In the public square, many misuse the word “dignity” by conflating its subjective and objective meanings. Some see it as descriptive of behavior, an idiosyncratic concept that can vary widely across cultures. Thus, when I am on the dance floor, few would say I exhibit dignity. But my herky-jerky . . . . Continue Reading »
Very recently, I was at a conference where Ryan T. Anderson and Sherif Gergis, two of the nation’s foremost intellectual champions of marriage, spoke about marriage post-Obergefell (confession: Ryan and Sherif are close friends).Something about their address moved me. I realized that we’re back . . . . Continue Reading »
In Obergefell v. Hodges, Justice Kennedy has penned a decision of historic hubris and stupidity—as both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Scalia argue in their dissents. The basis of the decision is a claim to special enlightenment (we shall not say “revelation”) about the meaning and . . . . Continue Reading »
How does someone go from giving a TED talk on civil debating to saying, “Will anti-gay Christians be politically and socially ostracized? I sure hope so.”? A lesson in (un)civil discourse. Continue Reading »
There’s been much talk lately about the moral purposes of history, especially from those celebrating the recent Supreme Court decision regarding gay marriage. History, we hear, is on the side of ever-expanding personal freedom, and those who counter this expansion are history’s losers. This . . . . Continue Reading »
During the past few days a number of commentators have discussed the numerous parallels between the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Obergefell v. Hodges and the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. In neither case was the majority opinion grounded in the U.S. Constitution. Additionally, social . . . . Continue Reading »
Happy Canada Day, America! One decade later, your judges have turned you, too, into a nation of bastards. I don’t mean that in quite the usual sense, of course—you’ve been doing a fine job yourselves, without any help from us, of turning out fatherless children. I mean rather that you’ve . . . . Continue Reading »
The final paragraph of Justice Kennedy's decision is being hailed as an eloquent and humane expression that identifies what was really at stake in the marriage case: not the Constitutionality of traditional marriage laws, but the dignity and happiness of a particular group. Here is the full . . . . Continue Reading »
You haven’t kissed her yet?” A classmate furrows his brow, as if trying to understand some antiquarian cultural rite. “And you’ve been dating how long?” As a conservative Christian within a libertine college environment, I have heard variations of this same conversation played out . . . . Continue Reading »
In the aftermath of Friday’s Supreme Court decision, attention is turning toward the future of religious liberty. And if you read Justice Kennedy’s opinion on the ruling, you’ll quickly learn that if there’s to be any semblance of our historic understanding of religious liberty, there . . . . Continue Reading »