Pluralism and the Catholic University

by Alan Charles Kors

The decline of Catholic higher education in our country should concern all Americans, regardless of their religious . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2002

Purgatory for Everyone

by Jerry L. Walls

A few years ago, the journalist Philip Nobile wrote an article near the first anniversary of the death of Princess Diana in which he raised what he termed “an indiscreet theological question.” “Where is she now?” he asked. According to Christian theology, the options were heaven, purgatory, . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2002

The Islamic Roots of Democratic Pluralism and The Monks of Tibhirine: Faith, Love, and Terror in Algeria

by Andrew Bacevich

Abdulaziz Sachedina is a man with a mission. He is determined to demonstrate that when it comes to the West’s relations with Islam, there need be no “clash of civilizations.” Properly understood, Islam is compatible with—indeed, is positively conducive to—democratic pluralism, . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2002

Ireland’s Holy Wars: The Struggle for a Nation’s Soul

by David Quinn

In saying that Marcus Tanner’s Ireland’s Holy Wars is predictable I don’t want to give readers the impression that it is a bad book, because it is not. Its topic is five hundred years of religious strife in Ireland, from 1500 to the present. It is readable, well-researched, and has the . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Mar 2002

The Uses of Anger

by Damon Linker

I’m angry, and I have been ever since I watched a 767 slam into the North Tower of the World Trade Center while walking to the office on a lovely late-summer morning last September. Sure, like most Americans, I’ve also experienced shock and profound sadness. But the anger came early, and it’s . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Mar 2002

The American Mind

by Richard John Neuhaus

The Public Square Students of the political philosopher Leo Strauss are fond of quoting the master to the effect that the American polity is built on foundations that are low but solid. When the discussion turns to the constituting ideas undergirding our political institutions, and the ideas that . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Dec 2001

Religious Freedom:
Innovation and Development

by Avery Cardinal Dulles

According to John Henry Newman, whose two hundredth birthday we celebrated in February 2001, Christianity came into the world as a single idea, but time was necessary for believers to perceive its multiple aspects and spell out their meaning. The Christian idea has gradually taken possession of . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Dec 2001

American Satyricon

by R. R. Reno

We live in what we like to think of as a very sophisticated society. International commerce keeps the economy humming day and night. Silicon chips grease the wheels of calculation and communication. Medical centers are engaged in perpetual expansion as research facilities grow at a furious pace. . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Oct 2001

Why Angels Fall: A Journey Through Orthodox Europe from Byzantium to Kosovo

by Walter D. Connor

There is but one answer to the victim: the cross. This is why the cross has become for us the victorious emblem of our own heroic . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Aug 2001

The First Freedom Under Siege

by Paul Marshall

Worldwide, religious freedom is deteriorating. A world is a difficult thing to summarize, but the trend shows that repression of religious minorities is widespread in countries with large populations, such as China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Sudan, and Nigeria, and that religion is increasingly a . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Apr 2001