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The blogosphere has erupted over whether this newly revealed 1997 letter from a senior Vatican official to Irish bishops constitutes a “smoking gun,” because it expresses concerns about a proposed mandatory reporting policy — now implemented — of abuse cases to secular authorities. On the one hand, it sure doesn’t look good — at the very least, it’s…

Remember how after 9/11, there was talk about the death of irony? Looks like the post-Tucson call for political civility has had an even shorter run, with a — can we call it ironic? — Christian twist: In addition to the Sarah Palin “blood libel” blow-up and the usual Westboro Baptist “Church” nonsense that I refuse to…

While former Catholic priest Alberto Cutie (aka “Father Oprah”) has been out promoting his book about his defection to the Episcopal Church and happy new life as a husband and father, three former Anglican bishops, apparently seeking more conservative pastures, were preparing to take up the Vatican’s offer to join a new Roman Catholic body: Former Anglican…

Today is the U.S. federal holiday marking the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which some people observe as a national day of service. (The civil rights icon would have been 82 this year.) Here are some faith-related links: Giffords’ husband urges volunteer service on MLK Day (JTA) Obamas attend church in Washington (CNN…

We’ve had a lot of somber religion news this week, so here’s something from Religion Dispatches to lighten the mood: Crowdsourced Catholicism: New iPhone App Lets Users Forgive Sins. Penance, an application released for the iPhone in early December, allows users to absolve one another’s sins. After passing the application’s obligatory security PIN system (conventional online…

The Vatican has announced that the late Pope John Paul II will be beatified — bestowed with the “blessed” title that comes as the final step before sainthood — on May 1. Some critics are wary that this process is happening so much faster than usual, due to the late pope’s popularity. (The process for Mother Teresa, who…

President Obama delivered a moving eulogy last night for the victims, families and survivors of the Tucson assassination attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.). Somewhat surprisingly, given presidential precedent and Obama’s own efforts lately to reassert his Christian bona fides, the 33-minute address was light on scriptural references, focusing more on memorializing the dead, comforting the…

I had to bang out a story for Religion News Service this morning about the fallout over Sarah Palin’s use of the loaded term “blood libel” in her Facebook response to critics who have made a connection between her kind of aggressive campaign rhetoric and the attempted assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Ariz. on Saturday. Sarah…

It was a year ago today that a 7.0-magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti, and by all accounts, the country is still struggling to emerge from the rubble. (Puts our “snowpocalypse” into perspective, doesn’t it?) Here are some faith-related links on the prayers and progress — or lack thereof — so far: Haiti earthquake anniversary (Religion & Ethics…

Here are some faith-related links about the Arizona shooting that claimed the lives of six people — including 63-year-old U.S. District Judge John Roll and 9-year-old Christina Green (in an oddly awful bookend, she had been born on 9/11) — and has left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords fighting for her life: In Tuscon’s Wake, ‘We Pray to…
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