Many Americans tend to frame foreign policy debates according to Western standards. They assume the other side sees events just like Americans. They imagine key figures are motivated by the same passions and ambitions that Westerners might pursue. It is hard to think outside the Western box that has dominated world history for so long. … Read more
Perhaps the best symbol of the war in Ukraine is a photograph that the Catholic News Agency ran early in the conflict. It shows the ruins of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin in Ukraine’s Zhytomyr region. According to the caption, it was built in 1862. A Russian bomb destroyed it one … Read more
With the Russo-Ukrainian War now in its third year, its outcome hinges on a fierce debate. Should the United States of America continue to send military aid to Ukraine? Unfortunately, a growing minority of Republicans say no. Surprisingly, the foreign policy poles of the American political landscape seem to be reversing. The Americans left, from … Read more
The Reconquest of Spain from the Muslim occupation suffered several setbacks and reversals. But in the darkest hours, a selfless hero always arose to stem an impending onslaught. Such a danger threatened the Spanish Christians late in the eleventh century when a fanatical horde of North African Berbers invaded the peninsula. An overwhelming disaster was … Read more
As the war in Ukraine rages on, the West is experiencing fatigue from the slow pace of the fight. People in the West insist upon breakthroughs with shifting battle lines. They want Hollywood theatrics that can dominate the headlines with dramatic scenes of victory. And if these things cannot be produced on a regular basis, … Read more
There was great anticipation over the synod that opened at the Vatican on 4 October 2023, but three days later, on 7 October, international attention shifted to the Middle East, bloodied all at once by the brutal attack on Israel by Hamas. This event, preceded by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has … Read more
Allahu Akbar!—“Allah is great!” This cry has resounded all over the world through the videos that documented the violence of Islamic militants against women, children and young people of all nationalities, massacred or kidnapped on October 7, 2023, while an avalanche of rockets beat down on Israel. The same invocation—Allahu Akbar!—rang out again in the … Read more
The Cold War earned its name because the superpowers, apart from a few proxy wars around the world, never began a direct conflict with each other. But at the time, the ideological confrontation between communism and anti-communism seemed certain to lead to war in Europe, as it did in Korea, Vietnam, and elsewhere. After the … Read more
Christmas Season, which celebrates the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ, is fast changing from a religious holy day to a secular holiday. This change is not because of direct attacks upon the feast. Some years ago, open attacks on Christmas by retailers did not produce the desired results. A powerful reaction forced staff to … Read more
Just when everything seemed to be getting back to the new normal, abnormality struck again. The war in Ukraine is raging and changing the face of the globalized world. The situation is confusing as people struggle to find reasons behind the invasion. Conspiracy theories abound on both sides, like the scenes of battle in Ukraine, … Read more
