Sailing the Last Voyage with Newton and Pascal
This is one in a series from Jaques-Benigne Bossuet's Elevations on the Mysteries, and specifically the Fifth Day. There is more here on the Bossuet Project. The snake was the most refined of all animals. Behold, in the apparent weakness of such a strange beginning in the recital of our misfortunes, the admirable depth of …
Continue reading "Elevations On The Temptation And Fall Of Man: 1, The Snake"
I've taken flak for saying this in other contexts, but this comment on a frustrated history PhD's failure to land a tenure-track position hits the nail on the head: my own experience has been very similar although now i’m glad that i left the humanities and i believe that the humanities themselves should be completely …
Continue reading "The Core Problem With Liberal Arts Curricula/Degrees"
Ross Douthat's idea to ban porn is entirely sensible: In this weekend’s New York Times Magazine there is a long profile of a new kind of pedagogy unique to our particular stage of civilization. It’s called “porn literacy,” and it involves explaining to young people whose sexual coming-of-age is being mediated by watching online gangbangs that actually …
It's coming soon: Acclaimed Vaticanista Andrea Tornielli reports that a unanimous vote has taken place at a meeting of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, positively recognizing a purported miracle attributed to the intercession of Pope Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Montini, 1897-1978). This development effectively paves the way for the Pontiff's 'canonization.' But the #straightouttairondale …
Wheat WR 1001 (1977) Although this Detroit-based production has been described as "Christo-funk," it's really very eclectic, with a wide variety of styles that reflect the makeup of the group. There's both jazz and soul elements in it, some hard driving stuff and some very light stuff too. One thing that's missing is any churchy …
NPR wants a new one, but... NPR, which to its credit at least attempts to cover science and health, is looking for a new Science Editor. Unfortunately, actually being trained in science is not required for the job. Under the qualifications section, the ad says, "Education: Bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience." Amazingly, not only …
YouTube is doing some strange things these days, and this is yet another: YouTube announced Friday it will start flagging videos published by organizations that receive government funding. Viewers will be able to see labels on videos from government-funded outlets above the video's title on the page. “News is an important and growing vertical for us …
Continue reading "I Guess YouTube Will Flag the Boring Video, Too"
Higher education is a competitive business. One of the things that educational institutions that are affiliated with a church or profess or call themselves Christian use to attract students is "your faith will be enhanced by coming here." Christian parents and students find that attractive, which is why many pay the premium to go to …
Continue reading "Just Because Your Alma Mater is “Christian” Doesn’t Mean You’ll Be"
While most Americans were bracing themselves for Donald Trump's first State of the Union Address (which turned out reasonably,) I got myself into a Facebook argument with the most bilious person I know about immigration policy. During that dialogue I stated my preference for a Canadian (the Aussies use a similar system) immigration system which …
Continue reading "Is Going to a Canadian Style Immigration System That Bad?"
There's a well-known Anglican "divine" (to use the old term) in this country who's engaged in a Facebook campaign/rant (take your pick) about African faith declarations and the popularity of prosperity teaching. It's gone on for some time, and the fact that he's Reformed only adds to the persistence. (Maybe he's also trying to prove …
Continue reading "The Real Problem with Prosperity Teaching Isn’t Theological (Well, not entirely…)"
Positive Infinity 