The horrendous violence at Virginia Tech did not end with the 33 fatalities and other wounded. It did not end with the gaping holes left in the lives of the mothers, fathers, siblings, relatives and friends of the victims. It did not even end with the shattering of peace and security at this American university.

A recent poll suggests that Canadians still embrace multiculturalism and religious diversity. At the same time, the survey shows that at some point newcomers must find ways to accommodate themselves to this country's deepest principles.

U.S. President George Bush made a startling admission last week. He agreed with a journalist that the war in Iraq is bearing an alarming resemblance to Vietnam. Now if only his administration would learn how not to repeat history’s mistakes.

It is very easy to forget that Christianity has something to teach us about our responsibility toward the environment. After all, ecotheology was not invented by Jesus of Nazareth, nor did humanity in first-century AD have the potential to destroy the planet.

The federal government came under attack earlier this month because of leaked reports that it was preparing a Defence of Religions Act to deal with the disappointing fallout from Ottawa’s change to the legal definition of marriage. Now that it is out of the bottle, the same-sex marriage genie grows larger and uglier with each passing day.

The immediate furor in the Islamic world over Pope Benedict's University of Regensburg speech has abated, thanks largely to the Vatican's efforts to reassure Muslims that nothing has changed in the Catholic Church's attitude toward Islam. What continues, however, is the universal media characterization of the Pope's reference to Islam and violence — The Quote — as a gaffe.

In challenging the prevailing winds on euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide, the Catholic bishops of Ontario have done the entire country a service. So-called “mercy killing” is a human rights issue, true enough, but it is about the right to live, not the “right” to die.

The documentary Lost Tomb of Jesus, for all its trumpery, posed a question that is as relevant this Easter as it was two millennia ago: Did Jesus rise from the dead? Even if the answer is self-evident to Christians, it does no harm to be able to explain it to the rest of the world in which we live.

One of the Catholic Church’s most valuable and humble services to the people of Saskatchewan is coming to an end. Regrettably, the owners of St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in the small city of Humboldt have been told their religion is no longer welcome at the governance of of their institution.

One of the problems of war is that its casualties are not limited to combatants; they include what military strategists euphemistically call “collateral damage” inflicted by “friendly fire.”