Despite a disturbingly inept public-relations aftermath, the American raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound was a great success. Indeed, it was so successful that it should force us to reconsider the presumption that the war in Afghanistan was necessary in the first place. The logic is simple: if bin Laden was killed during a secret Read more
A year after a widespread sex scandal rocked Roman Catholics in Pope Benedict XVI’s homeland, German intellectuals and faithful alike are turning their backs on the church, calling for change or simply leaving the congregation. German theologians and others have aired their discontent in a series of petitions to church leaders calling for changes including Read more
I was married for a long time to a man addicted to porn. I am now divorced. I became aware of his addiction early in our marriage. I found the ‘girlie’ magazines hidden under the bed, read, he said, for the articles. I wanted to believe him. Every time I found them, I felt nauseous, Read more
A funny thing has happened as the story of a recent Vatican crackdown on a legendary monastery in Rome has made its way into the English-language press. I mean that literally — the story has been turned into a joke, thereby obscuring its real significance. For those with eyes to see, the suppression of the Read more
The profound changes, historical, are not always the most spectacular. What just happened this week in Rome is like a palace revolution unimportant but it is highly significant. Because it confirms the direction taken by the papacy of Benedict XVI and the entire Catholic Church. In a word, Rome has “taken over” a whole sector Read more
Release of the John Jay College study on the causes of sexual abuse by Catholic priests signals the end of the U.S. bishops’ five-year, $1.8 million inquiry into the institution they govern and the priests in their charge. But the new study hardly quiets the fundamental questions that have dogged the church and its leaders Read more
Commentators on both sides of the Irish Sea are unanimous in declaring the Queen in Ireland was an extraordinary triumph, one that opened hearts and shifted attitudes, laying ghosts to rest and opening up a new era of friendship for both nations. Three of the key moments occurred on visits to historically resonant places. At Read more
It’s depressing to see Stephen Hawking, one of the most brilliant minds in his field, trying to speak as an expert on things he sadly seems to know rather less about than many averagely intelligent Christians. Of course there are people who think of “heaven” as a kind of pie-in-the-sky dream of an afterlife to Read more
In China, where a growing demand for organ transplants coupled with a dramatic shortage of donors has fuelled a rampant black market trade, selling your organs for cash is a mouse click away. An internet search reveals a website offering kidneys for sale and the contact information of those able to procure them. A young Read more
The Rapture, May 21, has been and gone and if you’re reading this, you’re still here. As of 23 May, Family Radio’s website had not been updated and the site still said there were zero days left to Judgement Day. The radio’s preacher, Harold Camping, who predicted the Rapture on Saturday 21 May, last week Read more