R.R. Reno is editor of First Things.
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R. R. Reno
First Thoughts Articles
T. S. Eliot, Again
I’ve been on a T. S. Eliot kick of late. Last week I reread The Idea of a Christian Society , and for the first time read through Eliot’s elusive After Strange Gods , a volume he never allowed to be reprinted (but which is of course available on Google books ). I have always . . . . Continue Reading »
Taxing “Unhealthy” Choices
The Wall Street Journal recently reported on the spreading efforts to combat obesity by reducing the consumption of sugary drinks. The Richmond, California City Council put a measure on the November ballot that taxes businesses on the basis of how much Coke and Pepsi they sell. Although the . . . . Continue Reading »
T.S. Eliot and Anti-Semitism
I recently had a very interesting conversation with Wheaton art historian and First Things writer Mathew Milliner. Matt has been trying to think about how to understand artistic creativity in relation to cultural authority. T.S. Eliot is an obvious place to start. His famous essay, “Tradition . . . . Continue Reading »
Against Modernism
Mark Anthony Signorelli and Nikos Salingaros are nothing if not clear and forceful: artistic modernism is a anti-tradition of anti-art oriented toward domination rather than beauty. Here is a particularly trenchant set of observations about architectural modernism from ” The Tyranny of . . . . Continue Reading »
Catholics and Religious Liberty
The ever useful Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has released a new survey . The focus falls on attitudes toward the recent push by the Catholic Bishops to highlight the threats posed to religious liberty. Results aren’t too surprising. If you’re a Catholic and have heard about the . . . . Continue Reading »
Roger Kimball on the Present Age
The Catholic World Report has posted a wide-ranging interview with New Criterion editor Roger Kimball. Kimball’s new book, The Fortunes of Permanence , collects his recent essays of literary, artistic, and cultural criticism. This interview reflects quite well what I’d call . . . . Continue Reading »
Robert P. George on Marriage Politics
Professor Robert George at Princeton has been one of the most articulate spokesmen for the view of marriage as a union of one man and one woman. He has demonstrated the absurdity of liberal claims that there is no rational basis for objecting to same-sex marriage. Today on Public Discourse he has . . . . Continue Reading »
Elites and Their Institutions
In The Chronicle of Higher Education , Russell Jacoby has some reflections on the state of conservative intellectual life , which he regards as moribund. No news here. It’s long been a conceit of the Left that conservatives are dumb, and if not dumb, then deranged, or paranoid, or racist, or . . . . Continue Reading »
A Contraceptive Crusade?
What is it about our elite culture that is so fixated on contraception? Over at Public Discourse , Greg Pfundstein and Meghan Grizzle report on the latest decision by the Gates Foundation to put more than $4 billion behind efforts to expand the use of contraceptives worldwide. As they point out, . . . . Continue Reading »
The Christian Deficit
In his column in the New York Times , Ross Douthat chronicles the decline of liberal Protestantism . The Episcopal Church and other mainline denominations were once pillars of the WASP establishment, providing religious leadership and inspiration in nation-defining events such as the civil rights . . . . Continue Reading »
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