An American epiphany

Four years after the first of a flood of sexual abuse allegations that have rocked the parishes and dioceses to their foundations, the American Church faces a pivotal 12 months if it is to rebuild trust and confidence with both clergy and laity...

Amid the cold, signs of a thaw

The state of dialogue between the Churches has been the cause of much hand-wringing among ecumenists. Yet at a recent colloquium at Durham University, which brought together representatives from the different denominations, cracks in the ice were sighted and celebrated...

What the camera saw

When a photographer captured a woman leaping to her death from a hotel in central London, some newspapers were only too ready to print the dramatic shot. There have been many complaints of exploitation, but support too from some unexpected quarters...

Wind of change in the Andes

Chile?s first woman president, a survivor of imprisonment by the Pinochet regime, has set an agenda that is pro-education and equal opportunities. That Michelle Bachelet?s victory was over a billionaire right-wing businessman suggests that voters are looking for a new direction...

Pink power in Colombia

One of the most Catholic nations in Latin America has also become one of the most progressive on the issue of homosexuality. As Isabel de Bertodano writes in the last of her three special reports, the Church is also taking steps towards a more pastoral approach...

Roadmaps to your roots

A new series of BBC2?s Who Do You Think You Are? is further fuelling the national fascination with tracing family trees. But as one geneaologist warns, unravelling the lives of dead relatives can become a passion that will take over your living space, free time and holidays...

Never too late to begin

January is the month of starting out afresh. And the urge to begin a new journey is an experience of God?s continuing incarnation in our lives...

Hughes? sacred salmon

Against the background of his troubled life, the poet Ted Hughes rediscovered in his use of language a sense of spirituality that is linked to English cultural traditions...

Justice can bring us together

Social action, as well as prayer and church services, can do much to encourage ecumenism...

No respect for words

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