In the latest addition to papal encyclicals, Pope Francis lays out a complex mix of science, politics, and theology that can typically only be found in one of these documents. As the Holy Father writes in Laudato Si’, “The Catholic Church is open to dialogue with philosophical thought; this has enabled her to produce various […]
Indiana’s Religious Freedom and Restoration Act has received an unprecedented amount of criticism recently—from political philosophy heavyweights such as Miley Cyrus and MC Hammer to the omniscient and omnipresent Facebook troll. I’ve been wanting to write about this topic for a while but it has been extremely difficult to wrap my head around people who […]
The Austin Cathedral held a Memorial Mass for Martin Luther King Jr. yesterday and I couldn’t help but feel a strong sense of unity. People of all races from all over the city, state, and country even joined together to honor one of the most influential personalities and one of the greatest people of modern […]
This Letter, more than any other piece written by King, embodies the wisdom and the heart of a man who is rightly celebrated as one of the greatest civil rights leaders of the modern age. Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.: 16 April 1963 My Dear Fellow Clergymen: While confined here […]
When British musician Bob Geldorf formed the super group Band Aid and produced the moving song, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, his intentions were pure and right. He earnestly wanted to ease the suffering of Ethiopians during their 1983-85 famine and by some accounts, he did. The song raised awareness across the Western World and […]
Before a private screening, co-producer Eduardo Verastegui said that one of the goals they wanted to accomplish in his new film, “Little Boy” was a living Norman Rockwell painting, depicting America in all of its idyllic warmth. The heartwarming film achieved that and so much more. Set in 1940s California, “Little Boy” follows a—to put […]
In a shocking finding, researchers at Harvard Medical School’s (HMS) Osher Research Center and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have found that the placebo effect works even when subjects know they are taking a placebo. We’ve all heard the cliche, physician, heal thyself. With some conditions, evidently, it’s apt to implore the patient to […]
I used to love awards shows like the VMAs or the Emmys. Then I turned 12. Today, I was reminded why I don’t watch anymore—why awards shows are probably the worst form of reality television: they are a microcosm of everything that’s wrong with society. Take the idea of feminism, for which the mega-international-superstar Beyoncé […]
“…sex felt dirty and wrong and sinful even though I was married.” There’s an article making the rounds entitled “IT HAPPENED TO ME: I Waited Until My Wedding Night to Lose My Virginity and I Wish I Hadn’t.” In it, the author explains that she waited to have sex until her wedding night like a […]
If there’s one legitimate role for the federal government, it’s national defense. But that raises the question: what constitutes a national defense? Moreover what constitutes a sound national defense. While defense is vital to our existence, military interventionism is usually unproductive, unreasonable, and un-American. Military interventionism is unproductive because, not only does it not work to help keep […]