Topics

Meet the New Puritans, Same as the Old Puritans

Alex Pinelli

How long can an ideology last when it is based on the demonization of entire sections of the population and on making oneself miserable in the process?

Twilight of the Universities

SACRIFICING STUDENTS ON THE ALTAR OF IDEOLOGY

Caitlin Smith Gilson

Education steeped in transcendental Beauty and the Great Books of history is replaced by a dictatorial ugliness that flattens the passions and rids the heart of love.

Wrestling for Truth with ChatGPT

THE PERILS OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Bob Weil

Every technological development, at least up until now, has created a new tool that can be pressed into the service (or disservice) of man.

From the Narthex

In this special section, which runs as an occasional feature, we present samples of the offerings in the Narthex, the NOR’s online blog.

How Cowardice, the Herd Mind & Twitter Mobs Threaten Academia

A CONVERSATION ABOUT THE CLANNISH INQUISITION

Jason M. Morgan & J. Mark Ramseyer

A university education should be about learning to think. It will be disquieting, perhaps troubling. It might even be infuriating. And that’s as it should be.

The Woke Ethic & the Spirit of Protestantism

ON FERVENT & MANIC BUSYBODIES

Pieter Vree

The woke project, like much of Protestantism, is led by a self-selected group of “the Elect” who see themselves as arbiters of excellence in moral matters.

Checking Out of the Local Library

NOVELTY OVER GOODNESS

Eric Jackson

Today's librarians apparently believe the only way to get kids to read is to sucker them in with books about television characters, or worse.

Walking on Eggshells, Distilling Eggshells

THE PITFALLS OF PRIDE MONTH

J.D. Palmer

The evidence is clear that our society will decompose, long before the human species dies out, when the traditional family is dethroned from its place of honor.

Officers of the New Regime

'HARASSMENT SPECIALISTS' & 'CHIEF PURPOSE OFFICERS'

John A. Perricone

When ordinary folks like your son, your wife, or your grandmother agree with the Harassment Specialists and Chief Purpose Officers, then the political is personal.

Which Way the Wind Blows

FORBIDDEN WORDS AND ACTIONS

John Lyon

Daily we hear of intemperate students demanding this or that “right” drawn from a grab-bag of potential claims on others’ behavior.

Lives That Don’t Matter

GUEST COLUMN

Ewa Thompson

A popular children’s book remains on the 'Teachers’ Top 100 Books' list although its ostensible aim appears to be to denigrate Polish Americans.

The Catholic Church in the Crosshairs

REVERT'S ROSTRUM

Casey Chalk

It is a cruel irony that, in less than a century, Catholics have gone from being victimized as unwelcome immigrants to being widely perceived as racist victimizers.

“Politics and the English Language.” By George Orwell.

LITERATURE MATTERS

Michael S. Rose

Language should reflect reality. If it doesn’t, what possible limits could be placed on misleading, manipulative language?

You Can Say That?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

China could well be poised to inherit the earth that the U.S. once commanded — especially if our comparative student bodies are any indication.

Why I’ve Tuned Out National Public Radio

ON THE WORSHIP OF THE MOLOCH OF EQUALITY

John Lyon

NPR’s programming has drifted downward and to the Left: the expectable, inevitable, massive movement of most institutions in a democracy.

“Raising Awareness”: Reducing Philanthropy to Vanity

CULTURAL COUNTERPOINT

Jason M. Morgan

There is something very particularly American about "raising awareness": it is democratic, in seeking to sway public opinion; it is optimistic; it is evangelical and yet post-Christian.

By the Lakes of Babylon

CULTURAL COUNTERPOINT

Jason M. Morgan

Fr. Hesburgh proved to be a perfect avatar for the Notre Dame he created: an endorser of some kind of vaguely conceived “natural religion.”

Culture Wars, Inc.

A MORALITY TALE ABRIDGED FOR MODERN READERS

Hilarious Bookbinder

When Cosmoception Corporation sponsored a Coming Out of the Closet Celebration, the company ordered a rainbow-striped cake from Redneck Delicacies, Inc., a small shop tucked in the Appalachians.

The Great Awokening: The Puritan Roots of the Social Justice Warrior

Jason M. Morgan

Social Justice Warriors behave like cult members. They are little Cromwells who demand Robespierre-level ideological purity of every single person.

I Am Not White

WHAT CONSTITUTES CULTURE?

Thomas Storck

Public discourse remains limited to material concerns, but what really differentiates human beings is culture, which is founded on religion.

The New Hate Speech: Catholic Teaching at a Catholic College

An affirmation of Church teaching at Providence College is seen by students and administrators as an act of "homophobia" and "transphobia" that warrants intimidation and threats because it's an offense against the PC narrative.

A Demon-Haunted Europe: Democracy's Totalitarian Impulse

AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH RYSZARD LEGUTKO

Timothy D. Lusch

Ryszard Legutko traces the twin developments of liberalism and democracy and shows how, at their precise intersection, the totalitarian impulse rises.

Are You Sleeping?

GUEST COLUMN

David C. Stolinsky

Apathy and passivity are not the characteristics of civilized people. They are marks of submissive people who invite an authoritarian regime to control their lives.

Big Brother North of the Border

Canada is writing laws based on gender defined as a sense, an experience, and the result of expression: dress, hair, make-up, body language, voice, name, and personal pronoun use.

Charles Curran Makes a Confession

Fr. Charles Curran says he now recognizes "the omnipresent reality of white privilege and how it has affected our understanding of and approach to theology."

Looking Beyond Malalapalooza

For those seeking Muslim female viewpoints that depart from the politically correct narrative, we suggest the writings and speeches of Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Nonie Darwish, and Brigitte Gabriel.

Giving an Appearance of Solidity to Pure Wind

When considering Muslim tolerance, one might inquire: Are Muslim attitudes toward drinking alcohol tolerant? And how about free speech? Women's rights? Freedom of religion? Music and Art?

What If #AhmedIsaFake?

"Clock boy" Ahmed Mohamed may have a promising career ahead of him, not as an engineer or an inventor but as a social agitator and propagandist.

What the Revolution Has Wrought

INTERNAL CONTRADICTIONS & ECONOMIC CRISIS

Tom Bethell

Contraception and the contraceptive mentality have perhaps terminally undermined Western, formerly Christian cultures and nations.

The Fraudsters of Islamophobia

The slain editor of Charlie Hebdo has posthumously published a book on the subject of "Islamophobia," which he calls a "misplaced fight" spawned by "disgusting white, left-wing bourgeois paternalism."

War on Christmas? Never Happened!

The most convincing evidence that the war on Christmas has been won comes by way of media commentators who say the concept was just invented by conservatives.

Enjoy Christmas -- While It Lasts

GUEST COLUMN

John F. Gaski

Recognition of the civil orientation of the Christmas holiday, and a bit of wisdom and toleration, would obviate the need for bizarre legal remedies.

Feminists Are Wrong About Women's Ordination

Anne Barbeau Gardiner

The reservation of the priesthood to men is not a matter of "discipline" or Church law that may be rescinded but is "theologically certain" and a "doctrine of faith."

Church, Women & Pants

BEAUTY & THE BEST

Gerrie Goguen

Difficulties arise when women wear tight or revealing pants to Church: Men start seeing them as a collection of titillating body parts.

Outlaw Blues

Why is it that gay and lesbian students enjoy special protection from harassment while religious students do not?

For "Diversity," but Not for Intellectual Diversity

The Catholic Library Association is intolerant, exclusive, and truly authoritarian.

Mammon Wins Again

You just can't let religion and free speech get in the way of mammon.

The Catholic Ethic Made Politically Correct

Thomas Storck

Take orthodoxy away and eventually you end up as some kind of Protestant or secularist, with beliefs no one can predict.

Charles Dickens's 'A Happy Holidays Song'

GUEST COLUMN

F. Douglas Kneibert

What advice would a politically correct contemporary American publisher give to Charles Dickens regarding A Christmas Carol?

Inclusion Confusion

Why does Audie Bock find it important to point out that she's small?

Redskins in Indiana?

If it's offensive to print Cleveland Indians, then it's even more offensive to make reference to the state of Indiana.

It's Time for Another Free Speech Movement

She required that we ban, Those damned suffixes, "man."

Can We Please Have Some Compassion For People of Height?

YES, IT'S A SMALL WORLD, AFTER ALL

Thomas Martin

A conference addressing the problems facing People of Height deserves attention and ought to draw a national audience.

When the "Shorter Form" Is The Politically Correct Form

Scripture is censored in the Parable of the Talents, where the "wicked, lazy servant" is sent "where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth."

Wake Up and Smell the Coffee

"Psst! Hey kid, wanna buy a cup o' joe — real cheap? In a cool styrofoam cup!"

Excerpts from The Dictionary of Diversity

GUEST COLUMN

Brent T. Zeringue

A few definitions, for your reference...

Pride Precedes a Great Fall

The Washington Redskins must now also contend with PC Indian activists.

Dodging the Real Issues

Dodge ball has been targeted for extinction in two public school districts.

Sticks & Stones May Break My Bones, But…

Political correctness is nothing more than female touchiness writ large.

Our Titanic Nonjudgmentalism

GUEST COLUMN

David C. Stolinsky

Once the God-given sanctity of all innocent human life is rejected, the main psychological and ethical barriers are breached.

Don't Call It "Adultery," Call It "Loving More"

The newest thing in our Society of Newspeak is "polyamory," the hip euphemism for polygamy.

But Are Catholics B.C./A.D.-Compliant?

Before the "Common Era," did mankind live in an uncommon era?

The New "S" Word

Calling women "sweethearts" is "sexist stereotyping" and "patronizing"?

The New Totalitarianism: Forcing People to Be Tolerant

GUEST COLUMN

David J. Peterson

The Decadence of the Feminese Dialect

GUEST COLUMN

Roy Barkley

"Thou Shalt Not Be Judgmental" & Other Postmodernist Notions

THE REGRESSION TO BARBARISM

Leon McKenzie

All capacities with which God endowed us must be employed in the quest for truth.

Hitler: A Pioneer for the "Politically Correct"

A CHAT WITH ADOLF

Jude McCabeus

Why Hispanics Are Not 'Politically Correct'

THE DEBATE ABOUT WESTERN CULTURE

Thomas Storck

The Secular Mind IV: Relativism

HARVARD DIARY

Robert Coles