Commentaries
In shadow of the cross, let us bring help to tornadoes’ victims
Greg Erlandson recounts the devastation to towns across the Midwest from at least 22 tornadoes that hit last week. Like the Good Samaritan, we should help our brothers and sisters in need at this time -- and come back, at Easter.
Welcome to Dystopia Hills
That’s what Father Eric Banecker calls our postmodern culture with its veneer of affluence, beneath which is an anxious and addicted culture without the vision of a good life well lived. It’s not pleasant, so why not give religious renewal a try?
What if every parish was a pro-life safe haven?
Whatever results in the coming Supreme Court case on abortion, supporters and opponents will continue to yell at each other. But there is much else going, such as offering aid and accompaniment for pregnant women, writes Greg Erlandson.
My Advent pilgrimage to the gravesite of Sister Thea Bowman
Researcher Shannen Dee Williams finds in the saintly Black Catholic sister a model in the fight for racial justice and human rights. The epitath of her life's work to uphold the church's most basic social teaching remains powerful: "She tried."
Consider end-of-year tool for maximizing your charitable gift
Peggy Sweeney of the Catholic Foundation of Greater Philadelphia explains how a Donor-Advised Fund allows people to decide where and how they want to give. The fund grows tax free, while the CFGP manages its administration.
The real dilemma behind politicians and Communion
Behind the raucous debate is the loss of belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and the wider crisis of ongoing adult faith formation, writes Greg Erlandson, who points out Catholic media is one of the only ways that people learn church teaching.
Action on climate change, motivated by faith, emerges from COP26’s mixed bag
The recent U.N. Climate Conference showed a positive shift toward awareness of the gravity of the climate crisis and the imperative to act now, writes Michelle Dugan of EcoPhilly. She tells how local parishes can get organized to care for creation.
I’m old, thank God
Augustinian Father Paul Morrissey knows he is old, but he is grateful for the wisdom that his age brings, and for the life and faith of the dear old souls that he sees at church.
Hail, the King of me
The image of Christ as king of the universe may be too big for us to grasp, writes Father Thomas Dailey, but we can hear Jesus' voice in our hearts and stand in his presence.
Jesus walked among us. We’re walking away
After tracing the steps of Jesus on a visit to the Holy Land, John Garvey is perplexed by Catholics abandoning the Mass in person. Without the sacrament of the Eucharist, the faith isn't much better than a YouTube video.