Fred Niedner

Niedner: Pope take aim at death penalty and shot at flaw of revenge

December 13, 2018 at 12:09 a.m.

Of the world’s 993 state-sanctioned executions in 2017, only 23 occurred in the United States. It may seem, therefore, that Pope Francis meant to address other nations this past week...

U.S. President Donald Trump, left, extends his hand to Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, at the beginning of a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland, Monday, July 16, 2018.

Trump out of his element as president

December 13, 2018 at 3:49 a.m.

Some late-evening text messaging with my son this week focused on a question I had never pondered. Which is more difficult to explain to a four-year-old, puns or procreation? My...

Arman Villanueva, left, an immigrant from the Philippines, celebrates his U.S. citizenship with his daughter Athena, 2, and wife, Josephine, after the 4th of July Naturalization Ceremony at Wolf Lake on Wednesday.

Niedner: Recommitting to our founding values crucial to future

May 13, 2019 at 10:30 a.m.

Few communities still gather to hear Independence Day speeches about what it means to be part of the United States of America. This year, thanks to divisions among us as...

A police officer stands guard while children, who were separated from their parents by immigration officials at the border, hide their faces as they are escorted as they leave the Cayuga Centers facility, Thursday, June 21, 2018, in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York.

Cruelty toward children isn’t supported by the Bible

December 13, 2018 at 12:57 p.m.

We seem to cross a new line of some kind most every day in this age of Donald and His Discontents. Never before has a president paid off a porn...

Fred Rogers poses on the Pittsburgh set of his television show, "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood", in this 1996 publicity photo. Rogers' new book, "Dear Mister Rogers: Does It Ever Rain in Your Neighborhood?", is a treasury of letters from young viewers, and Rogers' responses.

Mister Rogers’ neighborhood is closer than you think

December 13, 2018 at 11:57 a.m.

It hasn’t come to my town yet, but acclaimed director and producer Morgan Neville’s documentary on the life and work of legendary children’s television host Fred Rogers opened this weekend...

Members of the Old Guard place U,S. flags on graves at Arlington National Cemetery on Thursday, May 24, 2018 ahead of Memorial Day in Arlington, Virginia.

Memorial Day should prompt soul searching on behalf of our nation

December 14, 2018 at 2:43 p.m.

Some of us remember when folks knew the holiday we observe this weekend as “Decoration Day.” For most of a century — until Congress officially renamed it “Memorial Day” in...

Niedner: On Mother’s Day, think of the toughness of women everywhere

December 13, 2018 at 3:25 p.m.

In a poem titled "Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front," Kentucky farmer, poet, novelist, and cultural critic Wendell Berry suggests a list of tactics for breaking free of our culture's...

James Shaw Jr. waves to the crowd and legislators inside the Tennessee House chambers as he is honored for disarming a shooter inside a Nashville-area Waffle House at the Tennessee State House on Tuesday, April 24, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn.A

Amid tragedies, heroes shine through

December 14, 2018 at 7:24 p.m.

Only days ago, few but their families, coworkers, and friends had heard of Tammie Jo Shults, James Shaw, Jr., or Ken Lam. Now, everyone who pays even cursory attention to...

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who announced Wednesday he will not run for re-election, holds his weekly news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, April 12, 2018.

Column: Which leaders will future voters look to?

December 14, 2018 at 5:20 p.m.

We glimpsed the future last Thursday on the campus where I spend my weekdays. About 2,000 first-graders from area schools came with their teachers and chaperones to take a tour...

Loyola Ramblers team chaplain Sister Jean Dolores-Schmidt speaks to the media before the 2018 Men's NCAA Final Four at the Alamodome on March 30, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas.

Easter, April Fools coincidence may mean universe has a sense of humor

May 2, 2018 at 10:39 a.m.

To my knowledge, no church in my town risked a marquee one-liner playing on today's coincidence of Easter and April Fools' Day, although many a preacher likely pondered making some...

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