Best Ignatius Press Podcasts (2025)

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 7 35:10

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2d ago35:10

35:10

C.S. Lewis famously claimed that Jesus was either a liar, lunatic, or God, and in chapter two of section two of The Everlasting Man, Chesterton makes a similar argument. Father Fessio, Vivian Dudro, and Joseph Pearce reflect on Chesterton’s reducing to the absurd all opinions that claim that Jesus is other than what he says he is–God Himself. SUBSC…

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Michael O'Brien's Novels Are Finally Becoming Movies 55:47

4d ago55:47

55:47

Michael O'Brien's Novels Are Becoming MOVIES Join us and Donate at: https://officialthelighthouse.com/support/ The Lighthouse is one of Michael O'Brien’s most well-known novels and it is now in development for becoming a movie. Join us today for an extra special podcast as Ben Eriksen talks with Charlie Goodwin (executive producer) and Eric Groth (…

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110: Fr. Fessio’s Favorite Bible Verses 3:50

8h ago3:50

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We all have our favorite Bible verses and in this episode Fr. Fessio elaborates on two verses that resonate with him.By Ignatius Press

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109: Reinforcement Learning—The Final Step of Making A.I. 10:01

7d ago10:01

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The final step of making A.I. requires giving the system certain questions we know the answer to and some questions we do not know the answer to and then checking their answers against reality. Fr. Fessio explains how A.I. ultimately depends entirely on humans and thereby cannot self-replicate.By Ignatius Press

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 6 31:21

9d ago31:21

31:21

Fr. Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro begin the second section of Chesterton’s Everlasting Man and reflect on his words about the mystery of the Incarnation. They reflect on how we can become too familiar with the infancy narrative in which the God of cosmic creation now comes to us as a little, local infant. With Chesterton, they remark on t…

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 5 27:17

10d ago27:17

27:17

After quickly wrapping up chapter seven, Fr. Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro jump into the climax of the book–chapter eight–where Chesterton talks about the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. They discuss that even the greatest of human societies are bound to fall and that the more decadent one’s life becomes the more one desires to return …

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Dr. Nathaniel Blake: How the Sexual Revolution Hurt All of Us 50:11

11d ago50:11

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Mature and Sensitive Topics Discussed in This Episode Today, more than ever, we are suffering from the ramifications of the sexual revolution that began over 50 years ago. And in this episode, Dr. Nathaniel Blake joins Andrew Petiprin to discuss why the Church’s teachings on human sexuality are correct and why abandoning them has led people away fr…

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108: Post-Training—The Third Step of Making A.I. 12:06

14d ago12:06

12:06

Father Fessio explains how A.I. is not conscious but can be used to autocomplete and predict certain answers. Then through a process of post-training, certain experts are brought in to ask A.I. a series of questions to verify the answers and tweak the algorithms so that the right answers are provided.…

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Michael O'Brien: How God Unexpectedly Called Him to be a Writer 16:47

18d ago16:47

16:47

Recently, we had the honor of sitting down with Michael O’Brien in person to discuss his novels, paintings, and history as an artist. Michael O’Brien is well-known as the author of best sellers such as “Father’s Tale,” “Fr. Elijah,” “Lighthouse,” and much more. Today’s episode is just the first of several episodes, where he shares his unexpected ca…

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107: Training—The Second Step of Making A.I. 10:38

21d ago10:38

10:38

Father Fessio proceeds to explain the process by which A.I. “learns.” He highlights the difference between the human process of learning and computer’s statistical pattern recognition process.By Ignatius Press

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 4 34:00

23d ago34:00

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Having covered monotheism and polytheism, Chesterton begins to cover religions that he calls “the demons” and “the philosophers” in chapter 6. Fr. Fessio, Vivian, and Joseph discuss how demonic acts are done because they know that they are known to be evil. They also reflect on how the pagan philosophers saw faith and reason as opposed whereas fait…

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Curtis Mitch: How to Use the Ignatius Press Study Bible 47:30

24d ago47:30

47:30

The Ignatius Press Study Bible was twenty-five years in the making, and now that you have a copy. But how are you supposed to use it? Today, Curtis Mitch, co-editor of the Ignatius Press study Bible, joins Andrew Petiprin to break down the practical ways that people can use this Bible in daily life. Curtis highlights some of the unique features of …

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Peter Kreeft: Converting from Calvinism to Catholicism 49:44

25d ago49:44

49:44

Dr. Peter Kreeft is a well-known Catholic figure who has helped many people convert to Catholicism and deepen their love and understanding of the faith. But few know that Dr. Kreeft himself is a convert to Catholicism. Raised Calvinist, Dr. Kreeft ended up becoming Catholic after attending Calvin College in Michigan, and in his new book “From Calvi…

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106: Pretraining—The First Step of Making A.I. 7:40

28d ago7:40

7:40

Our recently elected Pope Leo XIV has already made several comments about the dangers of artificial intelligence. So if you want to learn more about A.I., join Fr. Fessio explains the first of four steps of artificial intelligence—pretraining—which requires data to be collected and tokenization.By Ignatius Press

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 3 29:58

1M ago29:58

29:58

In chapter five of Everlasting Man, Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro discuss one of Chesterton’s most poetic chapters where he explains how myth is the work of the imagination and philosophy is a work of the intellect, but both did not fully come together until the myth became fact in the person of Jesus Christ. SUBSCRIBE to our chann…

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105: Computers Do NOT Know ANYTHING 8:34

1M ago8:34

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Continuing with his connected thoughts on artificial intelligence, Fr. Fessio explains how a computer that stores A.I. is like a library that knows nothing.By Ignatius Press

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 2 31:49

1M ago31:49

31:49

Moving to chapters three and four of The Everlasting Man, Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro discuss Chesterton’s response to evolution, progressivism, and comparative religion. Chesterton argues that the most radical change in human history is the coming of Christ who is unique among religious leaders and chose to enter the world at a …

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Mike Pacer: Becoming a Man of Prayer 49:55

1M ago49:55

49:55

The current crisis of masculinity is rampant in our society, but few have responded to this cultural moment like Mike Pacer in his new book “Prayers for Catholic Men.” Instead of encouraging men to simply gut it out and take responsibility, Mike encourages men to fall on their knees, and he provides them with the resources to encounter God in a mea…

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104: Making Artificial Intelligence Simple 8:55

1M ago8:55

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Want to know more about AI? Then join Fr. Fessio as he begins a series of episodes on artificial intelligence. Today, Father discusses how AI is dependent on a computer.By Ignatius Press

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The Everlasting Man – Episode 1 35:40

1M ago35:40

35:40

Welcome to the second book of Ignatius Press: Off the Shelf! Join the dynamic trio of Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro as they unpack one of G.K. Chesterton’s greatest works Everlasting Man. They begin by covering Chesterton’s thesis namely that Christ stands out from all man similar to how man stands out from all other animals. They …

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George Weigel: The Importance of Being an Intellectual and a Culture Warrior 54:29

2M ago54:29

54:29

The university is uniquely Catholic in its origin, and yet currently, higher level education on elite campuses is a “red-hot mess,” according to George Weigel. In this episode, Andrew Petiprin sits down with George Weigel to discuss academia and the intellectual life, not simply as a theoretical enterprise left for those who dwell in an ivory tower…

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103: What is “Opus Dei”? 3:10

2M ago3:10

3:10

The famous Latin expression “Opus Dei” has connections to several orders. Fr. Fessio explains these associations and the Latin meaning behind it.By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 8 30:46

2M ago30:46

30:46

Join Father Fessio, Vivian, and Joseph Pearce conclude their reading of Augustine’s Confessions by discussing Augustine’s use of poetry, his description of time, and his appreciation for the depth of Scripture. They end by talking about the importance of service and the act of receiving which is not merely passive, but active. SUBSCRIBE to our chan…

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Francis Maier: Approaching the Conclave, What Does the Church Need Now? 45:59

2M ago45:59

45:59

This week, the Church will experience a papal conclave where cardinals all over the world will deliberate and elect the next pope. As we eagerly wait for their choice, Francis Maier joins Mark Brumley to discuss what kind of pope the Church needs today. He articulately argues that he must be both a man of simplicity and of strong intellect who embo…

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102: How Does God Dwell in Us? 3:59

2M ago3:59

3:59

Fr. Fessio explains St. Augustine’s famous words describing how God is more deeply in us than we are to ourselves.By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 7 25:58

2M ago25:58

25:58

Father Fessio, Vivian, and Joseph continue to explore the most profound sections of the Confessions in book 11. Father Fessio draws an insightful connection between evolution and Augustine’s claim that God’s creative act unfolds sequentially to us. Augustine’s claims about God’s omnipresence then launches our three hosts to reflect on the paradox o…

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George Weigel: The State of the Church and the Next Pope 18:08

2M ago18:08

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As we continue to pray for Pope Francis, we also begin to look forward to the upcoming conclave, and who better to join Mark Brumley than George Weigel, author of The Next Pope. In this episode, Mark and George reflect on the current state of the Church both in the United States and around the world. They discuss the continued needs of the New Evan…

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101: Life is Like a Greek Race 3:53

2M ago3:53

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In Hebrews 12, St. Paul talks about running a race sounded by a cloud of witnesses with Christ as our model. Father Fessio beautifully explains this metaphor by pointing out details that only the Greek words reveal.By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 6 28:19

2M ago28:19

28:19

Book 10 of Augustine’s Confessions is a notoriously dense book, and in this episode, Father Fessio, Vivian, and Joseph take the plunge. Join them in the deep waters of this great text as they unpack Augustine’s thoughts on memory, knowledge, and Aristotle’s Categories. Their discussion ends by reflecting on St. Augustine’s famous passage “Late have…

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Special Edition of the IP Podcast: Reflecting on the Life and Works of Pope Francis 31:53

2M ago31:53

31:53

On Monday April 21, Pope Francis passed away. As the Church mourns his passing and prays for the repose of his soul, we begin to reflect on the legacy of Pope Francis. So, in this special edition of the Ignatius Press Podcast, Ben Eriksen sits down with Mark Brumely to discuss the life and works of Pope Francis. Mark begins by highlighting three le…

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100: Unpacking St. Ignatius’ Suscipe Prayer 4:01

2M ago4:01

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In this special 100th episode of Father Fessio in Five, Father explains part of St. Ignatius’ Suscipe prayer where we ask the Lord to “Take our memory, intellect, and all my will.” This episode will help you pray this beautiful prayer more deeply!By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 5 31:42

2M ago31:42

31:42

Moving to book 9, Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro begin by examining Augustine’s views on hymns and singing before discussing St. Monica and her past weakness with alcohol. Then they begin to read the more philosophical texts in book 10 where Augustine writes about the movement of the soul from the things of this world to the divine.…

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Fr. Fessio Reflects on the Life and Legacy of His Teacher Pope Benedict XVI 37:23

2M ago37:23

37:23

This week we not only celebrate Pope Benedict XVI’s birthday, but it is also the 20th anniversary of his election. Join Fr. Fessio as he gives a rare glimpse into the writings and teaching methods of a Pope who he believes will one day be declared a saint and doctor of the Church. Fr. Fessio and Mark Brumley not only remember Cardinal Ratzinger’s e…

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99: A Jesuit Speaks About Gender 3:10

3M ago3:10

3:10

Fr. Fessio talks about gender and claims that there are three genders?! But listen closely . . . he’s not saying what you may think . . .By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 4 26:47

3M ago26:47

26:47

In this episode, the dynamic trio cover Augustine’s conversion and the moments leading up to it in book 8 of the Confessions. Father Fessio highlights the importance of friendship and the stories of holy men in St. Augustine’s conversion while Vivian and Joseph discuss the importance of true freedom from sin. SUBSCRIBE to our channel and never miss…

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Ilyas Khan and Artificial Intelligence: What It Is and Is Not 48:15

3M ago48:15

48:15

Want to learn about AI, what it is, what it is not, how it works, and what are its inherent benefits and drawbacks? Then join Father Fessio and Ilyas Khan (founder and product development head of Quantinuum—the largest quantum computer company in the world) as they discuss all things AI. This insightful conversation highlights the inherent differen…

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98: Did Jesus Have Faith? 4:09

3M ago4:09

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It seems like Jesus would not have faith because he is God. But Father Fessio reflections on Hebrews 12:1–4 where Jesus is said to be a “pioneer and perfector of our faith.”By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 3 37:16

3M ago37:16

37:16

Picking up with books 6 and 7 of Augustine’s Confessions, Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro discuss the various sources of St. Augustine’s conversion, including prayer, his friendships, St. Anselm, and his mother. They reflect on Augustine’s struggles, the workings of God’s grace, and the reality of “spiritual substances.” SUBSCRIBE to…

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Sr. Orianne: Meet One of the Readers for Hallow’s Pray40 Challenge 47:12

3M ago47:12

47:12

We are halfway through Lent, and for many of us, that means we are midway through Hallow’s Pray40 Challenge. Today, Ben Eriksen joins Sr. Orianne Pietra René, who reads the passages for “A Song for Nagasaki” in the French version of Hallow’s Pray40 Challenge. Sr. Orianne not only gives us a behind-the-scenes look at recording for Hallow, but she al…

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97: What is Our “Daily Bread”? 2:20

3M ago2:20

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When we ask God to give us our “daily bread,” are we asking God simply for enough food to eat each day? Father Fessio explains. . .By Ignatius Press

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The Confessions – Episode 2 30:17

3M ago30:17

30:17

Continuing with books 4 and 5 of Augustine’s Confessions, Father Fessio, Joseph Pearce, and Vivian Dudro take a deep dive into the profundity of marriage and the Church’s deepening understanding of the sacraments throughout the ages. SUBSCRIBE to our channel and never miss an episode of the Ignatius Press: Off the Shelf. You can also listen to the …

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Voyage Comics: How to Get Your Kids to Read 46:29

3M ago46:29

46:29

Growing up, most of us read comic books and comic strips, but none of them are as good as these! Join Rose Trabbic as she talks to Philip Kosloski, founder and writer of Voyage Comics, and Michael LaVoy, chief commercial officer and artist, as they sit down to talk about the importance of comic books for young children. Voyage Comics are not your a…

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96: Forgive Our "Debts" or "Trespasses"? 3:29

3M ago3:29

3:29

Binge Father Fessio in Five! You may have noticed a flurry of episodes in the past day and that is because we are bringing Father Fessio in Five to YouTube. We updated our equipment so that you can now watch Fr. Fessio on YouTube as well as listen to him here on the audio apps. In this episode, we pray the Our Father every day, but do we always ful…

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95: Inspiration of Scripture 3:59

3M ago3:59

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Fr. Fessio explains how the Catholic understanding of “inspired writings” is very different than that of Islam or Mormonism.By Ignatius Press

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94: C.S. Lewis and the Historical Critical Method 4:27

3M ago4:27

4:27

Fr. Fessio reads a passage from Miracles by C.S. Lewis to explain the proper use of the historical critical method.By Ignatius Press

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93: The Historical Critical Method 6:37

3M ago6:37

6:37

How can the historical critical method enhance our understanding of Scripture without detracting from it? Find out in this episode!By Ignatius Press

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92: God With Us 6:58

3M ago6:58

6:58

In this two-part episode, Father Fessio examines the yearning of Isaiah to see the face of God.By Ignatius Press

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91: The Great Mystery 5:01

3M ago5:01

5:01

Father Fessio reflects on great mystery which according to St. Paul is “Christ in us” and the hope of glory.By Ignatius Press

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90: Lead Us Not Into Temptation 5:19

3M ago5:19

5:19

Why do we ask God to “lead us not into temptation” in the Our Father? Father Fessio explains that this statement has its roots in the Old Testament and that “temptation” actually refers to a place. . .By Ignatius Press

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89: From Faith to Agape 6:15

3M ago6:15

6:15

Looking at the Greek words, Father Fessio explains the progression of thoughts in 2 Peter 1:5–7 where St. Peter says that we should make every effort “to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly l…