Saturday Good Reads

We laugh or bristle when we hear the term “political correctness,” but do we know where it comes from? A professor at Boston University did some research, and discovered it first came into use in the 1930s – among the communists, who had to explain the different between reality and political reality – and why political reality was “higher” (it had to do with surviving Stalin, for one thing). Jon Miltimore at Intellectual Takeout has the story.

The painting that inspired Donna Tartt’s bestselling novel The Goldfinch has a mystery about it; it’s also one of the most popular paintings in Holland, says the BBC.

A 22-year-old talks about life as a missionary. Plough Magazine interviews Rod Dreher on the idea of a communal church. Darlene discovers what happens when kindness is extended to a neighbor man. Tim Challies reminds us of one of the essential meanings of being a Christian – the world hates you.

Benjamin Voigt at The Poetry Foundation discovers that Wordsworth is a profound influence on contemporary poetry. The Guardian selects T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land as one of the 100 best non-fiction books.

And today’s video is a spectacular time-lapse display of meteorology and landscape by Mike Oblinski. And the music is pretty cool, too.

Writing

How We Write about Work – Then and Now – Juliana Broad at Literary Hub.

What Do Writers Dream About? – Ann Kroeker.

A Daily Plan for Reading Shakespeare – Matthew Franck at First Things Magazine.

Faith

 “Five hot chocolates, please” – Doug Spurling at Spurling Silver.

Neighbor Man Cometh – Darlene at Grace Table.

Listen to This 22-Year-Old Missionary – Darren Carlson at The Gospel Coalition.

Do Not Be Surprised if the World Hates You – Tim Challies at Informing the Reforming.

Building a Communal Church: An Interview with Rod Dreher – Peter Mommsen at Plough Magazine.

Life and Culture

Humanities, Pretty Much Dead, Are Mostly a Hunt for Racism and Sexism – Mark Bauerlein at Minding the Campus.

Dialing Back the Rhetoric – Mike Spivey at Inside Higher Ed.

Why Is Peace So Hard in Our Weekly Work? – Jon Mertz at Thin Difference.

A profession, and a people, on eggshells – David Murray at Writing Boots.

Sears Transformed America. It Deserves to Die with Dignity – Megan McArdle at Bloomberg.

The Historical Origen of ‘Political Correctness’ – Jon Miltimore at Intellectual Takeout.

Poetry

Naptime – Brian Kohl at Curator Magazine.

The 100 best nonfiction books: No 46 – The Waste Land by TS Eliot (1922) – Robert McCrum at The Guardian.

Advent Sign – Tim Good at Pics, Poems, and Ponderings.

William Wordsworth 101 – Benjamin Voigt at the Poetry Foundation.

Christmas

A Liturgy of Trees (Christmas) – Jen Rose Yokel at The Rabbit Room.

The Story Behind Silent Night – Ryan Reeves at The Gospel Coalition.

Advent Meditations: Hark! The Herald Angels Sing – Becca Hermes at The Washington Institute for Faith, Vocation, & Culture.

Three Christmas Poems by George Macdonald – Englewood Review of Books.

Art and Photography

Fur by Tim Good at Pixels.

The intriguing mystery of The Goldfinch – Alastair Sooke at BBC (Hat tip: J of India).

Christ Church Cathedral, Details – Chris Naffziger at St. Louis Patina.

Monsoon III – Mike Oblinski

Painting: Reading girl on a sofa, oil on canvas (1920) by Isaac Israels.