Catholic Exchange

Dr. Alex Lessard joins the podcast to discuss the organization Adeodatus, "an educational nonprofit organized to support the ongoing renewal of Catholic liberal education through conferences, community-building, publication, consulting, and due diligence."

Dr. Lessard touches upon:

• The importance of the liberal arts and the role of the Church in education
• The whole-person approach to education vs. the utilitarian modern model
• The true purpose of learning: the ascent to wisdom and knowledge of God
• Why any scholar, when divorcing an academic field from its teleological end in God, loses expertise of the field itself
• Resources for grassroots implementation of Catholic principles of formation
• Technology in education: how we must control the tools lest they control us

Catholic Exchange contributor Mary Beth Bracy  resolved on Divine Mercy Sunday to be "married to Jesus Christ immortal." She joins the podcast to share about her vocation as a Consecrated Virgin in the world. 

Mary Beth sheds light on:

• Saints who were consecrated virgins and the role of this vocation in the early Church
• Her resolutions, daily responsibilities, and prayer routine
• The community aspect of consecrated virginity, and role in parish life
• Maintaining her perpetual Eucharistic adoration chapel
• The importance of spiritual direction
• How writing helped her to discern
• Tips for discerning any vocation

Catholic historian and writer Elena Maria Vidal sets the record straight on the oft-maligned Catholic Queen of France and martyr of the Revolution. While candidly acknowledging the queen's faults, Elena's work paints a portrait of Marie Antoinette in all her complexity.

Drawing from her years of research, Elena discusses:

• Popular misconceptions about the queen, then and now
• The origin of the "let them eat cake" rumor
• What modern TV series and movies get wrong
• Marie Antoinette's strong Catholic faith and moral character, and many recorded charitable works
• The deeply Catholic milieu of the French court and its role in Christendom
• The truly demonic nature of the French Revolution and its pagan "Cult of Reason"
• How the queen was able to secretly receive the sacraments before her death
• Marie Antoinette's piety and equanimity at the guillotine