Magazine

July 5, 2019

v.146 n.12

Article

Fireworks

We are locked up in our own little worlds, trying not to get hurt too much or screw things up, and we have our backs to the fireworks going on all around us.

By Jerry Ryan

July 4, 2019

Theology

Spirituality

The Last Word

Article

The Death of a Mental Patient

My brother Robert, always in and out of treatment, was a gift. He taught me to accept my own frustrations, and to curb the envy of others I sometimes felt.

June 27, 2019

Article

‘Turn the Page’

In the debates about democratic socialism, we need a new idea of utopia. The life and work of nineteenth-century socialist William Morris is a good place to start.

June 24, 2019

Article

How We Got the Good Book

It can be appealing to think of the Bible as a stable, fixed text. But paleography is not an exact science, even in the hands of the best practitioners.

By Luke Timothy Johnson

June 19, 2019

Spirituality

Jewish-Christian Relations

Theology

Article

Stepping Back

Close the newspaper. Turn off the computer and the radio. Change the conversation, and refuse to allow Trump and his antics to dominate your thoughts.

By Margaret O’Brien Steinfels

June 18, 2019

Spirituality

Donald Trump

Columnists

Article

Friends & Benefits

I agree with the values of sacrifice and care, and I often find Briallen Hopper’s writing tenacious and lovely. So why did her book leave me not quite satisfied?

June 17, 2019

Article

Motherhouse of Cinema

Most of the films in competition at Cannes were quieter, more richly textured meditations on love, loss, and identity. But the specter of Trump loomed large.

June 12, 2019

Article

Modi’s ‘Mother India’

The landslide reelection of Narendra Modi as prime minister of India in May concentrates economic and nationalist concerns. It bodes poorly for the lower castes.

By Nicole-Ann Lobo

June 5, 2019

Foreign Affairs

Social Justice

Article

To disrupt the natural world at this rate is simply not to “till and keep” it. Right now, we have way too much tilling and not enough keeping.

The Web of Life

May 30, 2019

Article

Listening to the Laity

If the church wants to help laypeople make informed decisions about their reproductive choices, it needs to listen more deeply to their concrete experiences

November 27, 2018

Article

Poem | The “Regina Caeli”

Alleluia— / minimalist, elegant, / as though a second / Gabriel addresses / the Queen of Heaven

By Judy Little

June 24, 2019

Poetry

Article

Poem | Looking Up at El Capitan

Rogue showers wring out colors / in swatches of old Noah’s rainbow

By Charlotte F. Otten

June 24, 2019

Poetry

Article

Poem | First Love

In the country ruins / Of two lost souls / Around which the years / Of neglect and growth / Crumbled stone and mortar / Now made entry impossible

By Stephen Rybicki

June 24, 2019

Poetry

Article

North Star

A tribute to Nicholas Clifford, a scholar of Chinese history and longtime Commonweal contributor.

By George Dennis O’Brien

June 24, 2019

Death and Dying

Spirituality

Theology

Article

Until the priesthood becomes both male and female, the clerical “boys’ club” and its sins will remain

Letters | Seminarians, vocations, etc.

By The Editors

June 24, 2019

Letters

Article

The Future of Social Security

Once upon a time, companies furnished loyal employees with pension plans. No longer. We need to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for social security.

June 24, 2019

Article

The Exonerated Five

Ava DuVernay’s new docudrama about the Central Park Five reflects a basic dilemma: what should we focus on when we look at race in the United States?

By Rand Richards Cooper

June 21, 2019

Article

Stumbling toward War

This Iran crisis is one of the Trump administration’s own making. It should stop issuing threats to Iran’s leaders and instead work for a diplomatic solution.

By The Editors

June 20, 2019