Were a papal document forthcoming it could lead to a new and definitive papal teaching document on issues as polarizing as contraception, assisted procreation and palliative care.

Believers who oppose abortion are not doing so by divine dictate. On the contrary, though our ethical thought is certainly inspired by our religious faith, it is not directly derived from it.

One of the great Catholic thinkers of 20th-century America is too often overlooked: William F. Lynch, S.J.

The papalization of the church reached its most robust form in the first half of the 20th century, but it might be seeing its twilight under Pope Francis.

At a recent event celebrating a seminary's theological journal, Pope Francis encouraged a "dynamic" theology, rooted in dialogue with other faiths and cultures.

The Rev. Michael J. Himes was a theologian who taught with energy, order, concreteness, wit—and exuberance.