nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Hard on the heels of the article in The New York Times nbsp about the Apostolic Visitation of women s religious orders in the nbsp United States nbsp and the nbsp Leadership Conference of Women Religious nbsp is today s NPR s

The hubris of George Weigel knows no bounds In a breathtaking essay at National Review Online Weigel concludes that Pope Benedict rsquo s encyclical Caritas in Veritate resembles a duck-billed platypus because it is in his view a bad combination of the Pope rsquo s true thought with those pas

The most intriguing and exciting part of the new encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI for me nbsp is the brief section of Chapter 3 where he reflects on the ldquo astonishing experience of gift rdquo nbsp As I read this I went back to a sermon of Professor Paul Ricoeur at the University of Chicago

Who wrote Caritas in veritate The Pope of course and in so far as it bears Benedict XVI rsquo s signature the whole carries his authority But it is obvious that some passages are more Benedictine than others The often sharp shift in style and language is one of the least impressive characteris

The editor in chief of America Drew Christiansen S J has forgotten more about Catholic social teaching than I rsquo ve ever known mdash and he rsquo s not forgotten much nbsp So I urge you to read his commentary nbsp below nbsp on the pope rsquo s new encyclical on social justice and the econ

The English-language text of Pope Benedict s new encyclical is available on the Vatican website here Jim Keane S J nbsp nbsp nbsp