Here is another excellent review of Flannery O’Connor’s Prayer Journal, in Slate, of all places. It’s by Marian Ryan, who begins by saying how she does not believe in God. In addition to her thorough account of the book, with fascinating and judiciously chosen quotations,
One of my many interests is classical education, on the elementary, secondary, and collegiate level. A more common name for the classical education philosophy is “liberal arts,” a designation that refers not to progressive politicians but to the Latin word for freedom. The “liberal arts”
Obamacare train wreck update: First of all, the efforts to fix Healthcare.gov will not meet their end-of-the-month deadline for fixing the site. Second, the numbers have been released for how many people have signed up for Obamacare insurance exchanges. It turns out that far more
There are lots more Lutherans than Calvinists. And Calvinism has all of those scary doctrines like double predestination and the limited atonement, whereas Lutheranism is, well, happier, with its emphasis on the certainty of grace, Christian freedom, and its affirmation of the secular realm as
Speaking of Flannery O’Connor, her prayer journal has just been published, dating from her grad school days studying creative writing at the University of Iowa. Her reflections on writing, her thoughts on her vocation as a writer, and her love of God are stunning. After
The recent elections herald a political shift in America to the left. So says liberal columnist E.J. Dionne Jr., citing the overall defeat of Tea Party candidates, the victory of the pro-gun control, pro-abortion Terry McAuliffe in once-conservative Virginia, the “new progressivism” of New York’s
Calvinist theologian Peter Leithhart is calling for “The End of Protestantism.” It should be replaced, he says, by “Reformational Catholicism,” which he goes on to describe. Much of what he is calling for sounds like Lutheranism. Is it? His essay and questions from me after
Our discussion of the brutality of the NFL reminded me of the good friend of St. Augustine, Alypius, who was a fan of the gladiator games. In his efforts to pursue virtue, he knew that taking pleasure in other men’s suffering and inflicting suffering was
The most serious aspect of the Obamacare trainwreck, if it holds up: According to a Gallup poll, 78% of Americans who do not have health insurance say that they will NOT sign up for Obamacare. (more…)
Today is the feast day of St. Martin of Tours, which is appropriate since he–an ex-Roman soldier who became a heretic-fighting bishop– is the patron saint of soldiers and this is Veterans Day. Nice how that worked out, since St. Martin’s day has been observed
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