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Spiritual exercises

By Heather Grennan Gary
Catholics searching for ways to experience their faith in both body and soul often look to other religious practices. But do they stretch their faith too thin?

Web-only sidebars:

Ten ways to determine if a practice is compatible with your Catholic faith

Thinking about drawing from other religions? Here are some tips to get you started

Feature

Great expectations

It takes a while to get the hang of a new job, even when you’re the pope. Luckily for Pope Francis, eight experts are willing to offer a little friendly advice on how best to tackle the work ahead.

Essays:

Seek out the weak and the excluded, by Jean Vanier

Unite our diverse church, by Miguel H. Dίaz

Be a shepherd of peace, by Marie Dennis

Restore credibility on sex abuse, by Nicholas Cafardi

Renew dialogue with women religious, by Sister Florence Deacon, O.S.F.

Lead us forward on the liturgy, by John F. Baldovin, S.J.

Affirm the fruits of ecumenical dialogue, by Rev. Sharon E. Watkins

Humbly support local churches, by Bishop Kevin Dowling

Web only: An inside look at Pope Francis

Sounding Board

All sworn out

By Rosemarie Zagarri
Before taking an oath of loyalty to the church, Catholics need to first undergo an examination of conscience. In Feedback, readers debate the merits of blind obedience.

Interview

A world of difference

An interview with Catholic Relief Services president Carolyn Woo
Christ’s command to care for the least among us is serious business, says the head of the church’s relief and development agency.

Web-only sidebar: 

The business of helping people: Carolyn Woo discusses the challenges of running an international relief agency

Essays

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

Confessions of a worrying mother

By Jane Knuth
The Land of the Rising Sun isn’t quite the land of the risen Christ, but a mother learns that wasting energy on worry won’t help a far-off child to keep her faith.

The things we keep

By Joan Sauro, C.S.J.
Memories fade, but the treasures we store away in the attic can always reconnect us to the people who matter most.

Poem: A mother’s thoughts on the windows at Ascension Church

By Sheila Black Haennicke

Wise Guides: Master allusionist

By James P. Cahill
The wardrobe of C.S. Lewis is filled with fantastic tales, but a deeper look reveals a hidden world of Christian imagery.

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 is the soul?

Columns

The Examined Life: Ear to the ground
By Bryan Cones

Margin Notes: Direct deposit
By Kevin Clarke

Culture in Context: Stuck in the past
By Patrick McCormick

Testaments: Crisis averted
By Alice Camille