The Thomistic Institute z363a

Prof. Joshua Hochschild analyzes how smartphones and digital technologies reshape our brains, habits, and sense of self by leveraging neuroscience and AI-driven behavioral design, warning that these tools commodify our attention, erode agency, and pose deep spiritual and ethical challenges that demand more than technocratic solutions. This lecture was given on September 19th, 2024, at East Carolina University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Joshua Hochschild is Professor of Philosophy at Mount St. Mary’s University, where he also served six years as the inaugural Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. His primary research is in medieval logic, metaphysics, and ethics, with broad interest in liberal education and the continuing relevance of the Catholic intellectual tradition. He is the author of The Semantics of Analogy: Rereading Cajetan’s De Nominum Analogia (2010), translator of Claude Panaccio’s Mental Language: From Plato to William of Ockham (2017), and co-author of A Mind at Peace: Reclaiming an Ordered Soul in the Age of Distraction (2017). His writing has appeared in First Things, Commonweal, Modern Age and the Wall Street Journal. For 2020-21 he served as President of the American Catholic Philosophical Association. This project/publication was made possible through the of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation. Keywords: AI-Driven Behavioral Design, Agency and Attention, Digital Media Ethics, Neuroscience and Technology, Philosophical Psychology, The Shallows, Smartphone Addiction, Spiritual and Ethical Challenges, The Social Dilemma

Prof. Steven Jensen critically examines transhumanism as a new form of eugenics, arguing that the pursuit of human enhancement through technologies like genetic engineering and brain-computer interfaces repeats the ethical pitfalls of historical eugenics by neglecting the importance of human nature and the distinction between treatment and enhancement. This lecture was given on February 13th, 2025, at Texas A&M University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Steven J Jensen, who holds the Bishop Nold Chair in Graduate Philosophy at the University of St. Thomas, Houston, teaches in The Center for Thomistic Studies. His fields of research include bioethics, moral psychology, the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, human nature, and natural law. He is the author of several books, including Living the Good Life: A Beginner’s Thomistic Ethics and The Human Person: A Beginner’s Thomistic Psychology. Keywords: Bioethics, Brain-Computer Interfaces, CRISPR Technology, Enhancement vs. Treatment, Eugenics, Genetic Engineering, Human Nature, Liberal Eugenics, Steven Jensen, Transhumanism

Prof. Gyula Klima uses Aquinas’ philosophy of mind to argue that human intelligence, rooted in immaterial universal concept formation, is metaphysically distinct from artificial general intelligence (AGI), though AGI can still serve as a powerful tool for enhancing human understanding and life. This lecture was given on February 19th, 2025, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Gyula Klima is Professor of Philosophy at Fordham University, New York,  Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and Ordinary Member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. He is the Founding Director of the Society for Medieval Logic and Metaphysics and of the Society for the European History of Ideas and Editor of their Proceedings. He is also an editor of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, and the Editor-in-Chief of a book series at Springer, Historical-Analytical Studies in Mind, Nature, and Action, and at Fordham, Medieval Philosophy, Texts and Studies. Before taking up his position at Fordham, he had taught philosophy in the US at Yale and Notre Dame, prior to which he had done research in Europe at the universities of Budapest, Helsinki, St. Andrews, and Copenhagen. His publications, besides more than a hundred scholarly papers, include The Metaphysics and Theology of the Eucharist (Springer, 2024), Questions on the Soul by John Buridan and Others: A Companion to John Buridan’s Philosophy of Mind (Springer, 2017), Intentionality, Cognition and Mental Representation in Medieval Philosophy (Fordham University Press, 2015), John Buridan (Oxford University Press, 2008), John Buridan: Summulae de Dialectica, an annotated translation with a philosophical introduction; (Yale University Press, 2001); ARS ARTIUM: Essays in Philosophical Semantics, Medieval and Modern (Institute of Philosophy of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1988). Keywords: Artificial General Intelligence, Human Intelligence, Immaterial Intellect, Metaphysical Limits, Philosophy of Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Sensory vs. Intellectual Representation, Thomistic Anthropology, Universal Concept Formation

Fr. Ambrose Little examines the philosophical and ethical implications of AI-assisted writing by drawing on Plato’s myth of Thoth, Aristotle, and Aquinas, arguing that while new technologies like AI can threaten essential intellectual virtues, they can also be used wisely if we seek a balanced, virtue-oriented approach to knowledge and memory. This lecture was given on February 11th, 2025, at North Carolina State University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Fr. Ambrose Little is the assistant director of the Thomistic Institute.  He is originally from Connecticut and entered the Dominican Order in 2007 and was ordained a priest in 2013. Before entering the Dominican Order, he graduated from The Catholic University of America with a BA in philosophy. After ordination, he completed a Licentiate in Philosophy at The Catholic University of America and then taught for two years at Providence College. After completing his Ph.D. in philosophy in the summer of 2021, he started teaching at the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception. He specializes in the philosophies of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas, with an emphasis on their study of nature and the soul. He also studies topics at the intersection between philosophy and science. This project/publication was made possible through the of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation. Keywords: AI-Assisted Writing, Aquinas, Aristotle, Intellectual Virtue, Is-Ought Distinction, Memory and Recollection, Myth of Thoth, Plato’s Phaedrus, Technological Ethics, Thomistic Philosophy

Sr. Anna Wray explains that technocratic tools, while designed for efficiency and ease, undermine wisdom by weakening essential cognitive activities and social bonds, but we can preserve wisdom by using technology more reflectively and fostering communal engagement. This lecture was given on February 20th, 2025, at University of Pittsburgh. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Sister Anna Wray is a native of Connecticut and a member of the Dominican Sisters of Saint Cecilia of Nashville, TN.  Sister received her PhD in philosophy from The Catholic University of America, having written her dissertation on Aristotle’s of the activity of contemplation.  Sister is an assistant professor on the faculty of CUA's School of Philosophy in Washington, DC, where she regularly teaches courses in rhetoric, philosophy of religion, and philosophical psychology.  She is also an adjunct professor for Aquinas College, where she teaches metaphysics and epistemology to her sisters in formation.  When time permits, sister enjoys the occasional trip that allows her to speak to (and with) others who share her loves. This project/publication was made possible through the of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation. Keywords: Agency and ivity, Artificial Images and Words, Cognitive Atrophy, Contemplation and Prayer, Efficiency, Social Isolation, Technocratic Tools, Technocratic Use, Wisdom and Prudence

Prof. Adam Eitel explores the nature of friendship and the common good through the lens of Aquinas and Aristotle, emphasizing that true friendship is a mutual, habitual disposition to will and pursue the good of another through concrete sharing and fellowship. This lecture was given on December 4th, 2024, at Saint Louis University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Professor Eitel is an Associate Professor of Theology at the University of Dallas. Before ing the UD faculty in 2023, he taught for eight years at Yale University, holding appointments in the Divinity School, the Program in Medieval Studies, and the Humanities Program. A specialist in medieval scholasticism, his research interests include doctrinal and moral theology, with a particular focus on the works of Thomas Aquinas and his contemporaries. His teaching and research bring historical Christian theology into dialogue with contemporary moral and political issues. Keywords: Aristotle, Charity as Friendship, Communicatio, Common Good, Friendship and Love, Habitual Disposition, Mutual Well-Wishing, Thomas Aquinas, Virtue Ethics

Fr. Cassian Derbes explores why friendship is a difficult but essential good, drawing on Aquinas, Aristotle, Cicero, Augustine, and Dante to show how hope, fortitude, and magnanimity help us overcome sloth and despair in pursuit of true friendship as a common good. This lecture was given on January 18th, 2025, at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Fr. Cassian Derbes, O.P. is a priest of the Dominican Province of Saint Joseph. He is currently a visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame in the Mendoza College of Business. Father Cassian served recently as vice dean and professor of theology at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) in Rome. His previous teaching positions include as adjunct professor of theology at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Ohio. Father Cassian earned his Doctorate in Sacred Theology (S.T.D.) from the Angelicum. He has a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, a Bachelor’s degree (B.A.) from New York University (N.Y.U.), and he is a graduate of Jesuit High School in New Orleans, Louisiana. From 2014-2020, Father Cassian served as director of an initiative at the Vatican under Pope Francis to design, implement, and teach an executive leadership development program for the Cardinals, Bishops, and senior lay officials of the Roman Curia. Father Cassian is a Missionary of Mercy, having been appointed by Pope Francis in 2015. Keywords: Aquinas on Virtue, Aristotle, Augustine, Cicero’s De Amicitia, Common Good, Dante’s Divine Comedy, Fortitude and Magnanimity, Friendship and Hope, Sloth and Despair, Thomistic Philosophy

This lecture was given on January 17th, 2025, at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Thomas Hibbs is currently J. Newton Rayzor Sr. Professor of Philosophy at Baylor where he is also Dean Emeritus, having served for 16 years as the inaugural Dean of the Honors College.  At Baylor he was also the inaugural director of Baylor in Washington, D.C. where he currently runs a summer program on Religion and Social Life.   He has served as department chair at Boston College and as president of the University of Dallas. Hibbs has published more than thirty scholarly articles, the most recent of which is “Aquinas and Black Natural Law.” He has published eight books, the most recent of which is Theology of Creation: Ecology, Art, and Laudato Si’ (University of Notre Dame Press, 2023).  He has also published two books on film and philosophy and one book on art. He has published more than 100 reviews and discussion articles on film, theater, art, and higher education in a variety of venues including First Things, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Wall Street Journal, and National Review.  He writes regularly for The Dallas Morning News. Hibbs’ lectures have been protested by nihilists at Boston University and by communists in Palermo, Sicily.

This lecture was given on February 21st, 2025, at University of Michigan. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Professor Scott Cleveland received his PhD in philosophy (Baylor University) and is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Catholic Studies at the University of Mary (Bismarck, ND). His research interests are in ethics, moral psychology, and philosophy of religion. He is especially interested in the study of virtues and emotions, the relation between the two, and the role of each in the moral and intellectual life. His thought is deeply influenced by Aristotle and Aquinas and his work has appeared in journals such as American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, Res Philosophica, Religious Studies, Religions, and the Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association. He is the co-editor with Adam Pelser of Faith and Virtue Formation: Essays in Aid of Becoming Good with Oxford University Press. This project/publication was made possible through the of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.

This lecture was given on February 18th, 2025, at The Basilica of Saint Mary’s Lyceum. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Joshua Hochschild is Professor of Philosophy at Mount St. Mary’s University, where he also served six years as the inaugural Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. His primary research is in medieval logic, metaphysics, and ethics, with broad interest in liberal education and the continuing relevance of the Catholic intellectual tradition. He is the author of The Semantics of Analogy: Rereading Cajetan’s De Nominum Analogia (2010), translator of Claude Panaccio’s Mental Language: From Plato to William of Ockham (2017), and co-author of A Mind at Peace: Reclaiming an Ordered Soul in the Age of Distraction (2017). His writing has appeared in First Things, Commonweal, Modern Age and the Wall Street Journal. For 2020-21 he served as President of the American Catholic Philosophical Association.

This lecture was given on February 7th, 2025, at Duke University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Stephen L. Brock is a priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei (ordained 1992). He is Ordinary Professor of Medieval Philosophy at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, where he began teaching in 1990.  Since 2008 he has been an Ordinary Member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas.  Since 2017 he has been a visiting professor in the Department of Philosophy of the University of Chicago. He is the author of Action & Conduct: Thomas Aquinas and the Theory of Action (T&T Clark, 1998); The Philosophy of Saint Thomas Aquinas: A Sketch (Wipf & Stock, 2015); The Light that Binds: a Study in Thomas Aquinas's Metaphysics of Natural Law (Wipf & Stock, 2020); and numerous articles on various aspects of Aquinas’s thought.

This lecture was given on February 5th, 2024, at Yale University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Fr. Thomas Joseph White is the Rector Magnificus of the Pontifical University of St. Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome. Originally a native of southeastern Georgia in the US, Fr. White studied at Brown University, where he converted to Catholicism. He did his doctoral studies in theology at Oxford University, and is the author of various books and articles including Wisdom in the Face of Modernity, A Thomistic Study in Natural Theology (Sapientia Press, 2016), The Incarnate Lord, A Thomistic Study in Christology (The Catholic University of America Press, 2015), The Trinity: On the Nature and Mystery of the One God (Catholic University of America Press, 2022), Principles of Catholic Theology Book III: On God, Trinity, Creation, and Christ (Catholic University of America Press, 2024) and Contemplation and the Cross (The Catholic University of America Press, 2025). With Matthew Levering he is the co-editor of the academic journal Nova et Vetera. In 2011 he was appointed an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas and in 2019 was named a Distinguished Scholar of the McDonald Agape Foundation. He held the 2018-2019 McInnes Chair for theological inquiry at the Angelicum. In 2022, he was granted an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of America, and in 2023 he was elected President of the Academy of Catholic Theology. In 2023, Fr. White was also awarded the title Master of Sacred Theology, one of the highest academic awards in the Dominican Order.

This lecture was given on June 1st, 2024, at Mount Saint Mary College. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Michael Gorman is Professor of Philosophy at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.  He has doctorates in philosophy and theology, and his work covers both areas, with a special emphasis on metaphysical themes. He is the author of over thirty-five scholarly articles, a book entitled Aquinas on the Metaphysics of the Hypostatic Union (Cambridge University Press, 2017), and a book that will appear in the spring of 2024 entitled A Contemporary Introduction to Thomistic Metaphysics (The Catholic University of America Press, 2024). 

This lecture was given on March 3rd, 2025, at College of William and Mary. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Edmund Lazzari is Teaching Fellow in the Department of Catholic Studies at Duquesne University. Dr. Lazzari is also a member of the Aquinas and 'the Arabs' International Working Group and d faculty of the Carl G. Grefenstette Center for Ethics in Science, Technology, and Law. A former Basselin Fellow, he earned an ecclesiastical licentiate degree in philosophy from the Catholic University of America, as well as a doctorate in systematic theology and ethics from Marquette University. He has previously taught philosophy and theology at Mount St. Mary's University, Marquette University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and other universities not starting with the letter "M." Dr. Lazzari has published on a wide variety of topics in theology, such as theology and science, the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, Catholic-Muslim dialogue, liturgical theology, machine learning/AI, Catholic ethics, and extraterrestrial intelligence. He is the author of two books: Why Nature Matters: Unlocking Catholic Doctrine through Commonsense Philosophy (2022) and Miracles in Said Nursi and Thomas Aquinas (Routledge, 2024).

This lecture was given on February 22nd, 2025, at University of Rochester. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Michael Gorman is Professor of Philosophy at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.  He has doctorates in philosophy and theology, and his work covers both areas, with a special emphasis on metaphysical themes. He is the author of over thirty-five scholarly articles, a book entitled Aquinas on the Metaphysics of the Hypostatic Union (Cambridge University Press, 2017), and a book that will appear in the spring of 2024 entitled A Contemporary Introduction to Thomistic Metaphysics (The Catholic University of America Press, 2024).

Prof. Patrick Callahan analyzes the poetic genius of Saint Thomas Aquinas in the hymns and sequence of Corpus Christi, highlighting Aquinas’ understanding of beauty, proportion, clarity, and sublimity as essential to both art and spiritual contemplation. This lecture was given on October 26th, 2024, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Prof. Patrick Callahan is director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture as well as Assistant Professor of English and Humanities at St. Gregory the Great Seminary. There he directs and teaches in a Great Books Catholic program for students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and other regional colleges. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Dallas and his graduate work at Fordham University in Classics. He lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife and 5 children. Keywords: Aesthetic Criticism, Beauty, Corpus Christi, Contemplation, Joseph Pieper, Poetry, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Spiritual Formation, Sublimity, The Four Causes

Prof. Patrick Callahan reveals how poetry, as the most Christ-like form of speech and a reflection of human mimesis, plays a vital role in the Christian life by fostering conformity to Christ and deepening the contemplative experience. This lecture was given on October 26th, 2024, at Dominican House of Studies. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Prof. Patrick Callahan is director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture as well as Assistant Professor of English and Humanities at St. Gregory the Great Seminary. There he directs and teaches in a Great Books Catholic program for students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and other regional colleges. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Dallas and his graduate work at Fordham University in Classics. He lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife and 5 children. Keywords: Aristotelianism, Christian Life, Contemplation, Joseph Pieper, Mimesis, Poetry, Saint Augustine, Spiritual Formation, Only the Lover Sings, W. H. Auden

This lecture was given on October 1st, 2024, at University of North Texas. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Alexander Pruss is professor of philosophy at Baylor University. He has two PhDs, one in mathematics and one in philosophy, and does research in metaphysics, philosophy of religion, ethics, epistemology, philosophy of science and philosophy of mathematics. Much of his work is centered on showing how pretty much everything in reality points to the existence of God. His books include The Principle of Sufficient Reason, Infinity, Paradox, and Causation, and One Body: An Essay in Christian Sexual Ethics. In his spare time, Pruss engages in a variety of hobbies including electronics, software development, and indoor rock climbing where he recently got two Guinness World Records.

This lecture was given on November 19th, 2024, at East Carolina University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Patrick Callahan is director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture as well as Assistant Professor of English and Humanities at St. Gregory the Great Seminary. There he directs and teaches in a Great Books Catholic program for students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and other regional colleges. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Dallas and his graduate work at Fordham University in Classics. He lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife and 5 children.

This lecture was given on November 6th, 2023, at Oxford University. For more information on events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/-events. About the Speaker: Fr. Philip-Neri Reese is a Dominican friar of the Province of St Joseph and a Professor of Philosophy at the Pontifical University of St.Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome. He is also the principal investigator for the Angelicum Thomistic Institute’s new Project on Philosophy and the Thomistic Tradition. He received his Licentiate in Philosophy from the Catholic University of America in 2015 and his Doctorate in Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in 2022. From 2015-2017 he taught philosophy at Providence College in Providence, RI. His main area of research is metaphysics and anything adjacent to it, with a special emphasis on the metaphysical thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and its subsequent reception and interpretation. His publications, however, range widely, including articles on philosophical anthropology, ethics, and economics. He is also an enthusiast of classical Indian philosophy. Fr Philip-Neri is a member of the American Philosophical Association, the Society for Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy, the Aquinas and the Arabs International Working Group, the Society for Medieval and Renaissance Thomism, and is currently serving on the executive committee of the American Catholic Philosophical Association.