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Failing in Formation

The enrollment drop in American Catholic schools—from 5.2 million students in the 1960s to 2.5 million in 1990 to today’s 1.8 million—is a plunge of Syrian magnitude. In the last ten years, 1,336 Catholic schools have been either closed or consolidated. Meanwhile, bishops have been . . . . Continue Reading »

Let’s Lead, Not Be Led

Paul Ryan will not seek another term in Congress. No doubt the personal reasons he gave for bowing out are important. But it’s likely he’s also frustrated that the market-oriented and freedom-focused conservatism he took for granted has lost traction. He’s not alone. The ideas and priorities . . . . Continue Reading »

Card-Carrying Precadavers

It has been almost twenty years since I dissected a dead human body. It still seems strange: My first encounter with a human body to learn the art of healing was an encounter with a corpse. What is more, I took this body to pieces. In any other context, this act would have been a felony. Respect for . . . . Continue Reading »

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