Chris is joined by Jeff Wald, a Minnesota-based lawyer and writer (but who is quick to tell us he’s a North Dakotan). Jeff shares about his and his wife Jackie’s journey with adoption and foster parenting, the result of a call they discerned together to give of themselves to the poor and marginalized. At the heart of this adventure, for Jeff, is a discovery that the most extraordinary graces result from the ordinary-ness of everyday (messy) life with six kids 10-and-under.
On this episode, Chris hosts Dr. Michael Naughton professor of Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas and author of Getting Work Right: Labor and Leisure in a Fragmented World. They discuss 'leisure'....and no, they're not talking about polyester wide-lapeled suits from the 70's. Drawing from the definition articulated by the 20th century German Thomist Josef Pieper, leisure is "an attitude of the mind and a condition of the soul that fosters a capacity to perceive the reality of the world" as it truly is. Mischaracterized as "wasting time," it is fundamentally about being, not doing, in a way that our hearts and minds become more open to the good. At the core of leisure is Sunday, the Lord's Day. In order to get Monday right, Dr. Naughton argues, we must first get Sunday right. The conversation draws on Pieper's famous 1947 book, Leisure, the Basis of Culture.
Chris welcomes back Katie Glenn, Government Affairs Counsel and Americans United for Life, to discuss the recent unprecedented leak of a draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health. First reported by news outlet Politico, lead author Justice Samuel Alito and four of his colleagues appear poised to completely and unequivocally overturn Roe v. Wade, which would return abortion to the states as a political issue. Katie and Chris unpack what was in the draft opinion, what it means for the pro-life movement, the sheer significance of leak from the Supreme Court, and the path ahead for pro-life citizens.
Chris welcomes back Dr. Chris Burgwald. First, they discuss Pope Francis's recent invitation to the bishops of the world to join him in consecrating Ukraine and Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. They then discuss a book they're reading together, After Virtue, by philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre. They specifically dive into the themes of Chapter 12, titled "Aritsotle's Account of the Virtues," using a reading guide authored by Christopher Lutz. They discuss the connections between virtue, law, and community; the virtue of prudence; and Aristotle's view of "friendship" as a foundational virtue for a polis or civil community, prior even to the virtue of justice!