Episodes

Fr. Gabriel O’Donnell argues that the Christian life is not mainly about rule-following or behavior modification, but about becoming a whole, Godward person through self-knowledge, acceptance, and relationship with Christ. This lecture was given on March 14th, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Fr. O’Donnell grew up in Syracuse, New York. After two years as a student at Providen...

Dr. Carl Vennerstrom argues that Christ’s temptation in the desert is a perfect temptation: it reveals every major kind of temptation, shows the devil’s weakness, and becomes a means of salvation rather than merely an obstacle. This lecture was given on March 13th, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Vennerstrom specializes in eastern patristic theology. Of particular interes...

Dr. Kevin Kambo argues that AI should be understood less as genuine intelligence and more as a highly sophisticated form of simulated intelligence, like a mirror that reflects patterns without understanding them. This lecture was given on March 10th, 2026, at Southern Methodist University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Kevin M. Kambo is an assist ant professor of philosophy at the University of Dallas in Irv...

Christopher Mooney argues that John Henry Newman’s teaching on conscience means conscience is not mere personal preference or social conditioning, but the practical application of divine moral law to particular actions. This lecture was given on March 9th, 2026, at Ohio State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Christopher Mooney is an assistant professor of theology at the Augustine Institute Gradua...

Prof. Paul Gondreau argues that disability, though a real physical wound of human nature, can also be a profound gift because it deepens participation in Christ’s suffering and points toward healing in the resurrection. This lecture was given on March 9th, 2026, at University of Oxford. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Paul Gondreau is professor of theology at Providence College, where he has taught for 28 years....

Dr. Peter Koritansky argues that Thomas Aquinas grounds punishment in natural law and retributive justice, where punishment is justified not merely to deter or rehabilitate, but to express the moral order and the common good. This lecture was given on March 5th, 2026, at Cornell University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Peter Karl Koritansky is a professor and Director of the Center for Civics, Culture, an...

Prof. Nina Sophie Heereman argues that the Church is not a human invention but a divinely founded reality rooted deeply in Scripture, where Israel’s story, the Eucharist, and Pentecost all reveal Christ’s intention to gather a new people of God. This lecture was given on March 5th, 2026, at Louisiana State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Heereman was born and raised in Germany. Originally trained...

Fr. Gregory Pine argues that good conversation is a real moral and spiritual practice: it matters, takes time, and should be used to draw near to others through listening well, welcoming contributions, and sharing life rather than trying to win or dominate. This lecture was given on March 4th, 2026, at Iowa State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P., is an instructor of dogmatic and...

Dr. Rebekah Lamb argues that St. John Henry Newman’s idea of the saint is deeply relational: saints are friends knit together in the communion of saints, and holiness is lived through prayer, hidden service, and ordinary fidelity. This lecture was given on February 19th, 2026, at Queen's University, Belfast. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Rebekah Lamb is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in theology and the ...

Dr. Wes Siscoe argues that true happiness and the good life are not found in pleasure, wealth, fame, or even bodily health, but in a fully ordered human flourishing that culminates in union with God. This lecture was given on February 19th, 2026, at Indiana University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Wes Siscoe is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at The Ohio State University. He is also a Thomistic Institute...

Prof. Steven Jensen presents several arguments in favor of the conclusion that the life of a fetus has intrinsic human dignity on account of what a human being is and not merely as an effect of psychological or cognitive capacity, ultimately concluding that the intentional killing of a fetus as a means to save a mother's life is morally impermissible. This lecture was given on February 19th, 2026, at North Dakota State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomistici...

Dr. John-Paul Heil argues that Christians should “elect Christ as king” by judging political institutions according to whether they actually lead people toward holiness, the common good, and heaven. This lecture was given on February 17th, 2026, at Virginia Tech. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: John-Paul Heil is a Core Fellow in history, philosophy, Catholic anthropology, English, and theology at Mount St. Mary'...

Dr. Lydia Dugdale argues that the “lost art of dying” can be recovered by reviving older practices of mortality awareness, community, reconciliation, and hope rather than accepting medicalized dying as normal. This lecture was given on February 16th, 2026, at University of Galway. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Lydia Dugdale is the Silberberg Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for Clinical Med...

Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau presents the Catholic disagreement over honoring Truman as a serious moral dispute rooted in differing judgments about just war, innocent life, and the necessity of the atomic bomb. This lecture was given on February 14th, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: A native of Louisiana, Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau, O.P., entered the Dominican Province of St. Joseph in 200...

Prof. Michael Krom argues that just war principles still govern contemporary warfare, especially drone warfare and autonomous weapons, and that moral judgment cannot be replaced by technology or legal convenience. This lecture was given on February 14th, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Michael Krom started reading Aquinas’s Summa Theologiae shortly after his conversion at the...

Prof. Michael Krom argues that just war theory remains morally necessary today because war must be judged by justice, right intention, and the common good rather than by realpolitik, legal minimalism, or national self-interest. This lecture was given on February 14th, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Michael Krom started reading Aquinas’s Summa Theologiae shortly after his con...

Prof. Thomas Ward argues that Stoicism offers valuable detachment and moral discipline, but Boethius and Christianity deepen it by reordering the human person toward friendship, hope, and beatitude in God. This lecture was given on February 12th, 2026, at Franciscan University of Steubenville. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Thomas M. Ward is Associate Professor of Philosophy at The University of Texas at Austin...

This lecture was given on February 12th, 2026, at Vanderbilt University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Lydia Dugdale is the Silberberg Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at Columbia University in New York City. As a medical doctor and ethicist, she cares for patients, consults on complex ethical issues in the hospital, and teaches medical trainees and undergraduate ...

This lecture was given on March 5th, 2026, at University of Louisiana at Lafayette. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Dr. Heereman was born and raised in Germany. Originally trained to become a lawyer and after completing her bar exam, she experienced a deep encounter with the Lord which led her to consecrate her life to the study and teaching of the Word of God. She subsequently attended the ICPE school of Evangel...

This lecture was given on March 12th, 2026, at University of Edinburgh. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Rik Van Nieuwenhove is Professor of Medieval Theology at Durham University, UK. He has published scholarly articles on medieval theology (especially Aquinas) and spirituality, theology of the Trinity, and soteriology. His books include: Providence, Evil and Salvation. A Thomist Perspective (Cambridge: Cambridge...

Prof. Christopher Frey argues that Stoicism offers real insights about freedom and detachment from externals, but its ideal of self-sufficient serenity risks flattening human emotion, moral life, and the need for grace. This lecture was given on November 7th, 2024, at United States Military Academy. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Christopher Frey is currently the McFarlin Professor of Philosophy at The Universi...

Sr. Anna Wray argues that sorrow can either deform the soul as acedia or save it when rightly faced, and she offers a Thomistic account of how sorrow, friendship with God, and spiritual remedies shape the Christian life. This lecture was given on November 6th, 2025, at Iowa State University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Sister Anna Wray is a native of Connecticut and a member of the Dominican Sisters of Saint...

This lecture was given on February 19th, 2026, at University of Tulsa. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events. About the Speakers: Fr. Stephen Ryan was born and raised in Boston and entered the Order of Preachers in 1987. He was ordained a priest in 1993 and, on completion of doctoral studies in Scripture, was assigned to the Dominican House of Studies in 2000. He teaches Scripture and the biblical languages.

Prof. Michael Dauphinais contends that modern Christians, formed by empiricism, individualism, and a this‑worldly hope that easily turns to despair, especially need the Eucharist because it is the concrete, sacramental way Christ draws us into the Trinitarian communion for which we were created, making his paschal mystery present and reproducing his own filial relation to the Father in us. This lecture was given on November 14th, 2025, at University of Oklahoma. For more information on upcomin...