With all the recent publicity about the Church and child sexual abuse, it would be valuable to let people know in detail what efforts the Archdiocese has made to respond to and protect against child sexual abuse.

My column is not usually a place to discuss personnel moves, but I hope you will allow me to give you some background on two decisions that are particularly significant for our archdiocese.

As parish religious education programs open across the Archdiocese, it’s a good time to pray for the directors and coordinators of these programs, who give countless hours that no one sees to their ministry. They are praying themselves. An adaption of the prayer for generosity of St. Ignatius Loyola is a good choice.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, today announced that Judge Barbara S. Jones, former Federal Judge and prosecutor, has accepted his invitation to serve as “Special Counsel and Independent Reviewer” to review, evaluate, and recommend improvements to the Archdiocese of New York’s response to the sexual abuse crisis currently confronting the Church.

Over this difficult summer, I’ve done a lot of listening. Many of you have told me that you are upset, angry, bewildered, and frustrated about the ongoing crisis of sexual abuse in the Church. I am not afraid to say that so am I. This has been a painful period for all Catholics.

Russell Shaw offers "bright spots through the storm" of the current crisis afflicting the Church.

Even with all the ugliness that we've seen in the reports of sexual abuse in the Church, we cannot reject the whole because of the evils in some parts. I still see the beauty of the Church I love, the Bride of Christ.

All summer, with news of the stinging scandals—Theodore McCarrick, the Pennsylvania Grand Jury, the controversy caused by Archbishop Vigano’s controversial letter—one right after the other, I began to wonder about the power of Satan, the prince of darkness. While we Catholics were sad, the Devil was laughing.

The 2018 Fall Season opens this month with an outstanding array of events, including the second installment of JESUITS AND JEDI EPISODE II: THE DOMINICANS STRIKE BACK, on September 29 at 7:00PM in the Loreto Theater. This critically-acclaimed SHEEN CENTER original series presents the dialogue between faith and science through the highly accessible and iconic lens of Star Wars and will feature guest speakers Fr. Humbert Kilanowski, O.P. and Fr. John Marie Devaney, O.P.

Do we really have to be connected to technology every waking moment? The answer is no, especially when it comes to the Lord's Day.

Yes, I know that the classical, popular devotion, the Via Crucis—reverently accompanying Jesus on His tortured journey from unjust condemnation by Pontius Pilate, to His repose in the arms of His sorrowful mother at the foot of the cross, to His burial in a donated sepulcher—is in fourteen steps. I love that devotion, especially on Fridays and during Lent.

Recent revelations and allegations relating to the sex abuse crisis have created a great deal of anger, concern, and confusion. The most important thing we can do is to speak the truth and seek the truth.

The nominee to the Supreme Court has called Roe v. Wade "settled law". But such an unjust law can never be considered "settled", and it is deeply troubling that the nominee is indicating that he would uphold it.

Maybe it’s because he preached these words in my hometown of St. Louis at Mass on his visit there in 1999, but the following teaching of Pope St. John Paul II has always had a special meaning for me...

The Grand Jury Report from Pennsylvania has been released, documenting the history of clerical sexual abuse in six of that state's dioceses. It is horrifying reading. One of the worst things about that history was the failure of the Church to treat these wicked offenses as the grievous sins they are, and the failure even to call them by their real, ugly names.

The Governor has announced a new state-funded website that gives people information about how to get an abortion, accompanied by false claims about access to abortion and about pro-life pregnancy centers. Just when you thought he couldn't get more radical in his abortion advocacy...

"On Solitude: The Art of Matthew Kirby" opens tomorrow, Thursday, August 9, 2018 at 5pm at The Sheen Center Gallery with a collection of 20 oil paintings that capture the interplay between “the personal” and “the remote” in the figures, objects, and landscapes of urban life. The exhibit will open with a reception at 5pm on Thursday, August 9, 2018 and will run through Sunday, September 2, 2018.

Pope Francis has approved a revision to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, declaring the death penalty "inadmissible" under current circumstances. The Holy Father is teaching us a difficult lesson in mercy, similar to the one the Lord taught in the Sermon on the Mount.

August presents us with an array of radiant feast days in the Church’s calendar. I want to write about a pair of them. Both have enhanced meaning because they occur in this month, the summit of the summer, when the sun is undimmed and the harvest is abundant.

We are marking the 50th anniversary of Humanae Vitae, the great teaching by Blessed Pope Paul VI on sexuality. Despite the abundance of negative signs and the sins of some of our clergy, this is an opportunity to boldly preach God's truth about sexuality.