The Department of Nuance

Ep 15: Young Adult Faith, All in the Family

How do you raise your children in the faith? And then, how do you navigate when your children become adults, growing and changing their relationships to adult religious identity? These are questions that plague parents of all religious creeds, and these questions are uniquely significant for parents who are also ministers. For our fifteenth episode of The Department of Nuance, and for his final appearance on the podcast, Bernardin Scholar and career minister Peter Denio had a unique idea: What if we interviewed his three children? Conor (age 22), Riley (age 19) and Devon (age 17) were up for the challenge, and they each shared graciously and candidly about the religious expectations in their home growing up, how their spirituality has changed in emerging adulthood, the importance of spiritual community outside their immediate family, and what they hope they might encounter as they keep learning and growing. The Catholic Church continues to assert its concerns regarding young people, disaffiliation, mental health, and the pressures of increasingly digital socialization. In this episode, the Denio family provides three overlapping but nevertheless individual glimpses into what young people are really thinking, appreciating, and struggling with when it comes to Christian faith and life. And finally, the Bernardin Center wants to congratulate Peter and all the graduating Bernardin Scholars of the Class of 2026. It’s been a privilege to accompany you during your studies, and your contributions to this project and to so many other projects at Catholic Theological Union have been invaluable in their rigor, hope, and charity. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bernardincenter.substack.com [https://bernardincenter.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Ep 14: The Crisis of Masculinity

One of the most hot-button issues of our current culture is the oft-invoked “crisis of masculinity.” The situation is dire: Men are falling behind at school, in the workplace, and in the home. Cases of depression, loneliness, addiction, and suicide are at all-time highs. The multiple waves of feminist advancement have earned for women significant increases in academic, interpersonal, and career success and safety, combatting longtime domination by men... But we have yet to embrace as a culture a new understanding of masculinity that brings men out from under that domination as well. Meanwhile, our society increasingly valorizes men who take the will to power to its worst ends. Our Catholic faith calls us to something else through the example of Jesus, and the Church has a unique opportunity to provide spaces that allow men to explore new ways of relating to each other and to themselves. This episode is spearheaded by Bernardin Scholar Patrick Brown, a longtime high school teacher and current employee of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Our guest expert is Dr. Karen Ross. Karen is professor of feminist and sexual ethics and director of the Pathways program at Catholic Theological Union. Mentioned in the episode: Of Boys and Men [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/of-boys-and-men-richard-v-reeves/1141579690?ean=9780815740667] https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/of-boys-and-men-richard-v-reeves/1141579690?ean=9780815740667by Richard Reeves She Who Is [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/she-who-is-elizabeth-a-johnson/1117510318?ean=9780824522070] https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/she-who-is-elizabeth-a-johnson/1117510318?ean=9780824522070by Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ “Intimacy as a Modern (Catholic) Cardinal Virtue (for Boys and Men) [https://catholicethics.com/forum/intimacy-as-a-modern-catholic-cardinal-virtue-for-boys-and-men/]” by Hoon Choi For the Love of Men [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/for-the-love-of-men-liz-plank/1137054264?ean=9781250757203]by Liz Plank Mother God [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mother-god-teresa-kim-pecinovsky/1139758710?ean=9781506479019] by Teresa Kim Pecinovsky What is God Like [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/what-is-god-like-rachel-held-evans/1137528586?ean=9780593193310]? by Rachel Held Evans This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bernardincenter.substack.com [https://bernardincenter.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Ep 13: Creativity and Spirituality

When we started this podcast, we at the Bernardin Center knew it would fill a multitude of niches: Not only does a podcast make a space for academic conversations that advance scholarship and foster professional networking, but a podcast is also a ministerial project, preaching - as the CTU mission statement calls us - “Christ’s good news of justice, love, and peace.” This podcast is also a creative project, one that allows the Bernardin Scholars to have an additional creative outlet during their course of studies. Like writing, painting, singing, and other forms, there is an art to have a good conversation. This intersection of academia, spirituality, and creativity is the topic of this month’s Department of Nuance episode. We talk about everything from writer’s block to the troubles of contemporary digital brand, and how these dry spells and moments of discernment are chances to tune in to the Spirit moving and making within each of us. Our Bernardin Scholar cohost this episode is Marissa Papula, Director of Campus Ministry at Loyola Marymount University, writer, and 25-26 Fellow with the Christian Century’s Narrative Project. Our guest this episode is Cameron Bellm, writer of poems and prayers. She holds a PhD in Russian Literature, and her new book, The Sacrament of Paying Attention, is forthcoming. Cameron and Marissa both work for the Jesuit Media Lab, a multidisciplinary incubator for creatives inspired by Ignatian spirituality. CLICK HERE [https://jesuitmedialab.org/] to learn more about the Jesuit Media Lab CLICK HERE [https://thenarrativeproject.org/]to learn more about the Christian Century Narrative Project This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bernardincenter.substack.com [https://bernardincenter.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Ep 12: Holiday Media and Moments of Return

The Department of Nuance podcast is back! And there's no more perfect way to celebrate our return to the airwaves over the holidays than to have a conversation about the holidays as a significant moment of return for all kinds of people. During Advent and Christmas - as well as Ash Wednesday and Lent - Catholic Churches around the country see an increase in participants. What is it about this time of year that inspires people to go back to church? And is going to church the best or even only way of interacting with the "reason for the season?" Bernardin Scholar Paul Jarzembowski has written two books on this very topic. He's joined in this episode by fellow Bernardin Scholar James Luisi, high school educator at Jesuit Dallas. They discuss the messages - both secular and expressly religious - that seem to touch hearts of all ages the most this time of year and, for our holiday episode, debate what makes a really good holiday episode of any kind. Mid-episode, you'll hear excerpts from a conversation Paul and our Media Fellow Madison Chastain had with CARA, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate out of Georgetown University, who provided key insight into the nuances of holiday participation, from the impacts of immigration to post-COVID quarantine trends. We hope this episode finds you well and, from all of us at the Bernardin Center and Catholic Theological Union, wish you and yours a very merry Christmas. To learn more about CARA, visit: CARA: Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate [https://cara.georgetown.edu/] Links to Paul's books: Hope for the Holidays: Finding Light at the Darkest Time of the Year [https://www.amazon.com/Hope-Holidays-Finding-Light-Darkest/dp/0809156679] Hope from the Ashes: Insights and Resources for Welcoming Lenten Visitors [https://www.amazon.com/Hope-Ashes-Insights-Resources-Welcoming/dp/0809155753] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bernardincenter.substack.com [https://bernardincenter.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Ep 11: Diverse Bodies and Catholic Sexual Ethics

June is Pride month, which often invites extra attention and conversation in the Catholic Church about the Church's official teaching on matters of sexuality and gender. While the areas of LGBTQ+ Catholic study and ministry have expanded over the decades, the Church’s teaching has remained relatively consistent: That only those sexual acts that are both unitive and procreative, between one man and one woman, are rightly ordered. Discussions of these topics still often center what is believed to be "natural,” but contemporary science and social progression reveal to us more and more how physical bodies and gendered expression both occur in natural diversity. And it’s not just LGBTQ+ people implicated in the church’s sexual ethic! People with hormonal disorders, disabilities, and other chronic conditions can also find themselves excluded. In this episode, we tell some of these stories. Our guest Madeline Marlett is a writer, speaker, and LGBTQ+ activist. She shares generously about growing up Catholic and coming to embrace her body and identity as a trans woman. Bernardin Scholar Teresa Thompson, who you'll remember from our episode on civil disobedience and nonviolent activism, shares in this episode about her current pregnancy and how loving women echoes in her life the love of God. Media Fellow Madison Chastain rounds out this episode’s story sharing with insights into her own embodied experience with PCOS, infertility, and gender identity. Three different women, three different bodies, three different perspectives on how belief, life, and love intersect with the Church’s ethics. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bernardincenter.substack.com [https://bernardincenter.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]