Our editors had some of the most popular posts on Millennial last year. Check their top posts below:
Robert Christian, Editor
Keep It Real Revolution: Catholic Schools and Authentic, Secure Girls: “In the end, Catholic schools have the unique opportunity to teach values that will make it easier for girls to be authentic, secure, and more likely to reach their full potentials as persons. It is an opportunity that should not be wasted.”
Why Notions of Attractiveness Poison Our Society: “By opposing the objectification of others, the Church can provide a solid foundation for an assault on numerous forms of injustice and make a major contribution to the common good and human flourishing. Only when we reject the legitimacy of capricious, fleeting standards of attractiveness can we really take on the insecurity epidemic present in our society and the evil that objectifying others can foster.”
Pro-life, Anti-Maternity Care? I don’t think so: “If the pro-life movement will succeed in its goals, it is essential that these radical individualists move from the core to the periphery of the movement. Only a bipartisan movement of pro-life Democrats and genuine compassionate conservatives can deliver real success.”
Pro-life Progressives: Still Not a Myth: “Pro-life progressivism that is rooted in a commitment to community and human dignity sees liberty detached from duties as license and rejects supposed ‘rights’ to engage in activity that is entirely incompatible with human flourishing, particularly those that rely on the dehumanization of the vulnerable.”
Our Lady of ‘Merica: “Seeing Mary the Mother of God draped in the US flag like she just scored the game-winning goal in the Women’s World Cup is just a bit much for me.”
Rand Paul vs. Catholic Universalism: “The Church believes in the fundamental equality of all human persons, as each is made in the image of God and has inestimable dignity and worth. Having a religion other than Christianity—or none at all—does not negate this reality or dimish one’s rights.”
Promoting Christ’s Vision, Not Traditional Marriage: “Enough is enough with all of the talk about ‘defending traditional marriage.’ The authentic Christian call to marriage, becoming one flesh, which is articulated in Genesis and affirmed by Christ, is and always has been exceptionally radical. It challenges us to build a future not yet seen, not to gaze back at an illusory past.”
In addition, Robert had the honor of filling in as a guest blogger for Michael Sean Winters’ superb blog, Distinctly Catholic at National Catholic Reporter. His posts can be read here.
Christopher Hale, Contributing Editor and Co-founder:
Benedict the Meek: How A Quiet Man’s Pontificate Has Shaped the Millennial Generation: “Benedict’s words—and especially his questions—have struck us in a way that is perhaps even more poignant than those of his predecessor.”
The silence at the heart of Pope Francis’ Jesuit identity: “The silence the Jesuit named Francis called for last Thursday was pregnant with meaning for me. In that intimate moment, I felt so clearly God’s closeness to his human family through our new Holy Father.”
With a ‘pragmatist’ pope, LGBT hope?: “In this spirit, I hope he also takes time over the first months of his papacy to break bread and begin dialogue with gay Catholics who with great love of Christ and of the Church are trying to find a home in this universal faith community.”
Reflections on Evangelli Gaudium: What Francis Really Wants to Change: “After the reading the letter, one question and one answer stand out. What does Pope Francis want to change about the Church? He wants to change us. More than anything else, Francis wants us to be changed by a radical human encounter with Jesus Christ and the Gospel.”
He also had an article featured at America, The Greatest Battle Facing the Next Pope: “When people lose the ability to engage with reality, a process of dehumanization—though gradual and silent—becomes very real. This modern dehumanization allows the old heresy of Gnosticism to percolate in new and even more disturbing ways, particularly in reducing intrinsic human worth to mere physical utility, namely economic productivity.”
Sarah Christian, Copy Editor
When Killing Children Gets Ugly: “And this is why pro-choice advocates, including those who are supposed to be impartial, unbiased journalists, wanted to keep this story hidden—to preserve the banality of evil intimately connected to the legalized killing of unborn children.”
Is the Catholic Right Turning Against Pope Francis?: “Opponents of abortion and euthanasia have an ally in Pope Francis. But those who want to wage a culture war do not. Francis rejects the confrontational, caustic approach favored by many right-wing Catholic culture warriors. It was inevitable that many would turn against him for inadequate ardor in defense of their causes.”
Abercrombie’s America: White, Thin, and Wearing Overpriced Clothes: “So white, thin, and sexually active: this is the ‘All-American kid’ Abercrombie holds up as an idol and wants all others to envy and emulate (if possible). It’s an extremely un-American ideal for the 21st century, more aligned with the repugnant values of the early 20th century.”
A Kairos Moment for Mercy for Divorced and Remarried Catholics?: “But can this commitment to mercy and forgiveness, based on a recognition of the frailty of the human person, coexist with a firm, robust commitment to one-flesh marriage? Let us hope and pray that the eight members of the Council of Cardinals, who will meet to discuss this issue (among others), find a path forward so that we can end the alienation felt by far too many of our brothers and sisters in Christ who in the wake of personal mistakes are earnestly desiring and striving for greater communion.”
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