Earlier this week, Fr. Gerald E. Murray wrote, “We remember those whom God placed into our lives here below for a time and who are united with us still, even after they have left our sight. This fact, taught to us by our faith, compels us to act. We pray, and we rejoice at the goodness of . . . . Continue Reading »
Peter J. Leithart on Marilynne Robinson : Stylistic clarity and uncluttered simplicity are the qualities of Robinsons work that puts her in the tradition of American literary Calvinism. As Wood says, There is a familiar American simplicity . . . which is Puritan and colloquial in its . . . . Continue Reading »
Once there were two brothers. You know their story, more than likely. One was wasteful, exploitative, wanton, licentious. One was rigid, moralistic, uptight, legalistic. Two brothers with two personalities and two sets of attendant sins. But their father loved them both and all that he had belonged . . . . Continue Reading »
First, President Obama has a long time to get back on track, but voters are not thrilled with what they have seen so far. If the economy improves, he is in good shape, but if it is as it is today, there will be trouble in 2010. Still, that is a long a way away and President Obama is a phenomenal . . . . Continue Reading »
Easily the jewel of the 16th-century Reformed confessions is the Heidelberg Catechism, which begins in so memorable and moving a fashion as to work its way into the hearts of believers everywhere:Q & A 1Q. What is your only comfortin life and in death?A. That I am not my own,but belongbody . . . . Continue Reading »
Fearsome Comrade has some insightful thoughts about the nature of socialism:An important difference between socialism and capitalism is that socialism promises salvation delivered from on high, while the only thing capitalism can promise is competition. Because of this, socialism can be . . . . Continue Reading »
Claude Lévi-Strauss has died , at the age of 100. He was, in his way, a great mind, if somewhat typical of his eraa fact made manifest by the typical response to his death, which expresses not so much surprise that he has died as surprise that he was still alive, to have died. Without . . . . Continue Reading »
My friends in the Democrat Party (and I do have such friends!) often miss an important point in their analysis of the future of the conservative movement. More people are identifying as conservative, but not as members of the Republican Party. Blame Bush and his spending if you must, but this is a . . . . Continue Reading »
I’ve already had several complaints about bad taste in this post at the First Thoughts blog. Perhaps it will go down better with this . . . . Continue Reading »
I found this gem while mining some old material.Flipping through a local community magazine, I came across the following line:“My neighbor is confused by the whole gay marriage controversy. He just can’t understand why a gay man would want to marry a gay . . . . Continue Reading »