| Editor | Drew Christiansen |
|---|---|
| Former editors | Rev. Thomas J. Reese |
| Categories | Roman Catholicism |
| Frequency | Weekly |
| Circulation | 45,000 |
| Publisher | American Jesuits |
| First issue | 1909 |
| Company | America Press Inc. (Society of Jesus) |
| Country | United States |
| Based in | New York City |
| Language | English |
| Website | www.americamagazine.org |
| ISSN | 0002-7049 |
America is a national weekly magazine published by the American Jesuits that contains news and opinion about Catholicism and how it relates to American politics and cultural life.
The publication was founded by 1909 in New York, and the Jesuits still maintain and publish the weekly magazine. It has a circulation of 45,000 readers. It describes itself as: "America, the weekly Catholic magazine of news, opinion, book reviews and articles for the thinking Catholic and those who want to know what the Catholic people are thinking." The magazine provides editorials and news on the church, moral and social issues, along with book and movie reviews. The former editor of the magazine, Rev. Thomas J. Reese, called America the "Catholic PBS".[1]
With its Jesuit affiliation, America presents a liberal-leaning view on Catholicism, which has, on occasion, led to conflict with the Catholic Church hierarchy.[2][3] Over the years, America has sought to offer its readers Catholic viewpoints representing more than one side of sensitive issues. Consequently, the magazine has sometimes published articles and opinion pieces taking positions contrary to official Catholic Church teaching on matters such as homosexuality, priestly celibacy, AIDS, and the roles of women in the Church.[2][3] This has caused the magazine to come under increasing scrutiny by the Vatican; former editor Thomas J. Reese was forced to resign in May 2005 on the orders of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Catholic administrative office which monitors and enforces adherence to Catholic doctrine.[4] The directive reportedly came in mid-March of that year from Josef Ratzinger—the later Pope Benedict XVI—himself, who was the head of the CDF at the time.[2] The CDF had been monitoring America for at least four years and had at one point threatened to impose a committee of censors to review the magazine's content.[2]
In 2009, it gave support to an invitation for President Barack Obama to receive an honorary degree at Notre Dame University, which was controversial given that directives from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops discourage pro-choice politicians and activists from being honored at Catholic universities.[5] Its current editor is Drew Christiansen, SJ.