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Of Other Things
The weather was awful, and the forecast was grim: heavy snow, possibly as much as a foot, on one of the coldest and darkest nights of the winter. But inside St. Ephrem’s, a large church in Brooklyn, it was springtime. Something was beginning. Candles were lit, hymns were sung, and 65 men from
Faith in Focus
Living With My Sisters
I decided while Iwas living with nuns that I wanted to be a priest. I live with two of them, Pat and Ellenrita, and a fellow my own age, Mark, who’s also serving a Dominican Volunteer year in the Bronx. The nuns are pretty easy to live with, once you learn to clean up the shower, make sure nob
Letters
Letters

Affirmation

The parish of St. Mary Church and Catholic Campus Ministry in Oxford, Ohio, includes Miami University. The city is small and the school large, so not surprisingly the majority of the catechumens and candidates in our adult initiation program are college students. Each week our R.C.I.A. session includes a “faith sharing” presentation, and while this is occasionally by an Oxford resident, most are made by students. As a former catechumen and now a member of the initiation team, I’ve heard many college students speak openly and comfortably about their faith. I can’t explain the experience recounted by John C. Haughey, S.J., (5/24) of students who “are not shy in talking about their moral convictions” but tend to be nonvocal about “a personal relationship with Jesus.” The students I have seen and heard have spoken with joy and conviction of their awareness of a close, personal relationship with our Lord. They are comfortable describing their awareness of God in their lives, relating how they turn to him in thanks and in need, and sharing the value of their prayer life. I don’t have an explanation for this difference. I only know how grateful I am for the affirmation these students so readily give.

Susan M. Frazier

Countless Small Victories
At a time of great turmoil within the U.S. Catholic Church, a determined group of people has carved out an enviable record of achievement in some of the most challenged regions of the world. Maryknoll Lay Missioners - 131 people in 17 countriesis the church’s largest and fastest-growing lay mi
Books
Jul 05, 2004 issue
Village Scandal, Mountain Spirits
John C. Hawley
Until recently South Africa rsquo s fiction has been totally dominated by apartheid But in 1992 the government of F W de Klerk won a mandate for political reforms that led to an official end to apartheid and the creation of a power-sharing multiracial government and since that time many have wo
Books
Jul 05, 2004 issue
From Dutch to Diverse
Joyce D. Goodfriend
Russell Shorto fires a powerful salvo in the war of words over America rsquo s origins Forcefully contesting the ingrained notion that English settlements set the mold for American values he mounts a convincing case for an alternative scenario in which the Dutch-sponsored colony of New Netherland
Editorials
Smuggling and Trafficking
Smuggling and trafficking in human beings is on the rise, and with that rise has come an increase in victims’ suffering. Throughout the world, they are treated simply as commodities, often in ways that are physically and psychologically brutal. Although there are differences between smuggling
News
Signs of the Times
Bishops Approve 2004 Abuse Policy AuditsThe U.S. bishops have approved on-site audits this year of all U.S. dioceses to monitor compliance with policies to prevent sexual abuse of children. The vote was 207 to 14 in favor with one abstention, according to a news release issued in Denver on June 15 b
Shrouded in Mystery
In response to criticisms of the mistreatment of Palestinian Christians in Israel and the Israeli-controlled Palestinian Territories, I am often asked, “Don’t Christians also suffer persecution at the hands of Muslims in the Arab Middle East?” There is no simple answer.Yes, the Uni
Fading Faith in Free Trade
In a Presidential election year that has evoked controversy about trade, it is especially tempting to cast the opinions about the issues into pro-free trade versus anti-free trade molds. But that dichotomy obscures the real issues and muddles public discussion and decision-making.A little-noticed po