Commentaries
Celebrating our modern-day saint, and his legacy of supporting the church
St. John Paul II recognized the need for a perpetual source of funding that would serve the priorities of the Vatican around the world and strengthen ties with American Catholics, writes Eustace Mita of the Papal Foundation.
Abuse survivor’s spiritual growth shows the church can heal, too
Michael McDonnell of SNAP had a transformative talk with Archbishop Nelson Perez, and an encounter with forgiveness. Cleaning up the wreckage of the past isn't easy, but the archdiocese has the right bishop for the task.
Agree or not, but be charitable in all things
We can disagree about the pandemic, writes Scott Hahn. What we must not do is have contempt for one another. This deadly poison will kill love — in our homes, our parishes, our dioceses — if we let it get near us.
Coronavirus gives newlyweds time to focus on sacrament
Couples choosing to marry even amidst the pandemic are for Elise Italiano Ureneck a sign of just how radical Christian hope is. They are promising to be faithful in good times and in bad, for richer or poorer.
The human costs of solitary confinement
For John Garvey, stay-at-home started out like a weeklong retreat. But as time has gone by, the isolation has felt more like cruel punishment. It's bad for human health because we need one another.
Consider the common good, and wear your mask
We have a right to disagree peacefully, but we also have the duty to serve the common good, writes Effie Caldarola. Wearing a face masks sends the message that we’re in this crisis together.
Acts of bravery are the pandemic’s grace notes
Today's heroes are all about us, staffing emergency medical services and grocery stores, maintaining supply chains, doing medical research, even burying the forgotten dead. These are the stories of our church, writes Greg Erlandson.
A renewed faith for troubled hearts
Christians cultivate their believing relationship through prayer, especially prayer to the loving and merciful Sacred Heart of Jesus, as it was revealed 100 years ago this week, writes Father Thomas Dailey.
An urgent call: The Catholic Church’s Plan B moment
What happens to the church when its Plan A, the status quo, gets upended by the coronavirus pandemic? We must get creative with a Plan B, writes author Chris Lowney, who points to three parishes.
Sick of it, but learning from the springtime of pandemic
The routines of March seem like a decade ago, but Father Eric Banecker notices the call to renewal in some of the well-worn phrases of our grim time during the coronavirus, and what they can teach.