“Christ Crowned with Thorns” by Matthias Stom (c. 1633-1639) shows Jesus in his Passion as the “Lord of Patience” with the crown of thorns and sceptre reed, being mocked by Roman soldiers. (Wikipedia) By DAVID FRENCH Religion is one of the most dangerous forces on Earth. If you’ve ever encountered true fundamentalists, you know why. When you combine eternal stakes with absolute certainty, it produces the kind of people who are happy to be cruel in the name of God. In fact, th

A mine for heavy rare earth metals outside of Longnan in south-central China’s Jiangxi province, April 11, 2025. (Keith Bradsher/The New YorkTimes) By THE EDITORIAL BOARD President Donald Trump started the year with his typical bravado as he engaged in a trade war with China. He is ending the year having largely backed down. One reason? China has powerful leverage over the United States through rare earths. The country has built an effective monopoly over these metallic eleme

The Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in Dallas, on June 10, 2025. An increasingly loud contingent supports the Trump administration’s efforts to deport illegal immigrants. (Desiree Ríos/The New York Times) By NICHOLAS KRISTOF This is the latest in my occasional series of conversations about Christianity. Previously, I spoke with the Rev. Timothy Keller, President Jimmy Carter, evangelical writer Beth Moore, professor Elaine Pagels and others. Here I speak with Bar

Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives for President Donald Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill, in Washington, March 4, 2025. How we got to this Marco Rubio moment. (Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times) By ROSS DOUTHAT You are watching the 2016 Republican primary campaign, trying to figure out if Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio can stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination. A man from the future steps out of a shimmering portal and informs you t

Flanked by members of the cast of “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” director Kaouther Ben Hania holds a framed photo of the young girl from Gaza who is at the center of the movie. (LinkedIn via Ahmed Shihab-Eldin) By DAVID FRENCH I was afraid to see “The Voice of Hind Rajab.” I knew that the movie is based on the recordings of a 5-year-old Palestinian girl in the Gaza Strip, trapped in a car with the bodies of her family members, speaking with rescue workers. I knew that the girl —

President Donald Trump delivers remarks on the economy at the Mount Airy Casino Resort in Mount Pocono, Pa., on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. “We are led by the most loathsome human being ever to occupy the White House,” New York Times columnist Bret Stephens writes. (Doug Mills/The New York Times) By BRET STEPHENS Though I tend to think it’s usually a waste of space to devote a column to President Donald Trump’s personality — what more is there to say about the character of this pe

A worker at Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis., on Nov. 19, 2025. By THE EDITORIAL BOARD To understand why the United States is struggling to buy and field the weapons of the future, consider the trouble it had buying the most basic weapon of the past. In 2011 the Army decided to get its soldiers new pistols. The odyssey that followed included a 350-page list of technical specifications, years of testing and a protracted battle on Capitol Hill between competing g

Emergency workers transport a person by stretcher from the scene of a mass shooting at Bondi Beach, in Sydney, on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. At least 11 people were killed by gunmen who targeted a Jewish celebration there, in what Australian authorities called a terrorist attack. One of the shooters was also killed. (Matthew Abbott/The New York Times) By BRET STEPHENS There is a measure of comfort to be taken in the fact that Sunday’s terrorist attack at a Hanukkah event at Sydne