KtBlog
September Buddha-killing Update
Whenever something we publish on KtB prompts a surprising response, I like to take a little time and then weigh in to the conversation editorially speaking. Last week’s feature, “White People Problems,” from our friend Briallen Hopper, is an impassioned meditation on the need for difficult conversations about race and power, on the occasion of…
Vatican: Bad Romance
Thanks, Irish Times, for answering a bewildering question. How did the Vatican get a seat amongst the nations of the world? “It just did.” OK, so how do they retain their status? The whole of the situation is mind-boggling: how does an organization that boldly discriminates against half of humanity and has an outsize influence…
Is The Pope a Rock Star?
I recently saw a banner hanging on a nearby hospital which said “Our Nurses Are Rock Stars!” I took a moment to imagine a soul-deadening cycle: the people who thought of this idea, formatted it on a PC and sent it to China, where the banner was printed in a factory and shipped to San…
Thoughts and Prayers
People say “I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers” all the time. I have said it myself; I also say “I am thinking of you,” or, occasionally, “I will hold you in the light,” which is the Quaker version. “Thoughts and prayers” is a useful phrase, but do people really mean it? Is…
Happy New Year from KtB!
Herewith, in the spirit of the season, a highly subjective New Year’s Eve countdown of our favorite KtB moments of 2013. 10 Illustrated posts by Communicant Mary Valle. 9 New books by Buddha-killers. 8 hot tips on new Buddha-killing movies by Becky Garrison. 7 Habits of a Highly Effective Philosopher. 6 Pieces of original reporting…
Giving Thanks For Torn Bread
Last week, the awesome Kaya Oakes, who’s written several beautiful personal essays for KtB, entrusted us with a new one, which she felt was a little more experimental, less linear than her other work. “Torn Bread” is a searching, self-reflective exploration of the feeling of receiving Communion from a female Episcopal priest, as a feminist Catholic…
Douthat’s Atheist
Oh Ross. You are making me violate my custody of my mind with your words again. You’re talking Hitchens and his “atheism” or whatever, but the most important thing about this column is the part where Hitchens “cornered” you in a “pantry” at a “Washington dinner party” and “insisted on having a long argument about…