June 1979 – The Nine Days of John Paul II
Thirty years ago this week, the Bishop of Rome returned to Poland for the first time since his recent election to the papacy. America’s premier Cold War historian, John Lewis
Defending Human Dignity
Before tackling Dignitas Personae [The Dignity of a Person], the recent instruction from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on contemporary bioethical questions, I’d suggest re-reading the first
Giving Thanks for America
The vagaries of scheduling put me in Europe for the week before the November 4 election. In conversations in both Rome and Cracow, I was struck by the frequency with
The Two Americas
By the dawn’s early light on Nov. 5, two distinct Americas hove into view. The two Americas are not defined by conventional economic, ethnic or religious categories; it’s not rich
Flawed Thinking
I want to offer a response to Nicholas Cafardi, M. Cathleen Kaveny, and Douglas Kmiec’s “A Catholic Brief for Obama“–which was itself a response to my essay on the subject.
On the Death, and Aging, of Princes
The death of Cardinal Bernardin Gantin of Benin this past May 13 marked the passing of one of world Catholicism’s noblemen. Born in what was then the French colony of
The Presumptions of a Pastoral Letter
Twenty-five years ago, in early May 1983, the Catholic bishops of the United States approved what many imagined would be a historic public policy statement: The Challenge of Peace [TCOP].
The Pope and the Universities
Benedict XVI had barely left the Catholic University of America on April 17 when the Catholic higher education establishment’s spin machine shifted into high gear. One university president said that
The Spiritual Fatherhood of John Paul II
The annual men’s pilgrimage to the Marian shrine of Piekary Slaskie is one of the premier religious events in the Polish industrial region of Upper Silesia. Held every year in on
Adding Spice to the American Mix
Pope Benedict XVI’s first papal incursion into the United States is, basically, a trip to the United Nations with a pastoral visit wrapped around it. For the life of the
A Pope of Historic Vision
John Paul II arrived in Warsaw on June 2, 1979; there and then, he ignited the revolution of conscience that would give birth to the Solidarity movement, the Revolution of
The Ignatian Possibility Today
In the early 1990s, I was given lunch at the Roman headquarters of the Society of Jesus by two very–no, make that extremely–high-ranking Jesuits. The table-talk turned to a fascinating
Popular Articles
John Paul and Francis at Yad Vashem
Notes on a Consistory
