Kirk the Catholic

Touchstone magazine has a nice article about my old boss, Russell Kirk, and his spiritual journey: from a chilhood of religious ambivalence to a young adulthood of skepticism finally reaching a Stoic Catholicism.

While I certainly disagree with the religious path Dr. Kirk took--I have profound problems with the Catholic Church--I do agree with something he told me about his religious choice. He commented that he saw that there needed to be a final authority in religion. When Dr. Kirk looked at the Protestant world he saw a rampant individualism bordering on anti-nomianism, which resulted in the ever growing number of denominations that pollute the religious landscape. He saw a solution to the problem in the authority of the pope. I agree with the problem; I dispute the validity of his solution.

There is no more sensible political writer in the 20th Century than Russell Kirk. His religious beliefs were an essential part of that. If you're not familiar with him that article is good place to start.