The Politics of the Pro-Life Movement
A few years ago I wrote something of an irenic essay on the annual, January, March for Life in Washington DC. I was in...
Patmore: Prophetic Political Pessimist (and Localist?)
“Nations die of softening of the brain, which, for a long time, passes for softening of the heart.”
“Democracy is only a continually shifting aristocracy...
Witchcraft in Church? Against Glamorous Worship
Recently, our local Trappist Monastery, the Abbey of the Genesee, unveiled a renovation of the sanctuary of the Abbey church. To the shock of some...
Apocalypticism for Porchers
If it's your thing -- and it's certainly not everybody's thing -- it's not a bad time to be an apocalypticist.
A few weeks ago,...
Three Conceptions: Laschian, Romantic, and Immaculate
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home
-- "Intimations of Immortality," William...
Archimedean Points, Above and Below
“To the famous Archimedean boast: ‘Give me whereon to stand and I will move the world.’. Rabelais answers: ‘I move with my ship; and...
The Ailing Parson Malthus Project and the “New Sin of Pride”
Anyone who's had the good fortune to spend time reading Christopher Lasch might be able to identify with the specific experience of risable joy...
Vulgar Adolescent Bigness Fetishizers
I reflected what a Mortification it must prove to me to appear as inconsiderable in this Nation as one single Lilliputian would be among...
Gravity’s Rainbow
If a rainbow is a symbol of hope, there's a bright 'bow in the sky' to be found in Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity. And, just...
On the Localism of the Spheres
I have a friend who is a cloistered Trappist monk and his current obsession is the ‘outer’ and decidedly non-sedentary goal of running a...