Stephen Schmalhofer

Francis Marion Crawford was a very important novelist in his own day, and yet today few know his name. It is worthwhile revisiting his works. Continue Reading »

The late Australian poet Les Murray shared with Aquinas, another fat genius, a devotion to the Unmoved Mover and dedicated each of his thirty books to the greater glory of God. He was not a voice crying out in the wilderness. He was a poet sweating out in the bush. Continue Reading »

In this season of charity, perhaps we can reconsider the unjustly maligned reputation of Fritz, the troublemaker child in the Nutcracker ballet. Continue Reading »

Gerald Russello worked at the center of things and lived in the service of the permanent things.  Continue Reading »

Games played under Friday night lights are the preseason for the greater joys of marriage, fatherhood, and vocation. Continue Reading »

The Virgin's influence extends to American art. Continue Reading »

This year marks the centenary of Willa Cather’s My Ántonia, and we can thank Viola Roseboro for its creation. Continue Reading »

The Diocese of Christchurch, New Zealand, should rebuild the destroyed Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in its former style—not give it a new design. Continue Reading »

The sign outside the church lists a single Sunday Mass time. The bulletin provides details on the other sacraments, available by appointment only, more of a consignment than a convenience. The church is one of two in the parish, clustered together under a single administration, ostensibly for better . . . . Continue Reading »

Ubiquitous, yet remote. Disruptive, yet family friendly. A technologist's dream, yet dedicated to “working back from the customer.” Among writers on my newsfeed, First Things deputy editor Matthew Schmitz was the lone respondent to the recent New York . . . . Continue Reading »