Why Crisis Magazine?

Crisis Magazine began in 1982 as a response to the crisis of faith in the Catholic Church and soon broadened it’s purview to include the crisis to faith in the public square. While signs of hope have been observed in recent decades thanks to the effective and inspired leadership of Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI, much remains to be done. Indeed, Pope Francis reminds us of this often.

The work of renewal in the Church and evangelization in the culture is not to be left to the clergy alone or even to the parish, but to every individual Catholic in his daily life. The opportunities are manifold given the mounting challenges to faith all around us. As the needs of the Church have grown, the contributions of the laity have become indispensible.

The Catholic press plays a vital role in conveying the message of faith to the reading public. As secular liberal institutions become more powerful and influential, reaching a receptive audience has grown more difficult. The spiritual crisis that has been with us for generations seems to be growing more acute with each passing year. Signs of renewal in the Church, like a rise in vocations or thriving new Catholic colleges, should not produce in us a sense of complacency.

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The Church is a hospital for fallen humanity and her spiritual remedy has been with us since Christ walked the earth. But while we have always been in need of spiritual healing, there are always new wounds to mend in every succeeding age. Ours is no different. Contemporary culture is particularly resistant to the Gospel of Christ and it is incumbent upon lay Catholics to renew their own faith while sharing the Good News with their neighbors.

Crisis is the source for orthodox Catholic commentary and opinion on pressing issues of the day. It seeks to provide intellectual support for Christians who joyfully go about the work of evangelization. We press forward undaunted by the seemingly overwhelming odds against us. Crisis is not the kind of publication that turns away from a challenge. Threats to our spiritual wellbeing are grave indeed but we face them with hope and without fear because we know that our efforts will bear fruit in the end. But the journey requires great courage and sacrifice.

Crisis also seeks to foster an appreciation for the Catholic cultural inheritance. We celebrate the beauty of its liturgical traditions and sacred music, it’s classical art and architecture. Pope Benedict has often said that the beauty of the Church is an effective means to convey the saving message of Christ. Being favorably disposed to the glorious achievements of Christendom, Crisis is not indifferent to the unrelenting attacks upon the ideals of Western civilization because Christianity contributed mightily to the cultivation of the West. Crisis offers a perspective on issues of the day with a mind attuned to and formed by the greatest thinkers of our Christian heritage.

There are many Catholic publications, but Crisis is the only online magazine of its kind. Every site has it’s own niche and makes its own contribution. But Crisis distinguishes itself from the others by its single-minded defense of the Church and her teachings and the culture she nurtured over centuries against relentless and ongoing threats from elite cultural and political institutions that seek to diminish her public influence.

Add to that threat a growing moral and intellectual confusion, even indifference, among some Christians who represent a Trojan horse in the City of God. No Catholic site, for example, is more committed to defending Catholic education by opposing Common Core standards or defending sacramental matrimony by opposing same-sex marriage.  Every intellectual challenge will be met with equal or greater persuasive force.

But Crisis cannot accomplish this task without support from readers. Donors make possible critical essays on the Common Core like the one written by Mary Jo Anderson that was linked at World Net Daily and reported on at Breitbart.com.

Without your financial support, our columns would not appear in major national newspapers like this one by Regis Martin that was linked by our Canadian friends at the National Post. And would the New York Times ever have referenced a column by Austin Ruse on vegetarianism if it were not for the financial support of our loyal readers?

And if that were not enough, how would Pat Buchanan ever have quoted Crisis in his syndicated columns if it were not for the generous contributions of readers like you?

Imagine how much farther we could reach, how much more we could accomplish, if we could commission even more quality content that would reach far beyond orthodox Catholic circles?

Running a website generates costs. And while the last year has seen improvements in our traffic, much more could be done. To accomplish the task before us, Crisis Magazine must reach a larger audience. The threatening social and political trends we face in education, in healthcare, in family life and marriage, are too powerful to reverse without the renewed and redoubled financial commitment of our readers.

Will you visit our secure online site and make a tax-deductible donation today?  No amount is too small. Every donation will help us reach our goal if large numbers of readers make a pledge to help support our apostolate.

Here’s the bottom line: Crisis Magazine is free to everyone but it is not free to produce. We can only improve our content and reach more people if our loyal readers dedicate themselves to this cause and this mission. The challenges are enormous. Our response must be equally impressive.

Most of all, please consider becoming a monthly contributor to Crisis by choosing that option on the second line of the donation form. Consistent giving allows us to better plan for the future because it guarantees a predictable level of support.

And it is worth remembering as we near the end of the year that donations to Crisis Magazine are tax-deductible.

Please visit our online donation page and make a gift to Crisis Magazine.

A one-time or month donation of any size will make an enormous difference in our ability to meet and overcome the challenges we face.

Whether or not you can help Crisis financially, your donation of prayers will be welcomed most heartily.

Yours in Christ,

John M. Vella
Editor

 

Click here to make a contribution to Crisis Magazine

And please consider becoming a monthly donor.

If you prefer to donate by mail, you may send a check to:

Crisis Magazine
PO Box 5284
Manchester, NH 03108

You may also make a donation by phone:

1-800-888-9344

 

Author

  • John M. Vella

    John M. Vella served as editor of Crisis Magazine from 2012 to 2019. For over a decade, he was the managing editor of Modern Age: A Quarterly Review published by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI). Before arriving at ISI, John served as publications manager at the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty. His essays and reviews have appeared in a variety of secular and Catholic publications including Chronicles, Chesterton Review, Modern Age, Homiletic and Pastoral Review, New Oxford Review, and University Bookman. He earned his Master’s in history at Villanova University in 2010.

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