by Chuck Colson – The next election should be all about the economy, right? Wrong in spades! During the seemingly endless build-up to the Iowa caucuses, there was one consistent refrain repeated over and over. It’s like the big lie — the more you keep repeating it, the more people are going to believe it, … Read more
by Bruce Walker – On January 2, Alan Colmes on Fox News mocked presidential hopeful Rick Santorum and Santorum’s wife for bringing their critically ill newborn son, Gabriel, into the world and then bringing him home. Gabriel died 16 years ago, and Karen Santorum wrote a heartrending book, Letters to Gabriel, which describes how the … Read more
by Tom Gilson – Let’s Just Reduce Our Altruism, Morals & Love to Brain Waves I opened up “The End of Morality,” Discover magazine’s latest article on ethics and the brain (July/August 2011), and I wondered, “Will this be any different from the others?” Articles on this topic seem to follow a consistent pattern: (1) … Read more
by Fr. John S. Bakas – I teach one class per semester at the Loyola Marymount University School of Theology. In the fall I teach a course on Orthodox Christian Spirituality. I start and end my class with prayer since prayer is the essence of Orthodox spirituality. I don’t insist that anyone pray along with … Read more
by Peggy Noonan – The great words of the year? “Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.” They are the last words of Steve Jobs, reported by his sister, the novelist Mona Simpson, who was at his bedside. In her eulogy, a version of which was published in the New York Times, she spoke of how … Read more
by John Jalsevac – The song “God Bless the USA” is often still sung at commemorative events surrounding national days of remembrance, like the Fourth of July or Veterans’ Day. But, like with “The Star-Spangled Banner,” the true meaning behind the vaunted words of this American doxology has been lost. More importantly, the claims made … Read more
by John Jalsevac – Christmas isn’t quite what it used to be, is it? And I’m not referring the usual laundry list of grievances that makes us religious fundamentalist extremists (i.e. Christians) seriously ponder setting up a utopian commune on a deserted Mediterranean island: the war on Christmas, the kitschy music, the consumerist madness, the … Read more
by Rev. Robert A. Sirico – In a Christmas season filled with noble sentiments such as “peace on earth and goodwill to men,” the remembrance of the joys and sanctity of the family, and the deep human desire for tranquility of heart, how is it that this is arguably the period of deepest tension, family … Read more
by Mark D. Tooley – The multiculturalist Left wants to dilute Christmas into a vacuous, stern celebration of Winter, divorced from culture and religion. Not content with banning crèches, trees and carols, anti-Christmas zealots are often even threatened by Santa Claus. The transcendent authority behind Christmas, even in its commercialized form, is an unwanted challenge … Read more
by David Chilton – Every year about this time, there rises a hue and cry about the “commercialization” of Christmas, accompanied by impassioned pleas to get back to the “real meaning” of the celebration. Too much time and money, we hear, are spent on the public side of the holiday — the hustle and bustle … Read more