Not many articles at the National Catholic Reporter begin with, “My friend Deal Hudson.” But Michael Sean Winters bucks the trend by framing his polished polemic as a“shout out” of sorts to a friend on the other side of the Catholic political spectrum. (How far apart we really are is something to be determined down … Read more
Timothy Carney, senior political columnist for The Washington Examiner, notes an interesting distinction between the fiscally libertarian Tea Partiers scoring upsets in political races across the country and their defeated, standard-bearing Republican counterparts: The economy, taxes, spending, health care, and bailouts dominate the headlines and Tea Party rallies this year. But just beneath the surface, … Read more
Over the past two weeks, I’ve had extensive discussions with a wide group of Catholic leaders about the state of the Church in the United States. The frustration and impatience among Catholics, which I discussed last February in “Is It Time for a Catholic Tea Party?,” continue to grow. The occasions for this discussion were … Read more
Christine O’Donnell’s surprise victory in Delaware has stunned the pundits. It’s called a Tea Party victory, but in fact it was something a bit different. O’Donnell’s message was consistently grounded in the social conservatism of her Catholic faith, with a strong emphasis on the sanctity of life and the defense of marriage. The role of … Read more
This year’s election season promises ever greater challenges to the fake Catholic political groups. Catholics United and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good seem to be running out of ideas for how to convince Catholics to vote for the same Democratic candidates who had promised in 2008 to support Catholic teachings on life issues, … Read more
It is common for Catholic politicians to say that they are personally opposed to abortion, but that they must accept the law and the rights of others to have a choice in the matter. They are, then, personally against but politically in favor of the right to abortion. Although this is a familiar stance, the … Read more
The following is a series of open memos that I wish I could have sent to various Catholic students whom I have taught at a secular university. I hope they might help any Catholic student intending to evangelize similar campuses. Names have been faux-classicized. t t t Dear Pedadogus Antagonistes, The first few weeks at … Read more
This article in the UK’s Mail Online is two years old, but a fascinating read. It’s a personal account by Rebecca Walker — daughter of poet, writer, and radical feminist Alice Walker — about what it’s like to grow up believing that men and motherhood are a woman’s chief enemies: My mother’s feminist principles coloured … Read more
After seven long years of war in Iraq, President Barack Obama declared last week: “It’s time to turn the page.” America‘s military role in Iraq is over, our “responsibility has been met,” and our troops are coming home. His was not a message of victory, however, but a message of “progress” — but progress toward … Read more
A few minutes ago I received the press release below, not yet posted at the Catholic Action League web site. I had to read it several times because I kept saying to myself, “It can’t be so!” But, sadly, it is. Caritas Christi, a network of six hospitals owned by Archdiocese of Boston, will soon … Read more
The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), the anti-poverty program run by the USCCB, came under fire this past year for funding groups who were explicitly supporting abortion, contraception, and same-sex marriage. After its internal investigation, the CCHD claimed there were problems with only five groups out of the 51 listed as problematic by the … Read more
Europe is dying. The Washington Post, among others, reports that, within a hundred years, there will be the rare German in Germany or Italian in Italy. Some demographers believe it is too late to correct Europe’s plunge into extinction. “The fall in the population can no longer be stopped,” reported Walter Rademacher of the German … Read more
On Friday, the FDA approved a new emergency contraceptive called “ella,” which can prevent pregnancy up to 5 days after sex. It passed with little fanfare or resistance, compared to the uproar surrounding the approval of Plan B, also known as the “morning after” pill (which is effective up to three days at most). The … Read more
Too often, Catholic commentators, including myself, speak about American bishops in the plural. The existence of a national bishops’ conference unfortunately encourages this habit, one that obscures a basic fact about the Catholic Church: It is individual bishops who are responsible for sanctifying the lives of the Catholic faithful. There’s no better antidote to the … Read more
You are cordially invited to join the board, staff, writers and friends of InsideCatholic in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, September 16, for our 15th Annual Partnership Dinner & Dance. This year, we’ll be honoring Bishop Robert F. Vasa, D.D., of the Diocese of Baker, Oregon. In an era of lukewarm, go-along-to-get-along prelates, Bishop Vasa … Read more
Two weeks ago, Slate‘s Amanda Marcotte wrote about how glad she is that women today feel free to opt out of childbearing. They’re empowered by “choice,” and that’s a great thing, says Marcotte. The problem, as she sees it, is that Americans increasingly believe it’s bad for society — the numbers are up 10 per … Read more
Stephen Phelan, communications director at Human Life International, writes at Catholic Advocate about the alarming attempt of Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) to investigate pro-life efforts to protect the unborn in Kenya. Reading about Kennedy’s effort to mount a federal investigation of a perfectly legal lobbying effort, you have to wonder if he is coming unglued … Read more
Stephen Phelan, communications director at Human Life International, writes at Catholic Advocate about the alarming attempt of Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) to investigate pro-life efforts to protect the unborn in Kenya. Reading about Kennedy’s effort to mount a federal investigation of a perfectly legal lobbying effort, you have to wonder if he is coming unglued … Read more
From Amanda Carey at The Daily Caller: A new report by the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) shows that the Obama administration has indeed been using taxpayer dollars to fund a “yes” campaign in Kenya ahead of the August vote on the proposed new Kenyan constitution. One provision … Read more
I missed this one: In June, Nancy Frazier O’Brien at Catholic News Service wrote about a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the amount of federal funding given to organizations that perform or promote abortion. Between 2002 and 2009 — during the Bush administration, in other words — the number was a staggering $967 … Read more