THE ANTLIZT: March 7, 2018

A curated selection of articles of interest from the past two weeks related to Christianity and culture.

News et cetera       

Cosmic dawn: astronomers detect signals from first stars in the universe. [Guardian]

A generation emerging from the wreckage. “It’s not that the students are hopeless. They are dedicating their lives to social change. It’s just that they have trouble naming institutions that work.” [NYT]

Jordan Peterson’s gospel of masculinity. [New Yorker]

Joy’s Mysteries: on Christian Wiman’s new poetry anthology on joy. “Since at least the psychological pronouncements of Thomas Hobbes, our culture has granted a wider span to fear and suffering than to love and joy.” [Law and Liberty]

Can there be good porn? A porn star advocates for creating “good” porn. Warning: some sensitive content – this is about porn. [NYT]

Rod Dreher on Christian life in exile. An interview with a British vicar: “I strongly encourage US Christians to pay close attention to what he says. What British Christians are living with today, American Christians will almost certainly be living with tomorrow. We have the advantage of time to prepare — though not much of it.” [The American Conservative]

Rick Warren says revival won’t come until the American church addresses racism. [Relevant]

Ta-Nahesi Coates: “Why I’m writing Captain America. And why it scars the hell out of me.” [Atlantic]

N.T. Wright’s 2018 Gifford Lectures are now available online.

Kevin Love, player for Cleveland Cavalier’s and NBA all-star, talks about his recent panic attack. “Everyone is going through something that we can’t see.” [Players’ Tribune]

Has dopamine got us hooked on tech? “Silicon Valley is keen to exploit the brain chemical credited with keeping us tapping on apps and social media” [Guardian]

Take your time: the seven pillars of a Slow Thought manifesto [Aeon]

Music

The bracing sorrow of Sufjan Steven’s Oscars performance. This author appreciated Suf’s performance more than I did. I don’t know… I just expected more from an ensemble that boasts the likes of Chris Thile and St. Vincent. Still worth a listen…and a read.