Technology, AI
Marc Barnes
The Anti-Chatbot Alliance: New Polity Goes to ...

The anti-chatbot alliance is growing. With support from the Future of Life Institute, New Polity is hosting a landmark event on AI next spring in Pittsburgh, bringing together leading Catholic organizations and thinkers to discuss, debate, and chart a path for our world with AI. Event details and tickets will be available in July. In this podcast, Marc Barnes interviews participants at the Future of Life event in Washington D.C. on their projects, thinking on AI, and how an anti-chatbot alliance can be formed.

The Anti-Chatbot Alliance: New Polity Goes to Washington
Gender, Politics of Gender
Marc Barnes, Maria Brandell
Esther and the Paradoxical Power of Sexual ...

Esther defeats the idolatrous god-king through the strange power of weakness. Join Marc and Maria’s discussion of monolithic and idolatrous power structures and their vulnerability to the particular vocation of women.

Esther and the Paradoxical Power of Sexual Difference
Gender
Marc Barnes
The Metaphysical Problem of Sexual Difference ...

What is the metaphysical difference between man and woman? Philosophy has long had a problem explaining the difference between men and women, even though it is a basic and fundamental reality. Are men and women different essentially? Is there a particularly "female soul" and a "male soul?" Is the brute fact of the sexually differentiated body the basis for sexual difference, or does that presuppose the problem? In man and woman are we dealing with an opposition or a contrariety? In this new podcast series, Marc Barnes and D. C. Schindler discuss the metaphysics of sexual difference, arguing for a new approach to the question.

The Metaphysical Problem of Sexual Difference w/ D. C. Schindler
Gender, Politics of Gender
Marc Barnes, Maria Brandell
The Story of Esther and Women's Vocation

What do the matriarchs of the Old Testament teach us regarding the roles of men and women? In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Maria Brandell discuss the biblical story of Esther and how it reveals the specific vocation of women.

The Story of Esther and Women's Vocation
Technology, AI
Marc Barnes
Debate: Should We Delete Catholic AI? | Matthew ...

In this podcast, Matthew Harvey Sanders, CEO of Longbeard (creator of MagisteriumAI), and Marc Barnes, editor of New Polity, debate whether Catholics should build and use AI chatbots. Barnes argues that Catholic AI chatbots are objectively evil because they generate probabilistic statements about the faith, are irresponsible in their responses, and are inherently fake conversations with non-persons. Sanders argues that Catholics should embrace this new technological development and that there is an openness from the Vatican about the creation of a true artificial intelligence. This debate is hosted by Edmund Mitchell of the Faith and AI Project.

Debate: Should We Delete Catholic AI? | Matthew Sanders and Marc Barnes

Politics

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Effective Altruism Makes You a Bad Person

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Effective Altruism Makes You a Bad Person

Welcome to our new series, The Politics of AI. In this episode, Marc Barnes and Alex Denley discuss the philosophy and ethics of Effective Altruism. The EA movement is premised on the belief that "we must do the most good possible" and do so with the greatest effect. It's main thinkers (we've been reading Peter Singer, Derek Parfit, Nick Bostrum, Toby Ord, and William MacAskill) argue that it's morally imperative to get a high-earning career, become maximally effective with your giving, and look to global problems rather than just your country. EA has had on outsized philosophical impact on AI development, being the guiding ethic of both AI safety and some of the leaders of frontier labs. Marc and Alex discuss the philosophy and ethics of EA and why it makes you a bad person.

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AI is a Political Problem | The New Polity Declaration

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AI is a Political Problem | The New Polity Declaration

Every new technology affects the whole of society, granting humanity new power over itself and power over others. AI has the potential to massively centralize power in the hands of a few, reduce the scope of human freedom, and produce the illusion that humanity could and even should be surpassed and replaced. In this podcast, the editors of New Polity, Marc Barnes, Andrew Willard Jones, Michael Boland, and Alex Denley, discuss the current AI moment and the principles of New Polity's AI Declaration.

What Was the Americanist Heresy? (Did it Really Exist?)

What Was the Americanist Heresy? (Did it Really Exist?)

America is a special place. And, it even has it's own heresy. In this podcast, Reuben Slife and Marc Barnes discuss Leo XIII's condemnation of "Americanism," and the controversy that it caused. Some US bishops replied to the Pope that no one actually adhered to Americanism, and that it was effectively a "phantom heresy." But, is there something particular to the American way of being Catholic that needs correction? How does this teaching on Americanism relate to America today, on the 250th anniversary?

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The Political Philosophy of Magnifica Humanitas

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The Political Philosophy of Magnifica Humanitas

Magnifica Humanitas has been called the "AI Encyclical," but there's far more to the document: a thorough analysis of Catholic Social Doctrine, an extensive treatment of modern warfare, and how power works in the world today. In this podcast, Alex Denley and Andrew Willard Jones discuss the political philosophy of Magnifica Humanitas, and how the Pope's analysis helps us to understand our future with AI, how the powerful will use it, and what we as Christians can do about it.

America in the Mystery of Christ and the Church

America in the Mystery of Christ and the Church

What does it mean to be holy in America? David L. Schindler, for forty years editor of the American edition of the international theological journal Communio (founded by Joseph Ratzinger, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Henri de Lubac), devoted much of his career to a theological analysis of American culture. "America in the Mystery of Christ and the Church" brings together Schindler’s key writings on American culture, presenting his profound and multi-faceted thought in full. It contains a complete chronology-bibliography of his works on America and of the debate with Neuhaus, Novak, and Weigel. In addition, an extensive, original Critical Introduction gives a synthesis of his thought, with special attention to the theme of holiness and to the easily-overlooked positivity of his pursuit: to purify, in Christ, the uniqueness and gifts of the United States.

Is the Iran War a Just War? | A Discussion of Catholic Social Teaching

Is the Iran War a Just War? | A Discussion of Catholic Social Teaching

The Iran War is close to entering its third week, and hostilities continue to escalate. Off-ramps for de-escalation are closing and the American public is, largely, unsupportive of the war. In this podcast, Alex Denley hosts a roundtable discussion with three professors of the College of St. Joseph the Worker, Dr. Andrew Willard Jones, Dr. Alex Plato, and Dr. Jared Goff, on whether the Iran War fits the criteria of a just war according to Catholic Social Teaching. They also discuss the circumstances of the war, the stated objectives of the Trump administration, and whether modern warfare is capable of being waged justly.

Globalization and the Rise of Populist Politics

Globalization and the Rise of Populist Politics

In this podcast, Alex Denley and Professor Rocco Buttiglione discuss the problem of globalization, mass migration, and populism. Post-war globalization brought a great increase in international trade, cooperation, technical and educational development, and cultural sharing. However, with open trade came the loss of manufacturing and industry in the West, and the emptying of the working class. Along with mass migration, the people grew to resent their global elite. Professor Buttiglione discusses the Church's response to globalization, and the need for a new elite who care for the people.

The Politics of the Real with D. C. Schindler

The Politics of the Real with D. C. Schindler

Liberalism is on the defensive. Political discussion is shifting from “what’s wrong with liberalism” to “what’s true about politics”—to the question of what exactly must displace liberalism. In The Politics of the Real, D. C. Schindler takes us to the definitive metaphysical roots of liberal politics: the modern reversal of the priority of act over potency; the modern privileging of empty possibility over flourishing perfection. In this podcast, Michael Boland and D. C. Schindler discuss liberalism, and how we can build a politics of the real.

The Catholic Answer to Nationalism

The Catholic Answer to Nationalism

Professor Rocco Buttiglione and Dr. Andrew Willard Jones discuss the rise of nationalism and populism both in Europe and America. What is the proper Catholic understanding of the peoples and nations? How should we navigate a global economic order within modern nation-states? They discuss how the Church has responded to this situation, and how the theology of the peoples can provide an answer.

The Crisis of Authority with D. C. Schindler

The Crisis of Authority with D. C. Schindler

D. C. Schindler argues that the loss of authority is the greatest of all human crises. When Nietzsche speaks of the death of God, which will lead to calamities, Schindler sees the great loss of authority. Liberalism's dismantling of any authority in favor of the sovereign individual has lead to the collapse of social order and the pursuit of a genuinely common good. In this podcast with Andrew Willard Jones, D. C. Schindler discusses authority and how it can be recovered.

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It's 2025. It's Time for Catholic Social Teaching

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It's 2025. It's Time for Catholic Social Teaching

We live in a disillusioned political age, one where old liberal arguments no longer have hold. Conservatism has moved into a right-wing politics which no longer sees the value of Christianity. Lost in an ostensibly equal mass, individuals have experienced a loss of identity. New developments in technology, and especially AI, present an existential threat to human agency. In our time (2025) and place (America), we need the social doctrine of the Church.

Modernity's Alternative and Theology of the Peoples

Modernity's Alternative and Theology of the Peoples

In the 20th century, a movement of priests and laypeople sought to find a way past the clash of ideologies that wracked Latin America. They found a solution in Latin America itself, which was born out of the conflict between Europeans and natives when, with the appearance of the Virgin Mary at Guadalupe, the grace of God forged one, new people out of strangers and enemies. This movement—called “theology of peoples”—focuses on the reality known as “a people.” Every human person belongs to a people. And every people has a “world”: the way it makes sense out of life, work, love, and the uncertain future. In this podcast, Reuben Slife and Marc Barnes discuss Modernity's Alternative by Rocco Buttiglione.

Subsidiarity: How to Dismantle the Bureaucratic State

Subsidiarity: How to Dismantle the Bureaucratic State

For the last five years, the Political Right has been debating over a program for regime change in America: should populism be used to construct a new elite class? Should a new administration retire all government employees? Can the bureaucratic state be maintained but filled with new conservative staff? In this podcast, Alex Denley and Dr. Andrew Willard Jones discuss subsidiarity as the solution to this debate, and how it provides a program for genuine regime change.

The Unity of the Nations | Joseph Ratzinger

The Unity of the Nations | Joseph Ratzinger

What is the meaning of national identity? Does strong national identity necessarily create a hostile relation with other nations? In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Alex Denley discuss Joseph Ratzinger's short book "The Unity of Nations." Through a discussion of the political theology of Origen and St. Augustine, Ratzinger shows how the early Christians viewed their relation to the nations, and Christianity's nation-unifying gospel.

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