I have just been re-reading an old book. Not old in the sense of its being 18th century — it is Dacre Balsdon’s Oxford Life, which came out in the early 1950s. One does not have to have been a scholar or a commoner at one of the colleges in Oxford in order to find … Read more
In this Crisis Magazine classic, Peter Kreeft outlines a three step plan for winning the culture war, and it doesn’t require money, power, or the media. To win any war, the three most necessary things to know are (1) that you are at war, (2) who your enemy is, and (3) what weapons … Read more
Most of us have had conversations with friends regarding the hot-button topics of abortion, same-sex unions, or euthanasia. Is there anyone who has not heard the justification, “Well, I just feel that . . .”? It reminds one of the lyrics from an old Elvis tune: “If it feels so right, how can it be … Read more
"Exodus" is the Greek name for the second book of the Bible. In Hebrew, it is called the Book of Names. That’s because, like Catholic encyclicals, the Hebrew books of the Bible are titled by the opening words of the book: "These are the names . . . ." It is fitting that … Read more
On New Year’s Eve, my best friend and I went to a bonfire. We’ve done this for the past couple of years: You’re supposed to throw a note or representation of some unwanted aspect of the old year into the flames. But this year the wind was up, and the bonfire roared, sweeping toward delightedly … Read more
If I were asked to summarize the typical cultural narrative of Christianity to which the average Westerner holds, it would be something like this: “Jesus was a good man who taught us to love each other, but tragically he was killed (nobody really knows why, but it probably had something to do with “religious conservatives” … Read more
When Mary and Joseph found Jesus in the temple discussing with the elders the ancient law of Israel, they did not understand what they had seen, nor what He meant when He said, “Did you not know that I must be about my father’s business?” Yet we are told that His mother “kept all these … Read more
Five-hundred people were turned away from the “Pro-Life Summit to End Abortion” held by Dr. Monica M. Miller this past weekend in Ann Arbor, MI. Most of the 500 who did have tickets made it to Christ the King Church in spite of the ten inches of snow that started falling Saturday morning. It’s been … Read more
I once said that I’d die to keep abortion legal and easily accessible, and I meant it. I was vehemently pro-choice, as were most of the women in my social circles. We believed abortion was a critical right for women and could not imagine how anyone could be pro-life. We were products of a culture … Read more
“He has remembered His promise of mercy,” sang Mary, in a rapture of praise as she greeted her cousin Elizabeth, “the promise He made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever” (Lk 1:54-55). “Remember me, Lord,” said the thief to Jesus, “when you come into your kingdom” (Lk 23:42). God sees all things … Read more
The Catholic faith has always taught that sexual relations between two consenting married heterosexual adult human beings not already related by blood are not just good but sacramental. We got rid of the Catholic faith and assumed that would continue as the norm. Then racism got into it, and nutty racists developed a nutty theory … Read more
We Catholics are commonly urged to “engage the culture”; not to flee for monasteries of our own making, but to work within the institutions of mass media, mass education, mass marketing, and mass entertainment to advance the banners of Christ, our King. I do not wish to criticize those who toil at that thankless task. … Read more
One of the great strengths of the Roman Republic was its courageous realism. When Hannibal defeated the Romans in the first great encounter between the two armies, a battle in northern Italy, the leaders of the city called the people together to give them the news, and the opening words of the announcement were these: … Read more
When St. Thomas More was led to the scaffold at the Tower of London, he joked to his executioner: "Please help me safely up. For coming down, I’ll cope by myself." The British sense of humor is one of the things that, unlike our cooking, has generally given pleasure to the world. And … Read more
As I write this, Sen. John McCain is edging closer to Sen. Barack Obama in the national polls. Whether this will translate into enough votes to win battleground states like Pennsylvania, Florida, and Ohio is still a long shot. But whatever happens on November 4, a major shake-up in the GOP is a certainty. Dana … Read more
Jesus famously said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you as well.” Elsewhere, He restated this principle using a different image and adding a negative corollary: Take heed what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more … Read more
As angry as many people were about the bailout of Wall Street, something else makes people just about as angry: falling stock prices. It is probably for this reason that Washington decided to take the risk and push one of the more outrageously extravagant spending programs in the history of the world. The benefits of … Read more
There is an elderly man in our parish whose self-appointed mission during Mass is to angrily harass any parent who dares to linger in the apse of the church for a second after his or her child begins to fuss. It’s discouraging to see this sort of behavior in a parish with so many … Read more
I’ve always loved this funny little tune from Chaucer’s day called “Sumer is icumen in.” Joyful and ebullient, it was doubtless sung by many an English peasant out sweating in the field and is full of the solid earthy, good humor of a people who were closely bound to the land. For them, one of … Read more
Recently, the influential German philosopher Jürgen Habermas spoke of the emergence of a “post-secular” society. It had long been thought that as societies grew in technological and economic power, and as the risks of daily life that had been so common for generations faded beneath the safety of plentiful food, a social welfare system, and … Read more
With so much happening in the Church right now, we are hard at work drawing out the battle plans so we can keep the faithful informed—but we need to know who we have on our side. Do you stand with Crisis Magazine?