Today we are witnessing the re-emergence of a Protestant perfectionist vision of the Christian life. This vision has at least two forms, an Anabaptist understanding of the church as embodying a set of practices that realize the Kingdom of God and a Wesleyan optimism of grace in which the people of . . . . Continue Reading »
Praying for Radiation
Ashley Makar, Whether Magazine
Reading Lessons of a Religious Upbringing Without Modern Books
Sarah Perry, Guardian
Part Sendup, Part Anxious Self-Portrait: “Friendship” And The New Brooklyn Novel
Lydia Kiesling, Salon
Can the G.O.P. Be a Party of Ideas?
Sam Tanenhaus, New York Times
The Sacred Power of the World
Stephen D. Blackmer, The New Atlantis
Essentially, the European Court is saying, a state can ban religious expression in order to maintain what the state sees as particular norms of “living together.” What ban on religious expression would not be allowed under such a standard? Continue Reading »
Opera is Not Just Our Most Expensive Noise
Roger Scruton, Standpoint
Belted, Booted and Buckled: B-Movie Title Design of the 1960s
Ben Radatz, Art of the Title
Explaining Canada to Americans
Alexandra Molotkow, Hazlitt
Mystery and Manners: On Teaching Flannery O’Connor
Nick Ripatrazone, The Millions
Losing Music
John Cotter, Open Letters Monthly
Injury embellishment and related on-field drama always gets a lot of press during the World Cup. Collin Garbarino recently advocated for “flopping” in soccer, arguing that it speeds up the game, boosts scores across the board, and encourages defenders to play up to the technical ability of attackers. His points may carry in part, but I have one reservation which forbids my giving wholehearted assent: I think flopping detracts from the perfection of soccer. Continue Reading »
On Thursday, the Supreme Court decided to strike down as unconstitutional the 2007 Massachusetts law which mandated a thirty-five foot buffer around medical facilities that offer abortions. Since the decision was handed down, the fallout has been contentious. One article, emblematic of a genre of literature which focuses on radicalism, sees little in the way of fruitful discourse happening outside of clinics: Continue Reading »
A plea for not assigning gender at birth seems to depend on a rather inconsistent use of categories. Continue Reading »
Elesha Coffman’s analysis of the rise of the Christian Century and mainline Protestantism is fascinating reading. Toward the end of the book, she recounts the reaction of the churchmen associated with the Christian Century to the emergence of Billy Graham—in particular, his . . . . Continue Reading »
In an essay for the Chronicle of Higher Education—my industry’s trade journal—Penn’s Peter Conn argues that the regional accrediting agencies, which hold the keys to federal student aid, should under no circumstances give religious colleges and universities their imprimatur. To say the least, Professor Conn is hostile to religion and appears to be utterly unacquainted with what happens on most “faith and learning” infused campuses. Continue Reading »
Opinion: Burwell, Secretary of Health and Human Services, et al. v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
Opinion Analysis: Does the New Religious Exemption Go Far Enough?
Lyle Denniston, SCOTUSblog
The Republic of Gilead is Not Nigh
Julian Sanchez, Cato
How the Internet Blamed the Wrong Twitter Handle for Today’s Hobby Lobby Ruling
Jamie Fuller, Washington Post
The Hobby Lobby Decision Was a Victory for Women’s Rights
Andrew Koppelman, The New Republic
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