Roosevelt Montás directs Columbia University’s Freedom and Citizenship program. Annie Abrams is a public school teacher. They believe that Florida governor Ron DeSantis and one of his lackeys, Christopher Rufo, are “destroying” liberal arts education. Here is a taste of their […]
Mark Meadows and his MAGA cronies are buying-up property near the U.S. Capitol
I guess a lot of Trump followers like living in “The Swamp.” Here is Paul Schwartzman at The Washington Post: At first glance, the flurry of real estate sales two blocks east of the U.S. Capitol appeared unremarkable in a […]
Evangelical roundup for March 16, 2023
What is happening in Evangelical Land? Evangelicals love evangelicals. Black evangelicals are “caught between their faith and the long shadow of history.” The president of Northern Seminary resigns. Southern Baptists have been arguing about women in the church for a […]
Serving the Work
What can Dorothy Sayers teach us about intellectual work in a celebrity-driven culture?
Episode 53: “Michael Schiavo Takes the Stand”
The 2000 Terri Schiavo trial gets under way. Episode 53: “Michael Schiavo Takes the Stand’ dropped today. Subscribers to Current at the Longshore level and above have access to new episodes of this narrative history podcast. To listen to previous episodes click the word […]
Should women who have abortions get the death penalty? 21 South Carolina legislators think they should
Have you heard about the South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act of 2023? Twenty-one Republicans in the South Carolina General Assembly are supporting it. Here is Stephen Neukam at The Hill: Republican lawmakers in South Carolina are considering a change […]
Springsteen fans: See you in State College
I didn’t think it would happen. I wasn’t sure I wanted it to happen. But my family managed to score some tickets to Bruce Springsteen’s Saturday night show on the campus of Penn State University. Springsteen shows are family events […]
Is Wellesley College still a women’s college?
In his 2017 book Confident Pluralism: Surviving and Thriving Through Deep Difference, Washington University Law Professor John Inazu writes: Wellesley College, an all-women’s school, now confronts internal challenges around its growing transgender student population. Even though Wellesley admits only women, […]
What is going at Valparaiso University?
The president of the Lutheran university in Indiana wants to sell a Georgia O’Keefe painting to pay for the renovation of two dormitories. The story caught the attention of New York Times reporter Kalia Richardson. Here is a taste of […]
Joe Biden will deliver Jimmy Carter’s eulogy
Here is Summer Concepcion at NBC News: President Joe Biden on Monday revealed that former President Jimmy Carter, who entered hospice care at home last month after a series of hospital stays, asked him to deliver his eulogy. During a fundraiser in […]
Conservative culture warriors love Antonio Gramsci
For several years now conservatives, and especially the Christian Right, have been warning their followers about the influence of “cultural Marxism.” One of their favorite bogeymen is Mussolini-era Italian communist Antonio Gramsci. Here, for example, is Christian right purveyor of […]
Three historians win the Bancroft Prize
It’s the most prestigious award in American history. Congrats to Beverly Gage, Kelly Lytle Hernández, and John Wood Sweet for winning it. Here are Jennifer Schuessler’s descriptions of these books at The New York Times: Beverly Gage’s “G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover […]
Capitalism is “siphoning our attention for profit”
Over at Current Affairs, Nathan Robinson interviews Johann Hari, author of Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention. Robinson writes: Johann Hari has written multiple bestselling nonfiction books including Chasing the Scream, Lost Connections, and most recently Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention. All […]
Woody Guthrie’s family tells Missouri Senator Josh Hawley to stop using his lyrics
Here is Daniel Desrochers at The Kansas City Star: Sen. Josh Hawley referenced Woody Guthrie last week when he sponsored a bill to prevent people associated with the Chinese Communist Party from owning U.S. farmland and called it the “This […]
My father didn’t need James Dobson to teach him how to be a patriarch. Focus on the Family had a different influence on him.
I’ve made this point before, but I recently made it again on a WNYC (New York City’s National Public Radio station) podcast called “On the Divided Dial.” (It was repackaged and rereleased last week). I appreciate journalist Katie Thornton willingness […]
Jerry Falwell Jr. is suing Liberty University
Falwell Jr. says his former employer owes him over $8.5 million. Here is Jacob Hunziker at ABC 13 News in Lynchburg, Virginia: Liberty University is facing a new lawsuit — this one coming from its former president, Jerry Falwell Jr., […]
Commonplace Book #249
So people whose views have been religiously formed have to learn, and many have learned, to express them in ways that make sense to irreligious or differently religious fellow citizens. Talk of God’s will and appeals to revealed truth are […]
Doug Mastriano’s comeback
The Pennsylvania Christian nationalist was defeated soundly in the November 2020 gubernatorial election. He is now staging a comeback. Here is WKOK News with a piece from Penn Live’s Charles Thompson: Doug Mastriano was back on the political stage in […]
Evangelical roundup for March 13, 2023
What is happening in Evangelical Land?: A veteran religion writer tackles women in the ministry. Baptists and Pentecostals lead the way in the promotion of God-fueled American exceptionalism. Ten books about Billy Graham. Ed Stetzer’s nameplate: How Rick Warren changed […]
Sunday night odds and ends
A few things online that caught my attention this week: The 1850s Black Convention movement Kevin McCarthy joins the insurrection Elizabeth Bruenig on Lent Francis: the first Jesuit Pope Rod Dreher’s last American Conservative blog post Bob Smietana reviews Lerone […]