Archive
More than thirty years of First Things articles at your fingertips.
Articles
The Ulma Family and Living the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Wartime
In 1944, in Markowa, Poland, a German firing squad executed Józef and Wiktoria Ulma, their six children and unborn child, and the two Jewish families they had been sheltering....
Poland’s Moment
In 2019, the late Cardinal George Pell was sentenced to prison for allegations of sexual abuse—allegations that were later unanimously quashed by Australia’s High Court. While the fourteen months...
A Pro-Life Victory in Poland
Last week, Poland took a step forward in defense of human life. The country’s constitutional court had ruled on October 22 that abortion in the case of fetal abnormalities...
Diversity At the Oscars
After controversies about the lack of representation of racial minorities at the Oscars, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has decided to implement strict rules regarding what...
The Pandemic and Religious Revival
Once COVID-19 is under control and we return to normalcy, many dissertations in sociology will analyze the pandemic’s effect on religious belief and practice. Both history and recent events...
Poland Polarized
In the recent Polish election, the conservative Law and Justice party (PiS) received 43.59 percent of the vote, giving it a parliamentary majority. In total, socially conservative parties amassed...
The Polish Heroes of World War II
Sunday marks the eightieth anniversary of the outbreak of World War II. On September 1, 1939, Poland was invaded by Nazi Germany and, sixteen days later, by the Soviet...
Poland’s Christian Migrants
Across the West, an electoral backlash against large-scale immigration has contributed to the successes of populist movements and politicians: Brexit in Britain, Donald Trump in the United States, Viktor...
Dachau Golgotha
The Priest Barracks: Dachau 1938–1945by guillaume zellerignatius press, 280 pages, $16.95 “We are the joyous Hitler Youth. We need no stinkin’ Christian virtue. Our Führer is our savior and future. The Pope and Rabbi shall be gone. We wish to be pagans once again.” It’s a...
Solidarity and Dynamism
White Eagle, Black Madonna: One Thousand Years of the Polish Catholic Traditionby robert e. alvisfordham university press, 368 pages, $35.00 On August 31, 1980, in Gdansk, Poland, the nation’s...
An Alternative to Terror
Seeking Freedom and Justice for Hungary by valerie miké hamilton books, 350 pages, $38.99 One of Budapest’s top tourist destinations is the Terror Haza, a harrowing museum in the...
European Reconciliation
Currently, visitors to the Vatican Museums in Rome have the opportunity to visit an exhibition devoted to Cardinal Bolesław Kominek (1903-1974), aptly titled “Europe’s Forgotten Founding Father.” The author...
The Hero of Hungary
Today, we mark the fortieth anniversary of the death of Cardinal Jozsef Mindszenty, a courageous Hungarian prelate who fought against communist tyranny despite great suffering, yet at the end...
When We Cared
Today, we mark the hundredth anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. On April 24th, 1915, the nationalist Young Turks attempted to wipe out the Armenians, the oldest Christian nation, which...
In Belgium, Two Types of Bishops
For at least half a century, the revival of Catholicism in its traditional heartlands has been a pastoral priority for the Church. In this regard, Belgium is an instructive...
