George Weigel

Hopes for a New Pontificate

Within a few hours of the election of Pope Leo XIV and his masterful presentation of himself to…
Dan Hitchens portrait
Dan Hitchens

Leo XIV and the Best-Case Scenario

The philosopher Michael Oakeshott, the leading conservative thinker of his generation, regarded politics with distaste; he voted for…
Liel Leibovitz

Battle for Young Minds 

If you happened to tune in to America’s most popular podcasts these last few months, you might’ve heard…
SUBSCRIBE TO

America’s Most Influential Journal of Religion and Public Life

America’s New Grand Strategy

R. R. Reno
After the Cold War, the United States could imagine that its military was all-­powerful. America seemed capable of taking decisive action anywhere in the world. This awesome war-making potential…

How I Kicked My Phone Habit

Clement Harrold

About eighteen months ago, I decided I wanted a healthier relationship with my smartphone. My phone had…

An Evangelical in Italy

Larry Smith

How does an evangelical—not joined with the Church in Rome, but committed to one holy, catholic, and…

Classical Renewal by Research

James Hankins

The research pursued these days in university humanities departments does not, as a rule, enjoy high esteem…

How Obergefell Failed

Matthew Schmitz

On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court handed down its ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, announcing a…

More opinions
PODCASTS More Podcasts

The First Things Podcast

Pius vs. Innocent

While waiting for news from the real-life conclave, the editors re-watch the 2024 feature film Conclave and the 2017 HBO series The Young Pope. Then they air their hopes…

Conversations

Law on Film

The latest installment of an ongoing interview series with contributing editor Mark Bauerlein. Professor Stanley Fish joins in to discuss his recent book, Law at the Movies: Turning Legal Doctrine…

The Editor’s Desk

Women Without Men!

In this episode, Darel E. Paul joins Rusty Reno on The Editor’s Desk to talk about his recent essay, “Feminism Against Fertility” from the May 2025 issue of the magazine….
More Podcasts
SIGN UP FOR THE FIRST THINGS NEWSLETTER

The latest from our writers, editors, and contributors, delivered to your inbox.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

We don’t spam. Our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy apply. The site is protected by reCAPTCHA.

On the Square MORE ON THE SQUARE

New York Deserves Better than State-Sanctioned Suicide

Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Over the past two weeks, the world has witnessed a tremendous outpouring of love for Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday, April 21. His last public appearance was…

The Two Leos 

Raymond J. de Souza

Pope Leo XIV has explained that his choice of regnal name is an homage to Pope Leo…

David Tracy’s Theological Missteps 

Thomas G. Guarino

The Catholic Church in the United States has lost a great theologian with the recent death of…

Hopes for a New Pontificate

George Weigel

Within a few hours of the election of Pope Leo XIV and his masterful presentation of himself…

Friedrich Merz’s Fragile Victory

Andreas Lombard

Friedrich Merz, the new German chancellor, is the first head of government in the federal republic to…

MORE ON THE SQUARE
Essays MORE ESSAYS

How to Commemorate 1776

Walter A. McDougall

Next year is America’s 250th anniversary, and President Trump has promised us a “spectacular birthday party.” The…

Why Homeschool?

Brian Patrick Eha

My father used to quiz us at the kitchen table, my older brother and me, during dinner.…

Francis in Full

Robert Barron

By common consensus, Jorge ­Mario Cardinal Bergoglio won the papacy by means of an intervention he made…

MORE ESSAYS
Reviews MORE REVIEWS

Liberal ­Integralists

Vincent L. Strand, S.J.

Eight years ago, Andrew Willard Jones’s Before Church and State was described in these pages as “the…

Jesus After the Critics

Michael C. Legaspi

Miracles and Wonder:The Historical Mystery of Jesusby elaine pagelsdoubleday, 336 pages, $30 Quests for the “historical Jesus”…

Why Twain Endures

Mark Bauerlein

Mark Twainby ron chernowpenguin, 1,200 pages, $45 When the ­Civil War broke out in 1861, Sam ­Clemens…

MORE REVIEWS
Poetry More Poetry

Greetings on a Morning Walk 

Paul Willis

Blackberry vines,  you hold this ground in the shade of a willow: all thorns, no fruit. *…

An Outline of Trees 

James Matthew Wilson

They rise above us, arching, spreading, thin Where trunk and bough give way to veining twig. We…

Fallacy 

J.C. Scharl

A shadow cast by something invisible  falls on the white cover of a book  lying on my…

More Poetry

Newsletters

This field is hidden when viewing the form
I would like to receive(Required)
This field is hidden when viewing the form

We don’t spam.
Our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy apply. The site is protected by reCAPTCHA.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.