Can we talk about Carrie Prejean? Over the past several weeks, it has been perfectly impossible to avoid hearing the latest news about Miss California. I know because I have tried. First, there was the media coverage of her “controversial” statement that marriage is a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman. I bumped … Read more
This month’s column is more of a list than a series of reviews. I mean to arm you with unassailable enjoyment for the lazy, sunny season. If only I can control my logorrhea! Faithful readers may recall that I was somewhat put off by Charles Mackerras’s unrelenting breakneck speeds in his traversal of the … Read more
“Health,” said a very bright and good-natured colleague of mine, “seems absolutely necessary for human flourishing. After all, if you don’t have your health, you can’t very well contribute your talents to the community.” Most of the other members of our seminar agreed. That in itself was illuminating, because we didn’t agree on a … Read more
Every day in the Great Hall of one of my schools I ate, or tried to dine, before a large fireplace carved with William of Wykeham’s motto, "Manners Makyth Man." In another of my colleges, a Victorian alumnus had endowed a "Manners Makyth Man Award" for that member of the senior class who … Read more
It could be said that the pun is mightier than the sword. If this is true, then wordplay may be as important as swordplay in the never ending wars between the dark powers of the underworld and the light of Christ. So this essay on the brilliantly annoying style of G. K. … Read more
Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir Christopher Buckley, Twelve, 272 pages, $24.99 And Noah, a farmer, planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became drunk and was uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Cannan, saw his father uncovered and he denounced him to his two brothers outside. And Shen and … Read more
The global warming theory holds that certain gases are accumulating in the atmosphere. These so-called greenhouse gases essentially trap heat in, resulting in a slight increase in temperatures around the world. The most significant greenhouse gas is water vapor, but most political debate is focused on carbon dioxide (CO2). It has been hard to justify … Read more
To say that a 21- or 22-year-old has “completed” his education seems odd. Several years ago, my brother and his wife invited some guests over. One mistakenly asked me, in my brother’s hearing, about my “background.” I explained that I graduated from high school in 1945, spent a semester at Santa Clara, then a year … Read more
In this Crisis Magazine classic, Thomas E. Woods, Jr. cuts through secular nonsense about religion’s alleged threat to civilization and progress. It’s the same argument we’ve heard so many times before, except now with increasing frequency and intensity: The world’s troubles are caused by religion. If only people would at last abandon these … Read more
If you are one of the very few people left who has not viewed the video of Susan Boyle singing “I Dreamed a Dream” on Britain‘s Got Talent, then you must do so immediately, or nothing I have to say will stick to your soul. If you are one of the tens of millions who … Read more
Celebrities do it. Bloggers do it. Politicians do it. And everyday Catholics do it, too. It’s Twitter, of course. Do you tweet? Do you twitter? Do you spend time with tweeple in the twitterverse? Do you have any idea what I am talking about? As a writer and a blogger, I started … Read more
I am drowning in a flood of delightful new releases that will enrich your spring listening. However, this month I will concentrate on several outstanding 20th-century symphonic cycles. First, a complete set of Rued Langgaard’s 16 symphonies on the Dacapo label in wonderful sound, with gripping performances by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, under … Read more
In this Crisis Magazine classic, painter and art critic Maureen Mullarkey argues that there’s no such thing as uniquely “Catholic art.” Is there a uniquely Catholic approach to art? What is legitimate Catholic art? How can a Catholic make a significant difference in the artistic community? How should Catholics approach secular art? What might … Read more
Christians have the obligation to be stewards over all of creation, including the beasts. Unfortunately, those who are currently promoting the “rights” of animals are, intentionally or otherwise, undermining their own — and our — human dignity. To put the problem in a nutshell, “The more we treat animals like humans, the easier it will … Read more
It happens to most of us who like classic art: You’re reading an article about some contemporary artist who’s making millions selling “art” made from rumpled beds, carved-up corpses, or human waste, and you ask yourself, why? Why can’t art be heroic and life-inspiring? Why does art have to degrade and shock? And what is … Read more
I was instructing some eighth graders on the sacrament of marriage some time ago, and they wanted to know why it was wrong to live together with someone before marriage. I explained about the sacredness of the marriage act, but one girl insisted, “But what if you just live with a guy, but you’re not … Read more
In recent years, the phrase “Catholic writer” has become highly problematic. Some bestow it like a laurel on the brow of anyone who writes about pious Catholics who manage, through thick and thin, to follow all the rules. Others use the label in a nostalgic (and laudable) quest to find the next O’Connor, Percy, or … Read more
Was it Oscar Wilde who remarked that life imitates art? Whoever said it, the University of Notre Dame campus is living proof that it’s so. Just look at those trees. Last time I visited Notre Dame it was June. The weather was splendid, with that crystalline splendor that only June — no longer tremulous spring, … Read more
Pro-life Catholics fall into two camps on the issue of abortion: those who see it first and foremost as an individual moral failing, and those who consider it primarily a social moral failing. There is nothing mutually exclusive about the two positions, of course, but that isn’t the problem. The real issue here is … Read more
Flannery: A Life of Flannery O’Connor Brad Gooch; Little, Brown & Company; 464 pages; $30 Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Flannery O’Connor is that she is fascinating at all. Compared to other 20th-century literary figures, she lived a dull life. She never lost her mind. She didn’t sleep around. She didn’t have a drinking … Read more
