Magazine

December 2021

v.148 n.11

Article

Clearing the Field

Is it possible to talk about the moral aspect of sex in a way that does not put sexual harm at the center of the subject?

December 21, 2021

Article

‘The Solitary Anarchist’

The Greek filmmaker Nikos Papatakis tried to make his audience as uncomfortable as possible—and usually succeeded.

By Tim Markatos

December 18, 2021

Movies

Article

The Trace of a Beginning

The question is not whether or even how the climate crisis is changing the world. The question is: How should we live with it?

December 17, 2021

Article

Should Philosophy Retire?

Richard Rorty thought philosophy’s days were numbered and spent most of his career explaining why.

By George Scialabba

December 13, 2021

Philosophy

Books

Article

Encounters Between Equals

The Guadalupe–Juan Diego encounter is an aesthetic experience that foregrounds the suffering and humanity of the downtrodden.

December 10, 2021

Article

Not Quite Silenced

Newly available records help fill in a half-painted picture of John Courtney Murray.

By Susanna De Stradis

December 9, 2021

Religion

Vatican

Article

Revelatory Narratives

These three authors offer stories that haven’t been given sufficient attention in traditional narratives.

By Claudia Avila Cosnahan

December 8, 2021

Feature

A United Ireland?

Brexit has once again brought forth questions of Irish unrest and potential unity.

December 6, 2021

Article

Give Them the Facts

An interview with investigative journalist Katie Worth on the way climate change is taught in the United States.

December 2, 2021

Article

‘Steadier Than Before’

“It was still possible to cross the continent like a medieval pilgrim: travelling on foot, stopping at shrines, and supported by charity.”

By Paul Elie

December 1, 2021

Books

Christmas Critics

LGBTQ issues

Feature

Benjamin’s Warning

In many Western democracies today, political systems are aestheticized on the Left and the Right.

November 29, 2021

Article

Love Means Answering the Mail

Taking time away from the Catholic Worker only made Dorothy Day realize how “love calls us to the things of this world.”

By James M. Lang

November 27, 2021

The Last Word

Spirituality

Article

Driven to Hunger Strikes

Laborers like the hunger-striking taxi drivers should be our central concern, rather than municipalities, corporations, and banks.

By Dominic Preziosi

November 22, 2021

Politics

Domestic Affairs

Article

Making Room for Happenstance

David Graeber and David Wengrow explore how our ideas about prehistory are rooted more in modern speculation than in the ancient evidence.

November 19, 2021

Article

Starving Afghanistan

Afghanistan faces a famine that puts 23 million people at risk of starvation. But the United States refuses to offer aid.

By Regina Munch

November 18, 2021

Foreign Affairs

Middle East

Article

Struggling to Listen

Archbishop José Gomez’s statement reflects a reactionary vision, one based in fear rather than love.

By Mollie Wilson O’Reilly

November 17, 2021

Bishops

U.S. Catholicism

Article

The Pope, the President, and Paige

When President Biden and Pope Francis spoke of pitcher Satchel Paige, they invoked memories of resistance, resilience, and wisdom born of struggle.

By Carmen M. Nanko-Fernández

November 2, 2021

Article

Minding the Church

Whistleblowers in the Church are prophetic and necessary. The hierarchy should treat them accordingly.

October 20, 2021

Article

Holding Them to Their Word

In the Midwestern meatpacking industry, faith organizations and unions can and should collaborate to help overcome difficult working conditions.

By Maia Silber

October 18, 2021

U.S. Catholicism

Nonfiction

History

Article

That Teenage Feeling

Jonathan Franzen’s latest novel hones in on a religious community fifty years in the past, one that successfully conveys the emotional tenor of social media today.

By Adam Fleming Petty

December 16, 2021

Fiction

Article

Issue Discussion Guide — December 2021

Interested in discussing social justice movements in your classroom, parish, reading group, or Commonweal Local Community? Click here for a free discussion guide.

By Mollie Wilson O’Reilly

December 8, 2021

Article

‘The Great Joy’

Though we don’t always realize it, we are free to choose where and how to direct our attention.

By The Editors

December 1, 2021

Spirituality

Secularism and Modernity

Article

Our ordinary, day-to-day deeds are where our active participation begins and where we hope to see the fruitfulness of the Eucharist manifested—personally and communally.