WASHINGTON – In the year marking the 40th anniversary of “Humanae Vitae,” Pope Paul VI’s encyclical on human life and birth control, discussion of bioethical issues was relatively muted, but 2009 is not expected to follow suit.Read More

As the small jet carrying 10-year-old Xavia Pirozzi’s new heart approached Philadelphia International Airport the evening of Jan. 5, there was a 20 percent chance the aircraft would not be able to land in the dense fog. Inside the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Xavia’s parents, Nicolle Borys-Pirozzi and Ralph Pirozzi, waited anxiously, knowing the fog...Read More

One of the most startling truths of New Testament Christianity often reverberates for me. It is from St. Paul and though I’ve not previously observed its emphasis in my homilies or writings, I do so in this column because of the insight it offers all of us as we attempt to understand the meaning of...Read More

BOSTON – Catholics should build networks of reconciliation to nurture and support one another, U.S. Cardinal J. Francis Stafford, head of the Vatican’s Apostolic Penitentiary, said during a visit to Boston. The cardinal, a former auxiliary bishop of Baltimore, spoke about penance and reconciliation at St. John’s Seminary, addressing lay people Feb. 3 and priests...Read More

BOSTON – The boosters of a Boston religion TV game show think of it as being styled after “Jeopardy!” But in looking at the age of the contestants, it could well pass for an even younger version of “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?”Read More

WASHINGTON – Two U.S. senators lauded the work of people in Catholic social ministry and asked for their continued support in working to improve the lot of the poor. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., spoke separately Feb. 13 to the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, as people affiliated with parish, diocesan,...Read More

Even as Josephite Father Robert “Rocky” Kearns was on his deathbed in an Alabama hospital earlier this month, he was still talking about the world he was about to leave.Read More

What a blessing young Theresa Hanntz of Metuchen, N.J., is to the prolife movement (CR, Feb. 8). However, it is not surprising to hear of the controversy her ideas created with Girl Scouts.Read More