Ever since I first saw pictures of the mystifying red rocks of Utah, I wanted to visit Arches National Park.

After looking at the map, however, the place seemed so remote that I wasn't sure I'd ever get there.

Recently, I...

It's rare to have a national monument in your backyard, but that's what my hosts in Grand Junction say they have, and they love it.

The 32-square mile Colorado National Monument sits on a ridge at 2,000 feet on the southwest side of Grand Valley in Mesa County...

My annual pilgrimage to the Stratford Shakespeare Festival stimulated the thought once again about what it's like to be in a community that devotes itself to beauty. That beauty matters in a town of Stratford's size and geography is not only unusual these days, but it summons a reflection about...

People across the nation have taken to the streets to protest the Vatican's attack on the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and show their support for the sisters, according to Nun Justice.

On Sunday, June 10, 40 people from Kalamazoo, Michigan, gathered at St. Augustine Cathedral to join them....

The recent report on the nation's skyrocketing obesity rates made the task of the Kalamazoo County Champions of Healthy Kids all the more urgent after its leaders learned that the major determinant of a family's health is its social and economic status because it dictates the opportunities and resources available...

While Pope John Paul II's relationship with American nuns appeared to be a reining in of what he considered the more exuberant experiments and freedoms they embraced after the Vatican II reforms (1962-65), Pope Benedict XVI's recent decree, the "Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious" is drop-dead...

Utah is no place for the faint of heart whether plant, animal, or human. In this land of weathered rock amid sagebrush, yucca, cactus, juniper, cottonwoods and pinyon pine, travelers gain a new appreciation for wind and water's role in shaping the landscape.

The majestic landforms of...

Nature has always held a prominent place in Sister Virginia (Ginny) Jones' life.

Growing up in Long Island, she grew to love and study the salt marsh flora. While in high school and later in college, she taught in a summer program about the area's marine and shore systems for...

"These are the times to grow our souls. Each of us is called upon to embrace the conviction that despite the powers and principalities bent on commodifying all our human relationships,...

The Titanic has long held a prominent place in the human imagination and commemorations abound during this year's 100th anniversary of its sinking.

Among them is Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition hosted by the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. Similar exhibitions are also appearing in Atlanta, Houston, Kansas...

Promises by both major political parties three years ago to do something about climate change have gone by the wayside. Today's Republican presidential candidates have, in fact, gone further in the opposite direction, rejecting evidence that humans are responsible for (or principle contributors towards) the warming of...

Nine years ago Gary Dorrien spoke to Kalamazoo peace activists about the nation's policy of perpetual war as advocated by the neoconservatives.

On Sunday, Mar.18, the Episcopalian priest and Reinhold Niebuhr Professor of Social Ethics at Union Theological Seminary and Columbia University, returned to a capacity...

On Thanksgiving Day 2001 Nalini Quraeshi was preparing dinner for 30 friends and family members when she received word that her father had died in Nepal. Her two-day trip found the country suddenly beset with tragedy -- and world headlines.

A Maoist rebel insurgency had launched simultaneous attacks on...

Political films are among my favorite genres because of their drama, excitement of the campaign and attempt to portray the human side of candidates and staffers.

Game Change is no exception.

The story of how Sarah Palin was chosen for the 2008 GOP vice-presidential spot was both intriguing and sad...

I found that out when I accompanied five students from Western Michigan University during their spring break last week.

This trip was so different from spring break depicted in the 1960 film, "Where the Boys Are," where bands of youth took over Fort Lauderdale to indulge themselves in sun, fun,...

Presidential candidate Rick Santorum showed that he is the "severely conservative" one in the Republican race for the nomination -- as reflected by the vote in southwest Michigan's 6th Congressional District.

In the seven-county district, Romney won only one county (Kalamazoo) which has a larger, more urban population.

Santorum...

The stories surrounding Abraham Lincoln makes him one of America's great heroes. A trip to Springfield, Illinois, where he spent 25 years as a citizen, lawyer and state representative prior to his presidency (1861-65) gives visitors a look at his humanity.

The first clues about the character of any...

Over a thousand people showed up for a Rick Santorum rally Monday night at the Heritage Christian Academy, a K-12 private school in Kalamazoo.

The Santorum campaign set up the visit on Saturday hoping to gather 300 people.

Because the room where the rally...

Tuesday is Michigan's Republican primary, in which state residents of any party affiliation can vote, and the shenanigans going on may have a serious impact on the Republicans' nomination for president.

Many Democrats are planning to vote for Santorum because they believe a match up between him and Obama would...

In an odd sort of way, Hurricane Katrina helped to make New Orleans an incredible laboratory not only for understanding the role and importance of a city's food system but for recognizing the importance of food as an essential tool for community building.

Two thousand homes were lost in the...