John Rodden has written for Commonweal since 1984 on topics ranging from George Orwell to Mother Teresa and St. Michael the Archangel.
Article Executive for a Day "My father was not one for speechmaking. Words were awkward tools; he used them sparingly." By John Rodden June 16, 2024 Culture
Article St. Philip Neri’s Eucharistic Joy Philip Neri is just the kind of saint we need: a model of lightness of spirit, divine laughter, and extraordinary ordinariness. By John Rodden May 26, 2023 Saints Religion
Article Why ‘1984’ Topped the Russian Bestseller List Are Putin’s puppets orchestrating a sales campaign to promote George Orwell’s ‘1984’? By John Rodden March 23, 2023 Literature Russia Politics Books Culture
Article The St. Patrick’s Day Dispensation Thanks to good St. Patrick, in Ireland many decades ago a little bit of Easter Sunday, or perhaps Mardi Gras, was allowed on March 17. By John Rodden March 17, 2023 Spirituality
Article ‘St. Michael, Defend Us’ How the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel came to be a fixture of pre-conciliar Catholicism, and why it mattered so much to my mother By John Rodden September 28, 2022 Religion Culture
Article Gogol or Hohol? In light of the recent events in Ukraine, an odd literary paternity suit has resurfaced. By John Rodden June 17, 2022 Ukraine Russia Books History
