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Since 1943, “The Word” column has been found near the end of issues of America.
Especially after the Second Vatican Council, in response to the call for Catholics to “gladly put themselves in touch with the sacred text itself ”(Verbum Dei, No. 25), the column has been focused specifically on the next Sunday’s Scriptural readings.
To better fit our current monthly issue frequency, we will publish the full version of “The Word” digitally on America’s website, rather than in the Kindle edition distributed monthly. This item in the Kindle edition will continue to point readers to The Word column online through a link to the website.
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Too many voices are not being heard in the Catholic Church today.
The Gloria Purvis Podcast is a new podcast from America Media hosted by radio personality and Catholic commentator Gloria Purvis. The podcast centers the opinions, stories and experiences of individuals who have been marginalized in the Catholic Church and in society. A consistent ethic of life informs the conversations and honestly critiques narrow applications of church teachings or ideological attitudes. It's all about fostering a culture of charitable dialogue around the most complex and contentious issues in the Catholic Church today. Read the official press release below.
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Inflation is through the roof; some states are changing their laws on abortion access; the President’s approval rating is down. How will these and other key issues influence the 50 million Catholics eligible to vote in the 2022 midterm elections? In an all new season of Voting Catholic from America Media, we share the voices of Catholic experts and activists on the front lines of the issues. This podcast is a compelling and timely audio experience for U.S. Catholics who are willing to put faith-based principles on the table and grapple with the issues beyond politically-charged talking points and narrow party lines. Hosted by Sebastian Gomes.
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For over 100 years, America has bridged the gap between the Catholic Church and global issues. From the White House to the Vatican, you’ll find a smart, refreshing Catholic take on the news. With theological essays, political analysis, book reviews, and more, America brings a Jesuit perspective to a community of 1M+ influential and loyal readers, listeners, and viewers.
Welcome to the America Movie Club! Come on in. We’re glad you’re here!
You don’t often hear about movie or TV-themed clubs. And yet, most of us spend a pretty significant percentage of our conversation time catching each up on what we’re watching, reacting to what we’ve seen and/or repeating great lines. (All time favorite: “So we got that going that for us, which is nice.” We love you at America Book Club, Bill Murray. Please come visit.)
I invite you to join us at our new America Movie Club discussion page (hosted on Facebook as a “group” affiliated with the America Facebook page), where you can request to join the group and dive right in!
We thought we’d give a whirl at creating a place where smart, funny, spiritual people can come and chat with other smart, funny, spiritual people about movies. It’s a bit of an experiment; we’re all going to learn as we go, and hopefully have some great adventures in the process.
Two things to know going in: We’re big believers that God speaks to us in all things, and that secular stories have as much to offer in the way of big ideas and conversation as religious ones. So while some of the movies we’ll choose will be explicitly Catholic, we’re also all in for hard scifi or Spike Lee joints, Ryan Reynolds rom-coms or the latest profound Oscar nominee.
Along the same lines, some of the conversation prompts we’re going to offer will be about the big meaty issues of the movie in question; others will be more personal and spiritual. We think the characters we identify with, the events that move us or that one song from the soundtrack that we cannot get out of our head can sometimes be ways that God is speaking to us, inviting, encouraging or challenging us.
Does that sound strange? We did say this is an experiment! We’ll see how we go.
Everyone is welcome; the only ground rule is respect. We might have debates about issues in a film, but let’s just agree we’re not going to go after each other. Your favorite character can also be someone else’s least favorite . That doesn’t say anything other than you’re different and God is big and crazy enough to speak each of you in the ways that work specifically for you.
And if we listen to each other, maybe even our disagreements can be a source of blessing and encouragement. We’re all in this together.
That’s it. Turn on the popcorn popper. Cue the overture. Someone get ready to pull the curtains up.
This month we’re watching “Romero,” the 1989 film from writer John Sacret Young, director John Duigan and Paulist Productions about the life and death of the about-to-be canonized Archbishop Oscar Romero. I’ve written about the making of the film in the October 15 issue of America.
Our conversation begins October 8, and we’re going to dive right in. So if you want to join us, you should have the movie watched by then.
Got yourself a good seat? Here we go.
(By the way, my name is Jim McDermott. I’m a Jesuit priest, a writer for America and a screenwriter. Looking forward to the conversations.)
Not sure where you can watch “Romero”? Here are a few options:
- iTunes ($7.99 to purchase, $3.99 to rent)
- Amazon Prime ($7.99 to purchase, $3.99 to rent)
Jim McDermott, S.J.
With in-depth news and analysis, America Media leads the conversation with a smart, Catholic take on faith and culture. Founded and directed by the Jesuits, we bring 111 years of history that is both empowering and inspiring by continuously producing content that says something different, offers a different opinion or perspective and showcases a voice that asks the unconsidered, better question.
Our contributors are the principal figures in the American Catholic Church today, the decision-makers and opinion leaders who drive the ecclesial and civic debate about religion, society, politics and the arts.
Recognized for both its intellectual content and its spiritual resources across print, digital, audio and video, America Media received 53 awards for its publications during 2019, the most in its history, from the Catholic Press Association.
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In this exclusive interview with Matt Malone, S.J., editor in chief of America, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. discusses his thoughts on Pope Francis, as well as his Catholic faith, his upbringing, his public life and private sorrows, and his thoughts about a possible presidential campaign. The interview was conducted on Sept. 17, 2015, in Washington, D.C.
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