Last week, my brother was visiting from out of state, and one night he told me that he wanted to watch a “campy” movie, something light and fun. I suggested Practical Magic, the witch movie from the ‘90s with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman based on an Alice Hoffman novel. Very soon after starting it, I remembered that this is, in fact, a somewhat unsettling movie. The Puritan witch in the opening barely escapes hanging, then curses herself and her descendants... Read more
Dear Patriot, I’ll set the stage for you. Smells of sweat and cheap beer hastily drunk and the cacophony of of over 90k fans envelop me as the loudspeaker begins to play “Livin’ On A Prayer” – the Bon Jovi anthem that has strangely become dear to most LSU fans, who shout the words. Even though they sing gruffly and unmelodically, it doesn’t matter. “Take my hand, and we’ll make it, I swear” speaks to college students, and they resonate... Read more
Some Catholics are ferociously angry at James Martin, SJ’s recent book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter Into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity. “Father James Martin is one of the most vocal advocates for the Catholic Church’s acceptance of active homosexuality,” sensationalist LifeSite News railed. Church Militant reported that 77 percent of its followers think Fr. James Martin should be defrocked and laicized (that is, stripped of his priestly “powers”... Read more
I’m a voracious reader of religion journalism and theology, but I’m not a journalist or a trained theologian. I’m an essayist, a writer, and, yes, I’m a blogger. But I think making a clear distinction between writing journalism and theology and the writing I do is crucial to understanding the environment of “fake news” and misleading theology that writers like me—opinion writers, bloggers—have helped to create. I’m willing to own my part here. First, I want to share with you... Read more
I feel a little grandiose saying my life is necessary for anyone’s benefit, but the truth is, all of our lives are necessary to another. Read more
I have come for the quiet and the solitude. For two weeks, I’ll live in this old school building with four other writers. My bedroom here was once a classroom, our shared dining room a cafeteria. Each day, I pass through the empty gym to shower in the locker room, and it’s not hard to picture its blond-wood bleachers populated by the gangly, awkward bodies of teenagers. When my flip-flops squeak on the waxed gym floor, I jitter at my... Read more
Ever since I can remember, when I saw Johnny Cash, I saw my dad. Read more
Pope Francis has spoken of “credible witness,” the kind of witness that makes Christianity seem believable. I’m not sure that it’s opposite has a name, but I’m sure I’ve seen it. I’ve seen the kind of witness that makes Christianity seem like a cruel joke and a broken promise. I’ve seen it writ large, and I’ve seen it up close. “You’re giving me a million reasons to let me go, you’re giving me a million reasons to quit... Read more
In middle school I had no idea who I was. I was mostly known for wearing adidas track suits and writing notes to all my friends and their boyfriends. Looking back, I can see the inner workings of a late bloomer — always uncomfortable, usually awkward, curious about everything without really knowing how I felt. From confusing crushes on other girls to strange obsessions with female musicians, middle school was a constant brush with the mystery of myself. ... Read more
When you grow up in a small town, it’s easy to assume that the world more or less mirrors the hierarchies and values of that microcosm, just at a larger scale. As a kid who didn’t hunt, play sports, or drink (although one of those would change dramatically in a few short years), the social and symbolic economies of my hometown did not really have much of a place for me. One thing I remember vividly is how the... Read more
Sick Pilgrim
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