The Catholic church would benefit if bishops felt more like local leaders and less like regional managers in a Rome-based nonprofit. One way to move in that direction would be to have the clergy elect their bishops.

There is no question that the process for the appointment of bishops should be updated. But the election of bishops with procedures similar to democratic elections would only exacerbate all kinds of rifts in the Catholic Church today.

The messages of “Mary” that can be applied to our own age are received early, and often.

Is it conceit or coincidence that a saint who was conceived without sin is the patron of a country that believes the same about itself?

William F. Buckley Jr. was more than a prolific writer: He was the brains and coalescing force of a post-World War II philosophy that gradually became known as “conservatism” and which culminated with the 1980 election of Ronald Reagan as president.

Praying in a time of fear is a bit like learning to ride a bicycle. It goes against the grain of fear itself.