This is the season of stretching—of sleepy old tendons being stretched into action and of young growing muscles being stretched into competition. The fields of America, sprouting eager grass, are ready to be filled with the pounding of feet making their cuts toward goals. The cheers of spring are an invitation to renew the physical—a reminder of the ligamental and the limber; of the energy released by your body in motion.

Pumping blood at cardiac speed can awaken an appreciation of the elegance of fit. The very word is easy to say, and comfortable to imagine. Fit. To fit in. To be fit. It fits. There’s a promise of harmony in fit and, at the same time, an aspiration to what is good.

Imagine the ancient Greeks creating the Olympics as their own tribute to the fitness of their bodies, their temples of the gods. Think about their rituals to greatness, their runs of marathon distances, their goddesses of celebration, trying to rouse sleepy Athens to believe in the physical, to celebrate its beauty. Imagine the audacity of that stretch.

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Theres’s a lot of talk in this election about experience. Whose is more valuable, who has more of it, who has the right type? Right now, voters who prize experience are voting more for Clinton on the Democratic side while Republicans are said to be excited about the prospect of comparing John McCain’s experience to either Democratic hopeful.

These debates tend to overlook one point: the kind of experience that will make the greatest difference in the future has little to do with policy or politics. The presidential experience that is most needed is experience understanding the conditions and attitudes of humiliated and angry people.

In Iraq? Yes. Whatever military success may occur, a political solution must go along with it. But which candidate really understands the divided and angry people of Iraq? Who has the experience to know that what’s needed is a process of citizen reconciliation, a program of community building, the goal of creating law and literacy block by block?

And not just in Iraq. Grinding poverty consumes two thirds of the human family, creating a giant tinderbox of humiliation and explosive anger. These battered billions represent the greatest threat to our future safety and economic stability. Which candidate has a realistic view of what the United States can do about that?

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With all the excitement surrounding the Pope’s visit to the United States last week, Gordon Brown’s visit went almost unnoticed. But while the Pope was calling for a renewal of love, the British Prime Minister proposed something that could make such a renewal happen.

In a major speech in Boston, Brown called for the United States and other countries to join together to create a new series of institutions to lead the globalized world. Much of what he called for were changes in regulatory and financial institutions. But he also proposed new institutions of service to build a global society, one focused on aspirations that transcend national borders and foster mutual interests grounded in common values.

Specifically, Brown challenged citizens around the world to create a “global peace and reconstruction corps”–a sort of Peace Corps for citizens and governments of all countries to participate in service, to respond to crises and to help build the citizen institutions necessary for peace and stability everywhere.

That’s a good idea for a lot of reasons.

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I am proud.

I am proud to be a Catholic after reading Benedict XVI’s homily from the mass he celebrated yesterday. He spoke of the gift of “the hope born of love, poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (cf Rom 5:5). He spoke of renewal as a gift of God, of forgiveness as a gift for which we each hunger, of the work of so many in “forming the hearts and minds of the young in knowledge and love of the Lord.” I long for that hope, that love, that faith too. May I have eyes to see it and ears to hear it today and forever.

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Last week, inspired by a bunch of high-powered celebrities on Idol Gives Back, Americans donated over $60 million to a bunch of indisputably good causes. Egged on by Miley Cyrus, Billy Crystal, John Legend, Fergie, and Snoop Dogg, American Idol's fans rose to the occasion.

But we shouldn't lose sight of the most important element of making a difference: it's to get up close and personal with others who need a hand. It's to match giving with service, the kind of service that is personal, intimate, and authentic. It's to make service a relationship with dignity and respect at the core. It's going eye to eye with someone in need so that someone in need can make a difference for you too.

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Benedict XVI's upcoming visit to the U.S. is sure to provoke unfavorable comparisons to his more charismatic predecessor, John Paul II. So it's time for him to change his image. How? The cerebral theologian needs to interrupt his schedule, put on sweat clothes, and drop in on a yoga class when he's in town!

He'd accomplish more than an image upgrade. There, sweating in exercise clothes and sneakers, he'd find growing numbers of Americans who have turned to the ancient Hindu practice for both physical and spiritual centering. The Pope would do well to understand the yoga students and their spiritual lives if he is to be fully successful at communicating the message of the gospel to this nation.

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There’s something spiritual about Opening Day in baseball. Spring invites a sense of new beginnings. The standings for the home team show no losses. Both committed fans and those with only passing interest in baseball tune in. Everyone gets a fresh start on Opening Day. “When you win the first one,” as Early Wynn noted, “you can’t lose ‘em all.”

When I think of Opening Day, I can’t help but think of my 92-year-old Dad. Born in Maryland in 1915, he grew up in Westminster, Owings Mills, and Baltimore, a child of the land and a child of a deep faith. Right alongside his religion and his family came his love of baseball.

Because his parents moved to New York before the Crash, he became a Yankees fan for a few brief years. The legacy of living in New York was his love of the Murderer’s Row lineup of the ’27 Yankees, which he could recite complete with batting stances, averages, and home runs for each man. “Combs, Koenig, Ruth, Gehrig, Meusel, Lazzeri...” he would announce, “one hell of a lineup!”

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As I was reading the newspaper last week, my 10-year-old daughter came home from her 5th grade human development course so proud of what she’d learned: “Penis!” she said with glee, “and vagina! See, Dad. I’m not uptight about saying the body parts like you and Mom!”

At first, I was proud of her precocious announcement—my wife and I have tried to teach our children to be comfortable with their bodies. But then I couldn’t help but notice the irony of the fact that her announcement interrupted my reading about Governor Paterson of New York, his wife, and his predecessor, Governor Spitzer–all struggling with public failings centered on their sex lives.

Our country is repeatedly mesmerized by the sexual misbehavior of our leaders, while at the same time, we’re teaching our children to be comfortable with themselves as sexual beings. We’ve got to be careful not to confuse the two: just because they understand their bodies better doesn’t mean they’ll understand sex any better.

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The flare-up over the hateful words of Barack Obama’s minister, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., dominated the news cycle this weekend. But this is more than a distraction; this is a life-and-death moment for Obama’s campaign. If I’m correct, the future is hanging on how Obama responds to the revelations that his pastor, friend, and spiritual mentor is mean-spirited and divisive. A hidden affinity for a harsh and ruthless preacher may be the one thing that could destroy him.

Hanging in the balance is not just the Obama campaign but also the idealism of the millions he has inspired.

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The recent publication of the Landscape Survey of Religion in America revealed a striking finding: Americans are more willing than ever to change religions. According to the report, “44% of adults have either switched religious affiliation, moved from being unaffiliated with any religion to being affiliated with a particular faith or dropped any connection to a specific religious tradition altogether.” In short, religiously, we’re on the move doing what Americans do best: Shopping. And we’re shopping for God.

Ironically, religious leaders should see this as a good sign. Why? Nobody makes the effort to shop for something they don’t want. The data suggest that spiritual hunger is strong among Americans, since somewhere around 90% of us retain some form of spiritual or religious faith. But what’s clear is that we’re not going to accept religion based on the past. It’s got to meet our spiritual needs or we’ll move on.

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