The Dispatch
What happens to bishops who resign?
The problem is a metaphysical one because when bishops, priests, and deacons are ordained, they are changed ontologically, at the very level of their being […]
Pope Francis
The Dispatch
Analysis: With new appointments, Pope Francis puts his mark on the College of Cardinals
This is the first time in the five years of this pontificate, writes Andrea Gagliarducci, that in a possible future conclave the number of cardinals created […]
Analysis
Mary, Mother of the Church, and two popes
Pope Francis’ decision to create the new memorial of Mary, Mater Ecclesiae on Pentecost Monday is a fulfillment of Blessed Paul VI’s devotion to Mary […]
Features
Pope Francis’ handling of the Viganò scandal doesn’t bode well for Chilean crisis
The Holy Father often says the right things: he grabs the headlines and starts out well enough, but he does not follow through. […]
The Dispatch
The Holy See, China, and evangelization
The only real power the Holy See can deploy in 21st-century world politics is the power of moral witness and argument. […]
Features
Cardinal Eijk, Pope Francis, and problems of governance
The basic dynamic of this pontificate is quite clear, and it leaves far too much unclear. […]
The Dispatch
In Iran, Christian converts face 10 year prison sentences
The Islamic republic’s population is 99 percent Muslim, and its recognized religious minorities are strictly controlled. […]
The Dispatch
Michelle Wolf and the Throwaway Culture
When we live in the space beyond good and evil, and when morality is construed as entirely the invention of personal freedom—then the will of […]
Interview
Ross Douthat on Francis’ pontificate: “We live in interesting times as Catholics”
The New York Times columnist and author of To Change the Church discusses his new book on the Pope, and what he hopes his liberal and secular […]
Features
“Gaudete et exsultate” is beautiful for its simplicity, frustrating for its failures
Pope Francis should be more careful, for he tends to overstate matters and to attack weak sisters even when he does not set up straw […]