On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

George Weigel asks “What Kind of Country Do You Want?” : Do you want to live in an America that is recovering a sense of decency, a country in which moral conviction born of biblical faith is welcomed in public life, and neither the culture nor the government deplore biblical morality . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

James R. Rogers on why Christians should oppose factions : The American founders identified “party” with “faction.” But that doesn’t hold up, and not simply because the founders themselves started early forms of political parties. In Madison’s definition, factions are . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

William Doino Jr. on St. Kateri’s long journey home : Born in 1656 at the Mohawk fortress called Gandaouague, near present-day Auriesville, New York, Kateri Tekakwitha was thrust into a world of conflict and danger: Inter-tribal warfare raged, and was aggravated by Dutch, English, and French . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

Wesley J. Smith on why nature should not have “rights” : Of greater philosophical concern, the nature rights ideology subverts what I call human exceptionalism by elevating the natural world to moral equality with human beings—effectively diminishing us to merely another animal in . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

Leroy Huizenga on coming to grips with Vatican II : “What about Vatican II?” I asked my Catholic friend, in response to his assertion that Catholic doctrine is stable while the Church’s understanding thereof develops. We were in college together, young bucks full of vim and vigor, . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

George Weigel on economy and empowerment : A robust economy is not only an economic imperative; it is a moral and cultural imperative. A robust economy makes honorable work possible for all who wish to be responsible for their own lives and the lives of their loved ones. And work, according to . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

Elizabeth Scalia on the conceit of primacy : Just as coastal conceit can devalue what comes out of “flyover country,” our First-world conceit can blind us to what is happening in the church “out there” among the “thems.” Upon learning that in 2004 Hungarian Archbishop . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

R.R. Reno on the embarrassment of the Catholic Left : There they go again. The usual gang of Catholic theology professors has signed a manifesto, “On all of our shoulders: A Catholic Call to Protect the Endangered Common Good.” It claims to warn us of the grave danger posed by Congressman . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

Peter J. Leithart on the Evangelical case for a Catholic sensibility : Few Evangelicals, though, would make sense of his further claim that “The working of God’s power among us is through the sacraments .” Jesus’ baptism—now, that was a mighty act, as the Father unzipped . . . . Continue Reading »

On the Square Today

From First Thoughts

Russell E. Saltzman on senseless sermons : The Peter Rahme Ministries in South Africa, 1985, managed a record of one hundred forty-four hours, but that was a kind of tag-team thing that involved twelve ministers, each preaching two-hour stints over six days and nights. It is said the preaching . . . . Continue Reading »