The Best of Times

by R. R. Reno

In the worst of times, First Things writers, readers, and supporters are blessed with the best of times. Continue Reading »

27 Apr 2023

Catholics in America

by Mark Bauerlein

On this episode, Christopher Shannon joins the podcast to discuss his new book, American Pilgrimage: A Historical Journey through Catholic Life in the New World. Continue Reading »

12 Jan 2023

Religious Freedom in America

by Mark Bauerlein

On this episode, Katie Geary joins the podcast to talk about the Religious Freedom Index, a survey by Becket Law.  Continue Reading »

28 Feb 2022

Cheever's God

by Matthew Schmitz

Readers of John Cheever’s stories, most of which appeared in the New Yorker before being collected in a Pulitzer-winning book in 1978, regarded the author as “the Ovid of ­Ossining,” the artist who showed the riches and wonders of suburban life. Alert to the transcendent in the . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Aug 2020

Witch Ways

by Philip Jenkins

In 1768, John Wesley expressed concern about the decline of popular belief in witchcraft and the supernatural: “The English in general, and indeed most of the men of learning in Europe, have given up all accounts of witches and apparitions as mere old wives’ fables. I am sorry for it. . . . They . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Dec 2019

The War on Christian America

by Mark Bauerlein

Featuring David Horowitz on his new book, Dark Agenda: The War to Destroy Christian America.  Continue Reading »

23 Aug 2019

The Devout and the Nones

by Mark Movsesian

In American religion, as in our politics and economics, the middle seems to be dropping out in favor of the extremes on either end. Continue Reading »

22 Apr 2019

Confession in America

by Eve Tushnet

Confession:  Catholics, Repentance, and Forgiveness in America by patrick w. carey oxford, 392 pages, $34.95 In the 2013 Joseph Gordon-­Levitt romantic comedy Don Jon, the porn-obsessed title character hits the confessional, reels off his ­usual list of sins against chastity, and then . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Feb 2019

Secular Pilgrims in America

by Raphael Magarik

Atheists have long been a vocal minority in America, their relations with the dominant Protestant culture defined by consistent, unresolved antagonism, unexpected ideological affinities and interdependencies, and the back-and-forth movement of individuals between atheism and belief. Continue Reading »

12 Jan 2017

Civil Righteousness and the Gospel in the American Church

by James R. Rogers

It’s one thing for the American political regime to value Christian churches because they help supply the moral requisites for sustaining the regime; for churches themselves to conceive of their purpose in this way is quite another thing. Continue Reading »

3 Oct 2016