When all is well it’s easy to confess
Your goodness Lord, but when you disappear
Capriciously ignoring our distress
You leave behind despair and numbing fear.
Where now the gracious Giver of all good gifts?
Why now the bleak, soul-searing ache of Absence?
The mind has cliffs of fall with deeps and drifts:
Small certainties dissolve, and former sense.
Is it because, when Present, we try to tame you,
And so, for that, you’re nowhere to be found?
We know, when Absent, we cannot even name you,
But only then our faith finds firmer ground?
If by your Absence you deem we profit more,
Forbid us pray your Presence to restore.
—Thomas H. Bast
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
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