The Thomistic Institute

Join Dr. Edmund Lazzari, a Teaching Fellow at Duquesne University and expert in Catholic theology, as he tackles the profound complexities surrounding the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. He addresses modern criticisms that label the Trinity as overly intricate and explores the harmonious relationship between God's oneness and threeness. Delving into philosophical insights from St. Thomas Aquinas, he reveals how understanding the Trinity enriches human relationships and points toward the divine communion awaiting believers.

Michael Gorman, a Professor of Philosophy at The Catholic University of America, dives deep into the existence of God. He discusses philosophical reasoning, contrasting it with authority and personal experience in belief systems. Gorman highlights Aquinas's uncaused causes as a significant argument for God's existence, while acknowledging the limits of philosophical inquiry. He also examines the critical interplay between philosophy and revelation, emphasizing how divine truths often transcend human reasoning, making revelation essential for understanding faith.

In this discussion, Patrick Callahan, Director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture, explores the poetic brilliance of Saint Thomas Aquinas. He examines Aquinas' views on beauty, emphasizing the importance of proportion and clarity in art and spirituality. Callahan dives into the intersection of art, language, and theology in Aquinas' hymns, revealing the richness of poetic devices and their deep theological meanings. The conversation uncovers how these elements enhance one's understanding of faith and devotion.

In this engaging discussion, Patrick Callahan, Director of the Newman Institute and Assistant Professor at St. Gregory the Great Seminary, illuminates the essential role of poetry in the Christian life. He explores how poetry reflects Christ-like speech and fosters deeper contemplation. Callahan delves into the intersection of art, love, and philosophy, drawing insights from thinkers like Joseph Pieper and St. Augustine. He emphasizes the transformative power of language and the integration of poetry in liturgy, highlighting its ability to connect individuals to the divine and to community.

Alexander Pruss, a philosophy professor at Baylor University with dual PhDs in mathematics and philosophy, discusses profound connections between God, beauty, and mathematics. He explores the paradoxical nature of math and its aesthetic dimensions, linking elegance in scientific theories to simplicity in faith. Pruss dives deep into how mathematical concepts reflect divine authorship, alongside historical perspectives from thinkers like Augustine. The conversation continues to unravel philosophical questions about reality and theistic interpretations of our universe.

Patrick Callahan, Director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture, dives into the relationship between art and spirituality. He discusses how philosophy and contemplation enhance our experience of the arts and connect us to divine truths. Callahan explores the essence of beauty, linking it to goodness and contrasting divine and created beauty. He also examines the concept of the sublime in art, citing poets like Dante and Shakespeare, and emphasizes how art can awaken spiritual wonder and deeper human desires.

Fr. Philip-Neri Reese explores the relationship between logic and truth as they manifest in God, the natural world, and artificial constructs, emphasizing the distinct ways in which logic operates within divine, natural, and human-made realities.This lecture was given on November 6th, 2023, at Oxford University.For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.About the Speaker:Fr. Philip-Neri Reese is a Dominican friar of the Province of St Joseph and a Professor of Philosophy at the Pontifical University of St.Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome. He is also the principal investigator for the Angelicum Thomistic Institute’s new Project on Philosophy and the Thomistic Tradition. He received his Licentiate in Philosophy from the Catholic University of America in 2015 and his Doctorate in Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in 2022. From 2015-2017 he taught philosophy at Providence College in Providence, RI. His main area of research is metaphysics and anything adjacent to it, with a special emphasis on the metaphysical thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and its subsequent reception and interpretation. His publications, however, range widely, including articles on philosophical anthropology, ethics, and economics. He is also an enthusiast of classical Indian philosophy. Fr Philip-Neri is a member of the American Philosophical Association, the Society for Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy, the Aquinas and the Arabs International Working Group, the Society for Medieval and Renaissance Thomism, and is currently serving on the executive committee of the American Catholic Philosophical Association.Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Divine Logic, Epistemology, Logic, Metaphysics, Natural Law, Philosophy of Science, Rationality, Theology, Truth

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.This lecture was given on April 25th, 2024, at Hillsdale College.For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.About the Speaker:Dr. Chad C. Pecknold earned his PhD in Systematic Theology at the University of Cambridge in England. He is a Catholic theologian and for the last 16 years he has been a professor of theology at The Catholic University of America in Washington DC, teaching in the areas of fundamental theology, Christian anthropology and political theology. Since 2022, he has been named by The Catholic Herald as one of the most influential Catholic thought leaders and authors in the United States. An internationally recognized scholar of Augustine’s theological and political thought, Pecknold has authored or edited five books — including Christianity and Politics: A Brief Guide to the History and The T&T Clark Companion to Augustine and Modern Theology —and authored dozens of peer-reviewed journal articles. He edits the Sacra Doctrina series for CUA Press with Fr. Thomas Joseph White O.P. He has served the public by educating thousands of students at the Institute of Catholic Culture, and also through his many columns at First Things, National Review, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, and The Catholic Herald. He has been an invited guest on NPR's "All Things Considered," Fox News, ABC News, and has been a frequent guest on EWTN News Nightly, World Over Live with Raymond Arroyo, and various other EWTN programs, such as the celebrated series on Heresies. Pecknold has also led institutions, serving as Chair of the American Academy of Catholic Theology from 2015-2020, expanding and professionalizing a guild of theologians faithful to the Magisterium. He also serves in non-profit board leadership as Board Director for Americans United for Life, Board Member for Pro-Life Partners, Board Member for the Classical Learning Test, Fellow of the Institute for Human Ecology, and as Resident Theologian at the Institute for Faith and Public Culture at the Basilica of Saint Mary — the oldest Catholic Church in the Commonwealth of Virginia. While currently finishing a short book on the Catholic understanding of Augustine’s Confessions, Pecknold continues to work on a long term project on Augustine’s City of God and the Christian order of things. He and his wife Dr Sara Pecknold (who teaches Music History at Christendom College) have five children, including adorably identical twin toddler girls whose names they frequently confuse!Keywords: Anglican-Catholic Dialogue, Conscience, Development of Doctrine, Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine, Faith and Reason, John Henry Newman, Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Second Vatican Council, The Idea of a University, Modern Ecclesiology

Discover the fascinating role of Marian apparitions in Catholic doctrine and their link to the incarnation. Explore the balance between the existence of God, Christ, and Mary's significance in salvation. Delve into the idea of achieving goals effectively, using personal anecdotes for illustration. Learn about the beauty of the incarnation as God's method for salvation, and how Marian apparitions serve as divine gifts that offer peace and rejuvenation, enriching the faithful's spiritual journey.

Prof. Lewis Ayres examines how the Nicene Creed functions as a generative and interpretive “cipher” within Christian tradition, tracing its roots to the adaptation of Second Temple Jewish imaginative worlds and the development of early rules of faith to highlight the creed’s ongoing role in shaping theological reflection.This lecture was given on February 7th, 2025, at Dominican House of Studies.For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.About the Speaker: Lewis Ayres is Professor of Catholic and Historical Theology at Durham University in the United Kingdom. He specializes in the study of early Christian theology, especially the history of Trinitarian theology and early Christian exegesis. He is also deeply interested in the relationship between the shape of early Christian modes of discourse and reflection and the manner in which renewals of Catholic theology during the last hundred years have attempted to engage forms of modern historical consciousness and sought to negotiate the shape of appropriate scriptural interpretation in modernity, even as they remain faithful to the practices of classical Catholic discourse and contemplation. His publications include Augustine and the Trinity (2010) and Nicaea and Its Legacy: An Approach to Trinitarian Theology (2004). Professor Ayres has co-edited the Blackwell Challenges in Contemporary Theology series (since 1997), the Ashgate Studies in Philosophy and Theology in Late Antiquity series (since 2007), and has just co-founded with Fortress Press the Renewal: Conversations in Catholic Theology series. He serves on the editorial boards of Modern Theology, the Journal of Early Christian Studies, and Augustinian Studies. He has also served on the board of the North American Patristics Society.Keywords: Arius, Christological Doctrine, Cyril of Jerusalem, Gnosticism, Imaginative World, Irenaeus of Lyon, Nicene Creed, Origen of Alexandria, Rule of Faith, Trinitarian Theology