If heaven is like a wedding banquet, then purgatory may be understood as preparation for a great celebration. It is not a dreary waiting room at the D.M.V., but a place of lively hope.

Enforcement tactics do not in the end deter asylum seekers, who are typically fleeing life-threatening circumstances, but stricter enforcement does push border crossers to more dangerous paths.

In “a note of accompaniment” to the final document, the pope made clear that Catholic bishops throughout the world are to lead their churches in building a synodal and missionary church in the 21st century.

If foster care works as it is designed to, that sacrifice will lead to goodbyes. The tension can be brutal. It’s also profoundly Christlike.

Age and its relationship to stardom is the animating subject of “Sunset Blvd,” “Tammy Faye” and “Death Becomes Her.”

Around the affluent world, new hostility, resentment and anxiety has been directed at immigrant populations that are emerging as preferred scapegoats for all manner of political and socio-economic shortcomings.

Many have questioned how so many Latinos could support a candidate like DonaldTrump, who promised restrictive immigration policies. “And the answer is that, of course, Latinos are complicated people.”

In 1984, then-associate editor Thomas J. Reese, S.J., explained in depth how bishops are selected—from the initial vetting process to final confirmation by the pope and the bishop himself.

An exclusive conversation with Father James Martin, Gerard O’Connell, Colleen Dulle and Sebastian Gomes about the future of synodality in the U.S. church

A transcript prepared by America Media sheds light on the meeting between Cardinal Fernández and synod participants held on Oct. 24.