Sunday Service for Russert

For so many of us, watching Meet the Press has been a Sunday ritual, a celebration of civic engagement and free speech that we observed religiously.

With the passing of Tim Russert on Friday, our Sunday service is missing its leader -- but his spirit lives on.

Back in April, Russert was in Denver to accept the Damon Runyon award presented by the Denver Press Club -- an event that brought out 750 of the faithful. He planned to be back here in August, for the Democratic National Convention, and his fascination with the then-still contested Democratic race was catching. "The level of intensity is wonderful for our democracy," he said. "These are important times."

Ten weeks from today, the Democratic delegations will gather in Denver. Important times, indeed -- but missing one very important voice. -- Patricia Calhoun