The UnCommon Good with Bo Bonner and Dr. Bud Marr

God's Purpose In Things: An Interview With Elizabeth Bruenig, Editor at the Washington Post and Contributor to America Magazine. Elizabeth gives us a general outline of the understanding of property from the Patristic Age, through the Medieval Church, and into the Enlightenment Era. We especially look to St. Augustine's account of creation, fall, and redemption in understanding the political order...

Bold Canaanites and The Small-Souled People of God: An Interview with Katie Patrizio, Director of Faith Formation at St. Cecilia Catholic Church in Ames, IA. We discuss Sloth and Magnanimity in the context of the Scripture stories of Caleb and the Canaanite Woman, and the wider communal ramifications for this vice and virtue. Iowa Catholic Radio Network Shows: Be Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada...

The Gift of Those In Need: An Interview with Laura Wenman, Chief Mission Officer for Mercy Medical Center, in Des Moines, IA. Laura speaks to the Mission difference in Catholic Healthcare, and specifically the way in which "positive obligations" of Catholic healers is not simply a burden, but a beautiful calling, that shapes the way we engage those in their most dire times of need. Iowa...

The Social Imaginary and Death: An Interview with Dr. Jeffrey P. Bishop MD, PHD, Director; Tenet Endowed Chair in Health Care Ethics Albert Gnaegi Center for Health Care Ethics. We explore how death has been pushed out of the "middle" of modern lived experience, how language around death and medicine determines how we give care, and how the Church, from the way it speaks to the way it la...

Your West Is Too Small: An Interview with Erik Ellis, Notebaert Fellow in the Medieval Instituate at the University of Notre Dame on "Romanitas" and A "Wider" Understanding of the "West" Iowa Catholic Radio Network Shows: Be Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada and Fr. Bruce Riebe Be Not Afraid in Spanish with Fr. Fabian Moncada Catholic Women Now with Chris Magruder an...

A Cyber-Anxious Age: An Interview with Dr. Joseph Bottum, Professor of Cyber-Ethics and Director of the Classics Institute at Dakota State University. We speak with Dr. Bottum about his new position, how that relates to his other writings (from his newest book "An Anxious Age" and his myriad articles reflecting the life of a public intellectual), and dive into insights both the Classics...

The Fall Into Politics: An Interview with Dr. Jacob Howland, McFarlin Professor of Philosophy at the University of Tulsa. In this interview, we explore the ancestry of Catholic Social Teaching by discussing its Greek and Jewish philosophical fore-bearers. Dr. Howland demonstrates this commonality by relating the fall from the Garden of Eden in Jewish thought with the transition from the "well...

Not An Adjective But A Universe: Evangelization In An Age of Consumerism. An Interview with Dr. Timothy O'Malley, director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy in the McGrath Institute for Church Life. He teaches in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. Tim stops by the show again to talk about Evangelization in America, his recent trip to a "New Evangelization" con...

The Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands: An Interview with Dr. Bryan Cross on Creation and the Justice Due Our Fellow Creatures. Dr. Bryan Cross is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, IA. He joins us today to speak about the difference the Common Good and Catholic Social Teaching make when considering "environmentalism" or "nature."...

Blessed Be The Sewers: Local Initiatives, Municipal Resources, and How To Rethink the Common Good in a Concrete Manner. Bo and Bud explore the ways we sometimes overthink or neglect the day-to-day way we show each other charity, civic unity, and the blessings that living a common life have. Iowa Catholic Radio Network Shows: Be Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada and Fr. Bruce Riebe Be Not Afraid i...

The Eviscerated Middle: An Interview with Jared Schumacher and Fr. Aaron Wessman. Fr. Aaron and Jared describe the lessons they have learned, personally and academically, about the relationship between Secularism and the Church while studying at the University of Leuven in Belgium. Jared studies Church-State relations there, and is a convert. Fr. Aaron studies Secularism and Missionary work there,...

Plundering The Egyptian's Gold: An Interview with Dr. Adam DeVille On the Christian Practice of Using Pagan Writings and Resources Outside the Tradition For the Sake of Truth. An Interview With Dr. Adam DeVille, Chair, Philosophy & Theology; Associate Professor; Program Director, Master of Arts in Theology at University of St. Francis in Fort Wayne, Indiana regarding the long tradition of Chri...

The Public Nature of Art: An Interview with the Catholic Movie Guy, Steve Wichmer, Regarding Movies, Art, and the Public Good. Iowa Catholic Radio Network Shows: Be Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada and Fr. Bruce Riebe Be Not Afraid in Spanish with Fr. Fabian Moncada Catholic Women Now with Chris Magruder and Julie Nelson Making It Personal with Bishop William Joensen Man Up! with Joe Stopulos Su...

The War of the Lamb Against the Prince of This World: An Interview With Adam Storey About Christ's Easter Offensive and the Resurrection. Adam Storey is the Vice Chancellor and Director Marriage and Family Life Office at Roman Catholic Diocese of Des Moines. We talk to him not only about how "militant imagery" surrounding Easter in the Early Church strikes him as a combat veteran, but wh...

A Walk Through Holy Week: An Interview with Dr. Matthew Umbarger Regarding His Recent Trip to the Holy Land. Dr. Umbarger, an UnCommon Good All-Star, recently lead a tour through the Holy Land. With those memories fresh in his mind, we ask him to reflect on the physical places Jesus walked during Holy Week, and what insights they have for us as we journey with Christ to His Cross and Empty Tomb th...

Secularization in Europe and America: An Interview With Jared Schumacher Regarding His Studies in Church/State Relations and Secularization, and His Experience of Converting to Catholicism in Belgium. Jared was a fellow grad student at Duke Divinity School with Bo and Bud, is a PhD student at the University of Leuven in Belgium and is our "European corespondent," along with a fellow trav...

Radio Cross-Over!!! The Man UP! show pays a visit to us. Joe and Fr. Zach are known for their Man UP! show on Iowa Catholic radio, and after having us on their show Monday, we returned the favor and had them on as well! The role of Spiritual and Biological Fatherhood was the main points of discussion, with plenty of jokes in between, and a March Madness themed "Great Moments in Church History...

To Reopen The Sacred Fountains of Inspiration: An Interview With Dr. Jarod Goff, Adjunct Professor at Mt. Angel Seminary, On St. Francis And His Life. We often pigeonhole St. Francis in an individualistic manner, either as a Superstar Saint none of us can be like, or Medieval hippie. Dr. Goff disabuses us of this notion of St. Francis, and points out how the reform of St. Francis is Pauline, Maria...

What Kind of King Goes Out To The Desert? An Interview With Katie Patrizio, Director of Faith Formation at St. Cecilia Catholic Church Regarding the Scriptural Basis of Lenten Practice. Katie breaks down the numerous scriptural echoes regarding why we need penance, but why it is that Jesus Christ does the specific things we see recorded in the Gospel narrative. Be prepared to take notes, because K...

Prudential Judgments and the Common Good: How to Move From Principles to Practical Reasons For Why We Do Things Here and Now. The difference between Dogma, Doctrine, and Prudential decisions. Tips from Bl. John Henry Newman on how this relationship works and the freedom it allows the Catholic intellectual tradition. Insights from Nassim Taleb on how we create mental traps that bind us (in ways Dog...

When The Church Does Not Agree: The Immigration and Refugee Crisis As An Example of How To Debate Prudential Matters As the Body of Christ. We undoubtedly make people mad by NOT choosing a particular side, but bringing to bear the two principles regarding Immigration and Refugees (as outlined by a document from Pope Pius XII) and meditating on how we can faithfully engage people in the Church we d...

The City of God Cannot Leave the City of Man Alone: An Interview with Dr. Tim O'Malley. Bo Bonner and Bud Marr welcome Dr. Tim O'Malley, Director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy at the McGrath Institute for Church Life. What does the liturgy, family and social life have in common? The guys ask an expert, and before you know it, talking about our crazy children gets involved. Don't miss it! Io...

What Is Political Theology and What Does It Mean For Us?: An Interview With Dr. Grant Kaplan, Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at St. Louis University. A discussion regarding the way Theology and the Church shapes our allegiances, and how the way religious belief is often narrated is not only historically inaccurate, but politically damaging. Additionally, one of our underwriters Joe Jer...

God, Kings and the Ruled: An Interview with Dr. Matthew Umbarger About the Old Testament Ambivalence Toward Rulers, and the Implication For Modern Christians. With the Presidential Inauguration coming up, our society has "mixed feelings" to say the least. However, the Old Testament gives witness to the "mixed feelings" our tradition has toward rulers, and although they are not...

Redeeming the Time: How Liturgical Time Shapes Civic Time. Thoughts On the Christmas Octave and Christian Social Understanding. Ecclesial vs. Civic Liturgies and Our Understanding of the Passage of Time. How this conditions us to do things differently. Worshipful vs. Consumerist societies, etc. Iowa Catholic Radio Network Shows: Be Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada and Fr. Bruce Riebe Be Not Afra...