The Gloria Purvis Podcast

Archbishop John Wester has just written a new pastoral letter, “Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament”. He writes from his diocese in Sante Fe, New Mexico, which is also home to two of the three nuclear weapons laboratories in the United States. Archbishop Wester talks with Gloria about the impossibility of justifying nuclear war, or even possessing nuclear weapons, and how his perspective was made personal by a visit he made to Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Japan, where atomic bombs were dropped in 1945. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine: www.americamagazine.org/subscribe Links: Pastoral letter: Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gloria speaks to Maureen O'Connell, author of the new book Undoing the Knots: Five Generations of American Catholic Anti-Blackness, about becoming white in America and how it unfairly privileged her Irish-Catholic family, even as it cost them part of their unique identity and heritage. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine Links: Undoing the Knots: Five Generations of American Catholic Anti-Blackness Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Cherilyn Holloway first learned how abortion was impacting the Black community, she was shocked. Why weren't more people concerned and doing something about it? She quickly discovered that the pro-life movement had an image problem: they only cared about the unborn. So, Cherilyn founded Pro-Black Pro-Life, a movement seeking to engage black communities for action on the issue of life and to ultimately transform thought. Gloria and Cherilyn take a hard look at the pro-life movement in the U.S. today: its narrow focus on abortion, its tendency to tokenize Black people and its inability to have honest conversations about member's lived experiences. They also discuss racial stereotypes within the movement and its dangerous alignment with Republican politics. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine Links: Learn more about Pro-Black Pro-Life and visit their YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sr. Norma Pimentel, M.J. spends her life serving migrants at the southern U.S. border. As a Christian, she doesn't see her work as optional. "It's a mandate from God," she says, "to look out for everybody." Sr. Norma burst onto the national scene when she addressed Pope Francis during a virtual papal audience ahead of his official visit to the U.S. in 2015. The Pope personally thanked her for her ministry. Today, she is one of the most recognized Catholics in the country. A tireless activist and advocate for migrants, Sr. Norma debunks some of the myths around migration and questions to what degree Americans can be described as "pro-life" amidst the suffering she witnesses daily at the border. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine! Links: Don’t turn away from suffering on border, urges Sister Norma Pimentel Catholic bishops on the border have high hopes (and advice) for Joe Biden on immigration Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over half of the insurrectionists arrested for breaking into the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 were business owners, doctors, lawyers and other white-collar workers. They came mostly from urban centers. These are two of the many significant findings from political scientist Dr. Robert Pape and his research team at the University of Chicago, who have spent the past year studying the insurrectionists. "We're so used to thinking of extremists as being on the fringe–part of fringe militia groups or religious sects. What's striking about the insurrectionist sentiments in the U.S. today is that they are mainstream." Gloria speaks with Dr. Pape about the role of religion within the insurrectionist movement and how faith leaders can challenge prevalent insurrectionist sentiments in local communities. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine! Links: New survey shows mainstream community support for violence to restore Trump remains strong Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the end of November and in honor of Black Catholic History month the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America unveiled a new icon outside of its chapel. The image depicts Mary holding her dead son, Jesus. Both are dark-skinned. The artist, Kelly Latimore, said the icon was inspired by the murder of George Floyd. Soon after it was displayed, the university began receiving calls and letters alleging the image was blasphemous. A lobby began to remove the icon. Then, it was stolen. Then, a smaller version of the same icon was also stolen. Kelly Latimore joins Gloria to discuss his inspiration for the icon and how it has been celebrated and ridiculed across the Catholic community. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America Magazine! Links: Kelly Latimore Icons After racist comments, Catholic University replaces stolen icon depicting Black Mary and Jesus Second ‘George Floyd’ Pietà icon stolen from Catholic University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All eyes were on the Vatican when the United States' second Catholic President, Joe Biden, visited Pope Francis. Political pundits across the Atlantic dissected the visit, looking for any word or gesture that could reveal Pope Francis' political leanings towards Democrats or Republicans. But Dan Lipinski–who served eight terms as the U.S. Representative for Illinois’ Third Congressional District from 2005 to 2021–pushed back, arguing that the pope is not a supporter of either party. Lipinski, who identifies as a "pro-life Catholic Democrat" and was marginalized by his own party, speaks with Gloria about the growing trend toward extreme political positions in politics and what Catholics engaged in politics can do about it. They also discuss the impact of the election of the country's first black president, Barack Obama, on the Catholic Church and the Republican party. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Read: Confessions of a pro-life Catholic Democrat in a divided nation by Dan Lipinski Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a generational chasm in Catholic communities. Older Catholics struggle to understand the minds and hearts of younger people. Young people are uninspired by a typical parish community or reluctant to attend programs designed to bring them in or back to church. That doesn't mean they're unreligious or disinterested in Catholicism. Ashley McKinless and Zac Davis recognized this back in 2017 and started a podcast community to create a space for young adults to talk about their spirituality, questions and even their struggles with Catholic teachings. To celebrate Jesuitical's 200th episode, Gloria welcomes Ashley and Zac for an honest and entertaining conversation about young people and the Church today. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No Black Catholics in the United States have been declared saints by the Catholic Church. But that could change. Six individuals who lived between 1766 and 1990 are officially on the path, each with a unique story of faith and struggle. After fleeing slavery in Missouri, Augustus Tolton wanted to be a priest but was rejected by Catholic seminaries. Mary Elizabeth Lange provided free schooling to children of color when it was illegal to do so. Michael Heinlein, editor of "Black Catholics on the Road to Sainthood," joins Gloria to discuss the heroic lives of these six Catholics who, through acts of charity, defied systems of injustice in society and in the church. "They had to fight just to be able to show love and mercy," says Heinlein. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Links: Advocates urge Pope Francis to canonize 6 Black U.S. Catholics: ‘If not now, when?’ Black Catholics on the Road to Sainthood by Michael Heinlein Black Catholics on the Road to Sainthood: A study guide Video: Sr. Thea Bowman's address to the U.S. Bishops in 1989 Video: Who will be the first Black Catholic saint in the United States? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Health Care Denied" was the headline of a report issued by the American Civil Liberties Union on how Catholic hospitals threaten the health and lives of women. It is a common accusation leveled by civil rights groups on issues of women's reproductive health and crisis pregnancies. Catholic hospitals follow guidelines based on beliefs about the human person and the common good which prevent medical staff from providing a range of reproductive health services, including contraception, abortion and sterilization. Are Catholic hospitals denying women care, turning them away and by doing so threatening their lives? That is absolutely not true, says Fr. Charles Bouchard, O.P., a moral theologian and the Senior Director of Theology and Ethics at the Catholic Health Association. Fr. Charlie speaks to Gloria about why groups like the ACLU and others are targeting Catholic hospitals, despite the high quality of care offered and many shared advocacy priorities around the common good, immigration, voting rights, criminal justice and more. At some point in the conversation around reproductive health, says Fr. Charlie, belief in human dignity and the common good morphed into a radical autonomy; free choice became an end in itself. Ultimately, this debate is about fundamental moral principles–is a dialogue possible? Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Bernice A. King–the youngest daughter of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.–knows the temperature of the United States is high. But she's convinced that racial justice and equality will not come about through anger and bitterness. Dr. King and Gloria discuss the response of Christian churches to the murder of George Floyd and the BLM movement, what MLK meant by "colorblindness" and why social justice work has to change hearts as well as structures. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America. Learn more about Dr. Bernice A. King and The King Center Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco has concerns about President Joe Biden and Speaker Nancy Pelosi's souls–two prominent pro-choice Catholics. In a wide-ranging interview, Gloria and the Archbishop also discuss the president's recent meeting with Pope Francis, when denying the Eucharist to Catholics is appropriate and how abortion–a preeminent issue–fits into the wider body of Catholic teachings on racism and immigration. Read this interview in print and comment here! Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America. Benedict XVI Institute's Requiem Mass For The Homeless. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you've had a bad experience going to Confession, you're not alone. Catholics recently took to social media in response to a post from a woman who had been questioned inappropriately by a priest after confessing a sexual sin. One of the responses came from Fr. Jim McDermott, SJ, an associate editor at America, who authored Sex and Confession: 5 helpful guidelines. He and Gloria share their own past negative experiences in the confessional, discuss the formation of priests who hear confessions and the rights of the penitent. They also reflect on why the seal of confession should never be broken, no matter what the sin, and make the case for not giving up on the sacrament. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Link: Sex and Confession: 5 helpful guidelines Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The struggle for women's rights has been long and hard fought. The goal was freedom. But what does freedom mean and how has it changed from the time of the 19th century feminists through various women's movements? Lawyer and author Erika Bachiochi joins Gloria to clarify concepts and shine a light on the early feminists who fought for more than an abstract, autonomous individualism–a notion created by men. From voting to sex, women can only be free when they are free to be women. Support Gloria's podcast by getting a digital subscription to America today! Links: The Rights of Women: Reclaiming a Lost Vision The Equality Act’s implications for abortion would be devastating for pregnant women in the workplace What I will teach my children about Ruth Bader Ginsburg Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The debate over masking and vaccine mandates has led some critics to make an egregious comparison to Nazism. But make no mistake, writes Jenn Morson in a recent article in America, "there is no comparison between being asked to wear a mask in stores and schools and being forced to wear a yellow Star of David in Nazi Germany." Morson, a practicing Catholic who is ethnically Jewish, explains why appropriating the Holocaust to make a political point is both unacceptable and ineffective. It's used out of ignorance or as a tactic to end dialogue rather than engage constructively. Morson speaks with Gloria about a growing sub-culture of conspiracy theories and anti-semitism in Catholic communities. Support Gloria's podcast by getting a digital subscription to America today! Stop comparing vaccine mandates to the Holocaust by Jenn Morson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Division Street ran through Atchison, Kansas. It divided the community along racial lines until a local advocacy group, Atchison United, lobbied to change it. But some Catholics in the city resisted the effort. Kevin Hill, an attorney and member of Atchison United, speaks with Gloria about how racism has become politicized in the United States, including in small cities like Atchison with sizable Catholic populations. Kevin and Gloria recount the story of George Johnson, a Black man from Atchison who was lynched by a white mob in 1870, and make the case that racism is a fundamental life issue for Catholics. Support Gloria's podcast by getting a digital subscription to America today! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

American politics have infiltrated the Catholic Church and are wreaking havoc. When Catholics adopt the prevailing secular categories of "right" and "left" they marginalize a central tenet of the faith: that truth is a person, not a thing. Fr. Matt Malone, SJ, President and Editor-in-Chief of America Media, joins Gloria for a frank conversation on the constructive and destructive power of media in the Catholic Church today, and why the goal of Christian discipleship is not about being right–it's about being holy. Support Gloria's podcast by getting a digital subscription to America today! Links: Matt Malone, S.J., president and editor in chief of America Media, to step down in 2022 A Big Heart Open to God: An interview with Pope Francis Everything I Can Do: Living with Down syndrome Learning to Pray: A Guide for Everyone by Fr. James Martin, SJ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During a conversation with Jesuits on his recent visit to Slovakia, Pope Francis called out a large Catholic media network for relentlessly attacking him in his role as pope. That network is the U.S. based Eternal Word Television Network, founded by Mother Angelica. What does Pope Francis' comment mean for Catholics, particularly Catholics in the media? Do his words and actions as pope require correction? What is an appropriate way to criticize the pope? Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau, a Dominican Friar and moral theologian, joins Gloria to bring some clarity to the story. Pope Francis doesn't take offense when people criticize him personally or the prudential decisions he makes, says Fr. Aquinas. But when that criticism turns against his exercise of the papacy and threatens the unity of the church, the church itself comes under attack. Please support Gloria's podcast! Get a digital subscription to America today! Links: Pope Francis responds to attacks from EWTN, other church critics: ‘They are the work of the devil.’ Why don’t the U.S. bishops defend Pope Francis from American media attacks? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stepping outside of our own particular worldview to encounter another person's story can be scary. That's where the classics come in. They are a collection of texts from the ancient world that cross cultural borders and reveal our common humanity. Frederick Douglas, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison and other great African-American figures were steeped in the classics. Today, however, the classics are polarizing, often claimed or misrepresented as primarily a history of white, European identity and accomplishment. Dr. Anika Prather of Howard University pushes back on this prevailing narrative, arguing that the classics teach us about many diverse cultural heritages. Please support Gloria's podcast! Get a digital subscription to America today! Links: In defense of a classical education Dr. Anika Prather's classics reading list Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's common for pregnant women to experience a sense of dread, panic or agony: not because they don't want the child, but because the economic and social systems do not support women as they should. It's these systemic failures that have led to broad acceptance of abortion, says Helen Alvaré of the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. Gloria and Helen discuss what justice looks like for women in the context of Texas' recent SB8 law, which bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy in the state. For the pro-life movement, it was a major victory. But the panic it created may harden people's hearts against future laws restricting abortion, and ultimately hurt the pro-life cause. Please support Gloria's podcast! Get a digital subscription to America today! Read more from America: The Machiavellian tactics of the Texas abortion law that pro-lifers may come to regret A challenge to Planned Parenthood in Texas: Don’t shut down. Support women with life-affirming prenatal care. Pro-life Catholics: You can’t end abortion without taking on the patriarchy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A young Sr. Helen Prejean loved retreats and pious devotions. Her life was all about praying and being kind. Then she woke up. "I had everything to learn" she says. Gloria speaks with Sr. Helen–a world renowned anti-death penalty activist–about her experience growing up in the south as a white Catholic. Sr. Helen describes how she woke up to systemic racism and explains its impact on the criminal justice system, including the decision of prosecutors to seek the death penalty. The problem, according to Sr. Helen, is that the individuals with the power to make life and death decisions often don't know personally the suffering of the poor and the marginalized, including guilty men and women. Being steeped in the suffering of others, she says, is the key to waking up. Support the podcast and access America's content with a digital subscription! Links: Sr. Helen Prejean's spiritual autobiography, "River of Fire" Pope Francis revises Catechism, teaches that death penalty is ‘inadmissible’ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Catholics, saints are remarkable Christian witnesses worthy of emulation. But what happens when a saint or hero is found to have acted contrary to the gospel? Fanatic enthusiasts may try to explain it away, says Dawn Eden Goldstein, when they should be acknowledging and denouncing it. Goldstein reflects on the life and legacy of beloved English writer and Catholic apologist G.K. Chesterton whose writings have inspired millions of Christians, but include some controversial and prejudicial claims about the Jewish people. Gloria and Dawn discuss why "othering" groups of people is so destructive, especially when it's done by our heroes–from the saints to the founding fathers–and how their cheerleaders can show love and appreciation for them through penance and reparations. Support the podcast and access America's content with a digital subscription! Links: Dawn Eden Goldstein's address on why GKC's fans must reckon honestly with his anti-Semitism Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Citing the church's teaching on personal conscience, a group of Catholic bishops from Colorado issued a statement on August 6th against state-imposed vaccine mandates. Their concern stemmed from a valid, yet very remote connection between Covid-19 vaccines and stem cells from aborted fetuses. But is their concern serving the common good or a culture war? "My issue is that this concern is being weaponized," says Sam Sawyer, SJ. While the concern about vaccines and religious exemptions is technically true theologically, it focuses on a very narrow slice of Catholic moral analysis, ultimately misrepresenting the church's official position: that taking a vaccine is morally acceptable and an act of love. Gloria and Fr. Sam talk through the Catholic Church's moral analysis of the Covid-19 vaccines from a wholistic and nuanced perspective. They discuss why some outspoken Catholics (including bishops) are jettisoning the fullness of the Catholic moral tradition, and why concern for the "common good" is central to any discussion around vaccines and Catholicism. Please consider supporting the podcast by getting a digital subscription to America! Articles by Sam Sawyer, SJ: Catholic bishops must not turn vaccines into a culture war issue How not to talk about vaccines: Some bishops are choosing the culture war over the common good Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gloria speaks with the Most Reverend Mark J. Seitz, Bishop of El Paso, a borderland community whose sister city is Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. The bishop has focused his work and heart on the poor and vulnerable, including migrant families and refugees. In August 2019, a white 21 year old man shot and killed 23 people and injured 23 others in a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. The gunman had just published an anti-immigrant, white nationalist manifesto online before the attack. And he explicitly targeted those he considered to be Mexicans. Bishop Seitz consoled the victims and their families in the months that followed, but he also wrote a pastoral letter “Night Will Be No More,” in which he directly confronts the evil of racism that led to this mass shooting. In it he writes, “Challenging racism and white supremacy, whether in our hearts or in society, is a Christian imperative and the cost of not facing these issues head on, weighs much more heavily on those who live the reality of discrimination.” Support the podcast! Get a digital subscription to America! Links: Bishop Seitz’s Pastoral Letter on racism, Night Will Be No More Bishop Seitz’s Pastoral Letter on migration, Sorrow and Mourning Flee Away Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's the real motivation behind that Facebook post or Tweet? Catholics–like many people today–spend a significant amount of time on social media platforms posting comments and articles, and some of them are divisive, hurtful or even violent. Fr. Josh Johnson, the vocations director for the diocese of Baton Rouge and a prominent young priest with a large social media following, analyses the spiritual pitfalls of social media and the unloving digital communication rampant in the Church today. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by subscribing to America Magazine! Learn more about the Ask Father Josh podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Pope Francis dropped a bombshell decree restricting the traditional Latin Mass, Fr. Anthony Ruff, OSB, had two immediate reactions: shock at its severity, and then heartbreak and concern for the people who attend the Mass. Francis' decree, Traditionis Custodes, seeks to phase out the traditional Latin Mass, says Fr. Ruff, in a noble attempt to bring all Roman Catholics back together around the altar of the reformed Mass envisioned by Vatican II. But that could take decades, and the pain that traditional Catholics are feeling right now is real. Gloria and Fr. Ruff discuss the history of the Mass and why the pursuit of a pre-Vatican II church is misguided and dangerous. A Benedictine monk of Saint John’s Abbey in Collegeville, MN, Fr. Ruff teaches liturgy and liturgical music, and directs Gregorian Chant. He blogs at Pray Tell. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by subscribing to America Magazine! Links: Pope Francis restricts celebration of the pre-Vatican II Latin Mass in new decree Explainer: What is the history of the Latin Mass? I once fell in love with the Latin Mass—which is why I understand why Pope Francis restricted it. I love Latin Mass and Pope Francis. Please don’t let a few (very loud) traditionalists ruin it for the rest of us. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recent evidence of hundreds of unmarked graves at numerous residential schools in Canada has made headlines around the world. But the news is not new, says to Sam Rocha, an associate professor at the University of British Columbia. The Catholic Church participated in Canada's residential school system in the 19th and 20th centuries, where 150,000 Indigenous children were sent against their wills to be assimilated into European settler–and Christian–society. An unknown number of children never returned to their families. Gloria and Sam speak about the legacy of the Church's involvement in the residential school system and colonization more broadly. While some Catholics have felt the need to defend the Church's actions in light of her evangelizing mission, Sam suggests that it's those Catholics who need to be evangelized to the Gospel. Support The Gloria Purvis Podcast by subscribing to America Magazine! Links: Túpac Shakur at 50: Remembering an underdog prophet by Sam Rocha Learn more about Sam Rocha and listen to his podcast, Folk Phenomenology here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is nothing to fear from deep, respectful, honest engagement with people who think and believe differently than we do. That's the mantra of Robert P. George, McCormick professor of jurisprudence and director of the James Madison program in American ideals and institutions at Princeton university. George offers a historic overview and penetrating legal explanation of a hotly debated topic in American society today: religious liberty. He argues that a republican democracy must allow for diverging–even opposing–beliefs to be heard in the public square. A staunch defender of the freedom of speech, truth-seeking and dialogue, George challenges listeners to wrestle with a terrifying idea: that our opinions and beliefs may not be true. Support this podcast by subscribing to America! Links: Truth Seeking, Democracy, and Freedom of Thought and Expression - A Statement by Robert P. George and Cornel West Dignitatis Humanae - Vatican II's declaration on religious freedom Nostra Aetate - Vatican II's declaration on non-Christian religions Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Critical Race Theory compatible with Catholic social teaching? Or, is it an inherently misguided school of thought corrupting the minds of high school and college students about race in America? Vince Rougeau, the Dean of Boston College Law School and the new president of the College of the Holy Cross, joins Gloria for a candid conversation on Catholic education today, including Critical Race Theory , "wokeism" and lingering systems of racial injustice. “Not every conclusion that comes out of Critical Race Theory is compatible with Catholicism," says Rougeau, "but how could it be the case that Catholics would not want to engage with an intellectual tool that helps deepen our understanding of race?” Support this podcast by subscribing to America! Links: Boston College’s initiative to transform the way we think about racial justice in America by Vincent Rougeau Should Catholic Schools Teach Critical Race Theory? by Christopher Devron, S.J. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A debate is raging in the Catholic Church about "Eucharistic coherence" around president Joe Biden and whether or not he should receive Communion in light of his policy positions on abortion. The U.S. Bishops are constructing a teaching document around the Eucharist in the life of the church that could single out public figures who support legalized abortion. Timothy O'Malley, director of education at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at Notre Dame, joins Gloria to weigh into the conversation and to discuss what Catholics actually believe about the Eucharist. O'Malley's perspective offers some much needed nuance: on the one hand, the Eucharist is "intrinsically political" because it's a public act committing every Catholic to transforming the world in love. So, the question around president Biden receiving Communion is a legitimate one. On the other hand, if those Catholics who insist on denying Communion to the President feel vindicated or take delight in the process, it's a clear sign that perhaps they should not receive Communion themselves. The whole debate, according to O'Malley, is an invitation to each baptized person to reflect on their own Eucharistic coherence. Support this podcast by subscribing to America! Links: PEW study: Just one-third of U.S. Catholics agree with their church that Eucharist is body, blood of Christ Real Presence: What Does It Mean and Why Does It Matter? by Timothy P. O'Malley A Pastoral Letter on the Human Dignity of the Unborn, Holy Communion, and Catholics in Public Life by Salvatore Joseph Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco Read more from America on the debate on Eucharistic coherence here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Historically, white Catholics in America have thought of their faith as "American," "normal," "neutral" or simply "Catholic." In reality there is no racially neutral Catholicism, according to Matthew Cressler, a professor of religious studies at the College of Charleston and an expert in religion, race and politics in America. Professor Cressler joins Gloria to offer a penetrating history lesson on race and Catholicism in America, including massive resistance among white Catholics to desegregation during the civil rights movement. Please support the show by subscribing to America! Links: “Real Good and Sincere Catholics”: White Catholicism and Massive Resistance to Desegregation in Chicago, 1965–1968 by Matthew J. Cressler Authentically Black and Truly Catholic: The Rise of Black Catholicism in the Great Migration by Matthew J. Cressler Matthew's book recommendations: The History of Black Catholics in the United States by Cyprian Davis Uncommon Faithfulness: The Black Catholic Experience edited by M. Shawn Copeland Racial Justice and the Catholic Church by Bryan N. Massingale Desegregating Dixie: The Catholic Church in the South and Desegregation, 1945-1992 by Mark Newman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week Gloria speaks with Sr. Josephine Garrett, C.S.F.N., a Sister of the Holy Family of Nazareth and a licensed counselor, who sounds the alarm about the emerging culture of celebrity priests on social media. She explains how the most common and dangerous personality disorders can affect individuals in positions of authority and offers advice for the faithful when these disorders reveal themselves in ordained ministers. Please support my show by subscribing to America! Links: Understanding Personality Disorders Help and Treatment options for Personality Disorders, including a history of trauma If you or someone you know is in a crisis situation, seek help here and here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is it like to attend a Catholic seminary as a young, Black man? Fr. Bruce Wilkinson shares his personal and traumatic experience from the 1970s when he made the courageous decision to dedicate his life to God. He was the only Black man in his seminary. Then he was told to leave. Gloria discusses the importance of human formation at Catholic seminaries: "We need young priests to cry with us. We need them to listen. We need them to be interested in what we're saying. We need them to be unafraid. We need them to join us in the struggle for justice and respect for the human person." Read Fr. Bruce's story here Please support my show by subscribing to America! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One year after the brutal murder of George Floyd, Gloria Purvis isn't feeling healed; she's feeling determined to address the sin of racism in society and in the Catholic Church. On the first episode of the podcast, Gloria speaks to Fr. Erich Rutten of Saint Peter Claver Catholic Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, a historically Black Catholic parish a few miles from where George Floyd was killed. What was the parish's response to the murder and how have they dealt with the trauma over the past year? Subscribe to America: https://www.americamagazine.org/subscribe Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Too many voices are not being heard in the Catholic Church today. "The Gloria Purvis Podcast" is a new podcast from America Media hosted by radio personality and Catholic commentator, Gloria Purvis. The podcast centers the opinions, stories and experiences of individuals who have been marginalized in the Catholic Church and in society. It's all about fostering a culture of charitable dialogue around the most complex and contentious issues in the Catholic Church today. Episodes will release weekly. Subscribe to hear the latest episodes and learn more at http://americamagazine.org/gloriapurvispodcast Support my show by subscribing to America! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices