Whether one agrees with the specific conclusions of the author or not one has to admit that the book delivers on the promise of its subtitle In readable dispassionate language which is itself highly unusual for a book on this topic the author takes the reader through the major issues of the c

Outcry on Cloning and Prenatal SelectionThe Vatican condemned the cloning of human embryos by U.S. scientists, rejecting claims that the research produced simple cells and not human individuals. Despite the scientists’ stated humanitarian aims, the research represents a new form of discriminat

In the summer of 1961 I asked the proprietor of a Catholic bookstore in Paris whether he had a copy of Yves Congar rsquo s True and False Reform in the Church After looking around he took me into a back office and from a bottom drawer pulled out a copy of the book Only later did I learn the moti

Contemporary Catholics find it difficult to articulate the relationship between their faith and their political commitments. When it comes to the traditional left-right spectrum, the body of social teaching developed by the church on the death penalty, abortion, the economy, the family, welfare and

The pastoral message Living With Faith and Hope After September 11, which the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued during its meeting in mid-November in Washington, D.C., promises to be a landmark document. It certainly provides inspiring material for preaching in the months ahead, as

Trappists in South Carolina Open New Library to the Ecumenical CommunityOn Sunday, Nov. 11, the Trappist community at Mepkin Abbey, outside Charleston, S.C., dedicated the new Clare Boothe Luce Library. Located near the burial site of the Congresswoman, ambassador, journalist and playwright, the $3

In the summer of 1219, Francis of Assisi traveled to Egypt with the hope of converting the Saracens from Islam to Christianity. He stayed with some crusaders, who told him his mission was impossible and could easily cost him his life. Francis ignored the warnings and managed to secure an audience wi

Vatican Says It Is Time to End Nuclear Weapons Tests The Vatican nuncio to the United Nations said on Nov. 11 that the time has come for the world to end all nuclear weapons testing. Archbishop Renato R. Martino made his statement in support of efforts to secure approval of the Comprehensive Nuclear

It was 1998 the Welfare Reform Bill had just passed and the writer Barbara Ehrenreich wanted to know how the four million women about to be booted into the labor market were going to make it on 6 or 7 an hour When the question came up over lunch with Harper rsquo s editor Lewis Lapham she sugge