The Lumen Christi Institute

Wisdom and the Tranquility of Order: Reflections on Popes Leo XIII and XIV with Scott Roniger

Scott Roniger on March 18, 2026 at Ruth Lake Country Club. In this lecture, Prof. Scott Roniger outlines the historical context that instigated the development of modern Catholic social doctrine during the pontificate of Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903). He discusses some of Leo’s most important contributions to Magisterial teaching on social issues, contributions that illuminate perennial principles that transcend the circumstances prompting their articulation. He focuses on Leo’s presentation of the dignity of society in all its complementary forms – a social dignity based upon the truth of the human person, created in the image and likeness of God and redeemed by Jesus Christ. Finally, he briefly shows how these principles have already been put to good use in the nascent pontificate of Pope Leo XIV.

The Birth of Ossian with Martin Shaw

Dr. Martin Shaw on February 4, 2026 at the Lumen Christi Institute. Drawing on his experience as a professor, mythographer, and widely respected storyteller, Martin Shaw locates us in the deeper dimensions of how a modern person approaches an ancient story through the telling of "The Birth of Ossian," an Irish fairy tale. This story is the second part of Shaw's event titled "Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking." To listen to the full event audio, click here: https://soundcloud.com/lumenchristi/mythopoetics-and-faerie-stories-theory-and-practice-of-mythmaking

Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking with Martin Shaw

Dr. Martin Shaw on February 4, 2026 at the Lumen Christi Institute. In his newly published "Liturgies of the Wild," acclaimed mythographer and storyteller Martin Shaw argues that we live in a myth-impoverished age and that such poverty has left us vulnerable to stories that may not wish us well. Drawing on the “ancient technologies” of myths and initiatory rites, Shaw provides a road to wholeness, maturity and connection. In this event for UChicago students, Dr. Shaw explores both the theory and practice of mythmaking. In the first section Shaw guides us through myth’s relationship to initiation rites and oral storytelling, explaining these “ancient technologies.” In the second we tilt directly into the telling of an Irish fairy tale, The Birth of Ossian. Drawing on his experience as a professor and widely respected storyteller, Shaw locates us in the deeper dimensions of how a modern person approaches an ancient story.

Mythmaking and the True Myth - A Conversation with Martin Shaw

Dr. Martin Shaw on February 5, 2026 at the Graduate by Hilton Evanston Hotel. There’s an old Irish belief that if you aren’t wrapped in a cloak of story you will be unprepared for what the world will hurl at you. You remain adolescent at just the moment a culture worth its salt requires you to become a real, grown, human being. Myths from antiquity are vivid in describing the conditions of life. Christianity goes a step further in providing the most extraordinary example of how to live that life. Working out of examples from Arthurian and fairy tale motifs, acclaimed mythographer Martin Shaw shows how, if ‘all true is God’s truth’, profound Christian resonances can be found in many mythic traditions. How do stories assist us in the making of a real human being? In troubled times how could we forge a deeper life? In this event, we welcome Dr. Martin Shaw to celebrate the release of his new book "Liturgies of the Wild."

Augustine the Teacher with Erika Kidd

Dr. Erika Kidd on November 12, 2025 at Ruth Lake Country Club. Doctor of the Church, Saint Augustine of Hippo, has a lot to say about teaching. He writes memorably about the way his early teachers failed him, teaching him to love praise and worldly success. He writes too about the vocation of the teacher, a vocation he lived in many different ways as rhetorician, father, priest, and bishop. In his early work “On the Teacher” he insists teaching is not a matter of passing along information. Instead, he writes, true teaching is an invitation to attend to the voice of Christ. Join Dr. Erika Kidd to learn more about Augustine’s timeless teaching wisdom and its continued relevance today.