Michael Sean Winters

"The reason to oppose the death penalty is not primarily what it does to the condemned, but what it does to us. We are the moral agents in an execution," Michael Sean Winters writes.

The Catholic tradition is the catalog of Catholics responding to the Holy Spirit in their own time. It is also a catalog of how previous generations of Christians were often blinded by their cultural circumstances.

"The blue wave is rising, and while it may not lift all boats, it is apparently lifting some. And religion is part of the story," Michael Sean Winters writes.

"In a noisy and confusing culture, Leo's clarity and precision, as well as his obvious authenticity, break through," writes NCR columnist Michael Sean Winters.

When Pope Leo XIV spoke to the French bishops who had gathered at Lourdes this week, his message had echoes of Popes Francis, Benedict XVI and John Paul II.

The "church seeks to be a vital part" of the dialogue on artificial intelligence "so that the benefits of the digital age will be sustained and enhanced and the dangers minimized," the cardinal said.

"You might say that the goal of universal peace and solidarity must be achieved with a healthy dose of subsidiarity, keeping decisions as local as possible," writes NCR columnist Michael Sean Winters.

"Barron is correct to insist he is not a 'member of the Trump administration' but his selective treatment of the church's teachings convicts him as an apologist for the president," Michael Sean Winters writes.

The Supreme Court handed President Trump a major defeat, blocking a plan to involve the U.S. Postal Service in screening mail-in ballots. Before the ruling, Archbishop Wenski spoke about elections and faithful citizenship.

Trump believes that the only way the GOP can win the midterms is if they make it a referendum on his leadership. Democrats believe his approach is also their best strategy for winning back the House and the Senate.

Catholics need to place our constitutional rights within the context of church teachings on life, marriage, family, healthcare, the environment and, most importantly, conscience, writes Michael Sean Winters.

"I do not see how the country can dig itself out of the many holes it is in without a strong labor movement," writes NCR's Michael Sean Winters.

"Our wonderful pope seems to me to bring the best of our tradition, and the insights of his immediate predecessors, to the Catholics of today, and to make that tradition fresh again," writes NCR's Michael Sean Winters.

"I understand that in a small parish church the only realistic place for a tabernacle may be behind the main altar. But in a cathedral?" NCR columnist Michael Sean Winters writes.

Michael Sean Winters surveys the landscape in the contests for control of the Senate.

In the midterm, will there be a blue wave that carries the Democrats into the majority in the House and, less likely, the Senate? Michael Sean Winters says that question has morphed into: How big will the blue wave be?

A documentary video about this year's The Way Forward gathering, held at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, easily serves to spark conversation about proclaiming the Gospel in a digital age in various ecclesial settings.

"The demand for ideological conformity to extreme views combined with the structural impediment caused by gerrymandered districts results in a party that has lost the art of persuasion," writes Michael Sean Winters.

The Democratic Party fails "to convince the public that a particular policy would address their problems" and "appears out of touch and devoid of vision," writes NCR's Michael Sean Winters.

Michigan's Democratic Senate candidate needs to explain how he intends to achieve his goals, writes NCR's Michael Sean Winters.