Information for the 2014 First Things junior fellowship program can be found here.
As you may already know thanks to the ad on our homepage, we’re now accepting applications for the First Things junior fellowship program:
Graduating college seniors and recent graduates are invited to apply for the First Things junior fellows program. The junior fellows work closely with the editors to produce the magazine and its website. The one-year, full-time fellowship (which is normally extended to a second year) includes housing and a modest stipend.
Please send a resume, a 250-word description of why you want to be a junior fellow, two (short) writing samples, and three references (one of whom should know your writing or editorial work) to firstthingsfellows@firstthings.com. Applications are due by March 15.
Matthew Schmitz gave a basic description of the program on our blog last month; here I’ll add a more personal view from my experiences as a junior fellow this year. (Incidentally, the title of this post is a nod to Larry Norman, who reportedly said “We need worship for our spirit, fellowship for our soul and committed subservience for our body.”)
A junior fellowship is an opportunity to immerse yourself not only in the production of the magazine but also in an enriching and joy-filled community . . . not to mention the religious, intellectual, artistic, musical, and historical worlds of New York City. That means you can hone your dinner-cooking, museum-visiting, restaurant-finding, liturgy-attending, and theology-debating skills along with your writing, editing, and proofreading ones.
More seriously, working here means pondering ” the first things ” and what they imply about the second things. Far from being abstruse philosophical theories, these reflections bear on today’s most controversial issues: What is the purpose of government? Are religion and science at odds? How should the church and state interact? What is marriage?
As a junior fellow, you can consider and debate such questions with colleagues who are far better-read and more knowledgeable than you, while also making essential contributions to the magazine. A few duties are routine office tasks: answering emails, moderating comments, advertising events. But you’ll spend most of your energy on writing for our website, evaluating submissions, participating in editorial meetings, editing and fact-checking manuscripts, attending our events, and reading any of the hundreds of books that pour into our office. I highly encourage you to apply.
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.
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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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