You Are Not Your Own Substack

Articles

The Challenge of Masculinity

2 months ago | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble |Chris Arnade

Two recent articles have had me thinking about what a positive vision for masculinity looks like. The first is entitled “All Men Want to Be Heroes” by , an insightful cultural critic and excellent ambulator. The second is entitled “Defining Healthy Masculinity: A Response to Louise Perry” and was written by Luke Simon. Both articles argue that a positive vision for masculinity is possible and necessary and that heroism has something to do with it, particularly the self-sacrificial hero.
Same-Sex Marriage Opposition as Vibes

2 months ago | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble |Ryan Burge

Author’s Note: Whether this particular topic interests you or not, let me encourage you to consider becoming a paid subscriber. Writing two posts a week is a challenge and joy for me, and I hope I’m able to bring some real value to you, my readers. Just to give you some idea, this piece took all of Sunday morning and most of the afternoon to brainstorm and write (we were home sick with the flu, so no church).
Should We Trust Churches?

Jan 17, 2025 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble |Ryan Burge

One of the stories of the contemporary world’s unraveling is the story of loss of social trust, particularly in institutions. And one of those institutions is organized religion. According to , “In the most recent data, about 15% of folks expressed a great deal of confidence in religion, while the share who had hardly any trust has risen from 15% in 1972 to 35% today.” This is not just true among atheists.
Meta is Rolling Back Its Censorship, But Not the Most Significant Kind

Jan 13, 2025 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

Last week Meta announced that they were rolling back a series of measures they’ve had in place since at least the 2016 debacle of an election to prevent the spread of disinformation. As Zuckerberg says in the video announcement, they were well-intentioned measures, but they turned out to be too restrictive and censored perfectly appropriate content. Remembering the 2016 election season, I am quite sympathetic, personally. The disinformation campaigns, especially on Facebook, were horrific.
Studiositas: The Virtue of Study and Attention

Jan 10, 2025 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

Under the heading of temperance fall the vice of curiositas and the sub-virtue of studiositas. A few months ago I wrote about the the vice of curiositasin relation to the David Platt documentary and the Steve Lawson scandal. At the time, I wrote that curiositas is “a perverse, restless desire for knowledge that goes beyond what is respectable, reasonable, and appropriate, that goes beyond all limits.
Take Heed Lest You Fall into an Affair

Dec 9, 2024 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

Editorial Note: Normally Monday is my Paid Subscriber’s post, but in celebration of reaching the milestone of 4k total subscribers, I’m making this post unlocked. But please consider becoming a paid subscriber. The only way I’m able to justify the time I put into this newsletter is through the generous support of my readers. Last week I had one of those serendipitous experiences that can only happen online.
How Mental Illness Affects Loved Ones

Dec 2, 2024 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

In these pages I have written extensively about mental health from my own insight, not as a professional but as one with lived experience and knowledge of those with lived experience. Take it for what it’s worth and seek professional guidance. I have written about how to care for someone with a mental illness, the reality that you may not need a therapist, the role desire plays in recovery, and flawed ways of understanding mental health.
Is Christianity on the Cusp of Resurgence?

Nov 29, 2024 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

Recently there have been signs of growing cultural interest in Christianity. I’ve written about some of this interest myself at Christianity Today. The general argument goes something like this: in the last few decades, even many secular people have grown dissatisfied or disgusted with the godlessness of the progressive worldview.
I Can't Rest

Nov 25, 2024 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble

Pascal’s famous dictum “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone” has always troubled me because despite all my own writing (in Disruptive Witness) and speaking on the subject, I rarely can sit alone quietly with myself. Cognitively, I know Pascal is correct. I need to learn to “be still and know that [He] is God” (Psalm 46:10). But there are three related barriers to my being able to fully rest like that. And it is a matter of rest. The first is my OCD.
When Your Literary Heroes (Inevitably) Fail You

Nov 22, 2024 | newsletter.oalannoble.com | O. Alan Noble |Aaron Gwyn

Yesterday I woke up expecting life to be normal and my favorite author not to be legitimately guilty of statutory rape of a 17 year old when he was in his “early” forties. I also didn’t expect to read this story in a sprawling, romanticized, purple-prose narrative in Vanity Fair. Life is full of stupid and horrid surprises. So here we are, again, with the reality that a literary giant is a moral degenerate.