To whom does a language belong? One might think it the possession of all who speak it. But as anyone who has learned a foreign language can attest, one receives such a language as an ill-fitting garment, awkward until broken in through sustained and strenuous effort. Or perhaps a language is the . . . . Continue Reading »
It’s heartbreaking to see Christians used as pawns in this war, and shameful to see the media—and even Christian institutions—do the enabling. Continue Reading »
We should not conflate equality and equivalence. Those who do so risk cutting themselves off from the traditions that make them who they are. Continue Reading »
Some have described Hamline as representing a contemporary case of blasphemy. But now, we see blasphemy as a crime against our new god: the self. Continue Reading »
Joseph Ratzinger’s accomplishments as biblical expositor and theologian have been gratifyingly acknowledged over the past six days. Yet his insights into the drama of modern social and political life have rarely been mentioned. Continue Reading »
Joseph Fadelle was born in Iraq in the 1960s. During his mandatory service in the Iraqi army, he was assigned a Christian roommate. Initially distraught to be rooming with an infidel, he came to understand that God had given him the mission of converting this man to Islam. In challenging the man’s . . . . Continue Reading »
The two days of discussions began with a frank acknowledgment that religion has all too often been a source of, or a pretext for, conflict in today’s increasingly interdependent world. Continue Reading »
Shadi Hamid, author of “How Modernity Swallowed Islamism,” re-examines the development of Arab political movements and what lessons they can offer to present American political debates about liberalism and the role of religion and politics. Continue Reading »
The Middle East was ahead of its time—and certainly ahead of the West—on at least one thing: existential debates over culture, identity, and religion. During the heady, sometimes frightening days of the Arab Spring, the region was struggling over some of the same questions Americans are . . . . Continue Reading »
The desire to paralyze public discourse by threats, nastiness, and all-round verbal thuggery is the preferred approach of radicals of all shades of opinion on social media, be it Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Continue Reading »