Flashes of Insight

Pope Francis

  • The synod that forgot what it heard

    When a process omits its own findings, listening begins to look like selective hearing, and discernment begins to look manufactured.

    The synod that forgot what it heard

  • Eucharist is a verb before it’s a noun

    Celebration, not just consecration, sits at the center of this theologian’s rethinking of what happens at Mass. A priest’s authority to act “in the person of Christ” is inseparable from acting in the person of the whole Church.

    Eucharist is a verb before it’s a noun

  • The Prevost smile

    Pope Leo’s fidgeting hands, darting eyes, and a love of fast driving reveal an inner intensity beneath the pope’s tranquil surface.

    The Prevost smile

  • The hard part — implementing Synodality

    Approving a document was the easy. What happens next depends on whether laity, bishops and priests actually change how decisions get made.

    The hard part — implementing Synodality

  • Craving certainty in an uncertain world

    Pope Francis’s insistence that the Church belongs to everyone challenges legalistic approaches that quietly draw lines and exceptions.

    Craving certainty in an uncertain world

  • The Smartphone has remade the papacy

    Technology is transforming the papacy from a distant office into the Vatican in my top pocket.

    The Smartphone has remade the papacy

  • Priest’s porch confrontation says more than his sermon

    A furious reaction to a climate homily uncovers a troubling divide between believing and genuine critical thinking.

    Priest’s porch confrontation says more than his sermon

  • What if the Algorithm wears a Mitre?

    A non-clericalist model is essential if the church hopes to keep the passion and creativity of lay believers.

    What if the Algorithm wears a Mitre?

  • The point of Rome

    King Charles walked into Congress amid dread and left having threaded a needle. Pope Leo’s doing something similar from Rome.

    The point of Rome

  • Women’s Synod report longer with less to say

    Drawing on Acts 10-15 and real testimony, one Synod group offered open questions and discernment rather than closing the door with a pronouncement.

    Women’s Synod report longer with less to say

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