If you pay close attention, you will come upon the word (or concept) model in some form or other on many pages of this week’s issue. Although it is a familiar concept, in my opinion we don’t hear about it nearly as much as we ought. Writers have lamented in these pages and elsewhere: Whe

The arguments for women rsquo s ordination to the diaconate have been circulating for a number of years indeed centuries What then is Zagano rsquo s original contribution to this important ecclesial discussion and debate In my opinion it is simply this She writes in a synthetic way for a new ge

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.

In his eminently forgettable "Stardust Memories" (1980), Woody Allen in the persona of a world-famous director in the Fellini mold, a kind of pizza made with Velveeta, catsup and Wonder bread, visits a college to participate in a leaden symposium on the art of the film. Rather than receivi

One night recently I was visiting with a group of friends and listening to the music of Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, John Coltrane and Ray Charles. Our conversation about African-American culture turned to a thought-provoking question: Why do more and more African-Americans reject the c

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

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

In the oppressive heat of the midday sun, the nun in full habit held two heavy shovels. She walked just behind the gravediggers, who tried to carry with some dignity a lifeless body wrapped in old hospital bedsheets. We had arrived here in India just a few weeks before this burial.