Richard Mouw on a theology of cuteness : In his famous essay “A Plea for Excuses,” the Oxford philosopher J. L. Austin complained that philosophers of art typically spent too much time focusing on beauty, when most people’s aesthetic interests are less grand. Austin expressed the . . . . Continue Reading »
Stories like this are making the collective American pull our hair out. Doctor compensation under Medicare is going to be cut 20% unless the reduction is delayed. Of course, the pay cut must be prevented—both out of fairness to doctors and to keep them from refusing to take . . . . Continue Reading »
I was honored to have been interviewed by Eleanor Clift about the Schiavo case and hospice for her book, Two Weeks of Life. We met at my hotel in Washington DC and spent more than an hour discussing hospice and its many benefits to dying patients and their families. I talked about my . . . . Continue Reading »
The opposite of piety is not unbelief; it is sovereign desire. . . . . Continue Reading »
It turns out that culturally conservative Protestants in Brazil (mostly Pentecostals, I suspect, though the author of this article calls them evangelicals) have forced the newly elected president, Catholic (and former Marxist guerilla) Dilma Rousseff, to move sharply rightward in her positions on . . . . Continue Reading »
It used to be that around Christmastime (and Hannukah) there would be all sorts of stories about political and judicial conflicts about the various signs of the season: creches and menorahs in public spaces, carols and songs sung or not sung at “holiday” programs in elementary . . . . Continue Reading »
Sarah Palin has a documentary running on cable television about life in Alaska—or more accurately, creating a myth of her. All ambitious politicians try to weave such narratives. No big deal.I admire Palin in many ways, but am not obsessed with her. I have never watched the . . . . Continue Reading »
Want to be happy? Make some friends at church : Attending religious services regularly and having close friends in the congregation are key to having a happier, more satisfying life, a study finds. Even attending services irregularly — just several times a year — increases a sense of . . . . Continue Reading »
Today’s first ” On The Square ” item is Joe Carter’s column; today it’s a whimsical creation story narrative. But it’s not your run-of-the-mill creation story; rather, it addresses a certain inequality of myth Carter finds between the children of Judeo-Christian . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
