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Pope John Paul II greets throngs of Poles waiting for a glimpse of their native son at the monastery of Jasna Gora in Czestochowa during his 1979 trip to Poland. Although the part played by the Catholic Church in the overthrow of communism has been detailed by countless books and studies, some Western commentators and historians appear unwilling to acknowledge it.

Weigel adds personal touch to life of Pope John Paul II

In Lessons in Hope: My Unexpected Life with St. John Paul II, Baltimore-born papal biographer George Weigel reflects in a highly personal way on the 15 years he devoted to chronicling the life and times and impact of John Paul II in Witness to Hope (1999) and The End and the Beginning (2010). It is a story that emphasizes repeatedly and powerfully the idea of providence.

In Canada, we need government intervention to improve Indigenous education, health care, justice, housing and economic development. The 2005 Kelowna Accord would have started the process, but the federal government changed and the accord was forgotten. Thirteen years later a similar initiative is badly needed.

Glen Argan: Legislation alone will not cure racism

Last May, my wife, daughters and I stayed at a resort on a First Nations reserve on Vancouver Island to celebrate my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday. The last night we were there, my mother-in-law moved into town, and my wife and I slept in the yurt where she had stayed.

Several hundred people gathered in Regina Feb. 10 to protest the acquittal of Gerald Stanley in the death of Colten Boushie. It was one of many across Canada.

Mickey Conlon: Tragedy should not derail reconciliation

REGINA – The trial of a Saskatchewan farmer charged in the death of a 22-year-old Indigenous man has ended with an acquittal. But other than that, what have we learned from this?

Men march along a truck Jan. 11 carrying the coffins of people killed by Fulani herdsmen in Makurdi, Nigeria. With at least 80 people killed since the start of the year in conflict over fertile land in Nigeria, the nation's bishops condemned what they call brutal massacres of innocent people.

Developing a global conscience with the 'Share Lent' campaign

The disciplines of Lent — prayer, fasting and almsgiving — are an exercise in conscience formation. Lent is much more than conscience formation, but it is that.
Ash Wednesday reminds us of our “mortal nature.”

Ash Wednesday: Choosing Christ as your valentine

We begin the season of Lent with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 14, only a few weeks after our celebration of the Christmas season. That’s early, so we may feel that we are not “ready” yet.  
A woman goes to confession in darkness at the start of the Easter Vigil led by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican Mar. 2016.

Herman Gooden: Yes, confession really is good for the soul

During Lent, well-trained Catholic minds turn to thoughts of confession.
Development and Peace rallied for mining accountability in Ottawa May 2014. Boxes were filled with over 80,000 postcards addressed to Canadian MPs to call for support for a mining ombudsperson.

Justice after 11-year battle to protect human rights in mining industry

“Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart” (Luke 18:1). So begins the parable of the widow and the unjust judge. 
The Return of the Prodigal Son (1642) by Rembrandt

Francis Campbell: Making the most from our mulligans

I only wish I had a chance to do that all over again.

New Year's Eve aftermath in New York City 2015.

A New Year’s party? Bah, humbug!

I’ve never had much enthusiasm for New Year’s celebrations. Partly this is because of the utterly perverse timing of the holiday.
The Season's cover photo shows coach Ted Schmidt with the Mimico Marauders during a magical 1967 high school basketball season.

Ted Schmidt: Sport's real victories happen off the court

Last month, standing on the basketball court of my first school as a teacher, Mimico High, I launched a book titled The Season.

"Miracle of the Bread and Fish", oil on canvas by Giovanni Lanfranco, 1623

Ian Hunter: Scraps have a place in God’s economy

The only miracle that Jesus performed recounted in all four Gospels is the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, more commonly called the feeding of the 5,000 (or 4,000 in Mark’s Gospel, but who was counting precisely?).  
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