The Thomistic Institute

Challenging popular narratives of the Scientific Revolution and Catholic suppression, Dr. Nuno Castel-Branco demonstrates that early modern censorship focused on theology while allowing the scientific discoveries of figures like Steno and Galileo to flourish.

This lecture was given on September 23rd, 2026, at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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About the Speaker:

Nuno Castel-Branco is a Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford. He completed his Ph.D. in the history of science and technology at Johns Hopkins University in 2021 after earning a Bachelors and Masters in Physics at the University of Lisbon. After his PhD, he was a Research Fellow at Harvard University’s Villa I Tatti in Florence and at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin. He often speaks about the history of science to broad audiences in the United States and Europe. His first book, The Traveling Anatomist: Nicolaus Steno and the Intersection of Disciplines in Early Modern Science was published by the University of Chicago Press in October 2025. His writing has also appeared in places like the Wall Street Journal, Physics Today, and Scientific American, as well as in research journals such as “Notes and Records of the Royal Society,” and “Isis”.

Keywords: Scientific Revolution, Catholic Church, Censorship, Galileo Affair, Gelileo Galilei, Galileo, Nicolas Steno, History Of Science, Index Librorum Prohibitorum, Copernicanism

Prof. Christopher Mooney explores Saint John Henry Newman’s defense of conscience as the immediate apprehension of divine law, arguing that prioritizing this interior voice over social constructs is essential for moral freedom.

This lecture was given on September 24th, 2026, at University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

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About the Speaker:

Dr. Christopher Mooney is an assistant professor of theology at the Augustine Institute Graduate School in St. Louis, Missouri, where he teaches on Catholic theology, scriptural interpretation, and the Church Fathers. His teaching and research specialize in Augustine, the Fathers, and historical theology, and he is the author of Augustine's Theology of Justification by Faith (2026). A native of Connecticut, he studied at Georgetown and Yale Divinity School before receiving his PhD from the University of Notre Dame. He also serves as a theological representative for the USCCB's Catholic-Reformed dialogue. He lives next door to the Augustine Institute's campus with his wife and four children.

This project/publication was made possible through the support of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.

Keywords: Saint John Henry Newman, Conscience, Moral Theology, Divine Law, Papal Infallibility, Joseph Ratzinger, Moral Freedom, Morals, Conversion

Prof. Michael Krom considers the question of the use of AI and autonomous drones, drawing upon just war theory with virtue ethics to protect human agency and moral responsibility in a new age of warfare.

This lecture was given on September 24th, 2026, at Cornell University.

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About the Speaker:

Michael Krom started reading Aquinas’s Summa Theologiae shortly after his conversion at the end of college. Upon learning about Flannery O’Connor’s “hillbilly Thomist” habit of reading Aquinas every night, he started studying two articles a day and completed the Summa while in graduate school at Emory University. As a professor at Saint Vincent College, he saw the urgent need for collegians and seminarians to receive a solid foundation in Aquinas’s philosophical theology. In 2020, he published Justice and Charity:  An Introduction to Aquinas’s Moral, Economic, and Political Thought (Baker Academic Press), and teaches a Thomistic philosophy course each fall. In addition to continuing work on the moral, economic, and political topics covered in the book, his current research is on the influence of monastic spirituality on Aquinas; he is working on a monograph tentatively entitled Aquinas Among the Benedictines.

Keywords: Just War Theory, Thomas Aquinas, Drone Warfare, Artificial Intelligence Ethics, Artificial Intelligence, AI, Natural Law, Virtue Ethics, Catholic Social Teaching, Moral Agency, Morality, Morals, Double Effect

Applying Thomas Aquinas’s hierarchy of goods to the modern "looksmaxxing" trend, Prof. Catherine Peters critiques the elevation of physical attractiveness to an ultimate end, arguing that true human flourishing requires cultivating virtue rather than aesthetic optimization.

This lecture was given on September 24th, 2026, at University of Michigan.

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About the Speaker:

Catherine Peters is an associate professor of medieval philosophy at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Her work centers on issues of philosophical anthropology, metaphysics, and natural theology. She is passionate about translating medieval thought into modern terms and applying its insights to perennial questions such as “Who am I?” “What should I do?” and “Is there a God?” A frequent presenter in both the United States and Europe, her scholarship has been published in numerous volumes and journals, including The Thomist, New Blackfriars, National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, The Journal of Islamic Philosophy, European Journal for the Study of Thomas Aquinas, Lex Naturalis, and Jesuit Higher Education. When not in the classroom, she can often be found in local coffee shops, at the dog park, or in a HIIT class.

This project/publication was made possible through the support of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.

Keywords: Looksmaxxing, Thomas Aquinas, Human Flourishing, Thomistic Philosophy, Hierarchy Of Goods, Perfection, Self-Image, Physical Attraction, Virtue Ethics, Philosophical Anthropology

Dr. Peter Kreeft explores the profound parallels and radical distinctions between Socrates and Jesus, examining how these two figures fundamentally shaped the course of human history and the Catholic intellectual tradition.

This lecture was given on September 21st, 2026, at Brown University.

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About the Speaker:

Peter Kreeft, PhD, serves as Professor of Philosophy at Boston College, where he has taught since 1965.

Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Dr. Kreeft completed his undergraduate studies at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, before pursuing graduate studies at Fordham University in the Bronx, earning an MA (1961) and PhD (1965). Dr. Kreeft taught at Villanova University from 1962 to 1965, and has taught courses at numerous academic institutions, including Fordham University, The King's College (New York City), St. Charles Seminary, and Our Lady of Grace Seminary. Dr. Kreeft is a sought-after speaker who has taught, lectured, and written topics as varied as classical philosophy, the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, virtue, and surfing. He has written over 80 books, including A Summa of the Summa, Socratic Logic, and Back to Virtue.

This project/publication was made possible through the support of Grant 63391 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.

Keywords: Socrates, Jesus, Philosophy And Theology, Socratic Method, Christian Apologetics, History Of Philosophy, Martyrdom, Faith And Reason

Emphasizing that suffering is not inherently good, Prof. Bruce Marshall explains how uniting our personal griefs to Christ's redemptive sacrifice during the Eucharist transforms pain into a path of divine intimacy and resurrection hope.

This lecture was given on October 3rd, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies.

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About the Speaker:

Bruce D. Marshall is Lehman Professor of Christian Doctrine at Southern Methodist University, and in 2023 he held the Aquinas Chair in the Thomistic Institute at the Angelicum in Rome.  He is the author of Trinity and Truth and Christology in Conflict, and at present he is completing a book entitled The Primacy of Christ: Faith, Reason, and the Cross.  Marshall has written extensively on the doctrines of the Trinity, the person and redemptive work of Christ, the Eucharist, the Catholic Church and non-Christian religions, and the relationship between faith and reason.  He received his B.A. from Northwestern University and his Ph.D. from Yale University, and is a past President of the Academy of Catholic Theology.

Keywords: Suffering, Passion, Prayer, Despair, Resurrection, Theology Of The Cross, Sacred Heart Of Jesus, Eucharist, Contemplation, Redemptive Suffering, Redemption, Saint Paul, Christian Joy

Fr. Isaac Augustine Morales, O.P. examines the Johannine theology of glory, arguing that the cross, as the definitive revelation of God's presence, calls believers to participate in its mystery through humble service and love.

This lecture was given on October 3rd, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies.

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About the Speaker:

Fr. Isaac Morales, O.P. is associate professor of theology at Providence College. Before joining the Dominican Order, he received an MTS in biblical studies from the University of Notre Dame and a PhD in New Testament from Duke University. He is the author of The Bible and Baptism: The Fountain of Salvation (Baker Academic Press) and a forthcoming book on eschatology titled The Life of the World to Come: Seeing God, Resurrection, and the Christian Hope. He also regularly teaches a course on the life and writings of C. S. Lewis.

Keywords: Gospel Of John, Divinity, Glory, Theology Of The Cross, Revelation, Johannine Theology, Sacred Scripture, Mystical Theology

Highlighting structural parallels in the Gospel of Mark, Fr. Isaac Augustine Morales, O.P., demonstrates how Jesus redefines messianic identity and the title "Son of God" through self-giving love and solidarity with the suffering rather than worldly domination.

This lecture was given on October 2nd, 2026, at Dominican House of Studies.

For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events

About the Speaker:

Fr. Isaac Morales, O.P. is associate professor of theology at Providence College. Before joining the Dominican Order, he received an MTS in biblical studies from the University of Notre Dame and a PhD in New Testament from Duke University. He is the author of The Bible and Baptism: The Fountain of Salvation (Baker Academic Press) and a forthcoming book on eschatology titled The Life of the World to Come: Seeing God, Resurrection, and the Christian Hope. He also regularly teaches a course on the life and writings of C. S. Lewis.

Keywords: Gospel Of Mark, Theology Of The Cross, Son Of God, Bible, Biblical Scholarship, Passion Narrative, Messianic Secret, Christian Solidarity, Solidarity, Love, Dei Verbum

Dr. Robert McNamara explains how the physical body is a revelatory book of our identity, arguing that we find true freedom and fulfillment by understanding our existence as a gift meant for communion.

This lecture was given on September 29th, 2026, at Queen's University Belfast.

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About the Speaker:

Dr. Robert McNamara is lecturer in philosophy and department head at St. Patrick’s Pontifical University, Ireland, adjunct professor of philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville, USA, while also tutoring periodically at the ITI Catholic University, Austria, and the Maryvale Institute, England. Robert is an associate series editor of Edith Stein Studies, an associate scholar of the Hildebrand Project, a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Man and Woman, and a founding member of the Aquinas Institute of Ireland (currently suspended). Having studied physics, computing, philosophy, and theology, Robert brings a multidisciplinary approach to his work while exploring anthropological and metaphysical themes in ancient, medieval, and phenomenological thinkers, with a defined focus on philosophical personalism in the Christian tradition. He currently resides in Carlow, Ireland, with his wife, Caroline, and their five children.

Keywords: Theology Of The Body, Catholic Anthropology, Philosophical Anthropology, Human Identity, Soul Body Composite, Marriage, Sacraments, John Paul II, Vocation, Self-Gift, Creation, Freedom

Fr. Cassian Derbes, OP, examines the Thomistic distinction between the active and contemplative lives, arguing that they are not merely states of life but distinct activities that find their highest expression in the beatific vision.

This lecture was given on June 20th, 2026, at New York University.

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About the Speaker:

Fr. Cassian Derbes, O.P. is a priest of the Dominican Province of Saint Joseph. He is currently the Director of the Catholic Center at NYU. He previously was a visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame in the Mendoza College of Business. Prior to that position, Father Cassian served as vice dean and professor of theology at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) in Rome. His previous teaching positions include as adjunct professor of theology at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Ohio. Father Cassian earned his Doctorate in Sacred Theology (S.T.D.) from the Angelicum. He has a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, a Bachelor’s degree (B.A.) from New York University (N.Y.U.), and he is a graduate of Jesuit High School in New Orleans, Louisiana. From 2014-2020, Father Cassian served as director of an initiative at the Vatican under Pope Francis to design, implement, and teach an executive leadership development program for the Cardinals, Bishops, and senior lay officials of the Roman Curia. Father Cassian is a Missionary of Mercy, having been appointed by Pope Francis in 2015.

Keywords: Saint Thomas Aquinas, Contemplative Life, Contemplation, Active Life, Dominican Spirituality, Theology, Beatific Vision, Summa Theologiae