W. David Myers is associate professor of history at Fordham University. He is the author of Poor, Sinning Folk: Confession and Conscience in Counter-Reformation Germany (Cornell). Get Commonweal’s latest, delivered twice weekly. Email address Published in the 2004-09-10 issue: View Contents Recommended for you Christian Radical By Arvin Alaigh October 1, 2026 Pulling the Brake By Eugene McCarraher September 28, 2026 Clerics Without Clericalism By Timothy Kirchoff October 1, 2026