Paul Elie
I've received more information about Paul Elie, the writer of the essay/book in this month's Atlantic Monthly. According to a friend:
Elie's a good writer, Catholic, though left of center I would imagine on some issues. He's editor of the one of the best anthologies on the saints that I've read, A Tremor of Bliss, probably 10 years old now. I like his writing. You would like his The Life You Save book, he's thinking about some of the same big issue you are and how a Catholic should respond to them.