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Smith reviews Catholics in America: Religion in American Life by James T. Fisher.

Somewhere in the National Archives of the United States lies one of the very first, if not the first, diplomatic correspondence between this country and Vietnam. On August 16, 1849, President Zachary Taylor wrote to "His Majesty the Magnificent King of Anam." The letter reads in part:Great and Good Friend!To you, my Brother, the Great and Mighty King of Anam, I send love and goodwill, in this letter, by the hands of Mr. Joseph Balestier, my faithful and trusty Envoy and Minister to South Eastern Asia, to whom I give express orders to deliver it into your own Royal hands in order that you may understand how greatly I have been grieved to hear it said, that the Captain of one of my warships had misbehaved himself, four years ago, (which I have only heard of lately, for the first time, because your country is so far from mine) by landing men from his ship in Toorong Bay and firing on your people, and killing and Wounding some of them….

Among Catholics, there is little controversy over theological & doctrinal matters. However, the teaching authority of the church, the magisterium, extends to the application of Christian , natural-law ideas to soc questions. The soc encyclicals are general & their application to specific situations is within the authority of the bishops It is here, esp, that Catholics become divided between liberals & conservatives. Ever since the establishment of the organized US church, Catholics have accepted the US system of separation of religion & pol, but there has been controversy on particular matters. Catholics have favored the liberty of parochial Sch's &, ultimately, auxiliary benefits to the Catholic Sch child. Though the freedom of the artist is generally recognized, the Catholic defense of morality has approved more censorship of the MM than liberals ordinarily approve. Catholics are divided in the defense & criticism of the free market, though it would seem to be clear that most Catholic opinion does not consider the US economy in violation of the soc encyclicals. Liberal Catholics are critical of the competitive system, & conservatives believe that papal teaching is in accordance with the free-market system. AA.

TODAY'S PARTY SYSTEM IS A LONG WAY FROM THE THICK CULTURE OF FAMILY, CHURCH, NEIGHBORHOOD, AND LIFELONG AFFILIATION IT ONCE ENJOYED. THIS IS EVIDENT IN THE CHOICES NOW BEING MADE BY INDIVIDUALS WHO GREW UP IN VERY RELIGIOUS, VERY DEMOCRATIC FAMILIES 40 AND 50 YEARS AGO. ALTHOUGH THE ADULT CHILDREN OF THESE STAUNCH PARENTS HAVE OFTENTIMES GROWN UP TO BE DEMOCRATS THEMSELVES, THEY HAVE BECOME RELUCTANT SUPPORTERS OF THE POLITICAL PARTY THAT THEIR PARENTS SO BELIEVED IN. IN PARTICULAR, ABORTION, THE DEATH PENALTY, CUTS IN SOCIAL WELFARE, AND PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE ARE ISSUES THAT THE NEXT GENERATION CAN NOT SUPPORT. THE TIME HAS COME, THEREFORE, FOR THE DEMOCRATS TO STOP BEING HELD HOSTAGE TO PRO-CHOICE POLITICS.

Considers the paradox evidenced by American Catholics' simultaneous rejection of papal teaching & their enduring commitment to Rome. This issue is explored here based on survey data from 214 members of the Women's Ordination Conference (WOC), who contest Vatican opposition to women priests. It is suggested that the legitimation narrative that WOC members use to validate their identity as Catholics committed to a doctrinal stance denounced by Rome illuminates one of the mechanisms that enable Catholics in general to maintain their religious identity while disagreeing with papal teaching. Derived from their lived knowledge of Catholicism, WOC respondents claim the authority to interpret doctrine & use that interpretive autonomy to offer doctrinally grounded reasons in favor of change. Empowered by Catholicism to reflexively critique church doctrine & practice, WOC members both validate their particularized interpretations of Catholicism & maintain communion with the church's more universal community of memory. 28 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article considers the paradox evidenced by American Catholics' simultaneous rejection of papal teaching and their enduring commitment to Rome. This issue is explored by focusing on one group of apparently anomalous Catholics, members of the Women's Ordination Conference (WOC), who contest Vatican opposition to women priests. It is suggested that the legitimation narratives that WOC members use to validate their identity as Catholics committed to a doctrinal stance denounced by Rome illuminate one of the mechanisms that enable Catholics in general to maintain their religious identity while disagreeing with papal teaching. Derived from their lived knowledge of Catholicism, WOC respondents claim the authority to interpret doctrine and use that interpretive autonomy to offer doctrinally grounded reasons in favor of change. Empowered by Catholicism to reflexively critique church doctrine and practices, WOC members both validate their particularized interpretations of Catholicism and maintain communion with the church's more universal community of memory.