Lutherans celebrate Reformation Day, that day back in 1517 when Martin Luther stomped up to the Wittenberg church door and nailed up his 95 Theses . Its a big day for us; used to be, at any rate. I dont suppose Roman Catholics pay much attention to it, but then I wouldnt . . . . Continue Reading »
I feel it my duty to pass on some choice tidbits from a scintillating book of interviews with Pierre Manent (conducted by Benedicte Deloreme-Montini) just published in French under the title: Le Regard Politique ( Flammarion) . Here is the first (in provisional translation), from pages . . . . Continue Reading »
I had the opportunity to share some themes from my forthcoming The Reponsibility of Reason at Yale in September. A very able graduate student (Lucas Entel) responded to my work, providing a deft summary as well as some valuable questions. Now this is fundamental political philosophy, in . . . . Continue Reading »
I am not one who thinks that the global warming issue is a hoax. Rather, I think it has been promoted in an unreasonable manner that sought to create hysteria in order to panic us into supporting unwise policies, and when people resisted, a certain snobbery kicked in that viewed those who . . . . Continue Reading »
Two days ago Tom Gilson alerted readers to some of the complexities associated with the contemporary notion of tolerance.Is tolerance indeed a virtue, as North American conventional wisdom would have it? As a quality ascribed to human beings, virtue is necessarily ancillary to God’s call and . . . . Continue Reading »
One of the stranger responses to the controversy over Juan Williams’ firing was National Review’s attack on public radio for rural America. They singled out for scorn the idea of coastal liberalism being broadcast in Ogallalla, Nebraska. They might as well have said . . . . Continue Reading »
Starting something new is hard, but it is especially hard if what you are doing is unprecedented.A business proves this truth.Founding Federal Express before anyone could imagine overnight deliver had all the problems of any new business with the justifiable skepticism of experts who could not . . . . Continue Reading »
Since we posted the ” So You Want to Get a PhD in the Humanities? “ video this morning, I thought we should give equal time to advice for aspiring law students. (Language warning: Contains an OMG and one use of a synonym for a donkey.) . . . . Continue Reading »
My students and I just reached the part of the semester in political theory where we cover Martin Luther’s On Secular Authority. In that book, he brilliantly addresses the Sermon on the Mount, insisting that Christians must observe it. But how, you might say? If we . . . . Continue Reading »
In his reflection on Reformation Day, Peter Leithart clears up the misconception about the Protestant concept of the priesthood of all believers : Every Christian is a cleric, Luther proclaimed in one of his earliest treatises, The Freedom of a Christian, and those who are now . . . . Continue Reading »