“Absurd Violence” or Martyrdom?

by Julia Yost

A week’s worth of commentary on Fr. Jacques Hamel. Continue Reading »

3 Aug 2016

Understand the Enemy as He Understands Himself

by Rémi Brague

Fr. Hamel was not killed because he was French, but because he was a Christian, and a priest. To find economic or political reasons for his assassination is rather difficult. Continue Reading »

1 Aug 2016

“With Courage, But Without Hatred”

by Rémi Brague

An interview with Rémi Brague, by Samuel Pruvot of Famille Chrétienne. Translated from French by Francesca Aran Murphy. Continue Reading »

20 Jul 2016

Orlando was Not a Tragedy

by R. R. Reno

We all know that Omar Mateen’s rampage fits a pattern. But this pattern points to descriptions and explanations that are unpalatable, because they put demands on our leaders and us. So politicians and pundits default to a therapeutic stance. They call the slaughter a “tragedy,” in order to avoid giving it meaning. Continue Reading »

21 Jun 2016

Terrorism Is Not Hate

by R. R. Reno

Multiculturalism has made us too parochial to see this. Technocracy has made it contrary to the interests of our leaders. The truth is that terrorism has its roots in politics, not in hate. Continue Reading »

14 Jun 2016

Calling It Genocide

by Mark Movsesian

In a press statement yesterday, US Secretary of State John Kerry did what many human rights activists have been asking him to do for months: he called ISIS’s treatment of Christians and other religious minorities “genocide.” Kerry’s statement came as a surprise. For months, the State . . . . Continue Reading »

18 Mar 2016

ISIS, Genocide, and Us

by George Weigel

The Monuments Men was a disappointing movie, but one of its most chilling scenes sticks in my mind as an analogue to the appalling wickedness underway in the Middle East. In the film, SS Colonel Wegner supervises the destruction of art works plundered by the Nazis: treasures intended for Hitler’s . . . . Continue Reading »

17 Feb 2016

Christians, the State Department, and Genocide

by Mark Movsesian

How is it acceptable to tell religious minorities that things are comparatively good for them because they can “choose” to accept oppressive and demeaning treatment and manage to survive? Continue Reading »

9 Dec 2015

Saudi Oil: It's Not about North Dakota, It's about ISIS

by James R. Rogers

While the U.S. remains the 800-pound gorilla in international relations, not everything occurring in the international realm comes in response to events in the U.S. This goes double for events in the Middle East. Reports that Saudi Arabia maintains current high production levels of oil despite . . . . Continue Reading »

30 Nov 2015

An Open Letter to Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

by Brian Doyle

I will start out politely, with the traditional As-salaam-u alaykum, peace be to you, and I will even use the title you have given yourself, and I will try to keep this note brief, for I can only imagine the press of your days, what with trying to manage a nascent state, and a fractious staff, and . . . . Continue Reading »

25 Nov 2015