Andrew M. Haines

Christian Dialectic and the Franciscan Church

Andrew M. Haines

The things we most cherish demand a “Platonic turn,” one that reaches into the muck of incomplete ideas, and with a bit of virtuous unknowing produces a glimpse of goodness worthy of deep affection.

The church

How to Understand the Catholic Sex Abuse Crisis

Andrew M. Haines

The sooner we reject false fatalism, the sooner we can get on with addressing the Church's deepest problems at their root.

The church

'Man By Man, Become a Choir'

Andrew M. Haines

We should demand bishops who are willing to accept their "special responsibility." And we should strive to be as harmonious as possible.

The church

We Still Need Apostolic Bishops

Andrew M. Haines

For all the failures of the American bishops, it would be foolish to suppose they're anything less than successors to the Apostles. But if we believe this, we should vigorously demand it. 

The church

The Synod and the Crucible

Andrew M. Haines

The youth synod is timely, but extremely ironic. We can't really hope that trends in faith or vocations will change anytime soon.

The church

My Meeting with Cardinal Law

Andrew M. Haines

My Catholic identity still rests on elements of faith instilled in my childhood. Not on a keen sense for sniffing out good churchmen.

The church

Clarifications on 'Kavanaugh: The Cost of Trump'

Andrew M. Haines

There are three falsehoods I'd like to avoid, and that I'd like to make clear in case they weren't before. "Enlightened civic discourse" demands nothing less.

The world

Kavanaugh: The Cost of Trump

Andrew M. Haines

Kavanaugh's confirmation process has both enshrined Trumpian sexual deviancy and rendered the pro-life cause itself finally and utterly worthless.

The world

Is the Catechism Irrelevant?

Andrew M. Haines

The Catechism, today, shows more about the distortions of Catholic intellectualism than a failure by the Church to teach the truth.

Theology The church

Pope Francis and the Death Penalty: Has the Church's Teaching Changed?

Andrew M. Haines

Francis's teaching on capital punishment represents a discontinuity in the life of the Church. But one that highlights a deeper continuity.

The papacy Theology The church

Unless the Tyrant's On Our Side

Andrew M. Haines

We believe there's a secret option, that there are better political instincts than those that have been tried before.

The world Philosophy

Sex and the City of God

Andrew M. Haines

We're all victims, and enablers, in a culture of addiction that's endemic to Christians as much as anyone else.

Virtue The church

I'm a Distracted Father, Like God

Andrew M. Haines

What good happens in spite of my shortcomings, because of my nature, isn't an accident, but a participation in God's life, and in his design for fatherhood.

Theology God

Talking with Jesuits

Andrew M. Haines

The present moment, both for the Church and for humanity, is one that we should entrust a bit more to "jesuitical" brilliance.

The papacy The church

Materialism is a Personal Cancer

Andrew M. Haines

The cure to materialism is equally caustic. It affects our scientific mind, and even dimensions of our apparent psychological well-being.

Philosophy God

Two Ways to Be Political

Andrew M. Haines

For Christians to be politically significant, we must do more than just participate in the political activities that are handed to us. We must set a political agenda through our personal choices.

The world Philosophy

Who's Pope Francis Calling a 'Gnostic'?

Andrew M. Haines

Someone who wants everything to be clear and sure presumes to control God’s transcendence.

The papacy God

What Makes Faith Attractive?

Andrew M. Haines

Our model for sifting faithfulness is broken. What makes Christian faith attractive is the claim it lays to things beyond our rational horizons.

Theology God

Should the Internet Forget?

Andrew M. Haines

Does permanence cut against the remaining shreds of humanity left for social networking? Or does anonymity pose too much risk for forming accountable, human structures for communication?

Philosophy The world

Toward an 'Interior Continuity'

Andrew M. Haines

Stifling Pope Benedict's voice, who is perhaps the moral theologian par excellence, endangers not only the clarity of the moral message of the Church, but the formation of all Christian consciences.

The papacy The church