ST. LOUIS (RNS) As hundreds of nuns met here on Wednesday to begin crafting an answer to Vatican demands that their leaders toe the line on orthodoxy, there was a pervasive sense that this week's discussions could lead to a fateful juncture in the history of Catholicism in America.

NEW YORK (RNS) The Al Smith Dinner has always provided a few hours of comic relief from the angry volleys of the campaign battlefield. But New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan's invitation to President Obama is angering pro-lifers and giving the archbishop some pre-dinner agita. By David Gibson.

Is Billy Graham writing his own stuff? What if the Olympics were organized by religion instead of by nation? Southern Baptist culture warrior Richard Land is quitting his day job, but not going anywhere.

(RNS) Sister Pat Farrell is at the center of one of the biggest crises in the Catholic Church, representing the majority of U.S. nuns in their looming showdown with the Vatican. But this is hardly the most difficult or dramatic episode in her life. By David Gibson.

(RNS) The Obama administration's policy requiring most employers to provide free birth control coverage in their health insurance policies takes effect on Wednesday -- a deadline that has sparked apocalyptic warnings from conservatives. By David Gibson.

Was Christianity Today's Mark Galli right about the Colorado shooting? And is the post-Aurora massacre debate a replay of the faith-or-works argument?

Here’s an antidote for "marriage fatigue" -- Michael Kelly writes about his daughter’s wedding — a decade after Bridget Kelly was nearly murdered. Just read it.

(RNS) A Catholic priest has suggested that Satan may have driven accused killer James Holmes to open fire at a Colorado cinema, continuing the religious debate over a shooting that claimed 12 lives and wounded 58 more. By David Gibson.

Was it evil or liberals behind the Aurora massacre? One man is just setting up crosses. Goodbye Gideon bibles, hello 'Fifty Shades of Grey.'

Was it evil or liberals behind the Aurora massacre? One man is just setting up crosses. Goodbye Gideon bibles, hello 'Fifty Shades of Grey.'

Mitt Romney preaches American exceptionalism, a Philly priest gets jail time, and the Catholic Church gave Obama his start: unintended consequences?

Mitt Romney preaches American exceptionalism, a Philly priest gets jail time, and the Catholic Church gave Obama his start: unintended consequences?

(RNS) Monsignor William J. Lynn, the first U.S. Catholic official convicted for covering up the sexual abuse of children, was sentenced to 3-6 years in prison on Tuesday (July 24). By David Gibson.

NEW YORK (RNS) So who is the funniest Catholic in the Western world: New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan or Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert? By David Gibson.

(RNS) After Friday's deadly shootings in Colorado, religious leaders called for stricter gun control. But is gun control a "religious" issue? By David Gibson.