Fr. John Paul Trask joins the show to share about the life of Fr. Pierre Jean DeSmet, a Belgian Jesuit who dedicated his life to mission among the native peoples of the west. Fr. DeSmet’s nineteenth century missionary journeys took him from Belgium to St. Louis, up the Missouri, and as far as the Pacific. Spending much time in present-day South Dakota, Fr. DeSmet earned a reputation for bold fearlessness, and became known as a gifted peacemaker. Selfless, clever, and holy, Fr. DeSmet’s example stands as worthy of emulation for Catholics today.
Faith & Politics
F&P Episode: 101 – Labor and Leisure in a Fragmented World
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.