In 1932, while covering a worker’s strike in Washington, D.C., Dorothy Day said a prayer. Since her conversion to Catholicism, she felt that she could no longer join such strikes. Joining a strike was an expression of solidarity—and fundamental philosophical differences prevented true . . . . Continue Reading »
For the last fifty years, from the Second Vatican Council onward, it made sense to speak of an American Catholicism fully reconciled to liberal democracy. On the fringes there were still some noteworthy anti-liberal and radical Catholic periodicals and writers, but the mainstream was defined by the . . . . Continue Reading »
A young friend of mine recently fell victim to an unexpected and horrific illness. For some time, it seemed that he would certainly die; the progress of the disease led expectations relentlessly in that direction. Prayers (including my own) for God’s mercy multiplied with a profound desperation. . . . . Continue Reading »
A century ago, a little-known Belgian artist named Albert Servaes became famous when cardinals at the Holy Office in Rome censured him for depicting Jesus Christ in a way they considered unsuitable for Catholics. The story made the front page of American Art News in New York. In this . . . . Continue Reading »
The woke revolutionaries get the headlines. A psychologist speaking at Yale fantasizes about killing “white people.” Princeton’s classics department eliminates Latin and Greek as requirements for undergraduate majors. The media bombard us with warnings about “white supremacy.” It’s easy . . . . Continue Reading »
Anyone who begins playing Bach as an adult will notice two things: that he should have started earlier, ideally by studying the piano as a child instead of chasing a leathery orb around some field; and that there is something of the divine in Bach. Philosophers have always drawn a connection between . . . . Continue Reading »
Another summer, another moving season in Northern Virginia, a region filled with peripatetic military and federal families. Some folks, like us, move by choice—our three-bedroom townhome with no yard had become inadequate for our four small children. Others, like the family of six across the . . . . Continue Reading »
Leon Kass, best known for his work in the field of bioethics, including his service on President Bush’s Council, has established himself also as a formidable interpreter of the Bible. In 2003, he published his commentary on the Book of Genesis, a volume that gathered accolades from many reviewers. . . . . Continue Reading »
Seder Night, the lengthy ritualistic meal of the first night of Passover, is considered one of the most important events in the Jewish calendar. Mark Gerson’s new work underscores—with great panache and enthusiasm—perhaps the most underappreciated facet of the evening: the . . . . Continue Reading »
Pour la canaille, il faut la mitraille: For the rabble use the grapeshot, the Duke reportedly said of an Irish mob. No, not John Wayne (“The Duke”), but the Duke of Wellington. In America today, we often hear of two mobs, antifa and the deplorables. One mob is praised and encouraged by . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
