Politics
Faith
Culture
Vatican
Scripture
Podcasts