The Top 5: From a pro-child culture to the New Literalism in film
Welcome to the latest edition of the Top 5 articles we’ve read this week. Each week, we read dozens of articles in the hope we find essays and reporting that speak to big ideas, trends, future looks, and incredible human stories. We hope you enjoy these articles, and do always let us know if you have a suggestion or a recommendation!
If this is a newsletter you look forward to each week, would you consider subscribing? We keep our annual membership at just $30, one of the lowest on Substack, so that this newsletter can be read by as many as possible. Do get in touch if this annual membership is cost prohibitive.
The Top 5 articles for your week:
“Make Asceticism Great Again?” (The Dispatch)
Because Center for Christianity and Public Life 2025 Public Life Fellow Nadya Williams writes this timely piece about Lent and ancient asceticism.
These are good reminders that ascetic practices alone do not bring salvation. Forty days without coffee—or time spent sleeping outside in the desert and eating crickets—will only have spiritual benefits if accompanied by real heart transformation. Asceticism is not a guaranteed magic cure for spiritual ills. Still, the desire for such practices allures.
“The New Literalism Plaguing Today’s Biggest Movies” (New Yorker)
Because Namwali Serpell documents an emerging trend in Hollywood film.
When I say literalism, I don’t mean realistic or plainly literal. I mean literalist, as when we say something is on the nose or heavy-handed, that it hammers away at us or beats a dead horse. As these phrases imply, to re-state the screamingly obvious does a kind of violence to art.
“There Is One Tried and True Way to Keep Birthrates Falling” (NYT)
Because Jessica Grose wonders, “if we did less shaming of child-free people, could we create a more pro-child culture?”
“Forget ‘return to office,’ Mr. President. That’s no way to fix a baby bust.” (WaPo)
Because Tim Carney also writes about how the US can increase the amount of babies born, and he points to what the federal government as a employer can model for pro-parent, pro-baby ends.
“J. D. Vance Finally Found a Use for the Vice Presidency” (The Atlantic)
Because Yair Rosenberg looks at Vice President JD Vance’s use of social media and how it communicates the role of the VP in this particular administration.