One of the delights of going to Holy Mass in a place which one has never before visited is the discovery of the church building itself. There is an inexpressible joy in walking into a traditionally decorated Catholic church for the first time. The Gothic architecture draws the eye heavenward. The stained glass fills the … Read more
“There is no God in this book.” Thus reads the provocative first sentence of Jonah Goldberg’s latest release, The Suicide of the West: How the Rebirth of Tribalism, Populism, Nationalism, and Identity Politics is Destroying American Democracy. This declaration is perhaps an unintended summary of the book about the crisis in the West. From it, … Read more
A review of Nothing is Free: The Price Only Business Leaders Can Pay to Protect Free Markets by Dave Geenens (Atchison, Kans.: Inhance Press, 2013). * * * Modern economics tends to reduce what happens in business to numbers and formulas. The human element is taken out, and all is left dry and lifeless. It … Read more
Written by John Horvat II and Norman Fulkerson* In face of the problems that afflict society, many people despair of a solution. Yet how often it is said: “We are not going to turn this thing around in our lifetime.” Such an attitude reflects a real dearth of leadership. It’s not the economy, education or … Read more
The modern mania for movement and change contributes to an unsettled state of mind that manifests itself in a generalized loss of the sense of place. Facilitated by technology, Americans have become a restless people constantly on the move inside this rushed pace of life. We have become a nation of strangers without anchorage in … Read more
As the author of the book, Return to Order, I am constantly looking for examples of organic solutions for today’s complicated problems. It is one way I can practically illustrate so many of the ideas found in the book. I look for spontaneous expressions of culture that are often destroyed by today’s mass standardization. I … Read more
In the field of art, two equally erroneous extremes should be avoided. One is cosmopolitanism, which strives to establish only one art form for the whole world without considering the characteristics proper to each people and each region. The other is nationalism, which rejects any outside influence, even when legitimate and necessary, in order … Read more
Excerpt from the talk, “Fostering an Organic Society: Principles and Examples” given by James Bascom at the 2013 TFP National Conference on October 27, 2013 The first principle is that within every man there are potentialities that must be developed. Every man is born with an enormous variety of qualities, propensities, and strengths that seek … Read more
The right to keep and bear arms is enshrined in our American Constitution and culture to the point that many think this right is uniquely American. However, the historical evidence is quite surprising. Pre-modern and pre-industrial cultures also promoted arms ownership. Organic Christian society recognized the natural-law right of the family to defend itself from … Read more
How does one stand out these days? Write a thank-you note. No, not a thank-you email, text message or tweet. Banish the multiple exclamation marks (!!!!!) or the CAPITAL letters and silly emoticons that attract attention but fail to convey meaning. All these things tend to get lost in the whirling and hectic schedules of … Read more
