Columns
Catholics Going Down in Vermont
By Mark Silk — June 14, 2010
Yesterday, the Times Argus portrayed the parlous state of the Catholic church in Vermont. The article relies on Pew for the numbers. ARIS‘ are comparable: A 30 percent decline in self-identified Catholics since 1990, from 37 percent of the population to 26 percent. If it’s any consolation, the decline in the proportion of other Christians […]
Pew Does a Big Graphic Number on the Pope
By Mark Silk — June 11, 2010
Like, if you were the Supreme Pontiff, how would you feel about being in this company? Ouch.
Subsidizing Abortions in the Military
By Mark Silk — June 11, 2010
Not the same as subsidizing chaplains. How come?
No CANA do, Virginia Anglicans
By Mark Silk — June 10, 2010
It looks to this non-lawyer that the breakaway Anglicans in Virginia (i.e. the Convocation of Anglicans in North America–CANA) were too clever by half in removing the hem of their garment from the Episcopal Church USA (TEC) and affiliating with the Anglican Church of Nigeria. In ruling against them today, the Virginia Supreme Court held […]
Waiting for (Spiritual) Lefty
By Mark Silk — June 10, 2010
What’s the best word for describing the Religious Left today? Judging by the three-day conference organized by Michael Lerner’s Network of Spiritual Progressives starting tomorrow in Washington, the most charitable one I can come up with is “ambivalent.” Entitled “Creating ‘The Caring Society’: A Progressive Alternative to Tea Party Extremism and Corporate domination of American […]
The Irish Apostolic Visitation: To what end?
By Mark Silk — June 8, 2010
What’s the mission of the Apostolic Visitors who, the Vatican announced last week, will be parachuting into the Emerald Isle next fall? According to the official press release, they are supposed to deal with the abuse crisis: The Apostolic Visitors will set out to explore more deeply questions concerning the handling of cases of abuse […]
The Catholic Press
By Mark Silk — June 7, 2010
Anyone who doubts that the U.S. Catholic bishops are willfully clueless about the media environment in which they operate should take a look at the talk given to the Catholic Press Association last week by Gavrilo Zavala, auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles and Chairman of the U.S. Bishops Communications Committee. In Zavala’s view, there’s the […]
Sikh and ye shall find Nikki Haley
By Mark Silk — June 6, 2010
Because this is a serious blog that eschews prurience, we have refrained from taking note of the accusations of inappropriate physical relationships and one-night stands that have been swirling around one of Sarah Palin’s Mama Grizzlies, Tea Party-er Nikki Haley, who bade fare to become the first Sikh to serve as governor of one of […]
Vatican Hearts Health Care Reform
By Mark Silk — June 4, 2010
At least the authoritative Jesuit journal La Civiltà Cattolica –which, as David Gibson notes, is vetted by the Vatican Secretariat of State–does. An article in the new issue calls the new law “‘a needed and long awaited beginning’ of bringing greater justice to all citizens, especially the most vulnerable,” according to CNS. Gibson sarcastically wonders […]
Is the LDS Church Supporting Harry Reid?
By Mark Silk — June 3, 2010
For months and months, Harry Reid seemed about as likely to be reelected to the Senate as the Orioles are to win the American League East. But a new poll now shows him leading all three of his main Republican rivals. What gives? As the folks over at TPM point out, the GOP candidates have […]
Democratic Faith Outreach, stumped
By Mark Silk — June 2, 2010
Yesterday’s exchange in this space, plus posts by Sarah Posner and Dan Schultz over at Religion Dispatches, suggest that the debate really comes down to the Bass-Posner-Schultz view that Democratic faith outreach has been too focused on wooing unwooable evangelicals (or selling its soul for a mess of evangelical pottage) versus the Sapp view au […]
