Season 12

July 11, 2025

The Mission of the University and the Role of the Humanities | Prof. …

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 knowledg...

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July 10, 2025

Aesthetics, Mozart, and the Pathways of Beauty | Prof. George Corbett

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. This lecture was g...

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July 9, 2025

Objective Beauty in a Subjective World | Prof. Jan C. Bentz

Prof. Jan C. Bentz examines the nature of beauty, arguing that beauty is not merely subjective but possesses objective and transcendent qualities rooted in metaphysical, ethical, and theological traditions from Plato and Aris...

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July 8, 2025

Becoming Human: Barbie, Storytelling, and Aquinas on Self-Knowledge |…

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 dive...

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July 7, 2025

Recovering the Image of God in Man (and Woman) | Sr. Elinor Gardner, …

Sr. Elinor Gardner explores the Christian understanding of virtue, emphasizing the theological and cardinal virtues as foundational to human excellence and the restoration of the image of God in man and woman. This lecture wa...

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July 4, 2025

Created Equal: An Interpretation and Defense of the American Proposit…

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 ...

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July 3, 2025

Predestination and Human Freedom | Prof. Bruce Marshall

Prof. Bruce Marshall explores the complex theological and philosophical challenges of predestination, examining its biblical foundations, Catholic doctrinal teachings, and the relationship between divine will, human freedom, ...

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July 2, 2025

'Many are called, but few are chosen': A Thomistic Approach to Predes…

Fr. Gregory Pine explains the Catholic doctrine of predestination, distinguishing it from Calvinist interpretations by emphasizing God’s gratuitous initiative, human participation through grace, and the ultimate purpose of cr...

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July 1, 2025

How to Make Life-Changing Decisions | Dr. Nathaniel Peters

Dr. Nathaniel Peters examines how young adults can make life-changing decisions by applying philosophical and theological frameworks, particularly drawing on Aristotle and Aquinas, to overcome paralysis, weigh competing goods...

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June 30, 2025

Free Will and the Brain | Fr. Anselm Ramelow, O.P.

Fr. Anselm Ramelow explores the philosophical and scientific debates surrounding free will, examining cultural attitudes, neuroscience experiments like Benjamin Libet's, and the necessity of free will for rational thought and...

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June 27, 2025

Could God Weep or Feel Pain? Christ's Assumption of Human Suffering f…

Prof. Paul Gondreau explores whether God could truly experience human emotions and suffering by examining Christ’s full humanity, the Church’s response to heresies like docetism and monophysitism, and the Aristotelian-Thomist...

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June 26, 2025

God on a Cross: The Meaning of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection o…

Fr. Thomas Petri explores the profound meaning of Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, emphasizing humanity’s original condition and ultimate end, the consequences of sin, and God’s redemptive plan culminating in the In...

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June 25, 2025

Is Anything More Tortuous than the Human Heart? I Prof. Steven Jensen

Prof. Steven Jensen analyzes the complexity of the human heart by distinguishing the interplay between emotions and will, drawing on Aquinas and Aristotle to explain how passions like love, desire, sorrow, anxiety, guilt, vai...

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June 24, 2025

Pope John Paul II's Salvifici Doloris I Prof. Gina Noia

Prof. Gina Noia explores Catholic teaching on medical treatment decision-making, focusing on how suffering, prudence, and the distinction between ordinary and extraordinary means inform ethical choices in end-of-life care, eu...

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June 23, 2025

Suffering and End-of-Life Care I Prof. Gina Noia

Prof. Gina Noia explores Catholic teaching on end-of-life care, suffering, and medical treatment decision-making, highlighting the nuanced distinction between morally obligatory and optional treatments within the Catholic eth...

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June 20, 2025

The Wedding Supper of the Lamb I Prof. Paul Gondreau

Prof. Paul Gondreau explains how the Mass, as the perfect form of human worship, unites sacrifice, thanksgiving, and fellowship by making present Christ’s atoning sacrifice as the Lamb of God, thus joining earthly and heavenl...

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June 19, 2025

Corpus Christi and the Mystery of the Eucharist I Fr. Innocent Smith,…

Fr. Innocent Smith explores the origins and theological significance of the Feast of Corpus Christi, emphasizing how liturgical tradition, scriptural foundations, and figures like Saint Juliana of Liège shape the Church’s und...

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June 17, 2025

Is the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in "Accordance with the Scr…

Prof. Gary Anderson examines how the Christian practice of adoring the Blessed Sacrament is deeply rooted in the scriptural tradition, particularly through the Old Testament themes of God's indwelling presence in the tabernac...

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June 16, 2025

My Lord and My God: Understanding the Incarnation | Prof. Bruce Marsh…

Prof. Bruce Marshall examines the fundamental Christian doctrine of the Incarnation, explaining how the New Testament and Catholic tradition affirm that Jesus is truly God in the flesh, as confessed by Thomas in the Gospel of...

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June 13, 2025

The Convertibility of Being and Goodness | Prof. Thomas Ward

Prof. Thomas Ward explores the Thomistic concept of the convertibility of being and goodness, examining how the privation theory of evil and the essential natures of things underpin the intrinsic goodness of all that exists, ...

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June 12, 2025

The Emergence of Evil as a Theological Problem | Fr. Timothy Bellamah…

Fr. Timothy Bellamah explores how the problem of evil emerged as a distinct theological issue within the Judeo-Christian tradition, contrasting it with ancient mythologies and examining historical responses from Gnosticism to...

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June 11, 2025

A Method for Metaethics | Prof. Candace Vogler

Prof. Candace Vogler analyzes the concept of the highest good in metaethics, comparing the views of Mill, Kant, and Aquinas, and explores how the pursuit of the highest good shapes moral philosophy and practical reasoning. Th...

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June 10, 2025

How Could a Good God Allow Horrible Diseases? | Prof. Stephen Meredith

Prof. Stephen Meredith examines why a good and all-powerful God would allow horrible diseases, weaving together scientific explanations, philosophical arguments from figures like Boethius and Aquinas, and personal anecdotes t...

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June 9, 2025

Evil as Privation | Prof. Thomas Ward

Prof. Thomas Ward explains the classical Christian theory that evil is not a real entity but a privation of goodness, drawing from thinkers like Augustine, Aquinas, and Boethius to address philosophical and theological challe...

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