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U.S. Catholic ∙ Vol. 75, No. 12 ∙ December 2010

COVER STORY

I’ll be green for Christmas
Piles of trash and wasted food are no way to celebrate the incarnation, argues Associate Editor Megan Sweas in Sounding Board. If Jesus is indeed the reason for the season, the feast of his birth shouldn’t be a time of misery for the creation he came to save. In Feedback readers wonder whether Sweas' holiday spirit is green or just Grinchy.

See also: Special section on fair trade

EXPERT WITNESS

Worth getting up for
In a world of unfriendly atheism, faith-doubting science, and a what’s-in-it-for-me consumer culture, Christianity still has answers for questioning hearts, says Dominican priest and author Timothy Radcliffe in Expert Witness. Believers just have to use our imaginations.
WEB ONLY! Read our first interview with Timothy Radcliffe, Put your best faith forward

FEATURES

The church’s “married clergy”
The U.S. church has witnessed a silent ministry revolution in the past 40 years, as a reinvented permanent diaconate has slowly found a place in parish life. Anna Weaver explores what draws deacons to service and what their future holds for the church.
Sidebar: Deacon's wives' tales

Life on the line
The U.S.-Mexico border may be a political football on Capitol Hill, but for many Americans it’s just part of daily life. In this photo story Karl W. Hoffman frames the debate with images of those who live it. Associate Editor Megan Sweas tells their stories.
State of fear: Arizona's immigration law
WEB ONLY VIDEO! Living on the Border: Karl W. Hoffman's documentary trailer. Please Note: Since publication, Karl W. Hoffman's website livingontheborder.com was lost, but it will redirect to skullcreekmedia.com.

ESSAYS/OPINION

The lies are killing us
The failure of immigration reform is a moral tragedy as well as a political one, argues El Paso pastor Msgr. Arturo Bañuelas. And for the many who suffer the debate’s dehumanizing rhetoric, it is also a matter of life and death.

When I saw you hungry
It’s hard to close your eyes to the presence of Christ in the poor, writes Karen Kirkwood, especially when he’s that homeless guy between you and the church pew.

Door man
In Wise Guides, Holy Cross Father Ronald Raab recalls how he found a world of service to the poor opened to him in the life of his newly canonized confrere, Brother André Bessette.

DEPARTMENTS

Editors' Note
You May Be Right Letters
Signs of the Times News
Catholic Tastes
Culture in Context: Reviews
Glad You Asked: Is there salvation outside the church?
At Home with Our Faith - Christmas presence
Eye of the Beholder 
Jerry Bleem, O.F.M.

COLUMNS

The Examined Life - Bryan Cones
Mass distruption
Margin Notes - Kevin Clarke
Silent flight 
Culture in Context - Patrick McCormick
It's in the blood
Testaments - Alice Camille
All I want for Christmas