Michael Sean Winters

Distinctly Catholic: As the bishops of the United States celebrate the 100th anniversary of their episcopal conference, they received not one but two messages from Rome.

Distinctly Catholic: One of the most constant refrains among the complaints against Pope Francis is that he sows confusion, but that is only true if you have placed law or ideology at the heart of ecclesial life.

Distinctly Catholic: Ralph Northam's victory in Virginia shows that if the right candidate addresses constituents' needs in a compelling way, that candidate can win.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Statements in the wake of the Texas mass shooting; Philosophical presuppositions of Pope Francis; Election results

Distinctly Catholic: The U.S. bishops will meet in Baltimore next week. I wonder if they will even discuss the moral crisis the nation faces with the Trump presidency.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: What is wrong with Democrats; Pa. coal miners won't retrain because of Trump's promises; 'Paradise Papers' confirm suspicion

Distinctly Catholic: This tax bill does nothing to address our new Gilded Age, in which the very rich are obscenely rich and the very poor lack opportunity and basic necessities.

Distinctly Catholic: Not since Richard Nixon's presidency has anyone really had to worry about the vitality of our nation's Constitution. Enter President Donald Trump, nearly a year ago.

Distinctly Catholic: Fr. Weinandy did not merely object to this or that thing Pope Francis has said or done; the whole tone of his letter showed an appalling lack of respect.

Distinctly Catholic: You would think it would have dawned on Democrats that they are out of sync with the American electorate, but no. It is time for a new message and new messengers.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Puerto Rico and the "culture of indifference" about poverty; Mueller investigation; union's immigration resources.

Distinctly Catholic: The Republican base is not united around a core set of principles, but it can be animated by a core set of resentments dripping in the tropes of white nationalism.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: The Reformation's 500th anniversary; call-out on lies about Israel; Archbishop González's plea for Puerto Rico gets a boost from Lin-Manuel.

Distinctly Catholic: The issue is not simply that there has been a decline in the intellectual heft of the episcopal bench, it is that the bishops no longer seek a common ground based on real theological principles.

Distinctly Catholic: Two weeks from today, the U.S. bishops will begin assembling for their annual plenary meeting. Let's examine the relevant beginnings of the U.S. bishops' conference.

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: Sen. Jeff Flake's speech was profile in courage; Rekindling relationship between organized labor and church; Solar panels in Puerto Rico

Distinctly Catholic: Liturgical translations may have been at issue in the pope's rebuke, but more is at stake. In the first place, Pope Francis is sending a message to the entire curia that he will not tolerate insubordination any longer. 

Michael Sean Winters rounds up political news and commentary: former presidents speak out against nation's coarsening; fake news on FOX News; at lunch, Trump to encourage Congress to pass a budget

Distinctly Catholic: In reading conservative reactions to Pope Francis and some of the reforms he has begun, it becomes clear that many of our co-religionists on the right think they own the Catholic Church.

Distinctly Catholic: In this time of renewed manipulation of cultural memes, the artist is perhaps best equipped to evoke emotions that edify instead of dehumanize. One such artist: Edina Seleskovic.