Just Catholic

Just Catholic is a Catholic perspective on the news—especially when the church itself becomes the news—from Phyllis Zagano.

Pope Francis looks over an empty St. Peter's Square after leading a livestream of the recitation of the Angelus from the library of the Apostolic Palace March 22. (CNS/Vatican Media)

Two popes and a plague, just like the 14th century

by Phyllis Zagano

Mar 24, 2020

Just Catholic: As most of the church sits in isolation, hoping and praying for an "all clear" message and the chance to resume life as it was, new ways of being church arise.

Pope Francis arrives for the final session of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon at the Vatican in Oct. 26, 2019. (CNS/Paul Haring)

It is time to ask, formally, for married priests and woman deacons

by Phyllis Zagano

Feb 21, 2020

Just Catholic: Apostolic exhortations neither clarify doctrine nor make law. If Francis is going to do anything about married priests and women deacons, he will — he must — use another type of document.

'The Two Popes' movie is better than the new 'three popes' book

by Phyllis Zagano

Jan 23, 2020

Just Catholic: "The Two Popes" is feel-good fiction about the disparate personalities of Pope Francis and his predecessor. Now, a "three pope" book tries to pit Benedict XVI and Cardinal Robert Sarah against Francis.

An advertisement in Italian for the Netflix movie "The Two Popes" is seen on a building near the Vatican Dec. 16. (CNS/Cindy Wooden)

After 'The Two Popes,' will the next movie be called 'The Schismatics'?

by Phyllis Zagano

Dec 23, 2019

Just Catholic: Wannabe schismatics claim anyone who disagrees with them, beginning with Pope Francis, is a heretic. News flash: They are not "wannabe schismatics." They are already in schism.

Columns ›

Two popes and a plague, just like the 14th century

It is time to ask, formally, for married priests and woman deacons

'The Two Popes' movie is better than the new 'three popes' book

After 'The Two Popes,' will the next movie be called 'The Schismatics'?

After the Amazon synod, a circus-like sideshow

Married priests and women deacons: It's about law, not doctrine

Women walking together, away from the church

People are suffering, dying; please stop the rhetoric!

Boundaries and borders serve 'us,' while all others suffer

The problem of clericalism makes transparency impossible

Women Deacons 101: Final Exam

Look up at the altar, where are the women?

Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel

The catechism of Cardinal Gerhard Müller

It's not about women priests

The sky is falling and media help it fall

Why not have a woman run a diocese?

The synod: Who is listening to whom?

What can we say about the Synod of Bishops? The optics are not good

Will we ever know the truth?

#MeToo, Your Excellency

As US secures its borders from women and 8-year-olds, the Gospel gets blamed

Imagining Catholicism at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

On messages and messengers

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