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Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Philippians 4 and Saint Paul’s command: “Have no anxiety at all.” In an age characterized by anxiety, stress, and constant distraction, Saint Paul directs our attention toward whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, and excellent. We become united to what we contemplate. What occupies our minds does not leave us unaffected, but gradually shapes who we are.If we continually focus upon scandal, disorder, and the failures of others, anxiety should not surprise us. Saint Paul instead directs our minds toward what is true and good, where we discover the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Domenic D’Ettore and Carl A. Vater reunite for Encounter to discuss the scholars and questions that shaped their approaches to medieval philosophy. D’Ettorre reflects on how the problem of analogy led him deeper into Aquinas and the Thomistic commentary tradition, while Vater discusses studying under Timothy Noone and learning to “read all the boys.” Th… This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Ezekiel 18 and the question of whether God’s ways are fair.Sin and vice are not merely violations of arbitrary rules. They contradict the proper order of reality and ultimately work against the goodness and happiness for which the human person was created.When we sin, we do not injure God as though our actions could diminish Him. We injure ourselves by acting against the order that leads to our own perfection and fulfillment.Christ entered into the suffering caused by sin so that, through His grace, we might be restored to the proper order of reality and find our ultimate happiness in God. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Philippians 1 and Saint Paul’s declaration that “Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.”The body is not incidental to the Christian faith. To be human is to be a unity of body and rational soul, and the salvation Christ accomplishes includes the whole human person.This is why Christians profess belief in the resurrection of the body. Even in death, when body and soul are separated, our bodies remain ours as we await their resurrection and reunion with the soul.Jesus does not save only a part of us. He gives all of Himself so that all of us might be transformed completely in Christ and live with Him in glory for eternity. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 18 and Saint Peter’s question: “How often must I forgive?”As finite creatures, we naturally count, measure, and compare. But God’s mercy does not exist within the limits of quantity. His attention is directed not toward a number, but toward the person He loves.Jesus invites us to stop counting, justifying, and measuring ourselves. In the sacraments, He comes to us with a mercy grounded not in our goodness, but in His own infinite goodness.We lose our finite quantities in the infinite mercy of God. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 18 and Christ’s promise: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Catholic life is not fundamentally about ideological agreement, personality, social events, or even geographic convenience. We gather together because of Jesus. The parish is the sacramental home of the Christian life. It is there that Christ gathers His people together and gives Himself to us through the sacraments. Catholic truth can be communicated online, but Catholic life is concrete, incarnational, and sacramental. We come to the parish seeking Jesus, and we find Him together. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

How did medieval thinkers understand reality, human nature, and our ultimate purpose?In this episode of In Focus, Dr. Carl Vater introduces medieval philosophy from roughly 1225 to 1308 — a pivotal period shaped by the rise of the universities, the rediscovery of Aristotle, and thinkers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and Blessed John Duns Scotus. He explores major medieval debates concerning metaphysics, analogy, causality, the human soul, knowledge, ethics, and the relationship between faith and reason.For more, read Dr. Vater's article Medieval Philosophy, circa 1225–1308 here: https://www.ect.org/en/article/medieval-philosophy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 16 and Christ’s words: “Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Jesus presents us with a paradox: we find our lives precisely by giving them up. But the Christian does not lose his life only to be left with nothing. We let go of our attempts at self-justification, self-validation, and self-salvation in order to receive our true identity in Christ. Jesus holds nothing back from us. His life is ours, and everything He accomplished through His Incarnation, death, and Resurrection is for our salvation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 16 and Peter’s confession that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.”Peter does not discover Christ’s identity through his own reasoning, preferences, or convictions. Jesus tells him that “flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.”The same principle applies to the Church. We do not understand bishops, the hierarchy, or the sacramental order merely through our personal opinions about the people who occupy those offices.Christ instituted the Church. Christ established her hierarchy. Christ instituted the sacraments through which He gives us grace and salvation.To understand the Church, we must begin with Jesus. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Romans 11 and St. Paul’s declaration that the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.Our weakness, mistakes, and even sin do not change who God is. His wisdom, mercy, and providence remain sure because God Himself does not change.The Christian life therefore has no room for ultimate despair. Our contingency and fragility cannot frustrate the power of divine grace or overturn the loving plan of God.Even when we fail, the goodness of God remains certain. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

What does it mean to speak truthfully about God? In this episode of In Focus, Dr. Dominic De Torre introduces the theology of analogy — the way the Church speaks about God without reducing Him to a creature or making Him unknowable. He explains the difference between univocal, equivocal, and analogous language, explores why analogy is essential for Catholic theology, and shows how it allows us to speak meaningfully about God’s wisdom, goodness, and being while preserving His transcendence. For more, read Dr. De Torre’s article Analogy here: https://www.ect.org/en/article/analogy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 13 and Christ's parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price.Jesus does not teach that the Christian life is about despising the good things of this world. Rather, He reveals that every created good finds its proper place when ordered to the greatest good: God Himself.The saints do not hate the world. They simply love God more than the world. When we discover Christ, every sacrifice becomes intelligible because nothing compares to the treasure of knowing Him.The Christian life is not ultimately about what we lose, but about the One we gain. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Romans 8 and St. Paul's teaching that "we do not know how to pray as we ought."Prayer is not something we accomplish on our own. Even in our weakness, the Holy Spirit comes to our aid, interceding within us and raising our minds to God.The Christian life does not begin with finding the perfect words or mastering the right formula. It begins with God's own Spirit drawing us into communion with Him.Before we know how to pray, the Holy Spirit is already praying within us. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P. reflects on Matthew 13 and the Parable of the Sower.Every seed hears the word, but not every seed bears fruit. Some receive it with joy, yet have no root. Others hear and understand, becoming deeply rooted in Christ.Jesus reveals that lasting faith is more than an emotional response or intellectual interest. True understanding comes only by remaining rooted in Him, the eternal Word.The Christian life begins by hearing Christ, grows through understanding Him, and bears fruit by remaining rooted in Him. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe

In this episode of the Encyclopedia of Catholic Theology podcast, Dr. Richard DeClue reflects on his journey from studying biology and selling Porsches to becoming a Catholic theologian and professor at the Word on Fire Institute. He discusses his formation at Belmont Abbey College, Boston College, and the Catholic University of America, before exploring Eucharistic ecclesiology and why the Eucharist is essential to understanding the Church's origin, nature, structure, and mission. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.ectplus.org/subscribe