Paul Baumann

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Paul Baumann is Commonweal’s senior writer. He is working on a book titled Why Do I Go to Church?

Article

‘The Nun’s Story’ Revisited

However much we may admire the austerities and asceticism of pre-Vatican II religious life, the film depicts a closed world to which we cannot return

December 4, 2018

Article

Discovering Jean Donovan

Nothing about Jean Donovan’s upbringing in a wealthy Connecticut suburb suggested that she would be a martyr in El Salvador

November 19, 2018

Article

Pilgrims & Progress

John Winthrop’s famous 1630 sermon, cited as an American classic, celebrates neither rugged individualism nor American exceptionalism

By Paul Baumann

November 6, 2018

Domestic Affairs

Books

Secularism and Modernity

Economy

Article

Archbishop Viganò on Religious Liberty

A close reading of a talk given by the former nuncio at Notre Dame in 2012 reveals his crude ideological motivations

By Paul Baumann

October 25, 2018

Contraception mandate

Bishops

Pope Francis

Secularism and Modernity

Article

A Trip to the Orkneys & Into the Past

Desolate, wind-swept islands off the coast of Scotland occasion a traveler’s musings on sacred spaces and climate change

October 17, 2018

Article

Time to Leave?

In the face of the church's manifold sins, we stay because we long for what the church teaches about human life to be true

By Paul Baumann

September 23, 2018

Sexual-abuse Crisis

Clericalism

Secularism and Modernity

Must Reads

Politics

Has Liberalism Failed?

Three writers assess the claims of Patrick Deneen’s critique of liberalism; the author offers a pointed response

By The Editors

December 3, 2018

Religion

Let Church Be Church Again

It is a challenging time, both for our nation and our church. But it can also be a graced moment, and an opportunity for healing.

By Carol Keehan, DC

November 27, 2018

Religion

Why I Came & What I Found

The church’s embrace is often a harsh one. I have been and continue to be pained by it

By Paul J. Griffiths

November 26, 2018

Religion

Why I Came

I would like to say that I immediately flew unto Mary, to stand before her, sinful and sorrowful, but it took a long time

By B. D. McClay

November 24, 2018

Culture

‘The Nun’s Story’ Revisited

However much we may admire the austerities and asceticism of pre-Vatican II religious life, the film depicts a closed world to which we cannot return

By Paul Baumann

December 4, 2018

Books

Christmas Critics

Smart reading suggestions for the 2018 holiday season

By The Editors

November 19, 2018

Collections

Why We Came. Why We Left. Why We Stay.

The Catholic faith is first of all a gift, one a person must choose to keep; the days of Catholicism by default are behind us

By The Editors

December 3, 2018