Michael Sean Winters

If Pope Francis wants to guarantee that we in the media don't report on "things they are saying out there" about the synod, he shouldn't tell those inside the hall that they should be "fasting" from giving interviews. 

How did we get in this mess? In part, every concession Kevin McCarthy made to the far-right members of his caucus only served to empower them, says NCR columnist Michael Sean Winters.

This is not the first time that dubious cardinals have questioned the pope, but it is the first time that Francis published his responses. Perhaps he just wanted to clear the air, suggests columnist Michael Sean Winters.

Dominican Fr. Timothy Radcliffe preached the retreat to synod delegates in advance of the official opening. His reflections are a good means by which those of us who will not be in the aula can prepare ourselves as well.

The rest of us will pay the price of a failed government on account of the MAGA Republicans' ability to yank Speaker Kevin McCarthy's chain and turn Congress into a circus.

Seeing the second Catholic U.S. president stand with the workers outside the GM distribution center was a reminder of the once vibrant alliance between the Catholic Church and organized labor, writes Michael Sean Winters.

Cardinal Cupich, commemorating his predecessor's "consistent ethic of life" speech, called for an integral ethic of solidarity. Now it's uncertain if those who need to hear the words, do so, writes Michael Sean Winters.

Unlike extremists on the right and left, the pope will be in the synod room the entire time. NCR columnist Michael Sean Winters bets other synod participants will follow his lead rather than listen to outside groups. 

Attorney General Merrick Garland is a man of integrity and decency, which may be why he seemed so uncomfortable testifying before the House Judiciary Committee on the leaked FBI memo about "radical-traditionalist Catholics."

Jesuit Fr. David Collins' history of the Society of Jesus in the United States sums up a complicated, but fascinating, history, and points the reader to additional materials should they want to learn more.

The missionary seeds planted by the Jesuits in the 17th and 18th centuries continue to bear fruit today as the Society of Jesus grew into the most prominent religious order in U.S. Catholic higher education. 

The authors of The Synodal Process Is a Pandora's Box are not writing prebuttals to the synodal process because they think synodality will fail. They are terrified it will succeed, says Michael Sean Winters.

President Joe Biden should get out in front of this issue, by saying that he took an oath to uphold the Constitution and the Constitution states that the people decide who gets to be president, not a judge, still less a secretary of state.

How many people who watched the first GOP debate had the sensation that Vivek Ramaswamy was proto-fascist, very scary, but could never win, only to recall having the same feeling watching Donald Trump debate in 2015?

The church in Mongolia is the mustard seed, small but with the potential for greatness, not greatness in the calculations of the world, but greatness in the power of faith, writes Michael Sean Winters.

Biden's move to permit Medicare and Medicaid to negotiate prices of drugs is the first step toward ending one of the most illogical policy restrictions ever placed on a government by itself, says Michael Sean Winters.

Bishop Robert Barron criticizes papal biographer Austen Ivereigh of making conversion a "dirty word." It is hard not to conclude that Barron's real target is not Ivereigh, but Pope Francis, writes Michael Sean Winters.

The alleged assassination of a Russian mercenary reminds Michael Sean Winters that state-sponsored violence has a long history — and that civilizations do not only improve, they can decline.

The recently announced investigation of a longtime leader of the Federalist Society raises red flags about how money influences our politics, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

Tonight's Republican debate is likely to be dominated by one candidate who is not on the stage: Donald Trump. One thing we Catholics know is that no one on the debate stage will be defending Catholic social doctrine.