R. R. Reno

Referendum? No referendum? A special parliamentary vote? A unity government? Greek prime minister George Papandreou doesn’t know what to do. Which is not surprising. The Greek debt crisis now exposes the fundamental weakness of the European Union”its democratic deficit. From its beginnings in the early 1950s as a common market of coal and steel, post-war efforts to unify Europe have been based on the presumption that interlocking economic interests would lead to a new and harmonious international system… . Continue Reading »

For a long time Irish politics and culture have been married to Catholicism. Now we seem to be witnessing the beginnings of a very public divorce. The Diocese of Cloyne has been the center of attention. Roiled by revelations of decades of clerical sexual abuse, in 1996 the Irish bishops put . . . . Continue Reading »

It’s not money that’s the root of all evil; it’s tenure. A bit of an exaggeration, perhaps, but in her latest book, The Faculty Lounges (Ivan R. Dee), Naomi Schaefer Riley argues that eliminating tenure presents the most promising first step for the reform of our colleges and universities. It’s the “game changer for American higher education.” What is the real significance of tenure? … Continue Reading »

I was visiting Columbia recently, and Fr. Dan O’Reilly, the chaplain there told me that Fr. Richard John Neuhaus often preached there—and that his homilies were recorded and are available on the Columbia Catholic Ministry website. “No way,” I said. “Yes, way,” he . . . . Continue Reading »

We’re in the middle of our Fall fundraising campaign, a new effort to raise funds for the mission and work of the First Things website. I hope you will step forward to be counted among those who give. The First Things website does many things. We provide one and often two (and sometimes even . . . . Continue Reading »

[Note: The following is R.R. Reno’s foreword to The Glory of Kings: A Festschrift in Honor of James B. Jordan , edited by Peter J. Leithart and John Barach.] James B. Jordan is remarkable. There are plenty of Bible preachers in America who know the Scriptures well. Lots of professors read . . . . Continue Reading »

We’re in the middle of our Fall fundraising campaign, a new effort to raise funds for the mission and work of the First Things website. I hope you will step forward to be counted among those who give. The First Things website does many things. We provide one and often two (and sometimes even . . . . Continue Reading »

Today we’re launching a new effort to raise funds for the mission and work of the First Things website, our Fall fundraising campaign. I hope you will step forward to be counted among those who give. The First Things website does many things. We provide one and often two (and sometimes even . . . . Continue Reading »

Rosh Hashanah began last Thursday evening. For Jews, this two-day holiday celebrates the beginning of a new year, evoking the creation of the world and the dawn of time. It is a holiday of new beginnings, and for this reason fittingly opens ten Days of Awe or High Holy Days, a season of repentance that allows one to make a new beginning in the eyes of God… . Continue Reading »

Attention First Things readers. The Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C. is sponsor a Theological Symposium on marriage on Friday and Saturday, October 21-22. The speakers are excellent: Reinhard Huetter from Duke, Fr. Michael Sherwin from the Dominican faculty at Fribourg in Switzerland, . . . . Continue Reading »