Every day millions of women and girls around the world are subjected to unspeakable cruelties and deprived of basic human rights.  They are stripped of their basic human dignity and denied the opportunity to fulfill their potential.  These atrocities are largely ignored by the communities and countries in which they take place, and are too… Read More Redefining the War on Women: The International Front

A dark shroud seemed to envelope America in the last few weeks of 2012.  From the constant media chatter about the fiscal cliff to the coverage of trauma and heartache in Newtown, CT, the days were filled with painful reminders of our human failings and fragility. The darkness seeped into my own family with the… Read More Illuminating God’s Love at Work in the World

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.… Read More Promoting Christ’s Vision, Not Traditional Marriage

The events in Newtown snapped me back to the first few months of the onset of my sister’s severe mental illness, when I learned that mental disorders were not individual diseases, but family ones, community ones. All of a sudden, I was twelve again, reading the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) and… Read More A Better Response to Mental Illness

Throughout the election season and as the nation prepares for a new Congress to be sworn into office this January, the discussion of a “war on women” has received considerable attention.  But for all the challenges women face in today’s society, the broad notion of a “war on women” has been narrowly focused on matters… Read More Redefining the War on Women

The familiar “ding!” of my e-mail goes off and I immediately react with a feeling of hope, apprehension, and anticipation. I quickly head over to my laptop, open my e-mail inbox and sigh. Another junk mail arrival, airlines boasting of their newest sales, donation requests from various groups, and the like. I have become one… Read More Patience in the Time of Unemployment

The re-election of President Barack Obama affords his administration the opportunity to make good on prior commitments to improve the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Conditions in DRC have grown worse under Obama’s watch, as a new rebellion has not only caused massive displacement but now threatens regional stability. While regional… Read More Time for President Obama to Move Forward on Congo