
Waugh on the Merits - samclemens
https://www.firstthings.com/article/2017/10/waugh-on-the-merits
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hprotagonist
_Waugh does not deny that the Catholic Church has aesthetic splendors to
offer; what he denies is that such splendors provide a reliable basis for
accepting the Church’s claims as true. The feelings such splendors produce are
sporadic and transitory, and those who wallow most deeply in them will feel
cheated and distraught on the day their magic fails. Rather it is the ordinary
daily Mass, the opus operatum, performed and assisted at out of duty rather
than desire, that points to the objective reality of a universal immutable
faith: Your preferences have not been considered._

This is a fairly rare insight, and it generalizes pretty well. Honeymoon
phases are nice, but they are not to be trusted.

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charlysl
My favourite writer in the english language, grossly underrated. Great to see
his cristaline clarity being praised, reading Waugh has made me intolerant of
authors that lack this quality. If I could choose to write like anyone I
wanted, I would choose to write like him. From a Spaniard.

