"The desecration of this church and altar is demonic, demonic," Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond said. "Let me be clear, there is no excuse for what took place here. It is sinful, and it is totally unacceptable.”

The Vatican released a brief video clip of the meeting, a clear sign both the pope and Pell wanted the reception to be seen widely.

The Christian of the future, as Karl Rahner, S.J. once suggested, will be one who has experienced a life-changing encounter with the living Jesus Christ.

Catholic moral theology can offer some answers.

More than a few people struggled with uncharitable feelings about the president’s illness. How should Christians deal with schadenfreude?

Dr. Anna Rowlands told America that Pope Francis "“gets populism. He gets what is the drive toward it and he rescues the notion of what it means to be ‘a people’ from the hands of the populists."