The bespoke Sussex wedding
For those living near Windsor, this sounds charming: https://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/themes/exhibitions/a-royal-wedding-the-duke-and-duchess-of-sussex/windsor-castle
Loyola luncheons on The Hobbit
*Loyola’s Committee on Catholic Social Thought hosts luncheons each semester on a theological/philosophical topic. Through this lens we often explore literature and this autumn we are doing The Hobbit. The illustration is by Alan Lee and my previous two posts talk about this wonderful artist. ~~~~~~~ Committee on Catholic Social Thought at Loyola University Maryland…
Re-enchanting the world: a new blogpost over at Law & Liberty
It is extremely common in university settings to meet people strongly committed to materialism, the position that fundamental reality is purely physical. They thrill to the idea that no special powers or spirits exist. Over at Law & Liberty, I review a compelling book that casts doubt on the materialist’s hope. For those who…
I have a new book coming out
I am delighted to report that my new book Post-Modern Natural Law is forthcoming with University of Notre Dame Press. Hopefully, it’ll be in print by autumn 2019 but I’ll say more once the press clarifies the timetable. The book picks up on themes from V&R so I hope regular readers will enjoy it.
Tight connection between luxury and tax havens
This long, but clever, assessment of the FT’s luxury drooling magazine How to Spend It (https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/jul/19/how-to-spend-it-the-shopping-list-for-the-1-percent) includes the interesting details that not only has the British sense of luxury shifted from the origins of the magazine back in the `60’s but most of the FT’s sales are now overseas. A significant reason is because…
Waistcoat sales up 35% in England… because of footie
The England manager Gareth Southgate always sports a waistcoat on the touchline during games. His practice has led to a sales surge: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/finance/news/waistcoat-sales-up-as-gareth-southgate-sets-trend-at-world-cup/ar-AAzuai2 Prior to Southgate, the manager most associated with the waistcoat is the Spaniard and Champions League Cup winner, Rafa Benitez. The Guardian article also interestingly observes that the increase in sales…
Happy second birthday to V&R
V&R launched July 2016 so it’s birthday time! Many thanks to all readers. Last year V&R was running about 400 visitors per month and now nearly 600. Quite the improvement. I want to especially thank Dr. Christopher Wojtulewicz for his guest blogging. Chris is an outstanding theorist and his posts reflect that. Thank…
Predictable reactions to the Met Ball
I have been traveling and it’s time to post again! My friend Chris Wojtulewicz will post a super reflection on the Met Gala soon. Reactions were what you would expect: some horrified that fashion would lend credence to the Catholic Church given its position on gay sex (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5702785/Christian-fury-Met-Galas-blasphemous-Catholic-theme.html) and some dismayed that the Church…
Lancashire & Rome
Andrew Bolton hails from Blackburn, Lancashire, not far from where I grew up. He is responsible for the upcoming exhibition on fashion and the Church at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. It promises to be quite the event. Here is an excellent profile of Bolton and some of his motivations: https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2018/apr/29/divine-inspiration-how-high-church-led-to-high-fashion. It’s…
Student Life at Antwerp School of Fashion
This is an extremely interesting article and a bit different from what one typically finds in the fashion pages (https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/bof-exclusive/antwerp-academy-student-suicide-calls-teaching-methods-into-question?utm_source=Subscribers&utm_campaign=45e5bef93e-antwerp-academy-student-suicide-calls-teaching-met&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d2191372b3-45e5bef93e-417297929). It’s prompted by the sad case of a suicide at the highly prestigious fashion school in Antwerp, Belgium. What is says about Belgian university culture is spot on, as I know from my years…