Jonathan M. Pitts
Jonathan M. Pitts writes about religion, sports, music, medicine and the military – and anything else that touches on the human spirit -- for the Baltimore Sun. Since joining the paper in 1999, he has covered oyster shuckers and opera singers, Deadheads and D-Day vets, sauerkraut and the Scriptures and more, always seeking the enduring in the everyday. The co-author of Baseball Hall of Famer Whitey Herzog’s memoir, “You’re Missin’ a Great Game,” he’s a native of St. Louis and a graduate of Haverford College and the University of Missouri School of Journalism
Recent Articles
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U.S. Catholic bishops pass 3 measures affirming their accountability in sex abuse cases at Baltimore meeting
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops passed three major proposals Thursday to address their own accountability in sex abuse cases. On the final morning of their three-day spring meeting in Baltimore, the most powerful clerics in the American church voted overwhelmingly to approve a measure that...
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Catholic bishops pass proposal to create nationwide system to report sexual abuse complaints
The members of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, mindful of a need for urgency, voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to create a nationwide third-party system that Catholics and others can use to report acts of sexual misconduct by bishops. The proposal was the first of four aimed at...
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Catholic bishops return to Baltimore amid pressure to show accountability on sex-abuse matters
Critics, clergy and lay members of the Catholic church will be watching this week as the nation’s top Catholic clerics gather in Baltimore for a conference to address issues of their own accountability on matters of sex abuse. Nearly 300 members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops are to...
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'We can no longer wait': At 'Wear Orange' rally, young leaders call for action to reduce gun violence
Wesley Hawkins has earned the right to speak out on gun violence. He grew up in a neighborhood where hustlers worked the street corners and shootings were not uncommon. He has lost several friends to gunplay, including one as recently as Friday. He once took a bullet to the shoulder himself. Now...
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Catholic church reform advocates criticize Lori for deleting mention of bishop's gifts in report to Vatican
The president of a national group that monitors the conduct of Roman Catholic priests criticized Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori on Thursday for his role in a report to the Vatican that omitted information about large gifts Lori and other bishops received. Terry McKiernan of Bishop-Accountability.org...
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'True fighting soldier' reflects — and returns to France — for 75th anniversary of D-Day invasion
Thousands of American soldiers died during the assault on a five-mile stretch of beach in northern France 75 years ago, but for Steve Melnikoff, the invasion known as D-Day was just the beginning. The young private from Baltimore spent June 6, 1944, in a transport ship just off Omaha Beach, .50-caliber...
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In report to Vatican, Baltimore Archbishop Lori deleted mention of gifts from bishop he investigated
Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori has acknowledged that he edited a report to the Vatican to delete mention that a bishop whose conduct he investigated gave financial gifts to nearly a dozen high-ranking Catholic clerics over the years. The list of recipients included Lori, who says West Virginia...
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100 years of gratitude: Veterans and families remember Baltimore World War I soldier on Memorial Day
During a crucial offensive in France late in World War I, as a unit of the Maryland National Guard was being stalled by enemy machine-gun fire, a young soldier from Baltimore volunteered to go over the top and attack. Pvt. Henry G. Costin, 20, led a team of volunteers into the teeth of the barrage,...