Reactions to my Ethics Notebook column on leaving the Democratic Party to become an Independent reminded me how volatile discussions can become when they meld the world of politics with the moral life. I’ve received some strong comments from both wings of the spectrum. How could you ever have

In the Philippines, we have a Muslim minority living together with a Christian majority. One Indonesian bishop explained his country’s situation to me in this way: “The manner in which you majority Christians deal with the minority Muslims in the Philippines will be the way the majority

In the first century, Peter had a dream in Joppa, a strange dream that encouraged him to eat prohibited food that was common and unclean. This was not kosher. Then he heard a knock at the door. A group of gentiles, sent by Cornelius, asked him to come with them to Caesarea. He agreed, mystified by t

Why and how did the celibate state became a requirement for ordination?

Pope Urges World to Address Underlying Causes’ of TerrorismAt a special general audience marking the anniversary of the terrorist attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, Pope John Paul II said it was necessary and urgent to address the global injustices that created the conditions for

It had to happen. Just as the shoemaker’s children go barefoot and the carpenter’s children live under a leaky roof, I knew this day would come. I am a church worker whose daughter has stopped going to church. My daughters have grown up with the church as their second home, because it wa

To explain how my experience as a parent has been a spiritual path, I have to begin seven years before my first child was born. At age 22, I was feeling more lost in my life than I’ve ever been before or since. My life was devoid of meaning and more than grim. In my lowest moment I latched ont

Catholic-Jewish Statement on Conversion Draws ControversyA Catholic-Jewish statement published on Aug. 12 repudiating campaigns that target Jews for conversion to Christianity has drawn controversy, including sharp criticism in some Catholic quarters and a charge of Catholic anti-Semitism by a top S

U.S. Bishops Rule Zero Tolerance for Priests Who AbuseAt a historic meeting in Dallas, Tex., on June 13-15, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops ordered dramatic changes to protect children throughout the Catholic Church in the United States, notably forbidding a second chance in ministry for any

The clerical sexual abuse scandals in Boston and elsewhere have brought home how far the Catholic Church still has to go in receiving into its life the Second Vatican Council, nearly 40 years after that council’s close. The council devoted itself, quite deliberately, to the nature and mission