Preaching the pillars of Lent: Fasting
What is fasting for? What biblical precedent do we have for the practices of fasting and abstinence? And how can preachers steer between the two extremes of self-punishment and loophole hunting? “Preach” concludes its Lent 2026 series on the three classical pillars of the season with a conversation on fasting. Host Ricardo da Silva, S.J. is joined by James Keane — senior editor at America and a writer who has spent some time reflecting and writing on what fasting is and what it’s for. Timecodes: James Keane’s articles on fasting: On fasting: The difference between our preaching and our practice…
Catholics urged to be cautious over new Anglican schism
As bishops and archbishops from the worldwide Anglican Communion sever links with England’s first female archbishop of Canterbury, citing her church’s “false teaching,” Catholics are being urged to maintain friendly ties while dropping illusions about future reunification.
Deportations surge, aid collapses and Catholic groups in Latin America struggle to respond
The staff of Jesuit Refugee Service Mexico has shrunk from 70 to 28 people in the past year because of U.S. federal funding cuts to humanitarian aid, leaving the group struggling to meet the growing needs of deportees.
Pope Leo calls for a stop to ‘the thunderous sound of bombs’ in the Middle East
Pope Leo XIV again called for a stop to “the thunderous sound of bombs” in Iran and the Middle East, for the guns to “fall silent” and for the opening of “a space for dialogue” to find a way out of this latest conflict in the region.
Pope Leo appoints Archbishop Caccia as nuncio to the United States
Archbishop Caccia’s appointment comes at a turbulent time in world affairs, as the United States and Israel wage war against Iran—a conflict now in its eighth day that appears to be expanding.
A Catholic guide to understanding the war with Iran
The church’s just war tradition has been challenged by contemporary theologians as insufficient and outdated, yet it remains a worthy filter through which to judge the moral defensibility of a turn to war-making.
Rediscovering the fiery and forgotten women of the Old Testament
As the class explored the stories of the fiery, intelligent, brave women of the Old Testament, I saw the hand of God in these stories of bold women and individuals on the margins.
The Lenten practice that transformed my life
Was I, indeed, being selfish by spending so much time contemplating why I couldn’t do something that God might want me to do, rather than actually doing it?
Why Pope Leo was ‘relatively restrained’ on Iran war
This week on “Inside the Vatican,” Gerard O’Connell explains why he saw Leo’s comments on Iran as relatively restrained compared to John Paul II’s at the beginning of the Iraq War.
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