On this day sixty-three years ago, Lutheran pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hanged (actually slowly asphyxiated to death) at Flossenburg Prison, a mere three weeks before it was liberated by Allied forces. Bonhoeffer had been imprisoned for his role in the July 20 Plot, the conspiracy . . . . Continue Reading »
I would say this is splendid, but that’s not allowed. First Things writer Dimitri Cavalli sends along this amusing and instructive catalogue of writing dos and don’ts, compiled in 1915 by The Kansas City Star and given to Ernest Hemingway during his stint as a police and emergency-room . . . . Continue Reading »
FOR THE MOST COMPLETE VIEW OF THE PAPAL VISIT, you will want to watch EWTN (check your cable listings), where Father Neuhaus will be cohosting with Raymond Arroyo the coverage of all events in Washington and New York. We are hopeful that Father Neuhaus will also have some daily postings on this . . . . Continue Reading »
Kelefa Sanneh, long the New York Times ’ hip-hop correspondent, now shifts his attention to theology in a New Yorker profile of the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Senator Obama’s pastor. Wright’s public avowal of the “black liberation theology” of James Cone raised eyebrows . . . . Continue Reading »
For the last ten years, “the scientists,” in order to win the political debates over ESCR and SCNT, often wildly hyped the potential for CURES! CURES! CURES! In the process, they convinced Californians—now facing a $16 billion budget deficit and tens of billions in bond . . . . Continue Reading »
Now this is a very sad story that would seem to be science fiction, but isn’t. Sonny Graham received the heart of a suicide victim named Terry Cottle. Afterwards, he seems to have assimilated something of the dead man’s essence into his being. From the story:The operation was a success . . . . Continue Reading »
There is an interesting story in the New York Times today that illustrates the difficulties of reforming our health care system to provide universal access. Massachusetts recently required universal coverage through private or public means. The consequence has been greater health insurance coverage . . . . Continue Reading »
As you may or may not know, Oliver Stone is making a film based on the life of the president, entitled W , starring Josh Brolin as Bush. It’s way too easy to begin with the jokesnot about W, but about W , and the director’s “gift” for creative re-imaginings: Think JFK . . . . Continue Reading »
The news this morning is that Father Servais Pinckaers, O.P., has died after a long period of debilitation. His history of Christian ethics and other writingsand especially his acute distinction between the “freedom of indifference” and the “freedom of . . . . Continue Reading »