Brad Birzer has a superb series running at CatholicVote.org, “Bearers of the Word,” in which he interviews such thinkers and artists such as Gerald Russello, Jef Murray, and (coming soon) Mike Church. He was kind, and reckless, enough to interview me for the most recent installment, which can be found here. I discuss the seemingly fading Catholic voice in American life and the dangers of absorption in politics, while suggesting a few bright lights and looking at the future of the faith in in what threatens to be a monolithically liberal world.
How the Church can go on spiritually is clear enough, but what can the institution and way of life mean in such a world? I don’t have an answer, but readers may find the discussion of some interest.
Fran Rossi 
Hartley Pleshaw 
Mnestheus 
Alan 
Rob 
The “monolithically liberal world” in 15 years time has given us a national security state, a surveillance society, at least 3 unjust wars, drone warfare, novel new practices in our system of administering justice that include rendition, torture, indefinite detention, extra-judicial punishment up to and including execution. Meanwhile, back on the homefront, we anesthetize ourselves with entertainment that pivots between extreme sex and extreme violence, when we aren’t busy pursuing extreme cash at the expense of domestic tranquility.
The moral and political critique of this monstrosity has been largely left to occasional laymen like Andrew Bacevich, a few others, and a few magazines like this one, Chronicles, some others, and marginalized politicians like Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich.
What has the American Catholic Church had to say during this descent into the maelstrom? Not a hell of a lot.