Robert Miller worries that one of the arguments in my post on Amnesty International is philosophically unsound . He admits, though, that "there are many senses of the word right , and Anderson is perfectly correct that, in one of these senses, there can be no right to do what’s morally . . . . Continue Reading »
As a longtime reader and fan of First Things , I have admired Fr. Richard John Neuhaus’ keen insights on any number of issues. He has written convincingly on the necessary role of the Church in society rather than acquiescing to the secularists’ demands for a "Naked Public . . . . Continue Reading »
In the early 1950s, or so Im told, two young men who would later come to world prominence attended some of the same political science lectures at the Sorbonne. One was the son of Polish-Jewish parents who had emigrated to France; the other was from Cambodia. One had lost his mother to the . . . . Continue Reading »
We live in a time of both danger and opportunity for the Catholic Church in the United States. The danger is that large numbers of Catholics will, as a result of clergy sex scandals and the large, highly publicized cash awards and settlements following in their train, lose confidence in the . . . . Continue Reading »
Ryan Anderson argued persuasively last week that Amnesty International’s new position on abortion laws makes AI effectively pro-abortion, and that AI is being disingenuous in denying this. This is his important point, and I agree with it completely. I am concerned, however, that one of the . . . . Continue Reading »
On July 22, 2007, Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong lunched with Benedict XVI in Lorenzago di Cadore to update the pope on the reception of his Letter to Chinese Catholics . Later that day, the cardinal returned to Venice, where Raphaela Schmid discussed with him the current state of play in . . . . Continue Reading »
The New American Bible (NAB), an unfortunate translation episcopally imposed upon Catholics for readings at Mass, has prompted earlier comment in First Things (see here and here ). The problem keeps coming back, not least in pastoral counseling. Take the woman who had had it with her husbands . . . . Continue Reading »
This May, First Things broke the news of Amnesty International’s change of policy from neutrality to pro-abortion advocacy. Subsequently, both the United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace at the Vatican issued . . . . Continue Reading »
My suspicions were aroused when I saw a headline to a July 1 Associated Press story in the hometown paper , declaring “‘Sharing Chores’ Moves Up On Good-Marriage List.” This yawner of a finding was attributed to a Pew Research Center study just released on the . . . . Continue Reading »
In the world of Holocaust scholarship, Saul Friedlander is a major presence. A professor of history at UCLA, he is among the most widely cited authorities on the Holocaust. Having just completed his life’s work¯a massive, two-volume history entitled Nazi Germany and the Jews ¯he is . . . . Continue Reading »