Almost everyone has an opinion about Pope Francis. For some time I have been inquiring of my students, co-workers and others in widely varying circumstances what they think of him and why he has so captured the imagination of believers and nonbelievers alike.The responses are telling: Francis emphas

Priorities for the next pope

How the sexual abuse crisis has reshaped priestly training

Katarina Schuth reviews an oral history of women religious

James Keenan examines the ethics of the words we choose

By now, even casual readers of newspapers and viewers of television know that in June 2002 the bishops of the United States, meeting in Dallas, Tex., set up a board of distinguished lay Catholic men and women to review the crisis created by the sexual abuse of minors by priests. On Feb. 27, 2004, th

With clarity and candor Dean Hoge a professor in the department of sociology at The Catholic University of America in Washington D C and Jacqueline Wenger a graduate student and licensed clinical social worker communicate and interpret extensive data about generational changes in the priesth

This book like Richard Schoenherr rsquo s Full Pews and Empty Altars 1993 will be controversial His earlier work was a demographic study that identified the magnitude of the priest shortage and made projections about future trends Since the news was not good some criticized his findings and o

The intent of the authors of Passionate Uncertainty Inside the American Jesuits would seem to be clear from the title Given the relatively uncomplicated prospect of gathering data from a random sample of current Jesuits and from the vast array of documents that guide the direction of the Society o

Tell me what seminaries and schools of theology are really like these days. How many students attend? Who are the faculty members, and do they enjoy their work? From what background do students come, and how do they approach their formation and education? What is their vision for future ministry? Si