In one of his Holy Sonnets, John Donne prays this paradox: “For I, except you enthrall me, never shall be free.” Today On the Square R.R. Reno explains just why it makes sense, why authority helps us be free: We often discount the way in which authority and hierarchy contribute to our . . . . Continue Reading »
Do you need to be a good speller to be a good writer? The Oregon Department of Education doesn’t seem to think so : On Wednesday, students across the state will start taking their standardized writing exams, and for the first time, those doing their essays online will get to use spell check. . . . . Continue Reading »
Dane Ortlund, a senior editor at Crossway Books, recently asked a handful of scholars and pastors to distill the message of the Bible to a single sentence . While there are a number of good responses, I would answer a bit differently. I would say that the message of the Bible is the same as . . . . Continue Reading »
Earlier this week I mentioned a paper by Ross S. Kilpatrick that claims the Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece, the Mona Lisa , incorporates images inspired by the Roman poet Horace and Florentine poet Petrarch. Dr. Kilpatrick was kind enough to send me a link to the paper, Horace, Petrach and Leonardo . . . . Continue Reading »
Against our critical age and its masters of suspicion: It is more precious to love than to know. . . . . Continue Reading »
Right now there is snow present in 49 of the 50 U.S. states : After big snow and ice events in the Southeast, Plains, and Midwest this week, 49 out of the 50 states currently have snow on the ground – yes, even Hawaii, where snow falls in Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea all winter. Thanks a lot, . . . . Continue Reading »
Christianity Today has a good article about the resurgence of true first-person storytelling and how it borrows from Christian tradition. It isn’t too much of a stretch to say that this is very much what is happening in live storytelling across New York City. Whether the stories are funny or . . . . Continue Reading »
Featured “On The Square Today” is, first, Joe Carter’s weekly column ; today’s is a reflection on emergent evidence about the origins of atheism—-in particular, origins of the non-philosophical variety: A new set of studies in the Journal of Personality and Social . . . . Continue Reading »
Jack Kevorkian, who assisted the suicide of at least 130 people—mostly depressed people with disabilities, is having a splendid post prison career. He receives $50,000 a speech, he was portrayed by Al Pacino in a puff biopic that won an Emmy. And he is now a public speaker who . . . . Continue Reading »
I try not to get into personalities here. But Jack Kevorkian is an icon of all that I see going wrong with our culture. The man was not—and is not—about compassionate help for people who are suffering. His assisted suicide campaign was always about him.Why do I bring . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
