{"product_id":"hidden-mercy-aids-catholics-and-the-untold-stories-of-compassion-in-the-face-of-fear-9781506467702","title":"Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics, and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe 1980s and 1990s, the height of the AIDS crisis in the United States, was decades ago now, and many of the stories from this time remain hidden: A Catholic nun from a small Midwestern town packs up her life to move to New York City, where she throws herself into a community under assault from HIV and AIDS. A young priest sees himself in the many gay men dying from AIDS and grapples with how best to respond, eventually coming out as gay and putting his own career on the line. A gay Catholic with HIV loses his partner to AIDS and then flees the church, focusing his energy on his own health rather than fight an institution seemingly rejecting him.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSet against the backdrop of the HIV and AIDS epidemic of the late twentieth century and the Catholic Church's crackdown on gay and lesbian activists, journalist Michael O'Loughlin searches out the untold stories of those who didn't look away, who at great personal cost chose compassion--even as he seeks insight for LGBTQ people of faith struggling to find a home in religious communities today.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis is one journalist's--gay and Catholic himself--compelling picture of those quiet heroes who responded to human suffering when so much of society--and so much of the church--told them to look away. These pure acts of compassion and mercy offer us hope and inspiration as we continue to confront existential questions about what it means to be Americans, Christians, and human beings responding to those most in need.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eO'Loughlin, Michael J.:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMichael J. O'Loughlin\u003c\/strong\u003e is an award-winning journalist and the national correspondent for America Media. He is the host of the podcast \u003cem\u003ePlague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church\u003c\/em\u003e, recommended by \u003cem\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/em\u003e and featured on NPR. Prior to joining \u003cem\u003eAmerica\u003c\/em\u003e magazine, O'Loughlin was a national reporter for \u003cem\u003eThe Boston Globe\u003c\/em\u003e. He has written for \u003cem\u003eThe Atlantic\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eForeign Policy\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNational Catholic Reporter\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThe Advocate\u003c\/em\u003e and has been featured on MSNBC, Fox News, ABC, CBS, and NPR. He lives in Chicago.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Broadleaf Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50520300585234,"sku":"9781506467702","price":20.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_2fe24e96-63d7-4775-9d20-e4cbdfa73380.jpg?v=1731080527","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/hidden-mercy-aids-catholics-and-the-untold-stories-of-compassion-in-the-face-of-fear-9781506467702","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}