As our nation approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, a moment for profound national reflection and renewal, The Catholic University of America is delighted to announce that its distinguished Institute for Human Ecology will henceforth bear the name The James Cardinal Gibbons Institute for Human Ecology. The addition honors James Cardinal […]
By Daryl Li Grateful for the generous support from the IHE and the CUA School of Philosophy, I journeyed to Savannah, Georgia to deliver a paper at the Southwestern Philosophical Society’s (SWPS) 87th Annual Meeting on 21 November 2025. Dedicated to providing a pluralistic and open forum for philosophical research, the SWPS welcomes papers on […]
By Lucia A. Silecchia Two days in early February, one beautiful and one tragic, forced me to think deeply on the meaning and nature of compassion. First, the beautiful. February 11, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, was also the 34th World Day of the Sick. For the occasion, Pope Leo XIV issued a […]
Father Michael Baggot, L.C. Compelling Comfort In times of stress, confusion, disappointment, or alienation, AI companions seem to offer exactly the kind of accessible, attentive concern that people desperately crave. They are available anytime, anywhere. An AI system’s extended context window can give the impression that it knows the user’s backstory and aspirations even better than human neighbors do. AI companion platforms such as Replika, Character.AI, Nomi, and others reach hundreds of millions of people worldwide. They explicitly promise friendship, romance, and love. […]
By Lucia A. Silecchia Recently, my neighbor died. When I was at the funeral home and when I arrived at work late after his funeral, I was asked how I knew the gentleman who passed away. It was almost sheepishly, or with a note of apology that I said he was “a neighbor.” It was almost as though I thought that to mourn for one who […]
By Morgan Whitmer If Josef Pieper is known in the English-speaking world, it is usually for his work Leisure: The Basis of Culture. Frequently, moderns misunderstand leisure as a break from work, a time for refreshment before returning to the grindstone.1 For Pieper, however, leisure is not mere “free time.” Rather, Pieper argues that true leisure, according to […]
By Lucia A. Silecchia Recently, I have been the frequent, unwilling viewer of an interesting advertisement. In short, the advertisement begins by presenting the modern catastrophe of a family ordering dinner delivered to their home and discovering, to their horror, that each member of the family wants a different type of cuisine. To the rescue is the delivery app touted by the ad. It can save these poor people from […]
By Dr. Jonathan Wanner “The truth shall make you odd.”—Flannery O’Connor A paradox clears up the mud in your mind by making it dirtier, and the best paradoxes rely on an error to correct an error. G. K. Chesterton intuited this fact well, as he routinely confuses the reader only to enlighten him, teaching logical […]
By Lucia A. Silecchia Pope Leo XIV recently released the first extensive document of his papacy, Dilexi Te, an Apostolic Exhortation on love for the poor. Almost immediately, pundits responded, some thoughtfully and others with partisan “hot takes” that pulled a mere line or two from the document to illustrate how it aligned perfectly with their […]
By IHE Scholar Miriam Pritschet The IHE England pilgrimage was an unparalleled experience. Accompanied by a flock of faithful, joyful, intellectually curious fellow pilgrims and surrounded by the stunning architecture of Gothic spires and baroque facades, I could hardly believe how blessed I was to be experiencing the riches of the faith in Our Lady’s […]
