Last month I noted that modern people are impressed by the power of technology, industrial organization, and the managerial state. The resulting emphasis on man’s power over things has led people to view the social […]
God’s unity and simplicity mean that for Him truth, justice, and power are all the same. He isn’t conflicted, doesn’t do half-measures, and never loses. The evident reality of falsehood and injustice makes that hard […]
We live in a society that has become increasingly divided. On one side we have technocrats. These include the rich, powerful, and well-positioned, as well as the ambitious and credentialed people who serve and want […]
People have become extraordinarily anxious. The situation is most extreme among political progressives. Surveys show that political and social attitudes among conservatives have mostly been rather stable in recent years, but among liberals they have been […]
A couple of months ago I reviewed R.R. Reno’s book Return of the Strong Gods, in which the author calls for strengthening the loves and loyalties that hold Western societies together. At the end of […]
Methods of communication have huge social effects. Before the written word people lived tribally. All communication was word-of-mouth, and social order was personal, local, and traditional. Religion was myth, custom, and folklore. Among the Old […]
Many people today, especially conservatives and Christians, find it alarming that basic human connections and loyalties keep weakening in favor of impersonal economic and administrative arrangements. The tendency has been going on for a long […]
My monthly column is called “Ecclesia et Civitas” because it mostly has to do with the relation between the Church and the secular community. That’s a hard topic to get a handle on. We are […]
Last month I commented on Catholicism and nationality. My basic point was that the existence of particular peoples is a natural and beneficial part of human life that should be respected. That point is often […]
Identity is basic to how people think about themselves. Am I a man or woman? Father or son? Catholic or Muslim? American or Japanese? Such things help people define who and what they are and […]
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