“Aspergers Me, Domine”: neurodivergents in religious spaces

April 4, 2023 By Stephen G. Adubato

For some reason, some people found it shocking—perhaps even scandalous—that I would point out the fact that a significant amount of people who attend the Tridentine Latin Mass in the US find themselves somewhere on the Spectrum. I’m not exactly sure how this assertion constitutes breaking news…especially for those who have attended a TLM. It shouldn’t be a secret the people on the Spectrum, especially those with traits associated with Asperger’s Syndrome, have an affinity for the rigid, predictable rubrics of... Read more

James Baldwin: Repressed Prophet

March 31, 2023 By Stephen G. Adubato

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James Baldwin is a genius. His writing has tremendously shaped the way I look at race relations, ethnic identity, and the psychological and existential trajectory of American Culture. In particular, his essay Nothing Personal (an essential on the Cracks in PoMo Reading List) highlights the way that white Anglos, driven by their “Enlightened” principles, left their native lands for the Americas, left behind their “antiquated” ethnic, spiritual, communal, and moral roots to forge new atomized identities, aspiring to live lives... Read more

What exactly does one do with white people?

March 16, 2023 By Stephen G. Adubato

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on ‘You People’ and the banality of assimilated whites The most divisive force in America today is, ironically, precisely the “new class” of liberal and radical academics, media personnel, and social service professionals that thinks itself so moral. Perhaps out of guilt feelings—or for whatever reason—they have projected all guilt for “white racism” onto others. And, without undergoing any of the costs themselves, they take sides or plainly appear to take sides in the very sharp competition between lower-class people,... Read more

Benedict: The Postmodern Pope

January 24, 2023 By Stephen G. Adubato

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After long await, here are some excerpts from my essay on Benedict, the postmodern Pope: For me, Benedict’s affect, style of thinking, and overall aesthetic was emblematic of Catholicism’s unique cultural vision. With his esteem for the arts, his affinity for engaging with intellectuals whom most would deem far from the Church’s tradition, and his campy flare, he was perhaps—despite his measured critiques of it—the pontiff most in tune with and capable of speaking to the postmodern tides that Western... Read more

2022 Wrap Up: The Best of Cracks in Pomo

January 2, 2023 By Stephen G. Adubato

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Thanks to everyone who supported CracksInPomo this year. Get ready for new posts next year on topics including thirst traps, Pope Benedict’s postmodernism, The White Lotus season 2, divorce, and why high schools need to teach philosophy. Consider $upporting CracksInPomo by choosing a paid subscription of this page, or by offering a donation through Anchor. And don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and Twitter. My Top 5 1. ‘Decadent’ Young People See Beauty in Catholic Tradition: a generous take... Read more

October Updates

November 2, 2022 By Stephen G. Adubato

Articles published this month: The attraction of Catholic traditionalism: From the fringes to the spotlight – Catholic World Report ‘Decadent’ Young People See Beauty in Catholic Tradition — Will Truth and Goodness Follow?| National Catholic Register Ariana Grande: Unicorn Frappuccino Instagram Barbie — The Critic Magazine Review of Bros-The Spectator Australia The ‘Body Positivity’ Movement Is At Odds With Human Nature — The Federalist Looking for advice on masculinity? Try St. Joseph rather than Jordan Peterson- National Catholic Reporter Remembering the Particular:... Read more

Kanye’s Concerning Compromise

October 25, 2022 By Stephen G. Adubato

on prophecy, subsidiarity, and the errors of expediency for its own sake I wrote in my article on the 20th anniversary of Lauryn Hill’s MTV Unplugged 2.0 album that Kanye West is (after Hill) the closest we’re going to get to a John the Baptist-type prophet today. What inhibits him from fully achieving prophet status is his overly friendly and naive attitude toward the Herod’s of our day: corrupt corporate and political elites. West indeed has prophetic proclivities: he is... Read more

Who gets/has to be white?: On Rick Caruso, the “latinidad” of Italians, and the feast of St. Gerard in Newark

October 19, 2022 By Stephen G. Adubato

Just days after publishing an article about ethnic identity and racial identity categories, I see this news story. LA mayoral candidate Rick Caruso, an American of Italian descent, made waves for claiming not to be “white.” Moderating the debate on Tuesday night, the Telemundo journalist Dunia Elvir said: “And this question goes for the both of you. The next mayor of Los Angeles will be either an African American woman or a white man.” “I’m Italian,” Caruso said. “Italian American,”... Read more

Bad Bunny’s Big Gay Kiss: The Banality of Public Spectacles under Liquid Modernity

September 22, 2022 By Stephen G. Adubato

Reactions to Bad Bunny’s same sex kiss on the 39th annual MTV Video Music Awards have been painstakingly predictable, as if being read off of a script. From those celebrating his bold statement of self-acceptance and his disavowal of machismo and homophobia, to those highlighting his white-passing and cis-male privilege and those condemning the act as “queerbaiting,” most would not be alarmed were they to find out that the proliferation of news headlines and social media posts were generated by... Read more

Notes on Trads: the latest in the trad Catholic wars

September 17, 2022 By Stephen G. Adubato

The latest at Trad parishes *I’m noticing that although some attend the TLM because they find the liturgy to be spiritually transformative, for most it appears to be mainly a form of reactionary performance art or tribal signaling. Most seem to be reacting to something they don’t like which they think the Novus Ordo Mass represents: something they don’t like about the Pope, the Synodal Path, the “masonic infiltration” at Vatican II, etc. *At the parishes I’ve attended (which is... Read more