Institute of Catholic Culture

The Institute of Catholic Culture is an adult educational organization, faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, and dedicated to the Church’s call for a new evangelization.

The Institute of Catholic Culture is an adult educational organization, faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, and dedicated to the Church’s call for a new evangelization.

The Institute of Catholic Culture is an adult educational organization, faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, and dedicated to the Church’s call for a new evangelization.

The Institute of Catholic Culture is an adult educational organization, faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, and dedicated to the Church’s call for a new evangelization.

In Matthew 18, Jesus teaches that unless we become like children, we will never enter the kingdom of heaven. This lecture explores what it means to have a “child-like” faith. Msgr. Pope also examines the modern challenges to living a life of faith and the vices which make such a life difficult.

Using the words of St. Thomas the Apostle in John 11:16 as a starting point, Prof. Garland examines what it means to “die to self” by exploring the history and theology of the season of Lent, providing practical ways in which our penitential practices can prepare us to live for Christ.

This talk gives an exciting overview of the central, although misunderstood or simply ignored, Christian doctrine that God the Father, through the Incarnation of the Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit into our hearts, transforms our humanity so as to allow us to share in divinity. Grave objections that challenge the notion of deification as un-Christian are considered, and answers given from Scripture, holy witnesses to Tradition from both East and West, and the Magisterium.

Millions of Americans celebrate St. Patrick's Day every year, but few know the man who is the reason for the feast. Join us as we cut through the legends to meet the real Saint Patrick in his own writings, and see the working of God's grace in the most unlikely of places.

We are all called to be martyrs, that is, witnesses of the faith. Yes, we may face “red martyrdom,” by which we shed our blood for the faith. Most of us, however, are challenged to embrace a “white martyrdom,” which means striving to live a genuinely Christian life in an age of secularism and relativism. Martyrs, however, are the seed of the Church, as the Church Father Tertullian stated. Therefore, our lived life-whether at home, work or school-must be a witness that plants the seeds of faith and builds up the Church.

Hypocrisy is a word and concept that is often misunderstood today. We tend to use the word merely to condemn people who say one thing and do another. But Jesus, when he uses the word has something richer and more subtle in mind as we look to the 6th Chapter of Matthew’s Gospel on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It is a rich and powerful instruction from the Lord. Let’s sit as his feet and listen.

Our Lord consistently used imagery of the natural world in order to convey fundamental truths. The Church’s liturgy and calendar is similarly rooted in the realities of the material created order and of human husbandry. This lecture addresses how we can reconnect to those images and realities in order to deepen our lives as Christians.

“That anyone could doubt the right of the holy Virgin to be called the Mother of God fills me with astonishment. Surely she must be the Mother of God if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, and she gave birth to him!” — Saint Cyril of Alexandria

Join Dr. Steven Smith for a tour de force in the Gospel of Luke. Beginning with the notion of "kingdom" in the Old Testament and tracing through major examples in Luke, this webinar will help unlock the mystery of the Kingdom of God as it relates to Jesus.

In this study, Rev. Sebastian Carnazzo and Rev. Hezekias Carnazzo examine the literary structures (typology, framing devices, chiasms, parallel cycles, merisms) used by the Gospel writers to convey a deeper message and assist us in focusing our attentio

Society is at a crossroads in the educational formation of the next generation, and the Church offers the only true way forward. Under attack from the secularist agenda set forth fifty years ago by the Land O' Lakes statement, a new generation of Catholic intellectuals have reacted by working to reestablish centers of opportunity in which our youth can engage in a genuine Catholic education. Join the Institute of Catholic Culture and The Cardinal Newman Society in welcoming the presidents of faithful Catholic colleges to discuss and debate the crisis and find a solution to the education of the next generation. Speakers Patrick Reilly, President, The Cardinal Newman Society John Garvey, President, The Catholic University of America Father Sean Sheridan, President, Franciscan University of Steubenville William Thierfelder, President, Belmont Abbey College George Harne, President, Northeast Catholic College

The word ‘Trinity’ does not occur in the Bible, but we encounter this term very early in Christian history. In this webinar, we explore the biblical roots of the Trinity and follow its development from the first century to the Council of Nicaea (325 AD). After watching how this foundational doctrine developed over time, we conclude by peering deeply into the inner life of the Holy Trinity.

In this two-part webinar, Rev. Sebastian Carnazzo leads you through a study of the original unity of the Sacraments of Initiation, the history of their development, and the Church’s desire for their full restoration. Make sure you have your Bible and Catechism ready!

The word ‘Trinity’ does not occur in the Bible, but we encounter this term very early in Christian history. In this webinar, we explore the biblical roots of the Trinity and follow its development from the first century to the Council of Nicaea (325 AD). After watching how this foundational doctrine developed over time, we conclude by peering deeply into the inner life of the Holy Trinity.

The Gnostic heresy was one of the earliest heresies that infected the Church founded by Jesus Christ. By denying that Jesus Christ came in the flesh Gnosticism sought to undermine the very foundation of our salvation, for as a famous Patristic maxim states, What has not been assumed has not been healed. In this lecture, Dr. William Marshner will reveal the errors of Gnosticism and show how Christ in His Incarnation, as the One Mediator between God and man, is the bridge to salvation.

With a special performance by Chorus Sine Nomine. “Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the fields, and lodge in the villages; let us go out early to the vineyards, and see whether the vines have budded, whether the grape blossoms have opened and the pomegranates are in bloom. There I will give you my love.” - Song of Songs 7:11-12

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.” - Micah 5:2

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only-begotten from the Father.” - John 1:14

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.” - Micah 5:2

The soul who contemplates for more than a moment the events surrounding the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin on Tepeyac Hill in December of 1531 cannot fail to shudder before the uniqueness of this mystery. Our attention is focused on at least two things: a supernatural intervention in the life of a nation that has no equal, and a speculation about the rest of the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe that has yet to unfold.

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.” - Micah 5:2

“When the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” - Galatians 4:4-5

“When once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony. ...Moreover, the annual and universal celebration of the feast of the Kingship of Christ will draw attention to the evils which anticlericalism has brought upon society in drawing men away from Christ, and will also do much to remedy them. While nations insult the beloved name of our Redeemer by suppressing all mention of it in their conferences and parliaments, we must all the more loudly proclaim his kingly dignity and power, all the more universally affirm his rights.” - Pope Pius XI, Quas Primas 19, 25

“It is quite evident that the present time especially cries out for a keener awareness of the Socratic-Platonic wisdom… It cries out for resistance to the attempt and the temptation to establish the autocratic rule of man, who deludes himself that he possesses sovereign powers over the world and over himself and thus squanders his real existential patrimony.” - Josef Pieper, Divine Madness: Plato’s Case Against Secular Humanism

“Human words and language accomplish a two-fold purpose, as Plato without doubt would have answered—in clear agreement with the entire tradition of Western thought. …First, words convey reality. We speak in order to name and identify something that is real, to identify it for someone, of course—and this points to the second aspect in question, the interpersonal character of human speech.” - Josef Pieper, Abuse of Language, Abuse of Power

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” - 2 Timothy 3:16-17

It has become apparent that something must be done about technology in our lives. But we feel lost: just what is the problem, and how do we address it? This lecture will examine what Pope Francis calls the technocratic paradigm, and will offer a diagnosis along with concrete steps to address this fundamental problem of our times.

“Wherever politics tries to be redemptive, it is promising too much. Where it wishes to do the work of God, it becomes, not divine, but demonic.” - Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Truth and Tolerance: Christian Belief and World Religions

“Wherever politics tries to be redemptive, it is promising too much. Where it wishes to do the work of God, it becomes, not divine, but demonic.” - Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Truth and Tolerance: Christian Belief and World Religions

People are always trying to do without religion, even pray without it. Many in these days, in fact, claim to be "spiritual" without being "religious." Secularized forms of spirituality (which is what many versions of Yoga, Zen, and Transcendental Meditation have become) can't deliver what they promise. Spirituality that can deliver is rooted in the mystery of Christ, fully human and fully divine.

In this talk, Clayton describes, through his own ‘story in prayer,’ the profound effect of prayer in our lives. Using the book The Little Oratory that he co-wrote, Clayton discusses how to reclaim an almost lost tradition that families used for centuries to build a beautiful bridge between home and church, and to help live the liturgical life of the Church more fully in the home.

People are always trying to do without religion, even pray without it. Many in these days, in fact, claim to be "spiritual" without being "religious." Secularized forms of spirituality (which is what many versions of Yoga, Zen, and Transcendental Meditation have become) can't deliver what they promise. Spirituality that can deliver is rooted in the mystery of Christ, fully human and fully divine.

"Of course the world of work begins to become—threatens to become—our only world, to the exclusion of all else. The demands of the working world grow ever more total, grasping ever more completely the whole of human existence."- Josef Pieper, Leisure: The Basis Of Culture

"The story of Vendée should be a beacon for Catholics today. These heroic peasants summon us to rise and protect Holy Mother Church from those determined to destroy her under color of law. The glory of Vendée is the glory of Calvary—self-sacrifice giving life to the Church."- Anne Gardiner, New Oxford Review

"The story of Vendée should be a beacon for Catholics today. These heroic peasants summon us to rise and protect Holy Mother Church from those determined to destroy her under color of law. The glory of Vendée is the glory of Calvary—self-sacrifice giving life to the Church."- Anne Gardiner, New Oxford Review

"Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong, even if everybody is wrong. Right is right, even if nobody is right." - Fulton J. Sheen

“I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute, where no Catholic prelate would tell the president (should he be Catholic) how to act.” - John F. Kennedy

“Recognizing that natural law is the basis for and places limits on positive law means admitting that it is legitimate to resist authority should it violate in a serious or repeated manner the essential principles of natural law. … Natural law is therefore the basis of the right to resistance.” - Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, No. 400

“Recognizing that natural law is the basis for and places limits on positive law means admitting that it is legitimate to resist authority should it violate in a serious or repeated manner the essential principles of natural law. … Natural law is therefore the basis of the right to resistance.” - Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, No. 400

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." - Declaration of Independence

"Arise, O Lord, and judge your own cause. Remember your reproaches to those who are filled with foolishness all through the day. Listen to our prayers, for foxes have arisen seeking to destroy the vineyard whose winepress you alone have trod." - Pope Leo X, Exsurge Domine

"All who die by the way, whether by land or by sea, or in battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remission of sins. O what a disgrace if such a despised and base race, which worships demons, should conquer a people which has the faith of omnipotent God and is made glorious with the name of Christ!"- Pope Urban IIThis lecture was given at two different times and locations. The resources are listed as such.

"All who die by the way, whether by land or by sea, or in battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remission of sins. O what a disgrace if such a despised and base race, which worships demons, should conquer a people which has the faith of omnipotent God and is made glorious with the name of Christ!"- Pope Urban IIThis lecture was given at two different times and locations. The resources are listed as such.

"It is accordingly our wish and command that the English Church shall be free, and that men in our kingdom shall have and keep all these liberties, rights, and concessions, well and peaceably in their fullness and entirety for them and their heirs, of us and our heirs, in all things and all places for ever."- Magna Carta

“For God’s sake, spare not; strike hard at the beginning; stay not to take spoil; all the booty shall be in common, and there will be plenty for everyone. … I have no doubt of the victory; we are come for glory; the victory is in our hands, and we may make sure of obtaining it if we so please.” - Duke William, preparing his men for battle

“It is fitting that the end of all our desires, namely eternal life, coincides with the words at the end of the creed, ‘Life everlasting. Amen.’”- Saint Thomas Aquinas, On the Apostles' Creed