New Polity

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 Bo...

In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Reuben Slife discuss Pope Pius XII’s 1939 letter to America on the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the hierarchy of bishops. They discuss both Pope Pius’s praise for America and his warnings regarding the degradation of the family and cultural decline of the pre-war era. Subscribe by August 15th to receive Issue 7.3: https://newpolity.com/magazine We are...

Does employee ownership really work? Matthew Warner, founder and CEO of Flocknote, says it certainly does. In this podcast, Marc Barnes interviews Matthew on his experience transitioning Flocknote to an employee owned company, and the benefits it brings to his company. They also discuss Catholic Social Teaching on ownership and labor, and how Catholics can incorporate these teachings. Subscribe by...

Marc Barnes and Alex Denley are happy to announce the next New Polity Magazine, Issue 7.3, on AI: The Hype vs The Real. In this podcast, they discuss the loss of textual communities, AI generated homilies, the technocratic paradigm, and other topics from the new magazine. Subscribe by August 15th to receive Issue 7.3: https://newpolity.com/magazine We are running a Summer Sale on all books and mag...

Marc Barnes and Joe Heschmeyer are from the old world of the Catholic blogosphere. With catchy titles like "Bad Catholic" and "Shameless Popery," the Catholic blogs were the place for long comment threads and an active community. Social media has made that community mostly obsolete, and social media is the default place where people go. In this podcast, they discuss producing c...

In The Seven Ranges, Will Hoyt sought answers to how and why small, self-sufficient landholders in eastern Ohio consented to the destruction of once-thriving townships and even topography itself via strip mining in the 1960s. In his new sequel, Fear and Trembling in Las Vegas, Hoyt describes the collapse of Western Civilization as experienced by residents in eastern Ohio, Cleveland, and Michigan b...

In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Star Plato discuss the final chapters of the Book of Judith. Specifically, they look at the prayer at the end of the Book, where Judith praises God for victory. This is final part of the series on Judith. You can view the full series here. Subscribe to New Polity Magazine ! Next one's on AI and will be releasing by August. New Polity is a non-profit organizatio...

America is a special place. And, it even has its 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...

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 under...

The anti-chatbot alliance is growing. With support from the Future of Life Institute, New Polity is hosting a landmark event on AI this October in Steubenville Ohio, 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...

What does it mean to be holy in America? In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Reuben Slife discuss the newest release from New Polity Press: America in the Mystery of Christ and the Church by David L. Schindler, available now. 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 He...

In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Star Plato continue their discussion of the book of Judith. Specifically, they discuss Judith's "strategy" of using her beauty to trick the Assyrians. What is the meaning and power of female beauty? We're running a last chance sale on our 2026 Conference "Man, Woman, Tyrant, Slave." Get your tickets now ! Subscribe to New Polity Magazine...

Do men and women differ only in regards to the body? Or, can we speak of there being a "feminine" soul and a "male" soul? How do we explain the different ways that men and women relate to their bodies? In this podcast, Marc Barnes and D. C. Schindler discuss the different ways of explaining sexual difference. Specifically, they discuss Schindler's recent article in New Poli...

Pope St. John Paul II claimed that "the 'new evangelization', which the modern world urgently needs must include among its essential elements a proclamation of the Church's social doctrine" (Centesimus Annus 5). In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Cy Kellett, host of Catholic Answers Live, discuss how proclaiming the social doctrine of the Church can lead people to Christ. We’re...

"The Lord struck him down by the hand of a female!" Is the story of Judith a rejection of male power and patriarchy? What does Judith show about how power is used differently between men and women? How does God reveal his power in the actions of men and women? In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Star Plato discuss the Book of Judith and what it teaches regarding the sexual difference. Don&#...

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. Catch up with Episode 1: youtu.be/Glj3ojZERvw?si=G1CfeS7pD2cf9TxdYou can follow along with the Esther Rabah, a collection of rabbinic commentaries on Esther from the 6th and 11th cen...

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...

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. We are two months away from New Polity's 2026 conference "Man, Woman, Tyrant, Slave"! Learn more and register at https://newpolity.com/2026 Subscribe to New Po...

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 fi...

In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Michael Boland discuss the upcoming New Polity magazine, Issue 7.1, on Man and Woman. Specifically, they discuss the philosophical and metaphysical problems of sexual difference, and how our understanding of man and woman impacts our view of politics. Subscribe to New Polity Magazine by March 1st to receive Issue 7.1! https://newpolity.com/magazine The 2026 New Pol...

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-person...

What is the Catholic response to AI? Pope Leo XIV, in his recent message for the 60th World Day of Social Communications, takes a critical look at AI: namely, how it is "encroach[ing] upon the deepest level of communication, that of human relationships." Pope Leo asserts that our faces and voices are sacred, a witness to the unique, singular dignity of each human person. With AI already...

The book has long been the place of completed thought, able to incorporate previous work and advance new thought. That is going away. AI generation is polluting the discourse; leading to a state where all "new" publications are, in fact, summarized AI restatements of the previous state of the question. In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Andrew Willard Jones discuss the effects of AI on the...

Happy New Year! In this podcast, Marc Barnes and Alex Denley discuss New Polity's 2025 year, the books and magazines published, and look ahead to the New Year. Thank you to everyone who read or listened to us this year. Check out our essays: https://newpolity.com/essays Subscribe to New Polity Magazine! https://newpolity.com/magazine Check out our 2026 Conference! https://newpolity.com/2026 Pl...

We are excited to announce New Polity's 2026 conference: Man, Woman, Tyrant, Slave. Learn more and register at https://newpolity.com/2026 The sixth annual New Polity conference aims to refute bad ideas concerning marriage and sexual difference; to debate the metaphysics of man and woman; to argue for a profound continuity between the order of man and woman and the political and cosmic order as...