C.S. Lewis possessed an immense personality, the kind of personality that affected not only those around him, but also all those who came after him. Full of charisma and brilliance, he both attracted loyal friends and made bitter enemies wherever he went. Strangely enough, I didn’t come to C.S. Lewis as a person or as [...]
No matter how corrupt and bleak and depressing the world may appear, we can always turn to the many Cecilias of the world and see the goodness that is possible through grace and love. Properly remembered, these true symbols and true myths can re-orient our souls, our cultures, and perhaps even the world itself toward [...]
The Great War destroyed much the Inklings had held true, personally and culturally. Each lost friends, and each felt the guilt that any survivor of a war feels. Many of them refused to talk about their own experiences, for good or ill. J.R.R. Tolkien, perhaps, provides the best example. Though not the best-known Inkling, Adam [...]
Saint Augustine was the first Christian to offer a comprehensive Philosophy of History, which the Russian Orthodox writer Nicholas Berdyaev called nothing short of “ingenious.”[1] One of his greatest accomplishments was the sanctification of Plato’s understanding of the two realms: the perfect Celestial Kingdom and the corrupt copy. One finds this tension and conflict between [...]
Grace alone determines whether we go to Heaven or Hell. But our good works determine whether we go through purgation or not, en route to Heaven. November 2 is the feast of All Souls. The point of the day is to remember those who have gone before us—but not necessarily the saints (those in Heaven). [...]
However we choose to look at it, October thrills and titillates each of our senses and reaches into the very depths of our suspect souls, whether we actually encounter the dead or merely imagine their various states of being. Oh, the blessings of October, my favorite month. As far back as I can remember, in [...]
Challenging a number of schools of thought in economics and political philosophy, Andrew Willard Jones in his book, "The Church Against the State," presents an unapologetically Catholic and specifically Thomist view of the world and, in particular, of America. Jones argues that America, in her own unique fashion, blends that which is venerable and ancient [...]
The curtain between the world of the living and that of the dead was for Russell Kirk truly thin, as evidenced in his scholarly work and in his fiction. A ghost, as Kirk understood it, was a soul trapped between physical and eternal existence. The curtain between the world of the living and of the [...]
Christopher Columbus wielded a strong mystical side, believing that he was acting as the right hand of Providence. So, some public statues are still coming down, but nowhere nearly as violently or as frequently as they were toppled last year. Indeed, 2020 was one of the most violent years I can remember, comparable to the [...]
We modern defenders of the liberal arts have to choose between Socrates’ vision and Cicero’s vision: Are we citizens of a particular soil and a particular place, or are we connected—across time and space—to all good men and God? A few weeks ago, I had the grand privilege of attending a Liberty Fund conference on [...]
Understood properly, October purges us of our follies and reminds us that death hovers just in front of us. It reminds us that we always stand in time, but at the very edge of eternity. The autumnal coolness—just on the edge of the dying summer—is in the air, and it feels good. Very cool, very [...]
What Willa Cather did in "O, Pioneers!" was create an American Myth, the difficult—slow but steady—story of a pioneer, a Swedish woman, Alexandra, who yearns to love the land and succeeds in doing so. Every once in a while, slow and steady wins the race. One of America’s greatest literary regionalists, Nebraskan Willa Cather (1873-1947), [...]
When it comes to considering America’s greatest writers, it would be foolish to ignore Willa Cather as a contender. Indeed, it is quite possible that her 1925 novel, Death Comes for the Archbishop is the great American novel, rivaling anything that came before or since. Yet, Cather was consistent. While not at the level of Death Comes, her 1913 O Pioneers and [...]
As the man pleaded his case, Father Maximilian Kolbe came forward and offered his life for the one pleading. The German commandant of Auschwitz—probably rather shocked—agreed, and Kolbe, with nine others, stripped naked and entered the concrete bunker. As Hillsdale students approach my desk on the fourth floor of Delp Hall, several things stand or [...]