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Speaking in Riddles

Riddle-making is a lost art—but not an irretrievable one. A. M. Juster's translation of Saint Aldhelm's Riddles has received praise from many outlets. Writing in the Chicago Tribune, John Wilson discusses the genesis of the work:Aldhelm was a prominent churchman in Anglo-Saxon England. Born . . . . Continue Reading »

The Play of Daniel

Earlier this month, I had a chance to see the Gotham Early Music Scene’s production of The Play of Daniel, a medieval Christmas pageant, performed as part of the annual Twelfth Night Festival at New York’s Trinity Church. The festival, which the church started several years ago, revives the idea . . . . Continue Reading »

The Need for Epiphanic Evangelicalism

The second challenge I see facing American churches today (I discuss the first one here) is how the Church engages postmodernism in American culture. By “postmodern” I do not simply mean the period succeeding modernity, however one wants to date that. Rather, I mean the subjectivist thrust of . . . . Continue Reading »

What We've Been Reading—12.8.16

There is something quaint about the little paperback on my desk, a 1964 printing from the Fawcett World Library—originally priced at 50 cents. In the bottom right corner is the announcement, “16 short stories by the most talked about young writer in America.”

First Links — 1.8.16

Who Came Down From the Stars? The Baby God, That's Who!
Roseanne T. Sullivan, Dappled Things

The Unhaunted Graveyard
Joseph Bottum, Washington Free Beacon

Who Speaks For Islam?
Editors, New Criterion

Did He Even Know He Was Shakespeare?
David Scott Kastan, Humanities

Are Small Families Better for Kids?
Simcha Fisher, Aleteia

Hamilton and the Romance of Government
Eve Tushnet, American Conservative

Advent, New Year's Eve, and the Long Defeat
Stephen Williams, Humane Pursuits

Oregon and the Injustice of Mandatory Minimums
Conor Friedersdorf, Atlantic

Application Information: Religious Freedom Project
Nicholas Fedyk, Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs

Gifts, Sex, and the State Legislature

A Missouri state assembly bill sponsored by Representative Bart Korman (R-Montgomery County) would require lobbyists to disclose sexual relationships with legislators or legislative staffers. The bill does so through defining sex as a “gift.”

Thank you for supporting First Things

Happy New Year!I am writing to thank you, our readers, for your generous contributions during the First Things campaign last month. Because of you, we were able to raise over $517,000! Your support makes it possible for First Things to continue to be a place where faith has a voice—a strong, . . . . Continue Reading »

Carson the Butler on True Marriage

Viewers of Downton Abbey may have noticed in the recently aired first episode of Season Six that Carson the Butler articulated, in a delicate but firm and unmistakable way, the truth that marriage is a conjugal union. Mrs. Patmore, the cook, is sent as an emissary of Carson's fiancée, Mrs. Hughes, . . . . Continue Reading »

Orthodoxy Without Christ

Sergei Chapnin, author of the First Things article “A Church of Empire” was recently fired from his post at the Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate for criticizing the patriarchate's policies. On January 5, he was interviewed by Rosbalt.ru. A portion of the interview is translated . . . . Continue Reading »

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