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Remembering Andrew Greeley

From First Thoughts

George Weigel remembers Andrew Greeley in today’s column . . . . Catholicism was duller after Greeley was felled by an accident in 2008, and the Church feels emptier since his death. [One night] I found Andy and his secretary in the glory that was “Armando’s,” a trattoria near . . . . Continue Reading »

Priests and Politics Don’t Mix

From First Thoughts

America’s history suggests the clergy best steer clear of politics, says Mark D. Tooley in today’s column . Eighteen eighty-four’s election was one of the nation’s dirtiest, and clergy were among its central actors. The example [of former Buffalo Mayor Grover . . . . Continue Reading »

Antonin Scalia, Bad Person

From First Thoughts

“Often referred to as the ‘most conservative’ of the Supreme Court jurists, [Antonin] Scalia spends part of his  Windsor  dissent arguing in defense of what used to be considered a most ‘liberal’ notion,” says Elizabeth Scalia in today’s column , . . . . Continue Reading »

He Died in a Loving Place, Inside Me

From First Thoughts

In a recent New York Times piece, Judy Nicastro referred to the abortion of one of her twins conceived through I.V.F., who she was told would have malformed organs: “We made sure our son was not born only to suffer. He died in a warm and loving place, inside me.” “This . . . . . . . Continue Reading »

Reno: The Virtues of Empire

From First Thoughts

“It’s a sad truth that the democratic and populist impulse, if given the political means, almost always engages in some form of ethnic cleansing,” says R. R. Reno in today’s column . One often hears about how the Muslim world needs to “undergo the Enlightenment” and . . . . Continue Reading »