Magazine

With the 2004 presidential election looming, I find myself recalling George W. Bush’s mantra four years ago, when he was a candidate, about bringing honor and dignity back to the oval office. Whenever he lost his way in public speech, he would lurch back to his narrowly circumscribed comfort zone,

The Catholic Church in the United States is going through the greatest crisis in its history. Dealing with crises is not a problem unique to church leaders; it is a task faced by leaders of any complex organization. When faced with a crisis, U.S. corporate leaders often bring in a firm like McKinsey

During the last couple of years, more than one American bishop has said that the clergy shortage is not unique to the Catholic Church. A recent expression of this view is found in Bishop Wilton Gregory’s letter of Aug. 29, 2003, to Archbishop Timothy Dolan of Milwaukee, in which he states: A n

At the ripe old age of 32, I found myself in the midst of a mini-midlife crisis of sorts. Nothing seemed to be going my way. I was heartbroken and depressed, facing an uncertain career outlook in a terrible economy and looking for a cure for my ailing spirit. I found it in the wide open spaces of Mo

The Catholic Church has taught for over a century that the use of money, capital and markets must be subservient to the good of humankind. It has said that free competition though justified and quite useful within certain limits, cannot be an adequate controlling principle in economic affairs, and h

Walking from the bus station to Viva House, the home of the Baltimore Catholic Worker, I passed block after block of boarded-up homes. I was coming to celebrate Viva House’s 35th anniversary and to visit its co-founders, Willa Bickham and her husband, Brendan Walsh, whom I knew even before I j

Who was Jesus, and what did he say and do? Was Jesus really raised from the dead? Why and when did Christians begin to worship Jesus? These questions go to the roots of Christian faith. The three massive books discussed here provide pertinent information and interpretive options that Christians toda