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SPECIAL ISSUE ON WOMEN

Femme fidele: How women who work for the church keep the faith

By Heidi Schlumpf
Church work has always been women’s work, but now more than ever women are taking the lead. Heidi Schlumpf asks some of them what it’s like to be between the parish office door and the stained-glass ceiling.

Sidebar:

Words of wisdom: Survival tips for working in the church

Feature

Our ladies of Haiti

By J.D. Long-Garcia
Though knocked down by an earthquake that shook the world, the women of the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country are lending a hand to get their island homeland back on its feet.

Interview

Follow the laity

An interview with Zeni Fox
The first lay ministers were quick to fill new roles and meet new needs, says Zeni Fox. Now the church as a whole is trying to catch up.

Sounding Board

How bland thou art

By Jerry Bleem, O.F.M.
Priest and artist Jerry Bleem says it’s time to free ourselves from cookie-cutter creations in church art and opt for the real thing. In Feedback readers ask whether art can be both Catholic and contemporary.

Essays

(Essays, short stories, and poems are not available online.)

In Person: Woman on a mission

By Denis Gathanju
Maryknoll Sister Mary Vertucci’s adventurous spirit led her to Tanzania. Now she gives young women a chance to choose their own adventures, too.

God is green, a trinitarian view

A poem by F. Evelyn Bence

Survivor stories: Seven lessions from the sex abuse crisis

By Diane Knight
The church has only begun to learn from the stories of abuse survivors, writes the chair of the National Review Board.

Frosty reception

By Carol Crossed
A pro-life activist discovers that it’s hard to take a vacation from your chosen vocation.

Let it go

By Brian Doyle
The Blessed Mother sends an unexpected message to Brian Doyle.

Departments

Editors’ Note

You May Be Right (Letters to the Editor)

Signs of the Times (News)

Catholic Tastes (Humor)

Culture in Context: Music, film, and book reviews

At Home with Our Faith  (Family spirituality)

Eye of the Beholder (Art meditation)

Glad You Asked: What are novenas?

Columns

The Examined Life: Dig in
By Bryan Cones

Margin Notes: Broke in the burbs
By Kevin Clarke

Culture in Context: Mysteries of the heart
By Patrick McCormick

Testaments: Haven on Earth
By Alice Camille