Benedict XVI and the Papacy: Context, Controversy, and Continuity
The date chosen by Benedict XVI to depart this world, joining the lineage of popes who walked that path before him, feels like a symbolic echo…
Vermouth and the Slow-Cooked Social Life of Spain
In a world that moves faster by the day, where people line up to watch, read, and own movies, books, and new gadgets all at once, and where…
Vermouth and the Slow Joy of Spanish Social Life
Vermouth sits at the heart of a country that moves at a rhythm all its own. In a world that loves synchronized entertainment and instant…
Reframing Russia’s Role in Post-Soviet geopolitics
Evidence concerning Russia’s status before and after the dissolution of the USSR challenges the idea of a unified, democratic national…
New Year Reflections: Simple, Everyday Ways to Find Hope
Some argue that feeling festive in the New Year is wrong or even sinful during troubled times. The truth is the situation is hard in many…
Benedict XVI, Francis, and the shifting tides of the papacy
The date Benedict XVI chose to depart this world, following a path trodden by many of his predecessors, has a weighty, almost symbolic ring to…
Reflective Observations on Privacy, Perception, and Market Dynamics
Data protection laws once aimed to shield privacy, but they sometimes exposed broader vulnerabilities, especially in markets obsessed with…
A Renewed Call to Begin Again
There was a hearth, and a fire burned inside it, the flames not painted or polished. The idea of a painted hearth recalls the fairy tale…
Exploring Vatican Shifts, Prophetic Legacies, and Spain’s Papal Future
Observers noted that Benedict XVI’s passing signaled more than a personal ending. It pointed to broader, looser shifts within a church that…
A Contemporary View on Populism, Democracy, and the Rule of Law
In the 1970s, a nation stood at the doorstep of a grand journey: a transformation that would stretch from consolidating freedoms to joining a…