The Canceled Jesuit
Conservative Fr. Paul Mankowski, S.J. was silenced while liberal dissident Jesuits like Fr. Robert Drinan, S.J. were allowed to even run for Congress.
What Does the Pope Really Mean?
The pope is a pastor more than a thinker. We cannot expect the intellectual rigor of either of his two most recent predecessors. But am I the only one who feels like this “two steps forward, two steps back” is a little confusing?
The People-Pleasing Vatican
Seeking celebrity acceptance sacrifices seriousness and credibility. It is sad when leadership in the Church shows star-struck, stage door behavior.
The Trump Convictions Reveal a Broken Justice System
The use of the courts for political ends is not new, but the Biden administration’s persecution of the pro-life movement and now Donald Trump has further undermined my confidence in a system so vulnerable to the prejudices of practitioners.
The Doubter Who Defended Damien of Molokai
One of St. Damien of Molokai’s strongest defenders was the non-Catholic novelist Robert Louis Stevenson.
Dignitas Infinita’s Whistling in the Dark
Dignitas Infinita displays a dangerous naiveté about a supposed consensus of moral thinking.
Mother Cabrini and Deaconesses
The biggest problem of the participation of women in the leadership of the Church today is frankly being ignored: the decline of active religious life.
What Happened at St. Patrick’s Cathedral?
If the nonsense at St. Patrick’s had happened on my watch, I think I would have stopped the whole carnival, turned off the microphones and lights, and called the cops.
Exit the Pope?
It is not disrespect of papal magisterium to register difficulties with supposedly pastoral recommendations on the basis of prudential criteria.
Is Abstaining From Voting Sinful?
The cynicism that skepticism about the integrity of the political system should make us absent ourselves from the process can’t be the answer.
The Emperor’s New Theologian
The emperor needed a new theologian to defend the marvelous cloth in which he paraded.
Worship for God…or for Us?
The primary focus of Catholic worship, unlike Protestant worship, is to be directed toward God, not the people.
Prudence and Symbolic Ambiguity
If you knew that the person was going to misunderstand your blessing, would it be right to let him or her be in vincible ignorance?
The Path to Dystopia is Paved with Ideology
Treating “gender distress” as something caused by a societal injustice is an attempt to normalize a condition and behaviors that have been considered unhealthy for millennia.
The Utilitarianism of “Effective Altruists”
The “Effective Altruists” like Samuel Bankman-Fried claim to want to help the world, but their underlying utilitarianism threatens to destroy it.
Welcome to Muck Island
The sacking of Bishop Strickland brings to mind the sad plot of Brian Moore’s novella “Catholics”.
Ruling vs. Leading the Church
In Pope Francis’s favorite book “The Lord of the World,” the fictional pope does not lead but rules the Church. Ecclesiastical power is centralized in his person. The Cardinal Legates are his supervisors of the local Church. Some might see a pattern here.
We Live Among Barbarians
The vote to enshrine abortion in Ohio should be a revelation to us: we live among barbarians who do not care about human life in the womb.
Our Emersonian Pontiff
Is clerical haberdashery really such a problem that it merits a prominent place in the pope’s intervention in a synod as overhyped as the one concluding in Rome these days?
Diálogo de Sordos: Catholic Discussion of the Immigration Chaos
Some have accused the Church of being complicit in creating the broken mess of the immigration system. That is like blaming the staff of the emergency room attending gunshot victims for the violence in the streets.