Thomas Reese

Jesuit Fr. Thomas Reese's column for Religion News Service, "Signs of the Times," appears regularly at National Catholic Reporter.

Reese entered the Jesuits in 1962 and was ordained in 1974. He was educated at St. Louis University, the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, and at the University of California Berkeley, where he received a Ph.D. in political science. He worked in Washington as a writer and lobbyist for tax reform from 1975 to 1978. He was an associate editor of America magazine, where he wrote on politics, economics and the Catholic Church, from 1978 to 1985 and editor-in-chief from 1998 to 2005. He was a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center from 1985 to 1998 and 2006 to 2013. During the summers, he works as a visiting scholar at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. 

While at Woodstock, he wrote the trilogy on the organization and politics of the church: Archbishop: Inside the Power Structure of the American Catholic Church (1989), A Flock of Shepherds: The National Conference of Catholic Bishops (1992), and Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church (1996). He also edited The Universal Catechism Reader (1990), an analysis of the first draft of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Episcopal Conferences: Historical, Canonical and Theological Studies (1989). He is also author of a NCR e-book, Caring for Our Common Home: A Readers’ Guide and Commentary on Pope Francis’ Encyclical on the Environment (2015).

In 2014, Reese was appointed by President Barack Obama to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission that reviews the facts and circumstances of religious freedom violations and makes policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress. He was reappointed to another two-year term in May 2016, and he was elected to a one-year term as chair of the commission in June 2016. His writings for NCR do not necessarily reflect the views of the commission.

Reese was senior analyst for the NCR from March 2013 to June 2017. He is based in Washington, D.C.

By this Author

With 9 new electors, Pope Francis remakes the college of cardinals

Signs of the Times: Pope Francis, in a surprise announcement on Sunday, Oct. 25, named 13 new cardinals, nine of whom will be able to vote for a new pope when Francis dies or resigns.

Pope Francis delivers his message on the occasion of the weekly general audience in the Paul VI hall at the Vatican Oct. 21. (AP/Gregorio Borgia)

Six things you need to know about Pope Francis and gay civil unions

Signs of the Times: Francis is not changing dogma or doctrine or even canon law. He is talking about civil law, an area of prudential judgment.

Dear Pope Francis, six reasons you should wear a mask

Signs of the Times: Dear Pope Francis, it is extremely disappointing that almost all the photos of you since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic have shown you without a mask.

How to make our politics better: Pray first, says a Jesuit guide

Signs of the Times: True, almost every politician says pious things about God and prayer, but can prayer actually help politics become less partisan and more beneficial to the common good?

Election checklist: Five ways Catholic parishes can keep politics out of church

Signs of the Times: Other than hiding in the basement, what can parishioners ask their pastors to do to keep their parishes from turning into partisan war zones?

Five things to look for in Pope Francis' new encyclical, 'Fratelli Tutti'

Signs of the Times: Fratelli Tutti, the new papal encyclical on fraternity and social friendship, is an important teaching document that must be read by anyone who wants to know where Pope Francis is coming from.

Vatican causes chaos by invalidating baptism formula

Signs of the Times: Even under Pope Francis, who is all about compassion and forgiveness, the literalists appear to be alive and well in the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. 

Amy Coney Barrett's religion is important but irrelevant

Signs of the Times: Some who oppose Amy Coney Barrett's appointment argue that her beliefs will influence how she decides cases before the court. 

National Catholic Prayer Breakfast award for Barr divides Catholics

Signs of the Times: Prayer breakfasts are generally not controversial events in the Catholic world, except when they are stages for giving awards to people like Attorney General William Barr.

Is Kamala Harris anti-Catholic?

Signs of the Times: President Donald Trump's supporters are trying to paint Kamala Harris as being anti-Catholic, a fantastical accusation considering that her running mate, Joe Biden, is a Catholic.

Pope Francis' new papal encyclical could be derailed by its seemingly sexist title

Signs of the Times: I can see the headlines now: "Papal encyclical condemned as sexist." Groan!

Trump or Biden? What's a Catholic voter to do?

Signs of the Times: American Catholics are fighting over whether Joe Biden can be called a Catholic politician. Connected to this question is another: "Can a Catholic vote for Biden?"

In 'Life After the Pandemic,' Pope Francis hopes COVID-19 will change us

Signs of the Times: Since COVID-19 first began to spread, Pope Francis has been challenging Catholics and the world about the response to the pandemic. As a pastor, he's also offered us hope.

Five things Pope Francis should do while imprisoned by the pandemic

Signs of the Times: Pope Francis is at heart a pastor who likes to be with his people, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made that impossible. What should he do with all his extra time?

Catholic bishops reprimand Trump as often as they praise him

Signs of the Times: Many Americans assume the U.S. Catholic bishops are diehard supporters of Donald Trump, but on several issues, they strongly criticize the administration. 

COVID-19 crisis provides opportunities and grace

Signs of the Times: Despite the terrible impact of COVID-19 on us, in what ways could the coronavirus change work, families and church for the better?

COVID-19 is more than a public health challenge: It's a moral test

Signs of the Times: The time is already past to admit that the coronavirus pandemic in the United States is a moral crisis, not simply a public health and economic crisis. 

American exceptionalism needs a reboot

Signs of the Times: Going our own way, with total disregard for the desires and interests of other countries, we eschew multilateralism, whether in trade negotiations or dealing with climate change.

Religious conservatives have lost LGBTQ rights battle. It's time to surrender

Signs of the Times: Religious conservatives bet all their credibility on the Republican Party and President Donald Trump, who promised to appoint judges who would roll back the expansion of gay rights. This has been a costly bet that has alienated millions of young people from Christianity.

Four ways to tell a prophet from a political puppet

Signs of the Times: In the streets of Washington, D.C., we have seen religion used as a political prop and we have seen it exercise its prophetic voice.

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