"Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope"- 1 Peter 3:15
Let’s say there’s a public figure who says some pretty terrible things. People are understandably upset. Some people even demand the person is no longer invited for speaking engagements. As outrage over the comments grows, more and more people call for the public figure to no longer be treated as a public figure. Is this …
I was dismayed to learn that my state (Wisconsin) plans to do away with the statewide mask mandate. I urge my fellow Christians to consider the advice of health officials when it comes to mask-wearing. Wearing a mask is an act of Christian charity. Let’s begin with our lives as Christians living in a secularized …
Though there is so much darkness right now, the glimmer of hope for me has been seeing the impressive number of Catholics calling for action in response to the sex abuse scandals. One of the call-to-action efforts I have been particularly impressed by is the movement started by Bonnie Engstrom (A Knotted Life) and Kendra …
My heart hurts. I’m angry and disappointed and sad and a whole bunch of emotions all swirling together in the midst of this horrific scandal. But I also feel like I need to do something. I’m still trying to understand what I can do personally, but for now, I know that I can pray and …
The extent of my fashion knowledge comes from casual watching of Project Runway and questioning in bewilderment how someone would actually wear that, but this year’s Met Gala Theme – “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination”- caught my attention for obvious reasons. To be honest, I had completely mixed emotions about the event. But …
Earlier this week, Mary Elizabeth Williams wrote a piece called “I don’t know how to be Catholic anymore” on Salon. In it, she describes her frustrations with her new parish priest and her beliefs that are different from what Christ teaches (as protected and promoted by the Catholic Church). She wrote a number of concerning …
The other day on Twitter, someone complained that she hadn’t seen any Pro-life organizations calling out the atrocities seen at the border. https://twitter.com/JessicaValenti/status/1008702135226241024 My initial reaction was as follows: Maybe you're not seeing Pro-life organizations speak out about the treatment of children at the border because you aren't following any Pro-life organizations online. — …
I have seen a lot of outrage surrounding the fact that Catholic “yes” voters to the Irish Referendum regarding abortion are being told to not receive Communion. I know this is a difficult topic, and I hope that I can present my argument charitably, but please forgive me if anything I say lacks charity. What …
Divorce is a difficult topic no matter what your faith background (or lack thereof) is, but I think there is the added complexity for Catholics because of our firm belief of the indissolubility of marriage. Our natural response tends to be to avoid the topic altogether, but as a Church, we face a legitimate crisis of divorced …
Building a Bridge by Father James Martin has received a lot of criticism. I myself have been leery of his writing, and actually criticized other pieces of his in the past, especially his LGBT parable article which is an excerpt from the revised edition of this book. However, I felt it wasn’t fair to criticize …