The Eucharist is not simply a cultural legacy. It is more than a moving performance or a beautiful ritual symbolizing transcendence. And liturgy is more than aesthetics.

Richard Williamson, an ultra-traditionalist Catholic bishop whose denial of the Holocaust created a scandal in 2009 when Pope Benedict XVI rehabilitated him and other members of his breakaway society, has died.

David Lodge's novels—as well as his many works of nonfiction—made him an important figure in 20th-century British literature. He also captured well the angst of many lay Catholics in the aftermath of Vatican II.

Bishop John Cummins had a significant and lasting impact on the Catholic Church in his own diocese and elsewhere through his quiet leadership and ministry. He was a reminder to many of what Pope Francis meant when he called for bishops who are “pastors, not princes.”

Synod observers, especially those who feel like the document has not gone “forward” enough, would do well to learn from Vatican II and its rollout.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, didn’t think much of bishops’ conferences. Among those who disagreed with the cardinal was Francis A. Sullivan, S.J.