By many accounts the rise to prominence of institutions other than the church or the state marks the transition from the medieval to the modern era. Even so, it is true that many Protestant reformers considered the right balance of the relations between church and state to be of first importance in . . . . Continue Reading »
I’m often asked by students, “Where’s a good place to study theology?” It’s not an easy question to answer. Lots of places have strengths¯and they also have weaknesses. More importantly, the most appropriate school has a lot to do with the student. Interests, . . . . Continue Reading »
As a lawyer and judge, my understanding of the Bible has naturally become colored by my experiences in, and knowledge of, the law and the legal system. Thus, in meditating on the gospel accounts of Christ’s interaction with Pontius Pilate, my focus in recent years has been on Pilate’s role as . . . . Continue Reading »
When the brewing financial crisis erupted into full boil last fall, I was reading Dante’s Divine Comedy for the first time. Being a banking law professor, I couldn’t help but speculate about which circle of hell Dante would have found most appropriate for the various actors in the . . . . Continue Reading »
During the Passover Seder, Jews recite the following verse from Jeremiah 10:25: “Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not know you and on the families that do not call your name; For they have devoured Jacob; they have devoured him and consumed him and have laid waste his . . . . Continue Reading »
Consider the following statements: Neil Armstrong never landed on the moon but was bouncing around in a TV studio on July 20, 1969, with Walter Cronkite in a nearby booth to report on the alleged event. The baby baptized as William Shakespeare on April 26, 1564 in Stratford-on-Avon grew up . . . . Continue Reading »
Sometimes the translation of a tragedy can itself be tragic. A fatal flaw undermines an otherwise promising work, whisking away the greatness it might attain. Such is the case for Anne Carson’s An Oresteia .The an is there because this is not a translation of Aeschylus’ famous trilogy. . . . . Continue Reading »
In his celebrated Christian allegory The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe , C.S. Lewis represents evil’s hold on the world with the image of an enduring winter—Narnia under the power of the White Witch, who makes it “always winter and never Christmas.” According to prophecies, the coming of . . . . Continue Reading »
Journalist William Saletan thinks he has come up with a novel, “common ground” idea for ending the culture war over abortion: Pro-choicers¯and especially the Pro-Choicer-in-Chief¯must begin to really preach contraception. “Conservatives,” on the other hand, “must . . . . Continue Reading »
Within the next month or so, Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) will introduce a bill in the Senate that does two things: (1) Closes off a loophole in the existing law that permitted “transplant tourism”¯desperate Americans seeking transplants overseas in often substandard medical . . . . Continue Reading »
Subscribe
Latest Issue
Support First Things
