Of Many Things
The plague of sexual abuse is worse than you think.
If things are this bad within the church, how bad is it in our homes and neighborhoods?
Letters
The Letters
“Catholic teachings would object to the dehumanization that comes from determining value by faceless market processes.”
Your Take
How has the current sexual abuse crisis challenged your faith?
“My faith in Jesus Christ is unchanged. I pray for the church and the bishops. I truly want there to be zero tolerance for abusers in the church and zero tolerance for those that enable and condone abusive behaviors.”
Editorials
A crisis that is far from over: how the church can respond to sexual abuse
The editors offer a few key steps for leaders of the church to take in response to the Pa. grand jury report.
Short Take
Three steps for more civil political debate in the Trump era
Since the 2016 election, many have simply stopped trying to understand those with whom they disagree. But we can discuss politics if we ask fair questions and listen, then listen some more.
Dispatches
Religious freedom around the world under siege; Christian persecution is especially acute
Several watchdog groups say that religious freedom around the world is taking a beating, and the Catholic pastoral group Aid to the Church in Need says the persecution of Christians is “today worse than at any time in history.”
Cardinal DiNardo announces plan to address ‘moral catastrophe’ of abuse
“Two weeks ago, I shared with you my sadness, anger, and shame over the recent revelations concerning Archbishop Theodore McCarrick,” the cardinal said. “Those sentiments continue and are deepened in view of the Pennsylvania grand jury report.”
Argentine Senate rejects legalizing elective abortion
A grassroots movement came closer than ever to achieving the decriminalization of the procedure in the homeland of Pope Francis.
The church should rid its supply chains of links to modern slavery, says former Vatican ambassador
Forty million worldwide are believed to be caught in a trap of forced labor, including many millions who work in manufacturing, assembly, agriculture and food services.
Is there a sexual abuse reckoning coming for the Latino church?
“For Hispanics, whatever the priest says goes. But that’s not right. The priest is not God. Nobody is above God.”
Features
How Latin America influenced the entire Catholic Church
Medellín would be the first and perhaps one of the most successful exercises of appropriation of the Second Vatican Council at the continental level.
How a city and church in Texas are rebuilding one year after Hurricane Harvey
Hurricane Harvey took a toll on all Houstonians—rich and poor, white and brown, city and suburb—but this boomtown proud of its diversity is getting back on track.
Faith in Focus
When “Catholic guilt” gets in the way of Catholic faith
Taken to the extreme, ‘Catholic guilt’ can become an obsessive-compulsive disorder, also known as scrupulosity.
Ideas
Rediscovering the Bible via iPhone apps
I probably wouldn’t be reading the Bible as regularly or as attentively without the help of Streetlights Bible and Our Bible.
Books
Review: Three Cubs blaze a trail
Made famous in poetry, the iconic infield of the Chicago Cubs a century ago helped usher in baseball’s golden age.
Review: The church does diplomacy
A. Alexander Stummvoll’s new book is crucially important because until now, religion has been “the missing dimension in statecraft.”
From fire to fusion: the story of a species
Energy succeeds as a descriptive tome that lays out numerous historical, biographical and mechanical intricacies of energy innovation in England and the United States and thus deepens readers’ understanding of forces that have shaped the modern world.
John Irving wrestles with religious themes new and old
One of the leading novelists of our age on faith, fiction and his distrust of religious institutions.
Is this the end of classic rock?
Steven Hyden says he is not a religious person, but he is fervently devoted to the music that he grew up with.
Theater
Review: Leonard Bernstein’s liturgy for the world
With his “Mass,” Leonard Bernstein uses liturgy to give voice to political unease.
Poetry
Grassy Branch Pentecostal Church Electric Oscillating Fan
sweat, dark circles, the men damp, the women damp, a trace of Ivory soap,
The Word
How has Jesus restored your voice?
Jesus restores the perception and voice of many.
If you want to follow Christ, you must first accept a cross
A crucial text in the divine “rescue mission” Mark outlines in his Gospel
Last Take
What’s the answer to millennial fears? Trusting Jesus.
The closer you are to Christ, the more confidently you can trust your instincts.
Faith
Religious freedom around the world under siege; Christian persecution is especially acute
Several watchdog groups say that religious freedom around the world is taking a beating, and the Catholic pastoral group Aid to the Church in Need says the persecution of Christians is “today worse than at any time in history.”
How has the current sexual abuse crisis challenged your faith?
“My faith in Jesus Christ is unchanged. I pray for the church and the bishops. I truly want there to be zero tolerance for abusers in the church and zero tolerance for those that enable and condone abusive behaviors.”
How has Jesus restored your voice?
Jesus restores the perception and voice of many.
If you want to follow Christ, you must first accept a cross
A crucial text in the divine “rescue mission” Mark outlines in his Gospel
What’s the answer to millennial fears? Trusting Jesus.
The closer you are to Christ, the more confidently you can trust your instincts.
How Latin America influenced the entire Catholic Church
Medellín would be the first and perhaps one of the most successful exercises of appropriation of the Second Vatican Council at the continental level.
The plague of sexual abuse is worse than you think.
If things are this bad within the church, how bad is it in our homes and neighborhoods?
A crisis that is far from over: how the church can respond to sexual abuse
The editors offer a few key steps for leaders of the church to take in response to the Pa. grand jury report.
Cardinal DiNardo announces plan to address ‘moral catastrophe’ of abuse
“Two weeks ago, I shared with you my sadness, anger, and shame over the recent revelations concerning Archbishop Theodore McCarrick,” the cardinal said. “Those sentiments continue and are deepened in view of the Pennsylvania grand jury report.”
Is there a sexual abuse reckoning coming for the Latino church?
“For Hispanics, whatever the priest says goes. But that’s not right. The priest is not God. Nobody is above God.”
Review: Leonard Bernstein’s liturgy for the world
With his “Mass,” Leonard Bernstein uses liturgy to give voice to political unease.
When “Catholic guilt” gets in the way of Catholic faith
Taken to the extreme, ‘Catholic guilt’ can become an obsessive-compulsive disorder, also known as scrupulosity.
Magazine
The Letters
“Catholic teachings would object to the dehumanization that comes from determining value by faceless market processes.”
Politics
Faith
Culture
Vatican
Scripture
Podcasts