Francis is a Jesuit committed to a modest lifestyle; back home he eschewed the trappings of rank in lieu of living in a simple apartment and taking the bus.

Many Catholics have spoken of their wish for the Church to modernize; as a non-Catholic I can only comment that some of its efforts seem to me to have a kind of steampunk-like beauty—like the name of the Vatican Twitter account, @Pontifex (I love how it begins with the super-modern “@” and ends with that ancient “x”). And while so much of the public conversation about religion centers on what the faithful believe; not often, as it did this week, does it turn to what the faithful do. In that spirit, here are four stories exploring the practice of Christianity, ready to read here on TMN or in an e-book you can export to your Kindle, iPad, iPhone, etc.