Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election will hang over the annual fall meeting of the U.S. Catholic bishops.

The fundamental insight of the synod was not only that attentive listening was helpful in decision making, but also that the Holy Spirit was at work in everyone.

Especially in places like the United States, where structures like pastoral councils are already relatively common, it is important to hear the synod’s call to ensure that consultation and dialogue are effective and not merely nominal.

Giacomo Puccini, the composer of “La Bohème,” “Tosca” and “Madama Butterfly,” has been called the world’s most popular songwriter, and with good reason.

A Reflection for the Memorial of St. Martin of Tours, Bishop, by Kevin Clarke

A hymn to mercy and love, “Love Calls Us to the Things of This World” springs to my lips when my heart is quiet. I teach it as often as I can for my introductory poetry students. 

What caused Dorothy Day to stand out in her time, as it does still, is the way her spiritual life was expressed not only in her daily prayer but in her response to the needs of her neighbors, to the poor and to the demands of history.

Bishop W. Shawn McKnight of Jefferson City, who earlier prohibited specific hymns and composers, has now issued a new decree opening a synodal approach to the issue.

After Barack Obama’s victory in 2008, the Democrats have repeatedly failed to hold together the coalition that elected the country’s first Black president.

History was made on Nov. 5, when Francis, the first Jesuit pope, visited the Gregorian University, the oldest and largest pontifical university in Rome, founded by St. Ignatius Loyola in 1551.