But the fact that silenced and marginalized church-goers actually constitute a majority only makes the process by which they are denied their full democratic liberties all the more insidious. For those in doubt as to how this process works, California has provided a prime illustration: through a costly and bruising electoral fight, defenders of natural … Read more
Those advocating the radical social innovation, which they label “same-sex” or “gay” marriage, typically claim that they are fighting for freedom, championing a basic liberty. “Freedom to Marry” is indeed the name of a national organization devoted to the advocacy of same-sex marriage. Established in 2003 by civil-rights advocate Evan Wolfson and headquartered in New … Read more
“We live in an age that is frightened by the very idea of certitude,” Richard Weaver observed in 1984. Insofar as the certitude to which Weaver referred was spiritual and religious, he was right. Since the late 1800s, the ascendant belief has been that “progress demand[s] life in the tentative mood, incessantly questioning,” according to … Read more
Are there any universities in America today? The question should not come as an old idle one to anyone familiar with the Victorian classic The Idea of a University, written in 1854 by Father John Henry Newman (thereafter to become Cardinal Newman). Even to read the first page of Newman’s profound definition of what a … Read more
Twice in this century, conflicts between scientists and religionists have gained national attention in trials focusing on public-school policy. The first instance was the Scopes trial in 1925 over the teaching of Darwinian evolution in Tennessee. The second occurred in the so-called Scopes II Trial of 1982 over the teaching of creationism in Arkansas. Many … Read more