Farewell for now, First Things

Long time readers may remember that I have been very well disposed toward First Things for years and have often recommended its articles.

But back in September, the sudden ousting of Maureen Mullarkey alarmed me, and I mentioned I would be watching First Things more closely.

And so I have and have come to a personal conclusion.  I will not be renewing my subscription to First Things, nor renew gifts subscriptions for friends.

Pretty much the last straw was the issue after Pope Francis’ U. S. visit.  It was weak sauce, to be frank.  Editor R. R. Reno was clearly well disposed towards his visit.  And any criticism of Francis was hard to find and weakly said.

This is a far cry from the courageous and critical First Things I used to know.

And R. R. Reno seems to be the problem.  He became editor in 2011.  Not only have I found the journal less interesting since then, I have referred to it favorably only once since he became editor.  That quite in contrast to the years before.

To be honest, I had not noticed that very much.  The Mullarkey episode alerted me that I should take notice, and now I have.

Should First Things be done with Reno and right itself, I will gladly return.  But for now, there are more worthy journals and blogs to read and support.

Farewell, First Things . . . for now.