O where was God when all things fell apart;
When with the fury went our hopes and dreams?
We kept him at a distance from the start,
And now our world was bursting at the seams.
The same reports of threats we heard for years,
Till background noise was all that they became,
As we ignored our deeply hidden fears,
And thought our lives would always be the same.
Whatever we desired had been met
And modest were the challenges we faced.
By paying little portion of our debt,
At ease we yet to our destruction raced.
We had been playing heaven here on earth.
Too late we found out what these games were worth.
—Joseph Mirra
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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