This is a talk by Dr. William T. Cavanaugh, author of The Uses of Idolatry. It was originally given for the Center for Catholic Social Thought, October 9, 2025. We thought it was so good we asked if we could share it with our audience, and we got it from both Dr. Cavanaugh and the Center for Catholic Social Thought.

You can find out more about Dr. Cavanaugh and the Center for Catholic Social Thought here:

https://www.catholicsocialthought.org/fall-2025-speaking-event

Dustbowl Diatribes interviewed the Director of the Center for Catholic Social Thought, Colin Miller, and his colleague in the Catholic Worker, Tyler Hambley on Season 4, Episode 3.

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, and can be found on almost all podcast platforms! https://pmaurin.org/get-involved/

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John Paul II Catholic Worker Farm: https://jpiicatholicworkerfarm.com

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Spencer and Laurie discuss what they learned from their recent trips. Laurie went to Milwaukee, WI, to do research on the Peter Maurin papers and to give two talks on Maurin and Day. Spencer and Emily traveled to Pennsylvania and other spots on the East Coast to help move a friend, and along the way visited two Catholic Worker houses, the Rodale Institute, Blue Hill Farm, Dorothy Day’s gravesite and more.

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, and can be found on almost all podcast platforms! https://pmaurin.org/get-involved/

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

John Paul II Catholic Worker Farm: https://jpiicatholicworkerfarm.com

Follow the Maurin Academy and the JPII Farm on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events.

Laurie and Spencer talk to Colin Miller and Tyler Hambley, who trace their path to the Church through the practices of Catholic Workers: praying daily, sharing meals, and opening their homes to the homeless. Now in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, they live family-to-family alongside formerly homeless men and teach through the Center for Catholic Social Thought. They argue for “thick” Christian community over thin, optional social ties.

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, and can be found on almost all podcast platforms! https://pmaurin.org/get-involved/

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

John Paul II Catholic Worker Farm: https://jpiicatholicworkerfarm.com

Follow the Maurin Academy and the JPII Farm on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events.

Spencer and Laurie discuss an article

Spencer and Laurie discuss an article by Paul V. Stock, “The Perennial Nature of the Catholic Worker Farms: A Reconsideration of Failure,” in Rural Sociology, 2014.

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, and can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

John Paul II Catholic Worker Farm: https://jpiicatholicworkerfarm.com

Follow the Maurin Academy and the JPII Farm on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events.

Spencer and Laurie kick off their new season with Catholic Worker James Murphy of St. Martin de Porres, Harrisburg, PA. The Catholic Worker movement is a testing ground for solutions to poverty, successful relationships, and the possibility of bypassing politics. We get into some of those issues in this interview.

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events.

As Spencer and Laurie segue to a new season of Dustbowl Diatribes , they look back at the people they’ve interviewed in 2025 so far and point the way to their next topic.

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Maurin Academy Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-maurin-academy-311669

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events, and get our free newsletter: https://pmaurin.org/newsletter/

Spencer Leonard talks to us about human potential, what constitutes freedom and progress, and why it seems particularly difficult to reach.

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Maurin Academy Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-maurin-academy-311669

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms! Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events, and get our free newsletter: https://pmaurin.org/newsletter/

Spencer and Laurie talk with Prof. Jodi Dean about themes from her new book Capital’s Grave: Neofeudalism and the New Class Struggle (Verso, 2025). The theme of neofeudalism is one we have returned to several times as it seems more and more clear that our economy has moved well past competition into monopolies and highly concentrated wealth.

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

Maurin Academy Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-maurin-academy-311669

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events, and get our free newsletter: https://pmaurin.org/newsletter/

Laurie interviews a very special guest, and Spencer misses out on the best interview in Dustbowl Diatribes’ three seasons.

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

Maurin Academy Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-maurin-academy-311669

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events, and get our free newsletter: https://pmaurin.org/newsletter/

John Rao visits Dustbowl Diatribes for an episode tracing periods of “sleep” and revival in Catholic history.

Maurin Academy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/maurinacademy

Maurin Academy Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-maurin-academy-311669

Political Philosophy: https://political-philosophy.com

Dustbowl Diatribes and Political Philosophy are podcasts of the Maurin Academy, which can be found on almost all podcast platforms!

Follow the Maurin Academy on Instagram and Facebook for notifications about upcoming events, and get our free newsletter: https://pmaurin.org/newsletter/