Christianity is in danger of ceasing to be a truly global faith as increasing numbers of its followers flee violence and persecution across swaths of the Middle East and Africa, according to a new report. “Christians are fast disappearing from entire regions – most notably a huge chunk of the Middle East but also whole Read more
Same-sex marriage is often touted as a harmless expansion of individual liberty. Yet the legal redefinition of marriage to include same-sex couples has far from innocuous consequences, particularly with regard to children’s well-being and religious liberty. Redefining marriage also strikes at our fundamental liberties in deeper though less obvious ways. A crucial aspect of liberty is Read more
When Canada effectually legalized euthanasia, I was dismayed. Dementia victims, certain to be targets, can be got to “consent” without any fixed or firm idea what they are doing. With the ageing of the world’s population dementia has become the new leprosy. As Marcus Roberts notes in a recent post on Demography is Destiny, the Read more
Bestselling author Dr. Atul Gawande’s new book focuses on medical care for the dying. In an interview, he speaks with SPIEGEL about end-of-life priorities, when treatment is a mistake and how rules in care homes are made to be broken. SPIEGEL: Doctor Gawande, are you beginning to feel your age? Gawande: Without question. I had Read more
On one of the first evenings after our then foster (now adopted) daughter Teenasia came to live with us, second-grade Jacob was at the dining room table doing religion homework to prepare for his upcoming First Communion. My husband, Bill, was upstairs giving 4-year-old Liam a bath, and I was holding wriggling 16-month-old Teenasia, trying Read more
It is not clear whether the quirks of search actually shape people’s beliefs. But it’s worth remembering that posing a question to a search engine is not the same as posing a question to any other kind of source. The competition for authority online is governed by a very different set of rules than in previous Read more
At an audience in the Vatican in 2013, standing in front of the assembled Italian and Argentine rugby squads – hard-bitten, elite sportsmen, in the toughest, roughest of games – Pope Francis reached for a metaphor. Wanting to convey the need for cooperation in life, he said: “The important thing is not running alone. We Read more
Nine percent of Americans say that they are Catholics, but that Catholicism is not their religion! That striking fact was uncovered in recent research by the Pew Research Centre. Two out of 10 respondents told the Pew pollsters that they are Catholics in the sense that they “claim the faith as their current religion.” Another one Read more
Why do so many young people leave the church after confirmation, Pope Francis asked bishops from Portugal. “There is no doubt that Jesus exists; but where are we hiding him?” the pope said. What is required is “a personal and pastoral conversion of pastors and faithful so that everyone can say truthfully and joyfully: ‘The Read more
“Where’s my briefcase?” asked Pope Francis. The papal entourage had arrived at Fiumicino Airport in Rome for the pontiff’s first trip abroad. Jorge Mario Bergoglio had been pope for just four months and was now bound for Rio de Janeiro, where 3.5 million young people from 178 countries were waiting to greet him at World Read more