R.R. Reno is editor of First Things.

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Cathleen Kaveny is Wrong About Richard John Neuhaus

What was Cathleen Kaveny smoking? Her recent column in Commonweal attacks First Things founder Richard John Neuhaus for “sowing division” among Catholics and reducing theological commitments to “mere instruments of political will.”I’m not interested in defending Neuhaus against the charge . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Feb 2016

The Politics of Moral Denunciation

We've all heard that Donald Trump has strong support from working class white males. Apparently he's broadly popular among all Americans with a high school education or less. Writing in the New York Times, Eduardo Porter reports that a recent Quinnipiac University poll showed Trump beating Hillary . . . . Continue Reading »

6 Jan 2016

Eliot and Liberalism

I‘ve been rereading T.S. Eliot's Idea of a Christian Society. He wrote the book as World War II was beginning. It was a time when many were questioning whether liberal democratic societies had any future. Fascism and Communism seemed the vital new movements that had the upper hand. The gist of . . . . Continue Reading »

4 Jan 2016

​The Real Role of Diversity

Why campus leaders are so craven. Continue Reading »

31 Dec 2015

​Against the Academic Culture of Privilege

Olivia Legaspi is a Haverford College freshman. After working at McDonalds during the summer to save up enough for her contribution to her financial aid package, she entered into the dream-world of elite higher education where everyone is encouraged to speak up, feel safe, and give priority to their . . . . Continue Reading »

30 Dec 2015

No More Tirades

First Things stands for something. Many things, actually. One of them is a commitment to reality-based conservatism, both in matters of faith and of public life. I mention this, because I've decided to end our hosting of Maureen Mullarkey’s blog.Maureen has a sharp pen and pungent style. Her . . . . Continue Reading »

29 Sep 2015

​Francis at the United Nations

Francis and the dialectics of exclusion Continue Reading »

25 Sep 2015

What Francis Said—And Didn't Say—To Congress

It was a modest speech, one generous to the American experience but lacking in the sharpness this pontiff is sometimes capable of.  The repeated use of the term “dialogue” was irritating. It's a buzzword among today's technocrats. They use it as a softening word, one that signals that . . . . Continue Reading »

24 Sep 2015

To Dissolve the People

Bret Stephens is fed up with Trumpism and he's not gonna take it anymore. As his column in yesterday's Wall Street Journal makes clear, Stephens is appalled that people aren't appalled by the appalling Donald Trump.  The tone of his column suggests that Bret Stephens may be losing his . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Sep 2015

Gay Marriage and Religious Freedom

A great deal is at stake. The sexual revolution is just that, a revolution, and revolutions often pose a dire threat to liberty. The logic of the Supreme Court's discovery of a right to same-sex marriage poses a threat to anyone who dissents. It's not unreasonable to suppose that the next stage of the gay rights Jihad will involve political action to defund organizations that refuse to affirm gay marriage, or even to work to revoke their tax exempt status. Continue Reading »

7 Aug 2015