Thomas P Harmon
University of St. Thomas, Houston, Undergraduate Theology, Faculty Member
- Moral Theology, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Political Philosophy, Theology, Theology and Literature, and 51 moreTheological Ethics, Political Theology, History and Theology, Ressourcement Theology, Faith and Reason, Theology of History, Sacramental Theology, Trinitarian Theology, Sacraments, Virtue Ethics, Bernard Lonergan, Leo Strauss, Henri de Lubac, Theology of Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI/Josef Ratzinger, James V. Schall, Literature and Theology, Catholic Theology, Catholic Social Teaching, Catholic Social Thought, Plato, Fundamental theology, Historical Theology, Ernest Fortin, Systematic Theology, Leon Kass, Seth Benardete, Aristophanes, Book of Genesis, Genesis 1-11, The Twentieth Century Liturgical Movement, Louis Bouyer, Athanasius, Walker Percy, Flannery O'Connor, Great Books, Humanities, Liberal arts, Pierre Manent, Roger Scruton, Marshall McLuhan, Religion and Literature, Religion and Poetry, Religion and Film, Theology and the Arts, Porphyry of Tyre, Christianity and Rome, Imperial Rome, Republican Rome, Political Theory, and Philosophyedit
- Professor and Scanlan Foundation Chair in Theology, University of St. Thomas, Houston; Director of the MA in Evangelization and Culture; Associate Director of Catholic Studiesedit
This work examines Augustine's critique of his Roman predecessors to reveal key aspects of Christ's mediation of the universal way of salvation. Porphyry of Tyre had noticed that Christianity can make a claim that pagan religion and pagan... more
This work examines Augustine's critique of his Roman predecessors to reveal key aspects of Christ's mediation of the universal way of salvation. Porphyry of Tyre had noticed that Christianity can make a claim that pagan religion and pagan philosophy cannot: that all types of human being can be saved through the one salvific action of Christ mediated sacramentally through the one Catholic Church. Augustine's response to Porphyry is grounded firmly on Christology, especially on what Augustine sees to be the unique act of Christ as mediator, based in turn on Christ's unique position as true God and true man, which in turn is capable of healing the whole man and, by healing the whole man, also healing each of the parts of the soul. Christ himself, as concretely universal, is capable of saving each and any type of human being, no matter which part of the soul rules within him, Augustine counters, which is not a claim his pagan interlocutors can replicate. First book in the T&T Clark Studies in Ressourcement Catholic Theology and Culture series edited by Matthew Levering and Tracey Rowland.
https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/universal-way-of-salvation-in-the-thought-of-augustine-9780567712127/
https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/universal-way-of-salvation-in-the-thought-of-augustine-9780567712127/
Research Interests: Philosophy, Political Philosophy, Theology, Political Theory, Patristics, and 15 moreHistorical Theology, Shakespeare, Augustine, Christology, Political Theology, Augustine of Hippo, Imperial Rome, Christianity and Rome, Soteriology, Leo Strauss, Porphyry, Ancient Rome, William Shakespeare, Saint Augustine, and Pierre Manent
This work examines Augustine's critique of his Roman predecessors to reveal key aspects of Christ's mediation of the universal way of salvation. Porphyry of Tyre had noticed that Christianity can make a claim that pagan... more
This work examines Augustine's critique of his Roman predecessors to reveal key aspects of Christ's mediation of the universal way of salvation. Porphyry of Tyre had noticed that Christianity can make a claim that pagan religion and pagan philosophy cannot: that all types of human being can be saved through the one salvific action of Christ mediated sacramentally through the one Catholic Church. Augustine's response to Porphyry is grounded firmly on Christology, especially on what Augustine sees to be the unique act of Christ as mediator, based in turn on Christ's unique position as true God and true man, which in turn is capable of healing the whole man and, by healing the whole man, also healing each of the parts of the soul. Christ himself, as concretely universal, is capable of saving each and any type of human being, no matter which part of the soul rules within him, Augustine counters, which is not a claim his pagan interlocutors can replicate. First book in the T&T Clark Studies in Ressourcement Catholic Theology and Culture series edited by Matthew Levering and Tracey Rowland.
Research Interests: Philosophy, Political Philosophy, Political Theory, Patristics, Historical Theology, and 15 moreShakespeare, Augustine, Christology, Cicero, Political Theology, Augustine of Hippo, Imperial Rome, Christianity and Rome, Soteriology, Leo Strauss, Porphyry, Ancient Rome, Soul, Saint Augustine, and Pierre Manent
Research Interests: Art and Pilgrimage
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Ancient prophets or poets considered to be wise beyond ordinary human capacity like Teiresias and Homer are depicted as blind to emphasize their ability to see things beyond what is available to ordinary human senses. Their outward... more
Ancient prophets or poets considered to be wise beyond ordinary human capacity like Teiresias and Homer are depicted as blind to emphasize their ability to see things beyond what is available to ordinary human senses. Their outward blindness conceals a deeper vision. At least, the prophet or prophetic poet is able to attend to things ordinary human beings do not. The 20 th-century American Catholic novelist, Walker Percy, describes the novelist as performing 'a quasi-prophetic function.' Similarly, Flannery O'Connor describes the novelist as having 'prophetic vision.' The novelist is not really a prophet, but his or her task is similar to that of the prophet, even though he or she is not called by God and the prophet is. The task of the prophet is to communicate to human beings 'things remote from our knowledge.' In this essay, I will consider the ways in which the novelist can be understood to be prophetic, or quasi-prophetic. First, I will trace Percy's account of the novelist as filling a 'quasi-prophetic function.' Next, I will turn to St. Thomas Aquinas's account of prophecy to add speculative depth to Percy's less systematic presentation, especially Aquinas's consideration of the imaginative and cogitative interior senses. Then, I will consider the ways in which a specifically Catholic novelist might be prophetic, over and above the non-Catholic novelist. For this argument, I will turn to Flannery O'Connor and her description of the Catholic novelist as relying on 'anagogical vision,' following the medieval interpreters of the Bible. O'Connor will help to show how the Catholic faith can help the Catholic writer see things in the real world that others cannot, and then to bring them to their readers' attention.
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Research Interests: Art and Pilgrimage
Research Interests: Philosophy and Ignorance
Book chapter in Augustine's Political thought, ed. Richard Dougherty.... more
Book chapter in Augustine's Political thought, ed. Richard Dougherty. https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/augustines-political-thought/few-the-many-and-the-universal-way-of-salvation-augustines-point-of-engagement-with-platonic-political-thought/DF65551D491D9BD004B08AB5AAD130C4 As a part of one of the most penetrating and insightful analyses of St. Augustine's reflections on politics in recent years, the political philosopher Pierre Manent argues, “Christianity's point of impact is the separation between the few and the many. What Christianity attacks is not social or political inequality but the pertinence of the distinction between the few and the many, the philosopher and the non-philosopher, with regard to the capacity to attain or receive the truth.” It is precisely on the basis of the capacity of the non-philosopher to attain or receive the truth that St. Augustine provides a critique of Porphyry in book 10 of The City of God, saying that this eminent Platonist has not come across a universal way for the liberation of the soul (liberandae animae uniuersalis uia). Instead, what Porphyry does provide are two separate ways of “purifi cation” (purgatio) that liberate the soul: one affecting the higher or intellectual soul (intellectualem animam), the other affecting only the lower or “spiritual” soul (ipsam spiritalem) through theurgy. The first way is for those few who are capable of philosophy; the second is for the multitude of men who for whatever reason are not capable of philosophy. Through his critique of Porphyry on the basis of the concrete way of life lived by Christians, St. Augustine enters into a classic conversation, the boundaries and stakes of which had already been charted out. The classical political problem of the division between the few and the many is that for a city to be properly ordered in justice, it must be ruled by the wise and according to wisdom; but the wise are few and outnumbered by the many, who are far too attached to their own opinions and customs to allow the wise to rule, even if they could (1) identify the wise; and (2) persuade or coerce them to rule—a doubtful proposition in either case. This lamentable situation requires the wise to cultivate ironic distance from the multitude— most famously in the figure of Plato's Socrates. If the wise are to exert any influence on the city, it will have to be indirect and through the utilization of lies—the most famous instance of which is the noble lie in Plato's Republic.
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espanolAgustin participa en una antigua discusion sobre quien lleva una vida mejor y por lo tanto debe gobernar: los poetas o los filosofos. Los poetas sostienen que la contemplacion de lo impersonal y eterno de los filosofos disuelve los... more
espanolAgustin participa en una antigua discusion sobre quien lleva una vida mejor y por lo tanto debe gobernar: los poetas o los filosofos. Los poetas sostienen que la contemplacion de lo impersonal y eterno de los filosofos disuelve los vinculos humanos, y por lo tanto es subversiva de la vida politica y moral. Los filosofos sostienen que los poetas carecen e conocimientos sobre el verdadero bien del hombre y, por tanto, construyen mitologias perjudiciales a la hora de guiar las vidas morales y politicas de los hombres. Agustin esta de acuerdo, en parte, con las dos criticas. Cada parte exige que la otra renuncie a bienes humanos reales, prefiriendo ya sea la vida moral o la intelectual, con la exclusion del otro. La revelacion cristiana es verdaderamente salvifica, argumenta Agustin, ya que revela a Dios como eterno y personal, logos y amor. Este Dios que entra en la historia une la vida moral e intelectual, en una forma de vida integrada; siguiendo a Cristo, el hombre no deja at...
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Research Interests: Christianity, Philosophy, Political Philosophy, Theology, Political Theory, and 15 moreSystematic Theology, Philosophy of History, Theology and Culture, Modernity, Moral Theology, History of Political Thought, Political Theology, History and Theology, Religion and Modernity, Leo Strauss, Bernard Lonergan, Modern Political Philosophy, Religious Studies, Political Thought, and Modern Theology
Ancient prophets or poets considered to be wise beyond ordinary human capacity like Teiresias and Homer are depicted as blind to emphasize their ability to see things beyond what is available to ordinary human senses. Their outward... more
Ancient prophets or poets considered to be wise beyond ordinary human capacity like Teiresias and Homer are depicted as blind to emphasize their ability to see things beyond what is available to ordinary human senses. Their outward blindness conceals a deeper vision. At least, the prophet or prophetic poet is able to attend to things ordinary human beings do not. The 20 th-century American Catholic novelist, Walker Percy, describes the novelist as performing 'a quasi-prophetic function.' Similarly, Flannery O'Connor describes the novelist as having 'prophetic vision.' The novelist is not really a prophet, but his or her task is similar to that of the prophet, even though he or she is not called by God and the prophet is. The task of the prophet is to communicate to human beings 'things remote from our knowledge.' In this essay, I will consider the ways in which the novelist can be understood to be prophetic, or quasi-prophetic. First, I will trace Percy's account of the novelist as filling a 'quasi-prophetic function.' Next, I will turn to St. Thomas Aquinas's account of prophecy to add speculative depth to Percy's less systematic presentation, especially Aquinas's consideration of the imaginative and cogitative interior senses. Then, I will consider the ways in which a specifically Catholic novelist might be prophetic, over and above the non-Catholic novelist. For this argument, I will turn to Flannery O'Connor and her description of the Catholic novelist as relying on 'anagogical vision,' following the medieval interpreters of the Bible. O'Connor will help to show how the Catholic faith can help the Catholic writer see things in the real world that others cannot, and then to bring them to their readers' attention.
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This article explores how social science literature views dogmatism and how the documents of the Catholic Church and her teachings are seldom regarded in the conceptualization of the human person, specifically focusing on the helping... more
This article explores how social science literature views dogmatism and how the documents of the Catholic Church and her teachings are seldom regarded in the conceptualization of the human person, specifically focusing on the helping professions. This article examines dogmatism from a Catholic anthropological perspective and with a full appreciation for the Catholic intellectual tradition. It will be shown how through basic clinical skills, one can believe the teachings of the Church's Magisterium and still be an effective and ethical counselor. A distinction between beliefs and actions will be made, showing how relativism is not the only acceptable belief system for helping professionals.
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Book chapter in Augustine's Political thought, ed. Richard Dougherty.... more
Book chapter in Augustine's Political thought, ed. Richard Dougherty.
https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/augustines-political-thought/few-the-many-and-the-universal-way-of-salvation-augustines-point-of-engagement-with-platonic-political-thought/DF65551D491D9BD004B08AB5AAD130C4
As a part of one of the most penetrating and insightful analyses of St. Augustine's reflections on politics in recent years, the political philosopher Pierre Manent argues, “Christianity's point of impact is the separation between the few and the many. What Christianity attacks is not social or political inequality but the pertinence of the distinction between the few and the many, the philosopher and the non-philosopher, with regard to the capacity to attain or receive the truth.” It is precisely on the basis of the capacity of the non-philosopher to attain or receive the truth that St. Augustine provides a critique of Porphyry in book 10 of The City of God, saying that this eminent Platonist has not come across a universal way for the liberation of the soul (liberandae animae uniuersalis uia). Instead, what Porphyry does provide are two separate ways of “purifi cation” (purgatio) that liberate the soul: one affecting the higher or intellectual soul (intellectualem animam), the other affecting only the lower or “spiritual” soul (ipsam spiritalem) through theurgy. The first way is for those few who are capable of philosophy; the second is for the multitude of men who for whatever reason are not capable of philosophy.
Through his critique of Porphyry on the basis of the concrete way of life lived by Christians, St. Augustine enters into a classic conversation, the boundaries and stakes of which had already been charted out. The classical political problem of the division between the few and the many is that for a city to be properly ordered in justice, it must be ruled by the wise and according to wisdom; but the wise are few and outnumbered by the many, who are far too attached to their own opinions and customs to allow the wise to rule, even if they could (1) identify the wise; and (2) persuade or coerce them to rule—a doubtful proposition in either case. This lamentable situation requires the wise to cultivate ironic distance from the multitude— most famously in the figure of Plato's Socrates. If the wise are to exert any influence on the city, it will have to be indirect and through the utilization of lies—the most famous instance of which is the noble lie in Plato's Republic.
https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/augustines-political-thought/few-the-many-and-the-universal-way-of-salvation-augustines-point-of-engagement-with-platonic-political-thought/DF65551D491D9BD004B08AB5AAD130C4
As a part of one of the most penetrating and insightful analyses of St. Augustine's reflections on politics in recent years, the political philosopher Pierre Manent argues, “Christianity's point of impact is the separation between the few and the many. What Christianity attacks is not social or political inequality but the pertinence of the distinction between the few and the many, the philosopher and the non-philosopher, with regard to the capacity to attain or receive the truth.” It is precisely on the basis of the capacity of the non-philosopher to attain or receive the truth that St. Augustine provides a critique of Porphyry in book 10 of The City of God, saying that this eminent Platonist has not come across a universal way for the liberation of the soul (liberandae animae uniuersalis uia). Instead, what Porphyry does provide are two separate ways of “purifi cation” (purgatio) that liberate the soul: one affecting the higher or intellectual soul (intellectualem animam), the other affecting only the lower or “spiritual” soul (ipsam spiritalem) through theurgy. The first way is for those few who are capable of philosophy; the second is for the multitude of men who for whatever reason are not capable of philosophy.
Through his critique of Porphyry on the basis of the concrete way of life lived by Christians, St. Augustine enters into a classic conversation, the boundaries and stakes of which had already been charted out. The classical political problem of the division between the few and the many is that for a city to be properly ordered in justice, it must be ruled by the wise and according to wisdom; but the wise are few and outnumbered by the many, who are far too attached to their own opinions and customs to allow the wise to rule, even if they could (1) identify the wise; and (2) persuade or coerce them to rule—a doubtful proposition in either case. This lamentable situation requires the wise to cultivate ironic distance from the multitude— most famously in the figure of Plato's Socrates. If the wise are to exert any influence on the city, it will have to be indirect and through the utilization of lies—the most famous instance of which is the noble lie in Plato's Republic.
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The purpose of this article is to show in what respects Strauss’ account of the three waves of modernity and Lonergan’s account of the longer cycle of decline mutually illuminate and add to each other. For reasons of scope, I will largely... more
The purpose of this article is to show in what respects Strauss’ account of the three waves of modernity and Lonergan’s account of the longer cycle of decline mutually illuminate and add to each other. For reasons of scope, I will largely con- fine myself to Strauss’ article, “The Three Waves of Modernity,”6 and the sections of Lonergan’s Insight7 on the longer cycle of decline. I will show that the three waves of modernity as described by Strauss qualify as instances of the succession of ever lower viewpoints spoken of by Lonergan, which have their beginnings in a scotosis, which at once is productive of bias and leads both to shorter cycles and the longer cycle of decline. At the same time as Lonergan provides an explanation for what happened cognitionally in the successive waves of modernity, Strauss provides the content. Strauss also adds an important critical detail to Lonergan’s account of the longer cycle. While Lonergan mostly attends to the cognitional aspects of the longer cycle, beginning with a scotosis engendered by the disordered passions, Strauss points out that the origin of modern political philosophy began not with disordered passions (which had already produced scotosis, in Lonergan’s terminology), but with the deliberate choice to elevate the passions and the scotosis to the level of philosophy in a conscious rejection of all previous political philosophy. Failure to grasp either the cognitional aspects or the conscious, deliberate act at the origin of modernity necessarily leads to the misunderstanding of it and undercuts any attempt to deal adequately with the problems of modern thought so manifest in the totalitar- ian breakdowns of the twentieth century. I will proceed first by explaining Lonergan’s account of the longer cycle of decline, from the production of scotosis by disordered passion wanting to avoid inconvenient insights, to the formation of bias, to the systematic exclusion of theoretical concerns by practical common sense characteristic of the longer cycle. I will then outline Strauss’ argument in “Three Waves,” first by presenting the three waves and by explaining how each are waves, that is, further developments of what came before— what Lonergan calls successive lower viewpoints—and then by showing Strauss’ account of the continuity of the starting point of modernity in Machiavelli and the ending point with twentieth-century totalitarianism. Finally, I will briefly present the suggestions of Lonergan and Strauss for what is needed to engage with modern thought after its origin, character, and the root of its break-down have been grasped.
Research Interests: Christianity, Political Philosophy, Theology, Political Theory, Systematic Theology, and 14 moreHistory Of Political Thought (Political Science), Philosophy of History, Theology and Culture, Modernity, Moral Theology, History of Political Thought, Political Theology, History and Theology, Religion and Modernity, Leo Strauss, Bernard Lonergan, Modern Political Philosophy, Religious Studies, and Political Thought
The purpose of this paper is to show what Henri de Lubac thinks that modern, post-critical biblical exegetes can learn from studying Origen. The purpose of de Lubac’s recommendation of Origen is, I argue, to combat historicism and its... more
The purpose of this paper is to show what Henri de Lubac thinks that modern, post-critical biblical exegetes can learn from studying Origen. The purpose of de Lubac’s recommendation of Origen is, I argue, to combat historicism and its harmful effects on biblical exegesis and, through exegesis, on the Christian faith. To shed light on de Lubac’s treatment of Origen, I contrast his History and Spirit with the work of Raymond Brown and Luke Timothy Johnson, who each provide a different evaluation of the usefulness of studying Origen. Both Johnson and Brown succumb to the historicism de Lubac was concerned to combat.
Research Interests: Patristics, Historicism, Theological Interpretation of Christian Scripture, Biblical Studies, Theological exegesis, and 14 moreOrigen, Biblical Exegesis, Patristic Exegesis, Henri de Lubac, Exegesis, Biblical Hermeneutics, Sacred Scripture, Raymond E. Brown, Sensus plenior, Catholic Biblical interpretation, Spiritual Interpretation of Scripture, Luke Timothy Johnson, Exegetical Methodology, and Biblcial Theology
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Augustine participates in an ancient argument over who leads the best life and therefore ought to rule: poets or philosophers. The poets argue that the philosophers’ contemplation of the impersonal and eternal dissolves human ties, and... more
Augustine participates in an ancient argument over who leads the best life and therefore ought to rule: poets or philosophers. The poets argue that the philosophers’ contemplation of the impersonal and eternal dissolves human ties, and therefore is subversive of political and moral life. The philosophers argue that the poets lack knowledge of man’s true good and therefore construct harmful mythologies to guide men’s moral and political lives. Augustine agrees with both critiques. Each side demands that the other give up real human goods, preferring either the moral or intellectual life to the exclusion of the other. Christian revelation is truly salvific, Augustine argues, since it reveals God as both eternal and personal, logos and love. This God who enters history unites moral and intellectual life into one, integrated way of life; by following Christ, man leaves no part of himself behind in his ascent to communion with God.
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A lecture in which i reflect on what our tech distractions say about our souls.
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A review essay on Fr. James V. Schall's books, Docilitas: On Teaching and Being Taught, and On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs:
Teaching, Writing, Playing, Believing, Lecturing, Philosophizing, Singing, Dancing.
Teaching, Writing, Playing, Believing, Lecturing, Philosophizing, Singing, Dancing.
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Research Interests: American Catholicism, Political Theory, Catholic Social Teaching, Capitalism, Catholic Theology, and 11 moreModernity, Religion and Modernity, Nominalism, Catholic higher education, Roman Catholicism, Secularism, Church and State, John Courtney Murray, Americanism, Catholic Education, and Michael Novak
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Book review of John Bergsma, Bible Basics for Catholics
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Book review of Remi Brague, On the God of the Christians (And On One or Two Others)
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Book review of Jim Gaffigan, Dad Is Fat
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Book review of Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI's Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives
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Review of 'The Mandalorian', Season 1
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Movie review of 'The Rise of Skywalker'
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Movie review of 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters'
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2019/06/04/the-godzilla-option/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2019/06/04/the-godzilla-option/
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Review of Season 1 of 'Lost in Space' (2018)
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/06/08/family-flourishing-and-the-education-of-killer-robots/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/06/08/family-flourishing-and-the-education-of-killer-robots/
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Movie review of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2016/12/29/on-the-dark-and-the-light-in-star-wars/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2016/12/29/on-the-dark-and-the-light-in-star-wars/
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Review of Season 2 of 'Stranger Things'
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2017/11/20/stranger-things-2-not-quite-strange-enough/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2017/11/20/stranger-things-2-not-quite-strange-enough/
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Movie Review of Avengers: Infinity War
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/04/27/avengers-infinity-war-presents-a-villain-for-our-times/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/04/27/avengers-infinity-war-presents-a-villain-for-our-times/
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Movie review of Ready Player One
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/04/04/the-reactionary-moralism-of-spielbergs-ready-player-one/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/04/04/the-reactionary-moralism-of-spielbergs-ready-player-one/
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Movie review of The Last Jedi
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/01/07/from-heroism-to-cynicism-the-deconstruction-of-luke-skywalker/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/01/07/from-heroism-to-cynicism-the-deconstruction-of-luke-skywalker/
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Review of Stranger Things
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/the-strangeness-of-stranger-things/
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/the-strangeness-of-stranger-things/
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Movie review of Silence
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2017/01/05/judas-and-st-peter-in-scorseses-silence/
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2017/01/05/judas-and-st-peter-in-scorseses-silence/