Article Introduction 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 November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Vatican II Secularism and Modernity Spirituality Theology Article 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 Spirituality Theology Columnists Article Why I Left My alienation from the Catholic Church was not mainly intellectual. It was moral, even emotional. By Jim Holt November 28, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Article 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 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Article Why I Came...and Will Stay If continuity and coherence are reasons to submit to the authority of Rome, is apparent discontinuity a reason to look elsewhere? By Ross Douthat November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Article Why I Left...and Yet... A cradle Catholic with a boyhood in the church and parochial school, I rampaged into adolescence with an unignorable itch for sedition. By William Giraldi November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity Fiction Spirituality Theology U.S. Catholicism Article Why I Stay As I understand it, the church offers us a mediated relationship with Jesus, through the sacraments, and most profoundly in the Eucharist. By Paul Baumann November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity Vatican II U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Article Why I Left After reading news of the lawsuits brought against the Diocese of Fairbanks and the Oregon province of the Society of Jesus, I left the church for good. By Helene Stapinski November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Sexual-abuse Crisis Article Why I Left Have people like me, well educated and once religious, been captured by the siren song of secularism?Is it our fault? Should we try to remedy it? By Daniel Callahan November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity U.S. Catholicism Theology Spirituality Pope Francis Article Why I Left Humanae vitae had the early effect of weakening my lifelong allegiance to the church itself. It set the exit in motion. By Jack Miles November 19, 2018 Theology Spirituality Vatican II Article Why I Stay I can’t tell you rationally why I went back. It doesn’t make sense. All I can say is that I went big—and came home. By Dorothy Fortenberry November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Theology Spirituality Women in the Church Get Commonweal’s latest, delivered twice weekly. Email address
Article Introduction 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 November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Vatican II Secularism and Modernity Spirituality Theology
Article 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 Spirituality Theology Columnists
Article Why I Left My alienation from the Catholic Church was not mainly intellectual. It was moral, even emotional. By Jim Holt November 28, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology
Article 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 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology
Article Why I Came...and Will Stay If continuity and coherence are reasons to submit to the authority of Rome, is apparent discontinuity a reason to look elsewhere? By Ross Douthat November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology
Article Why I Left...and Yet... A cradle Catholic with a boyhood in the church and parochial school, I rampaged into adolescence with an unignorable itch for sedition. By William Giraldi November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity Fiction Spirituality Theology U.S. Catholicism
Article Why I Stay As I understand it, the church offers us a mediated relationship with Jesus, through the sacraments, and most profoundly in the Eucharist. By Paul Baumann November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity Vatican II U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology
Article Why I Left After reading news of the lawsuits brought against the Diocese of Fairbanks and the Oregon province of the Society of Jesus, I left the church for good. By Helene Stapinski November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Spirituality Theology Sexual-abuse Crisis
Article Why I Left Have people like me, well educated and once religious, been captured by the siren song of secularism?Is it our fault? Should we try to remedy it? By Daniel Callahan November 19, 2018 Secularism and Modernity U.S. Catholicism Theology Spirituality Pope Francis
Article Why I Left Humanae vitae had the early effect of weakening my lifelong allegiance to the church itself. It set the exit in motion. By Jack Miles November 19, 2018 Theology Spirituality Vatican II
Article Why I Stay I can’t tell you rationally why I went back. It doesn’t make sense. All I can say is that I went big—and came home. By Dorothy Fortenberry November 19, 2018 U.S. Catholicism Theology Spirituality Women in the Church
