Our Takes Daily

We've become Protestant Catholics
A lack of understanding of what we believe and the influence of a Protestant culture has made us weak Catholics, Chicago Cardinal Francis George told the Catholic New World. It's time for Catholics in the United States to step up and study the richness of the Church's teaching, he said. "What seems clear to me is that God is calling us to be authentically Catholic in our faith and also, perhaps paradoxically, Protestant in our culture," he said.

Praying for the state
Oklahoma will be showered with prayers during its centennial year, according to Tulsa World. Churches of all backgrounds have committed to praying around the clock and have set up "prayer rooms" for the event. These prayer rooms sound a lot like eucharistic adoration chapels and the round the clock prayer like the Catholic tradition of praying without ceasing and liturgy of the hours. Either way, it's a positive move that other states can emulate.

Forgiving son's killer
A drunk driver who killed her 25-year-old son should not "suffer further at the hands of our justice system," Susan Barich told the Los Angeles Times. She's urging the court to sentence the driver to campaign against drunk driving instead of serving jail time. Forgiveness is something Jesus tells us to practice, no matter how difficult it is. Barich has taken a difficult but courageous stance that fosters healing.