One of America's leading theologians explains why Catholicism is more vital and important to the cultural and political life of Americans than ever before. Millions of people journeyed to Rome in April 2005 to say goodbye to Pope John Paul II. As televisions beamed these images into American homes, it became undeniably clear that Catholic matters really matter, and not only to Catholics. In "Catholic Matters", Father Neuhaus addresses the many controversies that have marked recent decades of American Catholicism: the battles over the meaning of the Second Vatican Council, the "destabilizing" of the liturgy, the declining number of priests, and the sexual abuse scandals. Looking beyond these troubles to the "splendour of truth" by which the Church is constituted, he proposes a vibrant, forward-thinking way of being Catholic in America.