Glenn Arbery is a novelist and president of Wyoming Catholic College. He joins Ryan to discuss Catholic literature, past and present. They cover Caroline Gordon, Jacques Maritain, Allen Tate, Flannery O’Connor, and the literary scene today. Together they explore what it means to be a Christian artist and what makes Christian art Christian.   Racism and southern literature   New Agrarianism and the popular imagination   The divided mind of the modern   Is change possible in academia?   How higher education can take the incarnation seriously   Is Wyoming Catholic College an instance of the Benedict Option?   Learning to write a novel   When is the best time to write a novel?   Links: Wyoming Catholic College Bearings and Distances by Glenn Arbery Wiseblood Books, founded by Joshua Wren

Natalie Carnes is an associate professor of theology in the religion department at Baylor University and an affiliate faculty member in women's and gender studies. She and Elise discuss Natalie’s latest book, Motherhood: A Confession. They talk about Natalie’s love of Augustine and Gregory of Nyssa, how to approach art made by terrible people, and why beauty is often seen as a frivolous topic.   What is beauty?   Beauty and moral depravity   Witness as an approach to art   Gregory of Nyssa on beauty   An Augustinian take on “slacktivism”   Womanist theology   Raising white daughters   Mothering language for God   Links: Beauty: A Theological Engagement with Gregory of Nyssa Motherhood: A Confession Image and Presence: A Christological Reflection on Iconoclasm and Iconophilia The Life of Moses by Gregory of Nyssa The Life of Macrina by Gregory of Nyssa Carolyn Forché “What Do We Do with the Art of Monstrous Men?” by Claire Dederer “Ferguson Mother of God: Our Lady against all Gun Violence” by Mark Dukes Emilie Townes Karen Baker-Fletcher Shawn Copeland Amey Adkins-Jones Kelly Brown Douglas Creation and the Cross by Elizabeth Johnson

Mark Reiff is a scholar, lawyer, and author of five books on economics and labor. He joins John to talk about his latest book, In the Name of Liberty: The Argument for Universal Unionization. Mark discusses the libertarian argument for unions, the structure of distributive justice, and how self-ownership involves an obligation to others. He and John wrap up the conversation by examining the intersection between Aquinas and libertarianism.   The decline of unionization rates What liberty requires How being a lawyer influenced his scholarship Would there be unions in a libertarian utopia? Public and private unions Why guilds are different institutions from unions Economic justice Police unions and reform Unions and globalization   Links: In the Name of Liberty by Mark Reiff Lisa Herzog Peter Dietsch Mark Reiff's website

Shannon Gayk is Associate Professor of English and Director of the Medieval Studies Institute at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. She joins Elise to talk about how literary forms reflect larger lived experiences. They discuss the importance of witness, the connection between experiencing art and being moved to action, and the relationship between ethics and aesthetics. They wrap up their conversation by exploring structures that can create collective flourishing.   How do we get from texts to a transformed life?   The relationship between ethics and aesthetics   Incarnational literature   Imaginative devotional practice   Margery Kempe   Lollards   Sacred performance   Apocalypse literature   Climate change and medieval environmental writing   Collective flourishing   Links: Image Text and Religious Reform in 15th century England by Shannon Gayk The Highest Poverty Giorgio Agamben

Kirsten Hall is a doctoral candidate at the University of Texas at Austin, a graduate fellow at the Austin Institute, and the managing editor of the Genealogies of Modernity Blog. She joins Ryan to discuss eighteenth-century literature, drama, and thought. Their conversation ranges from the historical importance of Cato, the eighteenth century’s Hamilton, to what 2001: A Space Odyssey can tell us about “the deep eighteenth century.” They also discuss the newest film adaption of Jane Austen’s Emma and the similarities between the comic novel and the movie Austenland.   Calling cards for social media   Genealogical anxiety   The quarrel of the ancients and the moderns   Jonathan Swift’s The Battle of the Books   The eighteenth century’s concern about forgeries   Joseph Addison’s Cato   Eighteenth-century drama   The splendid vices/pagan virtues   2001: A Space Odyssey and the deep eighteenth century   Period costume dramas   Slapstick and the comic novel   Links: Genealogies of Modernity Blog The Battle of the Books by Jonathan Swift Cato by Joseph Addison Autumn de Wilde’s Emma Austenland

Jesse Straight is farmer and founder of Whiffletree Farm. The goal of Jesse’s business is “to farm in a way that is good for all parties involved: the land, the animals, our families, our customers, and our community.” Jesse explains what terms like “grass-fed” and “cage-free” really mean and how the COVID-19 pandemic is revealing the weaknesses in the industrial food system. He tells us about his relationship with the work of Wendell Berry, walks us through his decision to become a farmer, and gives his advice on vocational discernment.   Carbon sequestration and pasture-based farming   Wendell Berry   Imitating biological systems   The real meaning of “cage-free” and “grass-fed”   The benefits of interning at a farm   Why Christians should care about the industrial food system   Vocational discernment   Links Wendell Berry’s work Polyface Farm Joel Salatin books and DVDs Whiffletree Farm Whiffletree Farm Internships

Anthony Bradley is a professor of religious studies and director of the Center for the Study of Human Flourishing at the King’s College in New York City. He gives us a personalist analysis of the criminal justice system (touching on everything from architecture to food) and the Black Lives Matter movement. We discuss the relationship between Afro-pessimism, hope, and Eastern Christianity, and how Black experience informs trinitarian theology. We also talk about the dangers of missional narcissism and the invention of whiteness.  Success and living a quiet life   American eugenics movement   The invention of whiteness   Childhood trauma and educational outcomes   Trauma-informed youth ministry   Black experience and trinitarian theology   Missional narcissism   Exhaustion, tiredness, and race battle fatigue   Personalism and the criminal justice system   Restoration and rehumanizing   Local compassion   Christianity and Afro-pessimism Links: Black Lives Matter website The Redneck Manifesto by Jim Goad Hitler’s American Model by James Whitman The Narcissism Epidemic by Jean Twenge Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates  

Terence Sweeney is editor-at-large of the Genealogies of Modernity Blog and is currently finishing his PhD in philosophy at Villanova. He joins us to talk about the role of the Christian genealogist and the place for wonder and curiosity in the modern university. We mix it up by playing a game of “would you rather” (Thomas Aquinas’s five ways or Pascal's wager?) and talking about Terence’s work as a sexton at his church.   Why did God create time? The role of the Christian genealogist Biblical genealogy What would a modern St. Augustine look like? Plato and prayer Is curiosity a vice or a virtue? The research university and knowledge production Wonder and mystery Being a parish sexton   Links: Genealogies of Modernity Blog Terence's piece on Hannah Arendt "The Catholic Bells" by William Carlos Williams

Jonathan Anderson, associate professor of art at Biola University, is currently pursuing a PhD in theology and religious studies. He joins us to discuss contemporary art and its theological implications. The conversation ranges from Christological approaches in art to the best artists currently dealing with theological themes.   Art patronage in the past and today   Financialization of art   Epiphany and theophany   American modernism   The modern museum   Politics in vision   Secularity   Christological approach to art   Discourses of contestability   Links: Modern Art and the Life of a Culture, co-authored by Jonathan Anderson Modern Art and the Death of a Culture by H. R. Rookmaaker Andrea Büttner Matt Kleberg Kris Martin Tim Hawkinson Doris Salcedo Teresa Margolles Francis Alÿs Jonathan Anderson’s website “Impasse” series by Jonathan Anderson

Katie and Brandon McGinley live with their four children in an intentional Catholic neighborhood community. Brandon is a Catholic writer, and Katie is a retired librarian and full-time homeschooler. They discuss how their community began and how they’ve grown since then. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced them to think creatively about community building, and they share the ways they’ve safely stayed in touch with and supported the people they’re close to. They also look to the future, covering what it will be like coming out of lockdown and how they hope to see Catholic communities grow as a result of the pandemic.   Community Begins with Friendship   Organization and Growth of Communities   The Spontaneity That Comes from Having a Stable Community   How Big Can a Neighborhood Community Grow?   Modeling Communities on the Present   A Quarantine Holy Week   Being Social while Respecting Social Distancing   How Quarantine Could Change Religious Communities   Links: Brandon’s Plough Article The Noonday Devil by Jean-Charles Nault Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home by Elizabeth Foss