From the Center

GK Chesterton -- remember him? -- said once, that "Art is like morals: you have to draw the line somewhere." In this episode, Director Hodges goes solo again offering a meditation on drawing moral lines. Are we SURE that we are not falling into traps laid by our Enemy when we demonize others over political and social issues, pointing fingers, claiming injustices, accusing others? How would our Lor...

How did we get to the point of skepticism about reason? Do we trust our reason to give us a picture of reality? Or do we allow our fears, passions, concerns, anxieties, and experiences to lead us more than trusting our reason? What is the place for the imagination in reasoning? Are the two in opposition? Director Hodges gives a meditation on Reason and the Imagination, discussing how we can best a...

Can we still afford to have children? Are we putting them off for good reasons? What about the future generations? Hodges and Vowell discuss whether children are an asset or a liability in a technological society. What are the benefits of career over homemaking? How have we lost sight of the importance of the home? Could it be this is the fruit (or lack thereof) of the sexual revolution? Lower bir...

What with several of the candidates for the US Presidency claiming to actually BE Socialists, we thought it would be good to discuss the characteristics of Socialism in all its manifestations. Hodges and Vowell address the misguided assumption that all human problems can be solved by way of the federal government. Once accepted as true, this assumption makes the claims of Socialism far more compel...

Being ironic is the way of our world. But is it possible to be "hip" enough to tell and know the truth? If we "see through" everything, as CS Lewis asks, how is it any different than being blind? When does our cynicism end and our genuine enjoyment begin? Happy New Year From the Center!

It is Advent, and ALMOST Christmas! So we thought we would do a special Christmas episode where we recall Christmases from years past, discuss favorite recipes, Christmas songs, Christmas movies, do each others' hair...well, ok, not really that... but sometimes we need a break from talking about cultural Marxism and warning of the dangers of land wars in Asia...so come join us! Hear a few tunes, a...

The problem with giving thanks is that we need someone to thank. In this episode, Hodges and Vowell discuss the importance of giving thanks and never more than for the gift of the Birth at Christmas. It seems even psychologists recognize the need human beings have for gratitude -- instead of complaining about the failings of...well...everything: family, job, country, the other political party, nei...

Director Hodges sat down in the studio recently and recorded the entire book A CHRISTMAS CAROL for the Center. All the great language, humor, horror, and profound truth captured in audio book form! Here we have placed a short excerpt to whet your appetite for the entire thing... And this book is available to donors to the Center! If you make a donation of $100 or more to the Center for Western Stu...

There have been only a few elections in US history in which a presidential candidate won the election without winning the popular vote. The 2016 election was one of those times, and that, combined with the 2020 election coming up, has reignited the debate about the significance of the Electoral College. Does it fairly represent the country? If not, how could it be bettered? If so, how does it answ...

Attorney General William Barr recently gave a lecture at the law school at Notre Dame University about the necessity of the Christian faith in establishing but also sustaining civil society. In a plurality of beliefs, where do we turn for the foundation of society? Hodges and Vowell discuss the lecture itself, and whether giving such a lecture breaks the "establishment" clause or is making use of...

Technology, health care, foreign policy, government - what do we give up to progress? Hodges and Vowell discuss a half-baked idea that the metaphysical cost of giving up our volition for efficiency and lower costs may actually not be worth the trade. Recommendations: Hodges suggests reading Os Guinness' "Renaissance" book; Vowell suggests a podcast called "The Remnant" episode 138 entitled, 'Half-...

Is sex the same as gender? If different, how? Hodges and Vowell start our third season of the From the Center Podcasts by diving into the thorny issue of gender. With no more authority on the subject than speaking as human beings, the two comment on an article that came from the Vatican in July of this year entitled, "Male and Female He Created Them, Toward a Path of Dialogue On the Question of Ge...

How does the study of the Humanities help us become more human? Could it be that the loss of the Humanities has encouraged confusion between humans and computers, robots, AI? Perhaps the more we look like Jesus, the more we become human, and the more we appreciate the Humanities that exhibit the characteristics of humanness? Hodges and Vowell discuss what the Humanities have become, and what they...

It has been a while since we posted a podcast! Thanks for sticking with us as we traveled to Europe, sold and bought a house and moved ourselves and the Center to the beautiful retreat house we now have! We hope to get back on our weekly schedule. In this episode, Hodges and Vowell discuss the superiority of history and the arts over law and government for the improvement of life.

The Truth is a Person. As long as we are trying to choose which system of thought is the right one, we are missing the Truth. The problem isn't which system, it is which judge...Hodges and Vowell attempt to follow up on last week's podcast and provide what Christians are FOR rather than what they are against.

There have been so many hoaxes in the last few decades, and they reveal a cultural predisposition toward accepting Narratives and disregarding facts. Or is there a deeper set of Facts that trump Narratives? Hodges and Vowell discuss the present society's fear of "Totalization" of any kind, whether Communism, Totalitarianism, or even Christianity.

With various states presently and recently debating the abortion issue, an article came out arguing that a Christian can be both Pro-life and Pro-choice at the same time. In an attempt to make sense of it, Hodges and Vowell address the article and its assumptions. (Here is a link to the article: https://www.upworthy.com/it-is-possible-to-be-morally-pro-life-and-politically-pro-choice-at-the-same-t...

For a few days there was nothing but discussion about an ad put out by the Gillette shave company (called a "short film" by its creators, 2 minutes long), that was made up of various scenes in which men were depicted as mistreating women or encouraging aggressive behavior. Hodges and Vowell discuss the implications of this view of men, how the term "toxic masculinity" is used in the ad, and whethe...

Recalling a great discussion from one of our Sunday night dinners, Hodges and Vowell discuss human play. Is it the opposite of work? Is it of use? What part does play play in a biblical understanding of life? The fellas offer a new definition that is more about attitude than action.

Hodges and Vowell discuss the liberal arts and their purpose. What happens to a civilization that loses its understanding of the liberal arts? Why should we return to them in our general education? Professors live for the "fire falling" of inspiration in the hearts of our students, but can it be taught? The loss of the doctrine of the image of God is connected to the loss of the love of the human...

Seems each side in political world has given up debate in favor of increased ire and insult. We don't think that this is that unusual -- political differences have often come to blows, even on the floor of congress, but what IS unusual is that some have argued that one's political opponents should not be allowed to have peaceful meals in public, or feel secure in their homes in private. What has c...

If the material world is all there is, equal distribution of the world's resources, capital, wealth would make sense. But if material is all there is, where do we get the notion that redistribution is virtuous? And what about those who believe there IS a God? Can Christians embrace Socialism as a virtuous means to fulfill the call to care for the Poor? Why would Socialism be so attractive that so...

"Be in but not of..." The Gospel requires a theological posture that embraces the culture as a single thing that is either influenced by Christians or is not - either is being seasoned with the salt of the Gospel or is not. There are two other approaches. We could form a Christian sub-culture removed from the rest of the world, OR we could offer a full embrace or capitulation to the culture, since...

Hodges and Vowell discuss the rise of Social Justice in the culture and in the Church, defining terms, and considering how it relates to the calling that Christians have to care for the poor, sick, and the widow.

We begin our second year of podcasts at the Center! This first episode introduces our new students: Emma Peebles, Kate Korasick, and Ben Thompson. Plus, Hodges and Vowell lay out the philosophy of education at the Center.