CNA Columns
An old book and a continuing problem
I’d been running into references to the book every now and then for years. People told me I really ought... Read more
Ben Hur: A tale of Christ, a tale of grace
Lew Wallace’s nineteenth century novel, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, inspired two silent movies in the early decades of the twentieth... Read more
Jane and John go to college, and so do their parents
In a week or two, freshmen from around the country will begin their college education. The first year, the most... Read more
Bishop Robert Barron: a great gift to the Church
One of the brightest moments in the history on the Church in the U.S. in the past year was the... Read more
The deep, winding roots of American Catholicism now on display at Knights of Columbus museum
Sébastien Racle, Sebastian Rale in America, a Jesuit missionary priest from the French-Swiss border, brought into the field with him... Read more
Running for their lives
Imagine, right now at this very moment you and your loved ones need to run for your lives! With hardly... Read more
Some personal thoughts on the months ahead
My column this week is a collection of personal comments. Read it as thoughts from a brother in the faith,... Read more
World Youth Day 2016: Source of hope
When I arrived in Kraków for the 2016 World Youth Day, I was pretty exhausted, having left Los Angeles some fifteen... Read more
Back to School: The Catholic Philosophy of Education
“It’s back to school,” the many ads remind us. The noble work of education will soon begin anew. The... Read more
Some Catholic pundits say pro-life voting is problematic, but give abortion advocates a pass
As it usually is in election years, abortion is now very much a political issue in 2016, and Catholics are... Read more
What was it that set Al Smith apart from other Catholic politicians?
Eighty-eight years ago a Happy Warrior from the streets of New York ran for President of the United States. His... Read more
A world without nuclear weapons
At any moment, you could be within 30 minutes of being incinerated from nuclear weapons! You are in harm’s way... Read more
Martyrdom Then and Now
The brutal end for Edith Stein and her sister Rosa came quickly. On August 2nd, 1942, the Nazis arrested and... Read more
How Christians can deal with the experience of suffering
Richard Harries, former Anglican Bishop of Oxford (U.K.), wrote a book some years ago entitled Art and the Beauty of... Read more
Can the Catholic Church die?
In the first three hundred years of Christianity, it was entirely possible for the fledgling Christian religion to be killed... Read more
Moral leadership in action: All lives really do matter
As a citizen of this country, as a Catholic Priest and Bishop, and as an African-American, I am deeply distressed... Read more
World Youth Day 25 years later: mercy is still indispensable for all of us
Excitement is building in Poland as millions of young people from over 180 countries descend upon Krakow for the celebration... Read more
Can Americans fix our problems if we no longer share common values?
Speaking at a memorial service for the five Dallas police officers killed by a gunman in retaliation for police shootings... Read more
Needed: More Canonized Mothers and Fathers
When Zélie and Louis Martin, the parents of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, were canonized in 2015, it must have crossed... Read more
The House We Live In
The photos tell heartrending stories of a nation and a world in great pain. In America, racial division and violence;... Read more
