Spirituality & Christianity
Is it political or is it spiritual?
By Tess GC Before we get into the piece — If you’re able, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to this newsletter. It really does take quite a while to write each piece, and we put a lot of care and thought into each one. We don’t have a lot of money, and we know a lot of our readers don’t either, given the nature of…
What is deep solidarity?
By Tess GC A few weeks ago, I was invited to have a conversation with some like-minded folks on their podcast, Religion and Justice, where we talked about moralizing, solidarity, power, privilege, and how to build a Left that can win. I talked with hosts George and Gabby, as well as theologian Joerg Rieger. We discussed my artic…
The Left Needs Spirituality
By Tess GC Many thanks to everyone who has engaged with our work and subscribed in the past few months – it’s a real pleasure to be able to connect with a larger audience as we move through challenging times, and we really appreciate you taking time in an oversaturated, busy world to read our thoughts.
Would you join the moralizers?
By Tess GC Both the Christian Left and the non-religious Left have a moralizing problem, and this new year seems like a good time to talk about it. I’m feeling, and I think many of you are too, exhausted by social media, and exhausted by enraging world events we have little control over.
The Illegitimacy of Jesus
On this final Sunday of Advent, which is also Christmas Eve this year, I want to offer a piece I wrote for The Just Word Commentary for today. By Tess GC
Permanently Cancelling Christmas
By Tess GC I’ve always loved thinking up gifts at Christmas, and sending cards to all my friends and huge family. This year, my plans to whip up a big stack of cards just didn’t happen. I kept waiting to feel like doing it, and I haven’t. I’ve only really found myself able to think of something meaningful to say to the people who have held me, struggled …
Why Can't the Christians Get It Together?
By Tess GC After October 7th, the day that kicked off the nightmarish last two months, it was immediately clear to anyone who’s aware of how a country with a powerful military and a desire to control more land will behave with (or without) provocation. Gaza was fucked, and it became clearer and clearer to your average Joe as the month went on. Our media …
Enemy Love
By Ben Stegbauer The Just Word Commentary and Left Catholic bring you the second part of our interview with Eric Martin, author of the new book The Writing on the Wall: Signs of Faith Against Fascism. Take a look at the first part of this interview, where we explain the context for this beautiful book, as Martin asks the quintessential questions about wha…
Eric Martin on the Creep of Fascism
By Ben Stegbauer The Just Word Commentary and Left Catholic have collaborated to interview Eric Martin about his book, The Writing on the Wall: Signs of Faith Against Fascism (2023). We discuss many topics, like how it felt to be on the ground in Charlottesville, Virginia during the Unite the Right rally, and not see his church around him; how the book w…
The Spiritual Rift of Settler Colonialism
This last month’s discourse around colonialism, Israeli settlers, and indigeneity has ties to something I know a lot about – the form of colonialism called settler colonialism, which is also the story of what happened here in North America. As we stand in solidarity with Palestinians, and call for as decolonial an approac…
Part II: The Liberal Considers Palestine
By Tess GC Last week, we released a statement on Israel and Palestine. In light of other Catholic responses to the current situation in Gaza, we’ve decided to expand on our claims. This is the second in a two-part piece — the first, providing some brief histories on Palestine and the Catholic Church, can be found her…
Part I: Palestine, Israel, and Catholics
By Tess GC We released a statement on Israel and Palestine last week. In light of other Catholic responses to the current situation in Gaza, we’ve decided to expand on our claims. This is a two-part piece, the first providing some background on Christian and Catholic antisemitism in Europe, and the Vatican’s dealings with…
Reclaiming Catholicism
Left Catholic began as a zine project, the Instagram came second as a way to promote it. As I’ve posted about various issues related to Catholicism (or issues Catholicism and Christianity should be concerned with), I’ve realized that a lot of us have questions about what the heck we’re doing, saying …