R. R. Reno

The Bible contains a verse that scholars like to quote. It is from the book of Ecclesiastes: “Of making many books there is no end, and much study is weariness of the flesh” (12:12). In context it serves as a warning against the vain illusion that we can study our way to the Kingdom of God. The . . . . Continue Reading »

Barack Obama’s announcement of restrictions on executive pay gets it just right. Last week the White House issued regulations limiting compensation for the top brass of companies being bailed out to $500,000 per year, along with a variety of warnings about the luxury goodies that cronies on . . . . Continue Reading »

Over the years, Anthony Daniels, a medical doctor who worked for many years in an English slum hospital attached to nearby prison, has developed quite a body of cultural criticism under the pseudonym Theodore Dalrymple. Not with a Bang But a Whimper: The Politics and Culture of Decline offers a fine . . . . Continue Reading »

The election is over and the inauguration is upon us. There has been and will be a great deal of talk about the historic significance of Barack Obama”our first black president. The symbolism is powerful. America may be flawed, it may be arrogant in its power and sated with its wealth, but it . . . . Continue Reading »

A friend wrote to chastise me for failing to include fresh statistics that show a marked increase in the French fertility rate. Apparently women who did not have children in the twenties are now having babies, and this is pushing up rates that looked dire a decade ago. Check out this news report . . . . Continue Reading »

With fertility rates dipping to almost one child per woman in Spain and other European countries, it’s hard to even imagine the future. Who will work and pay all those retirement benefits to the current and larger generation of workers? How can societies with declining populations maintain a . . . . Continue Reading »

I’ve been working on a commentary on the book of Genesis, and the very first verse presents challenges. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The traditional rendering is on the outs these days. New translations shy away from the metaphysical atmosphere of an . . . . Continue Reading »

You can always count on Stanley Fish. He strikes a few sound blows¯and then all too soon he’s flailing away, sometimes doing more harm than good. Fish is like ice in good bourbon: pleasing at the outset, but after time the source of watery ruin.A recent article, “Professor, Do Your Job,” . . . . Continue Reading »

Nothing to Be Frightened Of by julian barnesknopf, 256 pages, $24.95 Death has many masks. He comes cruel with his sweeping scythe, cutting down men and women in their prime. He comes kind and compassionate as a nurse, closing the eyes of long-suffering patients. Death comes slowly and shyly behind . . . . Continue Reading »

As I’ve observed in a previous posting, brain science is a hot new area of research, and some of the experts are absolutely convinced that new knowledge about brain function will lead to big changes in how we view ourselves. Once we know that what seems to be free choice is, in fact, a . . . . Continue Reading »