Columns Archive

Which reformation? What reform? Default Thumbnail
Perspective

Which reformation? What reform?

Despite the formulation you heard before and after the Oct. 31 quincentenary of Luther’s 95 theses, there was no single “Reformation” to which the Catholic “Counter-Reformation” was the similarly univocal […]

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Perspective

Harvey Weinstein’s not alone

Harvey Weinstein is a pig. It’s not language I would normally use in a column, but the cascade of revelations about his treatment of women and men, most particularly his […]

Human formation: A fraternity, not a frat Default Thumbnail
Perspective

Human formation: A fraternity, not a frat

Human formation, one of the four dimensions of seminary life and the foundation for the other three, speaks to the reality that, within the seminary, we live as men in […]

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The Sunday Gospel

Love others the way you love the Lord

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time Matthew 22:34-40 The Book of Exodus provides this weekend with its first reading. In ancient Jewish tradition, Exodus came from Moses. Therefore, in a most […]

How one young activist thinks about social justice Default Thumbnail
Perspective

How one young activist thinks about social justice

By Jeanne Marie Hathway As a college student, I spend much of my time deliberating the great questions of our day, not least among them: the limp salad or the pizza? […]

George Weigel’s ‘Lessons in Hope’ Default Thumbnail
Perspective

George Weigel’s ‘Lessons in Hope’

George Weigel’s latest book, “Lessons in Hope: My Unexpected Life with St. John Paul II,” is the third panel in a great triptych he has composed in honor of the most […]

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Perspective

Making and renewing vows

Last week a friend invited my wife and me to join her in celebrating the 50th anniversary of her perpetual vows. It was a simple but moving ceremony. There was […]

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The Sunday Gospel

We owe God our praise and our service

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Matthew 22:15-21 The second part of the Book of Isaiah provides this weekend’s first reading. The context is a very bad time for God’s people. […]

When is it a sin to make a referral? Default Thumbnail
Perspective

When is it a sin to make a referral?

During World War II, if a contractor had been asked to construct a building knowing that it would serve as a gas chamber in Auschwitz, it goes without saying that […]

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A more human society

A response to suffering

Many years ago, I attended a conference where physicians and others discussed care for dying patients. One speaker asked audience members how they would prefer to die: To pass away […]

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Perspective

A different type of storm

For over 20 years I had the pleasure of taking care of a particular gentleman. He had a severe cardiomyopathy, which means that his main pumping chamber, the left ventricle, […]

Am I ready to share in the riches the Lord has prepared? Default Thumbnail
The Sunday Gospel

Am I ready to share in the riches the Lord has prepared?

Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Matthew 22:1-14 The first part of the Book of Isaiah provides this weekend’s first reading at Mass. Understanding the cultural, social, political and economic context […]