For several years now there has been a raft of books and articles aimed at debunking notions of “American exceptionalism.” With respect to the last century of “secularization theory,” that debunking is necessary. In that theory, the vitality of religion in the United States . . . . Continue Reading »
Last Monday was another gathering of the Dulles Colloquium. We’ve been doing this for more than fifteen years. The colloquium is named, of course, in honor of Avery Cardinal Dulles (and was started long before he was elevated to the College of Cardinals). It is one of a number of groups of . . . . Continue Reading »
On Saturday, a banquet was held in Washington, D.C., to mark the establishment of a new center for Thomistic studies¯a center named after America’s best-known Thomist, Ralph McInerny. It’s hard to imagine anyone more deserving of the honor. In a recent issue of F IRST T HINGS , . . . . Continue Reading »
An interesting note by Stephen Schwartz in the new issue of F IRST T HINGS takes up the troubles of Albania. The religious believers of Albania may have suffered more than those of any other nation in eastern Europe over the fifty years of Communist rule after World War II. The Stalinists were . . . . Continue Reading »
Two of the most influential theologians of the last century, Karl Barth and Reinhold Niebuhr, shared the distinction of not having earned doctorates. Niebuhr was a mite uneasy about that and at times turned it into the virtue of not being an academic. In a new book by Martin Halliwell, professor of . . . . Continue Reading »
Steven Waldman is editor-in-chief of Beliefnet, and is working on a book on religion and the American founders. He writes: Contemporary religious conservatives can certainly find quotes from Founding Fathers to support their claims that government should aggressively support religion. They’ll . . . . Continue Reading »
Readers have asked why I do not regularly respond to the public criticism aimed at F IRST T HINGS and me personally. Those who follow The Public Square section of the magazine know that I frequently do respond. Usually I try not to make heavy weather of criticism, and my tone is sometimes joshing, . . . . Continue Reading »
So, protestors have filled the streets of France , once again. Cars burned, buildings occupied, politicians scuttling for cover. Another day on the Champs Elysées. This time it was students complaining about a law that would have established a two-year trial period in which employers could . . . . Continue Reading »
Down in Waco, Texas, there is a Baptist school called Baylor University. It was never a major player in American academics, and with the strained situation in which American colleges found themselves at the end of the baby boom, Baylor had problems figuring out what it should do. Certainly, the . . . . Continue Reading »
This is a very old genre of humor. The darndest things that children say have, I suppose, elicited adult chuckles from the beginnings of human language. In any event, these examples were sent by a source that certifies they were written by children in a Catholic school and have not been edited. . . . . Continue Reading »
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