Much of Thomas Merton's writing on civil rights remained an afterthought, until the murder of George Floyd in May, and subsequent protests. 2020 has seen Catholics return to Merton's words on race.
The coronavirus threat has stopped us in our tracks and is forcing fundamental questions about who we are and what we will become, about what our communities of faith mean in a time of lockdown and quarantine.
Your thoughts: NCR readers are welcome to join the conversation and send us a letter to the editor. Below is a sampling of letters received in the month of January 2020.
Your thoughts: NCR readers are welcome to join the conversation and send us a letter to the editor. Below is a sampling of letters received in the month of December 2019.
Listen: The Kings Bay Plowshares 7 felt called by the Holy Spirit to break onto the naval submarine base. They were also inspired by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his talk of three evils: racism, extreme materialism and militarism.
The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. is best known for hosting global diplomats and prominent dignitaries in its lavish facilities. But on Dec. 7, one of the hotel's many glimmering ballrooms was transformed into a sanctuary.
During the second week of the revived Poor People's Campaign, more than 100 people participated in a Washington rally, demanding early voting, same-day registration and other safeguards to protect democracy against "surgical racism."
Soul Seeing: I have been to three marches in the past two years. The March for Our Lives in D.C. differed from the others. It changed me. We didn't chant our frustration at the status quo as we walked along Pennsylvania Avenue; instead, we stood still and listened.
The story of St. Augustine Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., isn't simply about a single parish. The struggles and success here are also part of a larger, unfolding narrative that underscores the Catholic Church's role in both perpetuating and responding to institutional racism.