Michael Sean Winters

Bishops and academics could both benefit from adopting the phrase, "That is not in our tradition," says columnist Michael Sean Winters, reflecting on the U.S. bishops' document on health care for transgender persons.

Some conservatives are trying to rid their party of the moral stain of Donald Trump, says columnist Michael Sean Winters, but be wary of such all-too-convenient distancing.

Strikes in Los Angeles and protests in France should remind the Federal Reserve that economic decisions need to be responsible to all citizens, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

No more "two for us, one for them," says columnist Michael Sean Winters. It's time to turn decisively, not slowly, in naming new bishops not stuck in the past.

Shaun Casey's Chasing the Devil at Foggy Bottom about his time at the State Department analyzes the role of religion in American foreign policy and is worth a read, says Michael Sean Winters in this review.

Associating "fake news" with only one side in the culture wars is itself a kind of fake news, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

Why, when the teaching of the Catholic Church is so clear, is the Catholic Church in Michigan — of all places — doing nothing to support the workers of that state achieve rights the Catholic Church has long upheld? Michael Sean Winters discusses.

The debate over where the coronavirus originated reminds columnist Michael Sean Winters of how science is too often manipulated for political ends.

Thanks to The Washington Post, we now know about the Colorado-based Catholic group that is spending millions to buy mobile app tracking data to spy on priests, which columnist Michael Sean Winters finds troubling. 

A gathering of bishops and theologians at Boston College had excellent presentations, but it was the conversations in between things that were most fertile, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

If it takes — and it's a big 'if' — synodality will be the apotheosis of Pope Francis' pontificate, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

You don't have to call Cardinal Robert McElroy a heretic to respectfully disagree with some points in his recent writings about inclusivity, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

Pope Francis' reforms are rooted in Vatican II and the Gospels, so why do his critics see him as a revolutionary? asks columnist Michael Sean Winters.

The Vatican, for the third time, reiterated what it said on the Latin Mass. Roma locuta est. Let's hope the kids in the back of the room who were playing spitball and not paying attention will finally get the message.

San Diego Cardinal Robert McElroy elaborated on his recent comments about inclusion. But his critics are not happy about the inclusion that is at the heart of the synodal process, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.

Lent is not about "doing something positive," says columnist Michael Sean Winters. We need to practice the self-emptying that Jesus modeled.

For Francis, mercy is not a response to those who fail at church teaching, it is the crux of the church's teaching, says columnist Michael Sean Winters. 

As the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine approaches, columnist Michael Sean Winters surveys the human suffering and prays for peace in a land long besieged by Russia.

As we approach the 10th anniversary of Francis' pontificate, columnist Michael Sean Winters reflects on his pastoral style.

A series of free online lectures about synodality from Boston College provides a valuable resource for the church, says columnist Michael Sean Winters.