iPhone app iPad app Android phone app Android tablet app

Clergy Sex Abuse

To Understand The Catholic Hierarchy's Troubles, Look To Newark's Scandal

Michael D'Antonio | Posted 05.09.2013 | Religion
Michael D'Antonio

Often lost in the shadow of the Archdiocese of New York, and its larger-than-life cardinal, Timothy Dolan, the Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, N.J., is attracting national attention these days for all the wrong reasons.

Puerto Rican Catholics Rally Around Beleaguered Archbishop

AP | DANICA COTO | Posted 05.08.2013 | Religion

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Roman Catholics in Puerto Rico rallied Wednesday around an archbishop who is apparently under pressure from the Vatican ...

Some Tips For Journalists Covering The Catholic Church (Hint: It's Complicated)

Julie Leininger Pycior | Posted 05.01.2013 | Religion
Julie Leininger Pycior

"The Catholic Church: What Everyone Needs to Know" makes clear that this institution is less monolithic than it seems; no wonder the book's mantra is: "It's complicated."

May Dreamworks Get It Right

Sister Mary Ann Walsh | Posted 04.10.2013 | Religion
Sister Mary Ann Walsh

Word is that Dreamworks, a sub-studio of Disney, is about to make a movie on the Boston Globe's January 2002 investigative report on pedophilia and the Archdiocese of Boston. If Dreamworks practices moviemaking artfully, then grace might shine through.

A Regular Guy This Francis

Marco CƔceres | Posted 03.20.2013 | Religion
Marco CƔceres

The new pope can do small, seemingly trivial things that can have a huge symbolic effect and show people that, while he may not be able to fix everything that is wrong and unjust within the Church, he "gets it."

Pink Smoke And Protestant Popes

Carolyn Custis James | Posted 03.20.2013 | Religion
Carolyn Custis James

The key to achieving the reform so desperately needed by both Catholic and Protestant churches was right under Pope Francis' nose the moment he stepped out on the Vatican balcony. Clues can be found in a cloud of pink smoke and in the legacy of his patron saint, Francis of Assisi.

UK Priest Surprises Court With Secret Marriage

AP | Posted 05.15.2013 | Religion

LONDON — A jury in northern England got a surprise at the trial of a Roman Catholic priest accused of sexually assaulting a teenage girl: The cl...

A Prayer For Francis

Neil McCarthy | Posted 05.14.2013 | Religion
Neil McCarthy

Yesterday, he asked us to pray for him. And I did. I offered up my own version of the prayer of his namesake, St. Francis.

Led By Francis, A Traumatized Catholic Family Faces The Future

Michael D'Antonio | Posted 05.14.2013 | Religion
Michael D'Antonio

Wounded by physical, psychological and spiritual assaults, they keep insisting that something is terribly wrong with an institution that pays millions in attorneys fee to keep secret its conspiracy to hide the facts and help clergy avoid prosecution.

Dutch Catholic Girls Abused At Home, In Church

AP | Posted 03.11.2013 | Religion

AMSTERDAM -- A commission investigating abuse of children linked to Dutch Roman Catholic institutions says girls were sexually abused by members of th...

A Catholic Spring?

Michael D'Antonio | Posted 05.11.2013 | Religion
Michael D'Antonio

Pope Benedict's resignation and the conclave that will convene to name his successor spark hope for a Catholic Spring that might bring the Vatican into the modern world.

Collars and Queers

Father Shannon Kearns | Posted 05.08.2013 | Gay Voices
Father Shannon Kearns

I am angry at the people who use the abusers to blame and scapegoat queer people. I am angry at all of the people who think that queer people are sexual deviants, sinners, or predators. I am angry that as a queer priest I will always been seen as a double threat.

BLOCKED: Access To Clergy Sex Abuse Site Limited At Vatican

National Catholic Reporter | Joshua J. McElwee | Posted 03.08.2013 | Religion

ROME -- One of the domain names of a website that is the primary source of information on clergy sex abuse cases has been blocked on the Vatican's web...

A New Pope Won't Save The Sinking Ship

Wayne Besen | Posted 05.07.2013 | Religion
Wayne Besen

Even if my dire assessment were completely off base, it would take nothing short of a miracle to avert failure for the next pope and a crisis of faith for believers.

The Papal Conclave Is Perfect Time For The Church To Clean Up Its Act

Diane Dimond | Posted 05.07.2013 | Religion
Diane Dimond

As the conclave gets underway I hope the Cardinals understand it is time for moral, compassionate and truly healing leadership at the Vatican. There is no better time than now.

Jaweed Kaleem

American Catholics: Sex Abuse Is Biggest Problem Facing Church

HuffingtonPost.com | Jaweed Kaleem | Posted 03.07.2013 | Religion

While the College of Cardinals meets to discuss the priorities of the Roman Catholic Church and select a new pope, a new survey shows that American Ca...

Did A Gay Vatican Underworld Cause Pope Benedict To Quit?

Joseph Ward III | Posted 05.05.2013 | Religion
Joseph Ward III

Pope Benedict cited his failing health as the reasons he is unable to appropriately fulfill the ministry that was entrusted to him. But the next pope will be handed the same 300-page report detailing Vatican corruption, including information about this alleged gay Vatican underworld.

Hebrew Theological School Apologizes To Sex Abuse Survivor Put On Notice

Chaim Levin | Posted 05.04.2013 | Religion
Chaim Levin

Kaylie has remained strong and steadfast, delivering a very important message: we cannot and will not be silent about sexual abuse or our communities' reactions to the topic and survivors.

Sexual Abuse Victim Demeaned, Put On Notice For Misconduct At Hebrew Theological College

Chaim Levin | Posted 05.01.2013 | Religion
Chaim Levin

Hebrew Theological College's actions would reduce free speech to misconduct and the abuse survivor and her courage to nothing. The school's actions are the only misconduct, and it is utterly horrendous.

Now We Need A Pope Who Likes To Clean Up

Jon M. Sweeney | Posted 05.01.2013 | Religion
Jon M. Sweeney

When Benedict issued his resignation a few weeks ago, those of us who know about Celestine immediately thought of the 1294 pope, and what happened to him. Like Celestine, I have to believe that Benedict, too, wanted to get out alive. And so, now, we need a pope who loves to clean things up.

Why Cardinal Mahony Should Not Vote For The Next Pope

Tom Rastrelli | Posted 04.30.2013 | Religion
Tom Rastrelli

The picture he and other cardinals paint of sexual abuse victims who demand accountability in the Catholic Church is of unreasonable, insatiable, judgmental, self-righteous and hard-hearted aggressors. Mahony's words send the message that victims should just forgive and forget.

Why Are Priests Really Celibate? (And Will It Change?)

Christian Piatt | Posted 04.30.2013 | Religion
Christian Piatt

Is it possible that the next pope might revisit this and change centuries of Catholic tradition?

And the Oscar for Leadership Goes to...

Bhaskar Chakravorti | Posted 04.30.2013 | Business
Bhaskar Chakravorti

In the digitally (or otherwise) enhanced narrative, even the foibles and faults contribute towards the endgame as the leader gets to goal. Unfortunately, outside the movie-house, we have to contend with the most spectacular of our leaders who inexplicably fail us in spectacular ways.

Child Sexual Abuse: It's Not Just A Catholic Issue

Samantha Parent Walravens | Posted 04.29.2013 | Religion
Samantha Parent Walravens

Over the past year, we have seen evidence of several organizations where moral integrity is a given fall prey to widespread child sexual abuse. Like the Catholic Church, these institutions chose to protect themselves and their own image rather than the lives of innocent victims.

What Would Jesus Do About The Catholic Church?

Cathy Cash Spellman | Posted 04.28.2013 | Religion
Cathy Cash Spellman

The Faith He envisioned was not the hierarchical structure of a Church that has so often in the past made wrong decisions and said it was doing so in His name.