What We Can't Not Talk About

Professor Byron Johnson joins us for a conversation on a core piece of the human experience that many of us hold dear but has been neglected in studies of criminology and other fields for decades: the influence of religion on human behavior. In this episode, he covers a brief history of our nation’s understanding of the purpose of prisons, the role of faith-based programs in prisons in making prisoners more “pro-social,” the work of Prison Fellowship International in aiding the rehabilitation of prisoners, why people commit crime and why people follow laws, i.e. don’t commit crime, are both important, and how cancel culture is harming our ability to forgive one another, and the dramatic effects of faith-based programs led by inmates in rehabilitating their fellow inmates such as those in an Angola Prison. Byron Johnson is a Senior Fellow of the Austin Institute and a Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University. He is a leading authority on the scientific study of religion, the efficacy of faith-based organizations, and criminal justice.  Recent publications have examined the impact of faith-based programs on recidivism reduction and prisoner reentry. Prison Fellowship International: https://pfi.org/ The Prisoner’s Journey: https://pfi.org/what-we-do/hope-for-prisoners/the-prisoners-journey/ Prison Fellowship: https://www.prisonfellowship.org/

This fast-paced talk reviews a number of the puzzles, paradoxes and misconceptions about the family in America, including the myth of soulmate marriage, the myth of the good divorce, and the myth that our deepest divisions are political. In this episode, Dr. Catherine Pakaluk, Professor in the Busch School of Business and founder of the Social Research academic area at Catholic University of America, reviews some of the most important contributions to social science of the family, and place these findings in light of the Catholic faith. Reading materials: The Marriage-Go-Round: https://www.amazon.com/Marriage-Go-Round-State-Marriage-Family-America/dp/0307386384 Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010: https://www.amazon.com/Coming-Apart-State-America-1960-2010/dp/030745343X Video recording can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXhOvmlvJ3k

In the year 2019, Professor Catherine Pakaluk traveled to ten American regions and talked with women who were raising (or had raised) five or more children, to understand who they are and why they do what they do. In this episode, we talk about these stories. We talk about the normality of being mothers. We talk about the hardships of living as unencumbered selves. Once again, an episode that is worth your time! Mother of Eight Takes on France's President: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Oqh7bEg_R0 Mom (and researcher) who started #postcardsforMacron is not angry: https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2018/10/19/mom-and-researcher-who-started-postcardsformacron-not-angry Lecture: Soulmates and Other Myths about the Family in America https://youtu.be/RXhOvmlvJ3k

This special episode is the recording of a table talk that Dr. Kurt Schroder gave for the Austin Institute on September 21st, 2021. Tune in to listen how our board member, a Ph.D. in Physics and a brilliant inventor, helps us uncover our illusions about time and about its scientific measurement. Dr. Schroder will also stimulate personal answers to the question: "What would you do if the time you still had to live was "shorter" than you think?" Is it not? Here is the video to the Table Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k61ySdbv0Es&t=25s

Marriage, in vitro fertilization, pornography, these are all very hot and very divisive topics. But if we do not address them with our children, someone else will do it for us. Dr. Ana Samuel, Academic Director of CanaVox, and mother of six, explains how the CanaVox network of reading group works, why and how it was founded and what is coming next. Started less than 10 years ago, CanaVox is now present throughout the world, with several groups in Texas, including in Austin. Tune in to learn more! This episode was recorded at the end of July 2021. Links: https://canavox.com/who-we-are/

Have you ever wondered how an immortal life would look like? In this episode, we have privilege to discuss some fascinating aspects of this topic with Dr. Rachel Alexander. Based on Dr. Alexander's treatment of "Memory and Mortality in Homer’s Odyssey," soon to be published in the book "Political Theory on Death and Dying," we talked about living in the past, about the passing of time, and about truth seeking. Tune in, enjoy, ... and remember to share! LINK: https://www.routledge.com/Political-Theory-on-Death-and-Dying/Dolgoy-Hale-Peabody/p/book/9780367437411

We are back with season 2 of our podcast and we are kickstarting it with a special lecture given by Joseph Price, Professor of Economics at Brigham Young University and Senior Fellow of the Austin Institute and moderated by Andrew Brown, J.D., Distinguished Senior Fellow of Child and Family Policy at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. In this episode, we explore the rights and responsibilities of parents and the limits of both parental and governmental authority over children. The parent-child relationship is the foundation of civil society. Increasingly, however, government is attempting to exert control over basic child rearing decisions traditionally made by parents. Watch the lecture: https://youtu.be/0kHNOoI_3I8 Visit Texas Public Policy Foundation: https://www.texaspolicy.com/

Once again, we are happy to host a conversation on the issue of today: online pornography. With the help of Sean Clifford, CEO of Canopy.us, and happy father of four children, we tried to understand what each of us can do to make sure that our kids are not exposed, not even accidentally, to this new and dangerous drug. As our guest tells us, internet is a great resource and we all love our smartphones (and our podcasts!); but the internet is also a very dangerous place. Internet filters are a great and necessary help. By the way, there are filters out there that can help adults too! Listen, share, and consider protecting your loved ones. Canopy: https://canopy.us/, https://www.covenanteyes.com/?msclkid=7a7c12200cf41fa7d10672dc5f188ce6 DISCOUNT CODE: SAFER at checkout: 15% off + 30 days free with any subscription plan. Meet Circle: https://meetcircle.com/

What is the role that America can play in defending and promoting the right to life of all children, everywhere in the world? How does its international policy look like today and how did it look like during the former administration? In this episode we recorded a couple weeks back, we have the privilege of hosting a conversation with Valerie Huber, an architect of the Geneva Consensus Declaration (tune in to learn about it!) and former U.S. Special Representative for Global Women’s Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Enjoy! Geneva Consensus https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/geneva-consensus-declaration-english.pdf

As promised, Professor Christopher Kaczor is back on our show to talk about his latest release—published today: "Jordan Peterson, God, and Christianity: The Search for a Meaningful Life!" Co-authored with Associate Professor Matthew R. Petrusek, the book analyses Peterson’s biblical series on YouTube as well as his bestselling book "12 Rules for Life" and his latest "Beyond Order" from a Christian perspective. In this episode, I get to ask Professor Kaczor a few deeper questions about Genesis, human creativity, and true happiness. Not *instead* ... but *before* reading the book, tune in for another great talk! LINKS: Book: https://books.wordonfire.org/peterson-book https://www.amazon.com/Jordan-Peterson-God-Christianity-Meaningful/dp/1943243786/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=kaczor+jordan&qid=1627412081&s=books&sr=1-1 Our book club: https://www.austin-institute.org/events/the-good-life-book-club Koons' episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6USikEhKuXigE2WCXmz886