Fr. Richard John Neuhaus: 1936-2008

Fr. Richard John Neuhaus reposed just a few minutes ago, as First Things reports. May he rest in peace.

Neuhaus began his vocation in the LCMS, attending my alma mater Concordia Seminary. He eventually left the LCMS and was briefly a pastor in the ELCA before famously converting to Roman Catholicism in 1990. He was the author of numerous influential books, including The Naked Public Square: Religion and Democracy in America. He was also the founder of the excellent journal First Things.

While some in the LCMS consider him a traitor and pariah (not kidding--LCMSers hate people who leave), he was by all accounts a faithful Christian and a profound thinker. He will be missed.