Short 494

“Conscience and Resistance.” Earlier this year, Scott Russell Sanders described the profound effect that Thomas Merton had on his life: “Beginning with ‘Rain and the Rhinoceros,’ his work has helped…

“A Clearing.” The Hudson Review published a new short story by Wendell Berry, narrated by Andy Catlett. “On the Front Porch, Black Life in Full View.” Audra D. S. Burch…

“A Grave Climate Warning, Buried on Black Friday.” In the “news that isn’t news” category, Robinson Meyer summarizes the National Climate Assessment. It’s not a cheery picture. “Tallgrass.” Robin Wall…

"The Evolution of René Girard.” In this excerpt from her new intellectual biography of Girard, Cynthia L. Haven synthesizes the key aspects of his one great insight. “Deneen Among the…

“Inhuman Communication: Søren Kierkegaard Versus the Internet.” Patrick Stokes draws on the Danish philosopher to gain insight into our digital media ecosystem: “According to Kierkegaard, … the media ― his…

“Wild and Domestic.” Wendell Berry writes in Orion Magazine about this odd binary: "With only a little self-knowledge and a little sitting still and looking, the conventional perspective of wild…

“Percy and the Persistence of Alienation.” Emina Melonic reviews Brian Smith’s Walker Percy and the Politics of the Wayfarer, arguing that Percy’s definition of the human as wayfarer has much…

Next week, citizens around the country will have the opportunity to vote in the most expensive midterm elections in US history. This depressing waste of money has been going on…

“Corporate Progressivism.” Patrick Deneen reviews Darel Paul’s From Tolerance to Equality: How Elites Brought America to Same-Sex Marriage. Here’s a taste: There is a striking alignment between this progressive valorization…

“Politics as the New Religion for Progressive Democrats.” Emma Green reports on a new poll gauging voter engagement: “Religiously unaffiliated voters, who may or may not be associated with other…

“US Plan to Genetically Alter Crops via Insects Feared to be Biological War Plan.” Erin Durkin reports that “Government-backed researchers in America are aiming to use virus-carrying insects to genetically…

“Wendell Berry’s Right Kind of Farming.” Gracy Olmstead interviews Wendell Berry for the New York Times. “Gardeners and Pilgrims: Reviving Place in the Christian Imagination.” Wilfred M. McClay writes a…

“Magnolia Silos to Host Church Under The Bridge during I-35 Work.” Mike Copeland narrates a unique church’s temporary relocation. Having attended Church Under the Bridge, I can attest that it’s…

Thanks to all those who joined us for a provocative and convivial gathering this past Saturday. Even though it wasn’t live-tweeted (or perhaps because it wasn’t live-tweeted), we had a…

“Evoking a Life of Shalom.” Allan F. Brooke II reviews FPR’s recent book Telling the Stories Right: Wendell Berry’s Imagination of Port William, concluding: Telling the Stories Right collects a…

“Living with Integrity.” Comment Magazine has a new issue out that focuses on how liberal individualism has perhaps warped our understanding of integrity. Along with some excellent essays, it includes…

“Restoring Appalachia.” McKay Jenkins writes about different ways that residents of coal-country are trying to grow food, make money, and restore the damaged ecosystem: “Making a living without coal means…

“How Civil Must America Be? Americans care about being nice. How do we disagree with our neighbors about guns?” Jacqui Shine visits Grinnell, Iowa, home to a liberal arts college,…

“The Unlikely Activists Who Took On Silicon Valley—and Won.” Nicholas Confessore tells the story of how a real estate investor convinced California to pass a data privacy law despite the…

Those of you traveling from out of town to the FPR conference should be aware that the hotel will release any unbooked rooms on Friday, August 24th from the block they…

Via The Washington Post, a profile of the quiet, deeply local, exceptionally frugal, profoundly humble life lived by the only actual small-c "conservative" to have been elected President of the…

“Monsanto Ordered to Pay $289m as Jury Rules Weedkiller Cause of Man’s Cancer.” Sam Levin reports on the remarkable finding of a San Francisco jury against Monsanto. Obviously this verdict…

“Simone Weil’s Deeper Grace.” Scott Beauchamp explains why Simone Weil is such a necessary thinker for us to listen to. Keep an eye out for my review, coming Monday, of…

“Restoring Localism.” Joel Kotkin claims that if there’s one thing both conservatives and progressives should be able to agree on, it is the need to devolve power to local governments:…