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.
Cover Story
Posted inFaith, Features
Pope Francis’ Argentina: Lessons for the global church from the pope’s homeland
A trip to Argentina shows not only Francis’ legacy here, but also the model of ministry that shaped him.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
Puccini, opera and the arts as a gift from God
Giacomo Puccini, the composer of “La Bohème,” “Tosca” and “Madama Butterfly,” has been called the world’s most popular songwriter, and with good reason.
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
Three books about death to read before you die
My plan was not to read three books in a row about death. But I just did.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Reporting from Hurricane Helene’s ground zero: No ‘safe havens’
Helene’s devastation is offering a hard lesson: No community or U.S. region can consider itself safe from the extreme weather events that global warming is seeding and supercharging.
Posted inFaith, Faith and Reason
The keys to a bishop’s role in a synodal church: collaboration and compassion
Collaboration and compassion are two keys to a bishop’s role in a synod church, argues the Most Reverend W. Shawn McKnight, the bishop of Jefferson City, Mo.
Posted inFeatures, Politics & Society
A lesson from Punxsutawney: The United States will always be divided—and that’s O.K.
With Pennsylvania widely considered the most crucial of the seven 2024 swing states and America feeling stuck in a winter of discord haunted by the specter of political violence, I decided to report on the election from Punxsutawney.
Posted inFaith, Interviews
Interview: Timothy Radcliffe on how he prepares to give homilies—and preach to synod delegates
On an episode of “Preach,” Timothy Radcliffe discussed his approach to preparing for retreats, including the one he gave—and has just given again—to the synod delegates.
Posted inFaith, Faith and Reason
A century of James Baldwin’s prophetic voice
The centennial of James Baldwin’s birth is an invitation to join the ranks of “the relatively conscious” who will help the nation engage in the metanoia needed to become the country that Baldwin constantly believed and hoped it could become.
Posted inFaith, Faith and Reason
Latin chant or folk music at Mass? A debate on what makes liturgy ‘reverent’
One of the recommendations of the first meeting of the Synod on Synodality was to explore ways to improve the quality of liturgies. America asked two contributors to reflect on how we worship.