Some of our dreams won’t be fulfilled. While this may be a mercy, that’s no consolation.
Voices
The Century’s bimonthly columnists
Everything I learn about science fills me with spiritual wonder.
To build the Beloved Community, we need to think and talk and act differently about bodies.
River baptisms are becoming a casualty of polluted waters.
The cracks in my faith came slow, like when plants grow under concrete.
A man sleeping on a step? A baby in a manger?
At a migrant shelter in Tijuana, I met a woman who was about to give birth.
I’m hoping for one that’s lyrical, chastened, hallowed.
One of the reasons I left my childhood faith tradition is that I didn’t feel what I was supposed to feel.
It was our job to be that something.
It’s possible to stop believing, but we can’t live without trust.
The philosopher’s call to attention reminds me I’m making a difference.
We’ve become convinced that speaking is the most important thing we can do.
It’s easy to love what’s beautiful.
Akram al-Waara sits in a refugee camp and makes art—out of tear gas canisters.