CPJ: Capital Commentary revamp

The Center for Public Justice was founded in 1977 and since then has undertaken to articulate a Christian vision for public policy in the United States based on the principle of what I would call societal pluriformity. Recently its long time president, James W. Skillen, retired and was replaced by . . . . Continue Reading »

Shalom Sesame

Tablet has a preview of Shalom Sesame , a new series in which Grover from Sesame Street will “explore Jewish identity, history, and culture for the American Jewish preschool demographic.” In this snippet, viewers learn about the famous  rivalry between Hillel and Shammai, and hear . . . . Continue Reading »

Islamism’s Challenge to Germany

“Turkey’s Islamists want to restore their country’s leading position in the Muslim world, in a sharp turn away from the country’s previous Western orientation (as well as its military alliance with Israel). For Germany, though, the revived arrogance of the Anatolian . . . . Continue Reading »

Leo Strauss, Destroyer of Judaism

Suzanne Klingenstein of MIT reports on a new cache of Leo Strauss letters today in the Weekly Standard website. They confirm what I always have assumed, that Strauss’ work on Maimonides was intended to prove that the great Jewish legal scholar and commentator was a secret atheist. She . . . . Continue Reading »

Country Music Captives

[Note: Every Friday on First Thoughts we host a discussion about some aspect of popular culture. Have a suggestion for a topic? Send them to me at jcarter@firstthings.com] Since I was a boy I’ve been captivated by country music. But recently I’ve been dismayed by a disturbing trend in . . . . Continue Reading »

Juan Williams Fired

I gasped when I read the story in The New York Times . The folks at National Public Radio fired Juan Williams, ostensibly because of his comments on “The O’Reilly Factor,” which were judged by NPR to be “inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined . . . . Continue Reading »