Dante’s “Divine Comedy” is often taught poorly, if even taught at all. At the root of the problem is the tendency to remain trapped in hell, never venturing forth into purgatory and paradise. This is a consequence of the way that Dante has been taught for decades—indeed, for centuries. Lovers of the Great Books argue [...]
I recognize G.K. Chesterton as a guide who led me from the doldrums of disbelief into the glorious light of the Gospel. Unbeknownst to me, the gloom in my prison cell was the gloaming of a new day in which the Son would rise, Easter-like, in my soul. The debt I owe to him is [...]
We must not invest in the transient things of this world, the very worst of investments, but in the everlasting things of heaven. If we fight the long defeat with the things of heaven in mind, we will attain the final victory. It is this final victory that represents, for each of us, the final [...]
The American College of the Building Arts (ACBA) is unlike any college that I know. Indeed it is the only school in the entire country offering a four-year degree in traditional craftsmanship. “Along with pens, paper, books, and computers, students here learn with trowels, chisels, hammers, and anvils,” writes Logan Ward in Garden & Gun. [...]
It is inadequate to describe Mel Gibson’s masterpiece, “The Passion of the Christ,” as a film; it is much more than that. It would be more accurate to describe it as a moving icon. It calls us to prayer and leads us to the contemplation that takes us into the presence of Christ Himself. It’s [...]
It is necessary for President Vladimir Putin to restore his previous and proper focus on what it means to be Russian in the twenty-first century. At the heart of this healthy focus is the absolute necessity of Russia separating herself psychologically from the Soviet Union. On January 27, 1945, advancing Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz concentration [...]
John Henry Newman was born in 1801, at the beginning of a century that would see the rise of skepticism in matters of religion. Yet, simultaneously, it was a century which would see a real revival of religious orthodoxy. With respect to the latter, Newman himself might be seen as the most important and influential [...]
We no longer speak the same language because we no longer know which language to speak. What is safe? What is acceptable? What might cause offence? What might get us “cancelled”? Several years ago, some Hispanic friends told me of a grimly humorous and yet possibly threatening incident on the Metro in Washington DC. They [...]
The taking up of our own individual crosses is the debt we owe, not merely for the gift of life we’ve been given but for the gift of life which Christ gives us in His act of love upon the cross. Life is lent to us, but the reality of the debt is accepted and [...]
At the heart of John Senior’s vision for the humanities was a Thomistic understanding of the path of true perception. St. Thomas taught that humility opens the eyes of wonder, and that it is wonder that leads to contemplation and to the dilation of the mind and soul into the fullness of the presence of [...]
Unlike the possession of many things, which may prove perilous to the mind and the soul, the possession of more words only makes us richer. The wealth that words bestow upon us is the power to better understand who we are and where we fit into the wider scheme of things: our purpose and our [...]
One thing that is abundantly evident from the demands for the cancellation of Shakespeare in public schools is that none of those demanding his removal from the curriculum have been able to read or understand his work. Had they been able to do so, they would know that Shakespeare’s plays show us relevant, perennial truths. [...]
After Ireland has fought for centuries to gain her national sovereignty, her sons have given it away all too cheaply, surrendering sovereignty to the European Union, an imperial power which is hostile to the Faith. The sons have not merely strayed away from their Mother but have betrayed her with a Judas kiss. “When I [...]
New, sanitized editions of Mark Twain’s classic novel “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” airbrush out offensive or racist language. But should words that are offensive or potentially offensive to modern readers be removed from great books? Totalitarian regimes have certain traits in common, irrespective of whether they are considered “socialist,” “national socialist,” “fascist,” or “communist.” One [...]