The Home Front

Show Notes: This week, Phil solos! If you have ever wondered what just listening to him would be like, now’s your chance! Is this a religious liberty issue? The 29-foot statue of Christ the King, dominating the horizon from its spot on the peak of Mount Cristo Rey, is certainly a powerful symbol of the faith. The border wall might be a similar height, but it would be a drab, functional structure,...

Show Notes: llinois Gov. JB Pritzker just signed a bill making it LEGAL to knowingly expose others to HIV — including through BLOOD DONATIONS. The Dangers of Compelled Speech by Jake Warner The Power of the Powerless , by Václav Havel Live Not by Lies , by Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn For when people renounce lies, lies simply cease to exist. Like parasites, they can only survive when attached to a pers...

Show Notes: We both wrote pieces, and in this episode, we discuss the topics (which are related) just the way we do at the dinner table (with a bit extra to fill in the blanks for you). Join us! Phil’s article: My article: From the archives: More on Amoris Laetitia: More on the inopportune document suppressing certain Marian titles: Your paid subscription means a lot to us and helps us continue ou...

Show Notes: Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love): apostolic letter of Pope Francis Michael Haynes on X: Debate about Amoris Laetitia has renewed The president of the Episcopal Conference reminds everyone that one cannot receive communion if the marriage breaks down and there is another relationship. God Has No Grandchildren: A guided reading of Pius XI’s encyclical Casti Connubii , On Chaste Marriage...

Note Bene : We read the entire encyclical and we didn’t use AI. And we don’t use AI to draft, write, or edit our own writing! Show Notes: Full text of the encyclical Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah’s remarks on Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical “Magnifica humanitas” The importance of Pope Leo’s first encyclical (Phil’s preview of the encyclical— posted before it appeared) Pope Leo breaks new ground with e...

Show Notes: Abortion Drug Makers Admit They Care About Money, Not Women by Jordan Boyd On Application for Stay: GENBIOPRO, INC. v. LOUISIANA, ET AL. Why the Left lies about Amber Thurmon by Leila M. Lawler (survey of the black box warnings on the abortion pill ingredients) The importance of Pope Leo’s first encyclical by Phil Lawler Your paid subscription means a lot to us and helps us continue ou...

Show Notes: The SSPX, the German bishops, and the parable of the two sons by Phil Lawler How A Feminist Info Op Convinced Moms To Leave Their Babies With Strangers Every Da y by Leila M. Lawler (The Federalist) The government’s war on romance by Phil Lawler The American Book of Fables (affiliate link) — beautiful hardcover book, almost 400 pages, written by Matt Mehan and illustrated by John Folle...

Show Notes: The Story of Everything , a documentary - “The Story of Everything takes us on a journey into the origins of humanity and the cosmos, illuminating mankind’s most important scientific discoveries and revealing that everything has been created by a designer.” Leila’s post about Michael Knowles’ interview with Stephen C. Meyer More in-depth information about the origins of the universe an...

The ‘special relationships’ built on pretense (Phil for CatholicCulture) Pope receives Anglican primate, calls for removal of stumbling blocks to Christian unity The Vatican’s Feting of the First Female Archbishop of Canterbury Shawn McAnally’s viral video: “There’s no Mama” A warranty on your purchase (of a baby) — not dystopia but reality Nancy Mace’s bill in the Senate: Protecting Children in S...

Show Notes: The Flight 93 Election by Publius Decius Mus (Michael Anton) The Claremont Review Aaron Siri on the new CDC director Southern Poverty Law Center FBI Director Patel and Acting AG Blanche Hold News Conference (C-Span coverage of press conference) Your paid subscription means a lot to us and helps us continue our work, but we are happy for you to receive our podcast for free! Want to tell...

Show Notes: Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo (Truth Social) Who started the Trump ‘feud’ with the Pope? by Phil Lawler Trump’s own derangement by Phil Lawler Trump’s Blasphemy Is a Warning (Ross Douthat) (archived here ) Blasphemy is not just a Trump Thing Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz has openly announced that Israeli forces are going to wipe out civilian homes in areas of Lebanon bordering...

Show Notes: Brown v. Board of Education Is the Constitution Colorblind? by Edward J. Erler, Co-Author, The Founders on Citizenship and Immigration Minority Schools and the Politics of Education by Thomas Sowell Judicial Hubris by David Lewis Schaefer Policy Brief: The Threat of Judicial Tyranny Is Far from Over by Ken Cuccinelli Adult conversions soar in dioceses across U.S. (National Catholic Reg...

Show Notes: NCLA Reaches Historic Settlement, Strikes Major Blow Against Government’s Social Media Censorship In Historic Settlement, NCLA Strikes Fatal Blow to State Department’s Censorship Industrial Complex America’s Most Infamous Serial Baby Killer Kermit Gosnell Dead At 85 Sins of omission: The Kermit Gosnell defenses the press dared not mention by Tim Carney (archive version) New York Times...

Show Notes: Them Before Us Greater Than You think you are just for helping the infertile? Read this: Your paid subscription means a lot to us and helps us continue our work, but we are happy for you to receive our podcast for free! Want to tell a friend? Please do! It’s a great way to help us! How about this, if you enjoyed listening to this one episode: Get full access to Happy Despite Them at le...

Show Notes: Vatican appeal court orders review of financial trial investigation ( The Pillar) Vatican appeals court declares mistrial in the ‘trial of the century’ against a cardinal (AP) Phil on that New York Times obituary for Paul Erlich The Resourceful Earth: A Response to Global 2000 (edited by Julian Simon and Herman Kahn) (affiliate link) The coming population implosion (Phil Lawler) How do...

Show Notes: Bishop Robert Barron on the potential closing of La Trappe Archived version of “I Regret Having Children” Pope Pius XII on Large Families Massive funeral in Lebanon for the Maronite priest Pierre El-Raii “This is our home”: Christians from southern Lebanon resist evacuating the area after the death of Father Pierre el-Raï Lebanese Foreign Minister requests Holy See’s help for Christian...

Show Notes: Exclusive: The Trump-Netanyahu call that changed the Middle East ~ Axios (archived link here ). Iran: Is this war just? The questions are clear; the future is not by Phil Lawler U.S. Supreme Court Delivers Historic, Groundbreaking Victory for Parental Rights, Dismantles California’s Secret Gender Transition Regime ~ Thomas More Society Blessed: The martyrs of Compiègne — film by Franço...

Show Notes: What if I’m wrong? Phil’s CatholicCulture column on the SSPX imbroglio. “For all these reasons I deeply regret the SSPX plan to proceed with the episcopal ordinations. But what if I’m wrong?” The reckoning the SSPX requires by Phil Lawler Cardinal McElroy’s Conscience Trap (Synodality) by Leila Marie Lawler Film: For Greater Glory: The True Story of Cristiada (2012) The Cristero Counte...

Show Notes: Bishop Rhoades expresses ‘strong opposition’ to pro-abortion professor’s appointment at Notre Dame (EWTN) Amid criticism by bishops, Notre Dame says pro-abortion professor ‘well prepared’ to lead institute (EWTN) More bishops call for Notre Dame to drop appointment of pro-abortion professor (EWTN) Notre Dame must choose courage. An excellent piece by a Notre Dame undergraduate, Liam Ke...

Show Notes: Them Before Us : Katy Faust Greater Than Is Germany facing ‘synodal fatigue’? by Luke Coppen Some favorite history books, military and otherwise (if it’s an Amazon link, a small amount goes to us without costing you more — thank you!): Thucydides: The History of the Peloponnesian War The Face of Battle by John Keegan ( all his books ) Shelby Foote: The Civil War (3 volumes) WWI: Barbar...

Confidential to the commenter who asked about Phil’s history reading recommendations (sorry, it’s impossible to search Notes here and I didn’t record your name, alas): We will get to his list next week! Show Notes: Xi Jinping Is Accelerating China’s Collapse by Steven Mosher China’s demographic crisis threatens the Party’s grand plans by Phil Lawler Matt Walsh: The Solution To The Immigration Prob...

Show Notes: Minnesota DHS Employee on Welfare Fraud: “This Is Real” - City Journal THE LAW on “Excessive Use Of Force Claims” -- Public Sentiments Do Not Reflect The Realities Of Legal Principles. (Bio of the author of this post from X: 22 years as DOJ prosecutor; Rep’d 91 Jan 6 clients. ) Tim Walz compares Minnesota ICE actions to Holocaust and Anne Frank: ‘Hiding in their houses’ - Fox News Fede...

Show Notes: {Our apologies for the quality or lack thereof of Leila’s audio. We’ll try to do better next time! Thanks for sticking with us!} Finland’s president is a bit overconfident about not needing US military help — and immediately contradicts himself! President Trump’s full speech at Davos — in Leila’s opinion, even the seeming digressions off topic have meaning, and the whole thing will go...

Show Notes: This week, Phil and I are really just talking about larger social issues creating a serious divide in our country, so we don’t have any particular show notes. Here is the tweet Leila read: Rob Henderson on X: 95% of children in 1960 were raised by two married parents regardless of social class… For on-the-ground reporting: Andy Ngo is a good source. Megyn Kelly has lots of information...

Show Notes: A Consistory to Revitalize the College of Cardinals by Fr. Daniel Gallagher (The Catholic Thing) Charlotte priests submit Dubia to Vatican over liturgical changes (The Pillar) Is our society normalizing dark things while our bishops polish their managerial skills? Nicole Shanahan: Burning Man ; Mike Cernovich: Ayahuasca trips . What does the Church teach? Here is a more optimistic take...