Joseph Loconte’s lecture at Christianity & National Security 2023. Transcript forthcoming.

We need to become outposts of intellectual seriousness and Christian virtue and moral sanity that expose the darkness of our generation.

Historian Paul Johnson once observed that one of the most important qualities of a statesman is the capacity to make moral distinctions.

Joseph Loconte talked about how C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien’s experiences in the First World War affected their lives and future writing.

On March 5, 1946—75 years ago—Winston Churchill delivered the “Sinews of Peace” at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. “Special relationship” to describe US-UK relations and “Iron Curtain” both become household terms after the speech, and some point to this moment as the official start to the Cold War.

Here Joe Loconte and I reflect on 75 years since WWII ended with the September 2, 1945 Tokyo Bay surrender…

Perhaps an insight from the character of Elrond in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, about the nature of our mortal lives, offers a measure of Christian realism in the face of Versailles: “And the Elves believed that evil was ended forever, and it was not so.”

In the ceaseless struggle between civilization and barbarism, America has tipped the scales toward civilization, toward freedom and justice. In many ways, it has organized its national life—its economic, military, and moral resources—toward this end. Are we still up to the task?

Part Two of our conversation with Joe Loconte, Professor of History at The Kings College.

Professor Joe Loconte sits down with Providence Managing Editor Drew Griffin to discuss the role of Christian Realism in American politics.