At 13, I walked the halls of my middle school proudly as the smart Egyptian girl who brought in stuffed grape leaves for lunch and ...

The video for Lady Gaga's song "Judas" has premiered, ending weeks of speculation stirred up by several religious spokespeople who denounced it before seeing it. The video is set in a motorcycle gang; Jesus is ...

In that cosmically complex and fun butterfly effect way of looking at the world, we may never have been born if it wasn't for Thomas Merton, the world's most prominent Catholic monk and prolific author. ...

As we look back over 2011 we're reminded of all the great stories, columns, blog posts and videos. Here's a list of the most popular stories on bustedhalo.com this year...

“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” (Matthew 5:9) Lately I’ve been thinking about the Beatitudes, as well as ...

When Clarence Clemons joined the E Street Band in October 1972, I was six months old. He was just beginning his musical ...

For most of the public history of alcoholism and drug addiction all the way back to Noah, the general impression has been that it is ...

Steve Jobs was never a corporate man. The early personal computer industry was an outgrowth of the radical back-to-the-land ethos and even the name "Apple" ...

Could there have been anyone more gorgeous, more sumptuous, and more glamorous to a girl growing up in the ‘50s and 60s than Elizabeth Taylor, ...

As the year draws to a close, we're reminded of many significant endings in 2011. Here's a short list of what got our (and the ...

My wonderful five-year-old nephew has been asking questions about a certain topic the past few months.  He has been talking with all of these boys at school and my sister—his mother—decided that he was ready.  ...

A defining Gospel passage during Advent is the genealogy text from Matthew's Gospel (1:1-17). At first glance, these verses simply appear to be ...

My relatives are an eclectic bunch, pretty evenly split -- to use crude and somewhat useless political labels -- between Left and Right; our religious diversity includes Catholics, Mormons, evangelicals, United Church of Christ members ...

The most exciting part of the holiday season, no matter your age, is that glorious image of waking up on Christmas day to find shiny ...

Advent is a precious time in the Christian calendar. The four weeks leading up to December 25 are meant to be a period of expectant waiting, as we prepare ourselves for the miraculous arrival ...

Hollywood families (at least in their writers' imagination) seem to have warm and fuzzy family Christmas dinners. Mine are more complex. Somehow, the relative morality ...

In the back pew of the adoration chapel, I folded my arms and slouched before the God who wouldn't talk to me. It was Advent, ...

Many "alternative" gift articles suggest non-gifts -- things like giving to charity in the person's name, or giving service rather than a thing -- but choosing a present specifically for another person, wrapping it playfully ...

O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining, It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth. Long lay the world in sin and error pining. Till He ...

Poverty is affecting more and more people in today's distressed economy. And young adults are volunteering to work with the poor to help alleviate the imposing challenges they face. Some turn to formal volunteer service ...