In Cardinal Medina’s letter replying to the article by Bishop Donald Trautman, "Rome and ICEL" (3/4), there are some things that are new and some that are true; but not everything that is new is true and not everything that is true is new. It is new, for example, when a Roman dicaste

Effective CompositionAs a retired art teacher, artist and curator, I find the America covers creative and thought-provoking. I especially liked the collage that graced the March 25 issue, on Anti-Catholicism in the United States.Each cover is a work of artcommunicating a message as well as being an

Russian President Meets Pope, Does Not Extend InvitationOn his first official visit to Western Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican on June 5 about the ongoing need to bring Western and Eastern Europe closer together. However, during the meeting Putin

What would be a theologically sound, spiritually empowering and ethically challenging theology of Mary, mother of Jesus the Christ, for the 21st century?

Two provocative offerings in this week’s issue deserve particular attention, not only in light of their authorship, but also because of the importance of their message for the universal church. The first is this year’s John Courtney Murray lecture, delivered by Elizabeth A. Johnson, C.S.

While playing with his little brother next to their home in Quang Tri province, Giang, five at the time, picked up an explosive device. It detonated. His three-year-old brother was killed instantaneously. Giang lost a hand and an eye and still has several pieces of shrapnel embedded in his body. He

Professors Rodney Stark and Roger Finke, who teach sociology at the University of Washington and Purdue University respectively, think the Catholic Church will suffer membership reverses characteristic of mainline Protestant denominations. The two professors offered the following observations on the

In December 1998 the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published a remarkable document titled "Reflections on the Primacy of Peter" (hereafter "Reflections"; see Origins, 1/28/99). At the outset, "Reflections" states that popes should exercise their authority &

More than 2,500 years ago the Greek historian Herodotus observed that if anyone were given the opportunity of choosing from among all the nations of the world the best set of beliefs, he would inevitably choose those of his own country. Herodotus further asserted that everyone believes his own nativ

The day after Cardinal O’Connor’s death I received a package delivered by U.P.S. It was from Alba House (Society of St. Paul) and contained a copy of their newest publication, The Life and Times of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. The author, Myles P. Murphy, is a New York archdiocesan priest