Check out these recent articles from around the web:
Pope Francis and the argument for compassionate capitalism by Michael Gerson: “In ‘The Joy of the Gospel,’ Francis returns to the defining theme of his papacy: the priority of the person. Human beings have an essential value and nature. They can’t be reduced to economic objects or to the sum of their desires.”
Rescuing the Pro-Life Cause by Michael Sean Winters, NCR: “If we on the Catholic Left who care, and care deeply, about the tragedy of abortion, if we do not stand up with greater vigor and frequency, we will abandon the issue to the wingnuts. The pro-life cause deserves better. The political Left deserves better. The unborn children deserve better.”
Is Capitalism “Intrinsically Disordered”? by Michael Sean Winters, NCR: “An additional difficulty is the real challenge for all of us who have not joined the laissez-faire brigade to disentangle ourselves from the tentacles of the market.”
My History; Our Nation’s Future by Tom Roberts: “I don’t usually don’t go in for fasting. I don’t have that kind of discipline. But this one gave me an opportunity to join in solidarity, however briefly, with brothers and sisters who face the hardship of leaving their homelands for opportunity, to provide for their families, to seek the same kind of changes that drove my own grandparents to emigrate.”
The Central African Republic needs our help by Michael Gerson: “Apart from the essential task of protecting civilians from murder, the most important intervention may come in urging CAR religious leaders to reduce tensions — to calm the paranoia on both sides and encourage trust.”
Like Pope Francis? You’ll love Jesus by Elizabeth Tenety: “But woe to those who remake the pope in their own image. If you focus only on what you like about Francis’s papacy — whatever makes you feel comfortable and smug about your own religious and political convictions — you’re doing it wrong. And you’re not seeing the real Francis.”
The Terrifying First Christmas by Matt Emerson, America: “A mix of joy and confusion, happiness and worry. This is the first Christmas. Can we today recover some of its dramatic impact? Can we let it reveal something of our inner thoughts and renew our passion for conversion?”
Cardinal O’Malley calls on Congress to support food stamps by Joshua McElwee, NCR: “As Catholics around the world joined in Tuesday for a day of prayer to eradicate world hunger, Boston’s Cardinal Seán O’Malley said the U.S. government should not pursue cuts to food stamp programs.”
Five Chinese daughters speak up for their fathers by Fred Hiatt: “Wang was one of five daughters of Chinese prisoners of conscience who testified Thursday before a subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a hearing chaired by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.). Their stories confirmed Smith’s observation: ‘In a very real sense, everyone close to a prisoner of conscience goes to jail and lives a seemingly unending nightmare.’”
Resurrection by EJ Dionne: “A pope who sees lifting up the poor and moralizing an unjust economy as primary objectives inevitably views the culture wars that so engage Catholic conservatives, particularly in the United States, as a peculiar rock on which to build the church’s public ministry.”
Is Catholicism compatible with libertarianism? by Michael Peppard, Commonweal: “It’s hard to believe that question is still being debated, isn’t it? For over 100 years, the definitive answer is No. Pope after pope after pope, right up to Benedict XVI, has explained this in the most magisterial ways. But perhaps it has taken Pope Francis’s singular history, style, and gift for communication to break through the noise of American-style capitalism.”
Bishops lead protesters in prayer after night of police action in Kiev by Cindy Wooden, CNS: “Corrupt politicians, he said, are getting rich, while the population gets poorer and more people try to emigrate in search of work.”
Chinese prosecutors file charges against leading activist Xu Zhiyong by Washington Post: “Xu, a legal scholar, founded the New Citizens Movement, a loose network of activists seeking to promote the rule of law and human rights in China. In March and April, several members unfurled banners in Beijing demanding that Communist Party officials publicly disclose their assets, and many have since been arrested as part of a broad crackdown on dissent under President Xi Jinping.”
Have Faith in Joy by Fr. James Martin, SJ, America: “So does the Christian have to be happy all the time? No. But is the Christian invited to experience lasting joy, which can stand unshaken in the midst of troubles? Just ask the disciples on Easter Sunday morning.”
