It was called Americanism. Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903) condemned it. In 1899 Leo XIII sent a three-page letter to the U.S. bishops in care of Cardinal James Gibbons (1834-1921) of Baltimore. It is titled Witness to Our Good or sometimes On New Opinions of Virtue, Nature and Grace. Leo XIII’s admonishment was aimed at progressive U.S. Catholics. Its general theme speaks to today’s U.S. Catholics—conservatives and liberals. The second paragraph of  Witness to Our Good mentions Fr. Isaac Hecker, CSP... Read more

Pope Leo XIII and Controversy in the United States  by Bill Droel Our new Pope Leo XIV chose his papal name to pair his interest in our high-tech economy with Pope Leo XIII’s (1810-1903) interest in the industrial revolution. Today’s social questions, particularly “developments in the field of artificial intelligence pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor,” says Chicago-born Leo XIV. In his 1891 encyclical, On the Condition of Labor, Leo XIII famously endorsed labor... Read more

The Other Pope Leo by Bill Droel Pope Leo XIV, originally of Chicago, chose his papal name to recall Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903), particularly his critique of the industrial revolution, titled On the Condition of Labor. The current Pope Leo is likewise interested in today’s social questions, including the looming effects of AI. “In our own day,” says Leo XIV, “the church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments... Read more

Confession: the Abandoned Sacrament   The practice of regular confession formed Catholic identity in our country over many decades, promoting a sense of belonging. It provided a clear moral method for a seemingly well-defined world. It conveyed that hard things are worth doing. The sacrament also taught equality in that the commonality of sin could be seen every Saturday afternoon. To be sure, “for some people confession was meaningful and consoling,” details James O’Toole in For I Have Sinned: Rise... Read more

  Our U.S. Catholic bishops want to hear from you. They are preparing a document on the laity. You are welcome to respond to their request by US Mail or email. (Send your thoughts to Paul Jarzembowski, Secretariat of Laity and Family Life, USCCB, 3211 Fourth St. NE, Washington, DC  20017; [email protected].) Bishops are rightly concerned about internal Church matters. They have issued many directives and statements about parish ministries. I alert you to this opportunity because in this instance the bishops... Read more

Generally, those in education, health care, ministry, civil service and more want to do good through their daily work. However, the outcome of their efforts often produces the opposite of what is intended. Schools produce too many uncultured young adults. Frustration among patients and health professionals is a major side-effect of health care delivery. Churches reinforce individualistic attitudes. The civil service system, top to bottom, often delivers dependency and/or corruption. The bad side-effects come from the nature of our bureaucratic... Read more

The Working Catholic: Advantage To Marriage by Bill Droel At a wedding reception not so long ago, the groom entered the hall with a weighted ball chained to his ankle. The stunt was meant to be funny. Statistics show, however, that many young adults these days are not kidding; they are negative toward the institution of marriage. In fact, the majority of family arrangements today do not include marriage. Brad Wilcox of the National Marriage Project at University of Virginia... Read more

The original Labor Day parade was held in 1882, in New York City. It was sponsored by the Knights of Labor. Its organizers were two Catholics. Though not related, they share the same last name. Matthew McGuire (1855-1917) was a machinist from New Jersey; Peter McGuire (1852-1906), working in Chicago at the time, was a carpenter. In 1894 Labor Day became a national holiday and was set on the first Monday of September. St. Joseph, also a carpenter, is associated... Read more