Society & Culture Episodes

Prof. Christopher Kaczor critically examines the ethics of abortion by exploring whether the unborn are alive and human, whether killing is justified, and whether bodily autonomy overrides other moral considerations.

Prof. Raymond Hain explores the Catholic imagination through the literary works of Flannery O'Connor and J.R.R. Tolkien, revealing how Catholic literature intertwines hope, redemption, and the complexities of faith in the face of suffering and beauty.

Prof. John Cuddeback explores how the household serves as a natural revelation of masculinity and femininity, emphasizing the complementarity of men and women, the significance of virtue, and the essential roles of fatherhood and motherhood.

Dr. Nathaniel Peters and Prof. Jane Peters explore the vocation of marriage as a transformative friendship, highlighting how the goods of marriage—offspring, fidelity, and sacrament—are elevated by grace to foster virtue, mutual delight, and a living witness to Christ’s love.

Prof. Michael Dauphinais explores the realism of the biblical view of sex and marriage, analyzing cultural challenges, scriptural diagnoses, and the transformative power of radical trust in God’s plan for relationships. This lecture was given on February 10th, 2025, at Ohio State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speaker: Michael A. Dauphinais, Ph.D., serves as the Fr. Matthew Lamb Professor ...

Prof. Michael Foley critically examines the authentic role of the humanities in the modern American university, contrasting the consumerist and human models of education while advocating for self-emptying, integrated knowledge, and the cultivation of wonder.

Prof. George Corbett explores the philosophical and theological foundations of beauty through Mozart’s music, highlighting the "pathway of beauty" as a means of encountering the divine and engaging culture.

Prof. Joshua Hochschild explores the philosophical and theological dimensions of the Barbie movie, analyzing its narrative through the lens of storytelling, existentialism, and the thought of Aquinas, while engaging with diverse critical interpretations.

Prof. Christopher Kaczor rigorously defends the inclusive interpretation of the Declaration of Independence, arguing that "all men are created equal" refers to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, or status, drawing on historical documents, the founders' intentions, and philosophical influences.

This lecture was given on February 11th, 2025, at Cornell University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speaker: Fr. Innocent Smith, O.P. entered the Order of Preachers in 2008 and was ordained to the priesthood in 2015. From 2015 to 2018, Fr. Innocent served as parochial vicar at the Parish of St. Vincent Ferrer and St. Catherine of Siena in New York City. From 2018 to 2021, he lived in Munich while completin...

Dr. Nathaniel Peters and Prof. Jane Sloan Peters explore the vocation of parenthood, highlighting the distinct yet complementary roles of fatherhood and motherhood as a participation in God’s creative and priestly work, grounded in Catholic theology and enriched by personal experience. This lecture was given on Jan 24th, 2025, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speaker: Nath...

Prof. Joshua Hochschild analyzes how smartphones and digital technologies reshape our brains, habits, and sense of self by leveraging neuroscience and AI-driven behavioral design, warning that these tools commodify our attention, erode agency, and pose deep spiritual and ethical challenges that demand more than technocratic solutions.

Fr. Ambrose Little examines the philosophical and ethical implications of AI-assisted writing by drawing on Plato’s myth of Thoth, Aristotle, and Aquinas, arguing that while new technologies like AI can threaten essential intellectual virtues, they can also be used wisely if we seek a balanced, virtue-oriented approach to knowledge and memory.

Prof. Adam Eitel explores the nature of friendship and the common good through the lens of Aquinas and Aristotle, emphasizing that true friendship is a mutual, habitual disposition to will and pursue the good of another through concrete sharing and fellowship.

Fr. Cassian Derbes explores why friendship is a difficult but essential good, drawing on Aquinas, Aristotle, Cicero, Augustine, and Dante to show how hope, fortitude, and magnanimity help us overcome sloth and despair in pursuit of true friendship as a common good.

Prof. Thomas Hibbs analyzes Aquinas’ account of friendship and human excellence, drawing on Aristotle and Tocqueville to show how friendship is a necessary, intrinsically valuable common good that addresses contemporary crises of loneliness, civic animosity, and the loss of meaningful community.

Prof. W. Scott Cleveland explores how to be a good friend by applying Aristotle’s philosophy of human flourishing, highlighting the importance of combating envy and apathy while cultivating the virtues of love and wisdom for lasting, meaningful friendships.

Prof. Joshua Hochschild compares Plato’s philosophical exploration of love in the Symposium with John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, analyzing how both traditions address the unity of eros and agape, the meaning of embodied love, and the enduring questions of sexual ethics in light of Humanae Vitae.

Prof. Patrick Callahan analyzes the poetic genius of Saint Thomas Aquinas in the hymns and sequence of Corpus Christi, highlighting Aquinas’ understanding of beauty, proportion, clarity, and sublimity as essential to both art and spiritual contemplation.

Prof. Patrick Callahan reveals how poetry, as the most Christ-like form of speech and a reflection of human mimesis, plays a vital role in the Christian life by fostering conformity to Christ and deepening the contemplative experience.

Prof. Patrick Callahan explores how art, through beauty and the sublime, can lead the soul toward God, drawing on insights from Joseph Pieper, Aristotle, and Christian philosophy to reveal the contemplative power of poetry, music, and the fine arts...

Prof. Chad Pecknold analyzes John Henry Newman’s theological legacy, focusing on doctrinal development, conscience as a divine imperative, and his impact on the Second Vatican Council and modern Catholic-Protestant dialogue.

Fr. Isaac Morales explores the relationship between the historical Jesus and Church's knowledge of Jesus, cautioning against relying too heavily on ever-changing historical reconstructions while emphasizing recurrent themes to discover the authenti...

Fr. John Harris discusses the Catholic approach to secular politics, emphasizing Thomistic principles, the role of lay Catholics, and the balance between natural and supernatural ends in governance.