On Dec. 30, 2005, the Archdiocese of Portland, Ore., headed by Archbishop John Vlazny, lost an important preliminary round in its bankruptcy case. The diocese now finds itself facing hard choices, as does Spokane’s Bishop William Skylstad and his diocese, which suffered a major legal defeat in
Those bright yellow magnets are everywhere: Support Our Troops. Tiny arms looped like an embrace or hands joined in prayer. It’s a simple image and such an appealing one, and yet whenever I see it I get angry.Each day I see the death toll as I read my online newspaper, and sometimes I visit th
Sometimes a pope, a bishop or a national conference of bishops will issue a challenging statement on a matter of public policy. Topics like capital punishment, abortion, economic justice and the pre-emptive use of military force come readily to mind. Those who object to such interventions by religio
How and why did the massive displacement of almost two million people into camps begin? The government’s forced displacement of most of the population of northern Uganda from the villages in my area, the Gulu Province, began in 1996. It was intended as a way to isolate the rebels—es
For as long as I can remember, a nearly two-foot-tall statue of the Sacred Heart has stood atop my mother’s bedroom dresser. I occasionally wondered whether there was a story to go with it, but never asked. It seemed odd to this child that people would place such a statue in their home. A rect
How to Help
I loved the editorial, The Meanest Cities (3/6). It reminded me of when I was stationed in New York City during one of the coldest periods in history and Mayor Edward Koch challenged the churches and synagogues to allow the homeless to sleep in these sacred places.
The publication in 1990 of the apostolic constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae has been the inspiration for continuing conversation within the Catholic higher education community in the United States. The leadership of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities and its member institutions have