The Second Vatican Council's Decree on Religious Liberty would seem to be an unlikely candidate to topple a vast totalitarian empire that had murdered millions. It does not seem reasonable to suggest that a document that called for the Church and other faiths to have the right to erect their own buildings, worship freely, govern themselves and bring other people into the faith could bring down the Soviet Bloc.

When I began my current term as editor of the WCR 15 years ago, I was clear in my mind that I wanted our local coverage to be people oriented, to tell the stories of how faith was transforming the lives of Catholics in the archdiocese. At the time, I saw this solely as good journalism, as a way of developing a newspaper that would most interest our readers.

It has become a common belief in Western society that the best democracy is thoroughly secular. Such a democracy would be a blank slate, unencumbered by religion or political ideologies.

Backlash! Punishment for criminal activity is one of the most emotion-charged issues in the public sphere. The public is not deeply interested in the intricacies of the criminal justice system.

Surveys regularly show that politicians receive the lowest level of respect of any occupational group in society. If you want to be popular, become a firefighter. If you shun popularity, go into politics.