'Amoris Laetitia'

April 25, 2016

Article

On the Mark

Francis offers a practical approach to the challenges of married love that gives us a surprisingly moving exhortation to a courageous and sanctifying way of life.

By Paige E. Hochschild

May 6, 2016

U.S. Catholicism

Synod on the Family

Theology

Article

Some Exceptions May Apply

Some conservatives tend to confuse fidelity with a one-size-fits-all legalism. If there's one thing you can say about Pope Francis, it's that he's no legalist.

April 19, 2016

U.S. Catholicism

Editorial

Synod on the Family

Theology

Article

Forgiving & Listening

To understand Francis and support the direction he has been setting for the Church, we need to think more deeply about the ways and means of “forgiveness.”

By Dennis O'Brien

April 18, 2016

U.S. Catholicism

Article

In the Company of the Brokenhearted

Francis regards the sacrament's indissolubility as a “gift” rather than a “yoke,” and chides those whose efforts to defend marriage reduce the gift to a “duty.”

April 14, 2016

Article

Unity, Growth & Love in the Church

The exhortation is a valiant and powerful exercise in the Petrine ministry of upholding church unity. Is it another starting point in Francis's pontificate?

April 13, 2016

Article

A Church with Authority that Serves? The Path of 'Amoris Laetitia'

By David Cloutier

April 8, 2016

Article

What Is Francis Saying with 'Amoris Laetitia'?

April 8, 2016

Article

The Poet Pope's Pastoral Discernment

If John Paul II was the philosopher and Benedict XVI the theologian, Pope Francis is the poet pope, giving voice to the dreams and wisdom of migrants and the poor.

By William L. Portier

April 12, 2016

Must Reads

Politics

When the Laity Led

In Nicaragua, revolutionary hope has given way to resentment and resignation. Can the popular church reclaim its role as the country’s conscience?

By Eileen Markey

October 1, 2019

Religion

When the Amazon Meets the Tiber

What matters at the Amazon synod is not the imperative of universal consistency across all regions of the church, but the pastoral welfare of the People of God.

By Austen Ivereigh

October 9, 2019

Religion

When Americans Become Saints

Men have often tried to shape the stories of holy women to narrow the boundaries of what female holiness can look like. Just look at Elizabeth Seton.

By Mollie Wilson O'Reilly

September 26, 2019

Culture

Saying the Unsayable

Poet and novelist Fanny Howe is an experimental writer’s experimental writer, the author of dozens of books, one who remains publicly, committedly Catholic.

By Anthony Domestico

September 27, 2019

Books

Inescapable Influence

Whether we like it or not, we in the West inhabit a world that remains structured by Christian assumptions and informed by Christian ideas.

By Costica Bradatan

September 30, 2019

Collections

Fiction in Commonweal

To celebrate the publication our summer fiction issue, a new collection of short stories from our archives.

July 30, 2019

Collections

Labor & the Catholic Church

Commonweal writers have long engaged with the church’s stance on labor rights, worker justice, and income inequality. Here are the best pieces from our archives.