Senator Sasse’s Missing Pronouns

Senator Sasse’s Missing Pronouns 1

In our polarized nation, an “us versus them” scenario naturally arises. We are not supposed to frame the debate in this way. “Us” should refer to all Americans. “Them” is a term that is better not used at all. This is the central message of Sen. Ben Sasse’s new book, Them: Why We Hate … Read more

Dodging Bullets While Saving Souls

Dodging Bullets While Saving Souls 2

Heroic Catholic Chaplains: Stories of the Brave and Holy Men Who Dodged Bullets While Saving Souls by Thomas J. Craughwell – TAN Books (195 pages) “There are no atheists in a foxhole.” This catchphrase has been attributed to many authors, which is often the case for pithy phrases that tell great truths. … Read more

Why We Must Resist Islam

Why We Must Resist Islam

Islam and the Suicide of the West: The Origin, Doctrine, and Goals of Islam, Luiz Sérgio Solimeo   Every year, the nation remembers the terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center on 9/11. This event is carved deeply into the American psyche. Yet in these commemorations, the media give us terribly … Read more

Becoming Acquainted With a Great Man of God

Becoming Acquainted With a Great Man of God 1

  A Review of the Book Pius IX by Roberto de Mattei (Leominster, England: Gracewing, September 2004) Today’s problems often seem to be the worst ever faced by the human race. Thus, it is easy to be overwhelmed by focusing on the division, apostacy, scandal, and confusion of the current age. One … Read more

Trying to Control the Church by Changing the Words

Trying to Control the Church by Changing the Words

  A Pastoral Revolution: Six Talismanic Words in the Ecclesial Debate on the Family, Guido Vignelli   Language changes over time, so the linguists say. Many changes creep in as people use and reuse a word over centuries. Sometimes, though, a change in meaning is quite deliberate. That is the topic of … Read more

“Paradigm Shift”–A Critical Assessment of the Francis Pontificate

“Paradigm Shift”–A Critical Assessment of the Francis Pontificate 1

  Pope Francis’s “Paradigm Shift”: Continuity or Rupture in the Mission of the Church? An Assessment of His Pontificate’s First Five Years.   Pope Francis places Catholics in a dilemma. Many have the very understandable, indeed holy, desire to obey the Successor of Saint Peter. At the same time, Pope Francis seems … Read more

Finding the Beauty of the Church and the Route Back Home

Finding the Beauty of the Church and the Route Back Home 3

The late-nineteenth-century conversion story, En Route, by J. K. Huysmans is a book that penetrates deeply into the mind of the reader. It is an autobiographical yet fictional account of the return journey to the Church of a famous French art critic and novelist in decadent Paris. The book has weathered well … Read more

Lighting the Way to a Life That Makes Sense

Lighting the Way to a Life That Makes Sense

The new book Lighting the Way: Stories that Show How Our Culture Went Wrong and How We Can Restore Order is a collection of stories arranged to illustrate an idea. The idea is that of the organic Christian society. That is an unfamiliar idea to many, although we live in and around … Read more

The Advantage of Keeping the Economy Human

The Advantage of Keeping the Economy Human 2

Some people think of the new automated economy in terrifying and mechanical terms. In such a vision, machines reign supreme as they work tirelessly, silently and efficiently to maximize production and replace humans. Increasing automation will soon put tens of millions out of work and change lives for the worst. Indeed, people … Read more