May 10, 2005 / 22:00 pm
The forced resignation of Fr. Tom Reese as editor of America magazine has created a wave of reaction among Catholic journalists and academics across the country.
The Jesuit priest resigned from the Jesuit-owned publication after seven years as its editor. There is speculation that his community forced him to resign because the magazine had come under Vatican scrutiny for having published articles in favor of same-sex marriage, homosexual rights and stem-cell research.
While some journalists and academics reacted with fear that they, too, could be ousted from their jobs, others’ reactions offered other insight into Fr. Reese’s resignation.
“A lot of people were unhappy with America, including people in Rome,” Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, editor of First Things, told the Globe in an interview. He said he knew many Catholics, including bishops, who were unhappy with Reese's editorial leadership, which “had kind of a carping attitude toward the pontificate of John Paul II.”