Pope Francis Must Be Sainted Before His Legacy Is Undone

As church leaders gather for a conclave at the Vatican this week to pick a new pontiff following the death of Pope Francis last month, Catholics who shared Francis’ vision for a more tolerant and global church that prioritizes the values of peace, tolerance and ministering to the poor and outcast must push for Francis to be declared a saint as soon as possible.

Read more on USNews.com

Pope Francis is David to Donald Trump’s Goliath

I never thought a battle over good and evil would play out in my lifetime between my church and my country – or that it would restore my faith in the church. But thanks to President Donald Trump and Pope Francis, that’s exactly what’s happened.

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How Catholic bishops fail their country

Two prelates played prominent roles at the inauguration of President Trump. One seized the opportunity to speak truth to power; the other did not.

Read more on NYDailyNews.com

Five Reasons Corporate Philanthropy Remains a Mystery

When I set out to write about the nation’s most important corporate philanthropies, I knew I would have to do some research. But I had no idea that what appeared to be a relatively painless writing assignment would turn out to demand the skills of an investigative reporter. (Finalist in 2023 Dateline Awards)

Read more on InsidePhilanthropy.com

Opinion: The Vatican’s sleight-of-hand on blessings for same-sex couples

When the Vatican officially announced its approval of the blessing of same-sex couples this week, the media went into overdrive. Read more on CNN.com

Opinion: Synod ends not with a bang, but a whisper

The Catholic Church’s Synod on Synodality, covered by major media outlets across the globe, ended on October 29 without much to show for itself. Read more on CNN.com

Sorry, fellow Italian-Americans: Columbus was a thug. But the church was the big problem

Christopher Columbus was a criminal. But the vicious Catholic doctrine that empowered him has never been revoked espite my Italian. Read more on Salon.com

Note To Chair Powell: Ditch Your Sketchy 2% Solution!

At the Federal Reserve, it’s crunch time. Its chair, inflation hawk Jerome Powell, soon will tell the world whether he’ll impose yet another interest rate on a beleaguered nation. Read more on Medium

Democrats enamored of Liz Cheney seem to have amnesia

I admire her loyalty to the Constitution and her efforts to reform the Republican Party. But I won’t be blinded by her light. Read more on NBC.com’s THINK

Opinion: The big story behind the police raid on a small-town paper

What happened to a weekly newspaper in Marion, Kansas, on Friday can be viewed as one unpleasant incident in a small town: the police raiding a local newspaper and the home of its owners and confiscating the digital equivalent of the paper’s printing presses by seizing computers, cell phones and reporting materials containing the names of confidential sources. But the proper perspective is a much broader one. Read more on CNN.com

Opinion: Why we’re still waiting for the Catholic women’s ‘revolution’

On Wednesday, the Vatican announced that for the first time it would give women a few votes in its Synod on Synodality, its upcoming meeting in October in Rome exploring the broad question of how the church governs itself in the future. Read more on CNN.com

RIP Pope Benedict XVI — but let’s not ignore all the harm he did the church and its people

hey say you should never speak ill of the dead, but we may need to make an exception for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Read more on Salon.com

Rebel that I am, I still love Christmas

Anybody who’s read my book, Catholic Women Confront Their Church, or my commentary in Salon.com and NBCNews.com THINK knows that I’ve been very critical of the Catholic hierarchy, and its relentless focus on the wrong things, its misogyny, its instinct to protect its own. Read more on Medium

Catholic bishops have changed course on abortion — but their end goal is the same

Realizing that the faithful aren’t following them, bishops adopt a “moderate” strategy — to reach a total ban. Read more on Salon.com

Can Larry Summers please shut up now? (And his buddy Jason Furman too)

Former Harvard president has been playing inflation Cassandra on TV for months. Can we hear other views? Read more on Salon.com