Extra, extra! New and tidings, March 9, 2022

Critics of modernity – What Eric Voegelin can teach us about today’s international crisis: Russia, America, and the Danger of Political Gnosticism (Post Liberal Order)

Not a “just war” – “Speaking from the standpoint of both natural law and Christianity, it is extraordinarily difficult to justify an offensive war.”: The Putin Enigma (Catholic Culture)

What is justice? – Like Thrasymachus in Plato’s Republic, Vladimir Putin clearly believes that justice is whatever serves the interest of the strongest: War and Persuasion (City Journal)

A different kind of anarchist: “The best way to describe Dorothy’s “politics” (and my own) is to view her approach as a politics of ‘anti-centralization'”: Dorothy Day’s Anarchism and our Current Moment (Gaudium et Spes 22)

What makes one a person? – “The core problem with contemporary bioethics is that the movement denies human exceptionalism.” Bioethicist Asks, ‘Does Birth Matter?’ Answers, ‘No’ (National Review)

Review of A State of Secrecy – Though many social critics think we are in new territory with wokeness and cancel culture, Alison Lewis indicates that we are actually seeing something very ancient, with deep origins in human psychology. The Allure of Totalitarianism (Law & Liberty).

The “Russian World” ideology – “Taking advantage of the Vatican’s desire to continue dialoguing with the Russian Church, the leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate aimed to push the Vatican toward a return to the situation pre-1989 . . . ” ‘Russkiy Mir’ – The ‘Russian world’ meets Ukrainian politics and Vatican diplomacy (Pillar Catholic)

Spiritual sustenance – I asked three Catholic publishers—all known for their faithful Catholic work—to give me a short list of their best titles for Lenten reading: Lenten Reading List (Catholic Culture)

The land of Jesus – “During his time on Earth, Jesus of Nazareth grew up, worked, and preached throughout a region in the Middle East that we today call the “Holy Land.” What the ‘Fifth Gospel’ of the Holy Land reveals about Christ (Angelus News)

A baby’s unlikely survival – “Most all the existential and spiritual questions in life indeed revolve around, and start with, the pro-life dynamic.” Story inspires writer to fully embrace pro-life view (Superior Catholic Herald)

Lost and found – After 51 years, three books were returned to a Catholic library in Baltimore. After the find, no one was fined: 51 years overdue, three books returned to Loyola-Notre Dame Library (Catholic Review).

Busting four mistaken notions about Putin –  Common myths about Russian President Vladimir Putin make it much harder to understand and hence defeat him. Plumbing Putin’s Mind (Discourse Magazine).

(*The posting of any particular news item or essay is not an endorsement of said news item or essay. The editors of CWR, however, read a range of material, including countless pieces with which we disagree, etc.)