Visalia’s Vision for a Big, Bold, Beautiful Catholic Church

In a State Obsessed With Shortages and Setbacks, the Central Valley Sees a Future Full of Growth

It’s Christmas, and there’s no room at any of your town’s existing inns. You can’t open additional inns because you’re already running short of innkeepers. What to do?

People in Visalia—who have a spirit rare in any season—might suggest building a bigger inn.

This is a Christmas story about the groundbreaking of a 21st-century California church. It’s also an example of how we could think more productively about the twin challenges of shortage and abundance—and of how the biggest things may fit best in our smallest places.

By 2021, Visalia, a city of …

Pope Francis Is Making a Big Mistake

Visiting America and Skipping California Is Like Going to Italy Without Seeing Rome

Dear Pope Francis,

You may be infallible, but your scheduler? Not so much.

The itinerary for your highly anticipated trip to the United States this September defies belief: You are only visiting …

Pope Francis Sends His Regrets

Why Are So Many Politicians, Religious Leaders, and Regular Folks Sending Invitations to the New Head of the Roman Catholic Church?

For Pope Francis, this has been a season of invitations. First, he toured the Holy Land, as guest of honor for heads of state, religious leaders, and ordinary people alike. …

Gay—and Returning to Mass

How a Funeral, a Pope, and the Passage of Time Brought Me Back to a Tender, More Forgiving Church

I set foot in a Catholic church today for the first time in decades. I am one of those lapsed Catholics you’ve heard about. There are millions of us around …

Why We Can’t Stop Loving Saints

We No Longer Sleep With Hallowed Bones, But Our Affection For Heavenly Intercessors Is Still Going Strong

Wildly famous. Frequently scandalous. Speakers of truth to power. Action heroes. Acclaimed by the people. Romantic, rebellious, charismatic, inspirational. These were just a few of the ways saints were described …