Catholic Studies Speakers Series
Come back to learn about our speakers for 2024-25 soon!
Previous Catholic Studies Speakers
Dr. Holly Ordway - "Tolkien’s Faith and the Formation of Middle-earth."
Dr. Holly Ordway is the Cardinal Francis George Professor of Faith and Culture at the Word on Fire Institute, and a Visiting Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. She holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is the author of several books about Tolkien and Middle-earth, most recently, Tolkien’s Faith: A Spiritual Biography. Dr. Ordway spoke about the relationship between J.R.R. Tolkien's Catholic faith and his fiction, looking at some of the ways that Tolkien’s dramatic life story, including his being raised by a Catholic priest at the Birmingham Oratory, shaped his faith and found their way into his writings. Dr. Ordway spoke on Thursday, April 4, 2024.
Fr. Michael Ward - "The Abolition of Man: C.S. Lewis’s Most Philosophical Work, But Is It Christian?"
Fr. Michael Ward, Ph.D, is an English literary critic and theologian. He visited Carroll's campus to discuss CS Lewis' 1943 series of lectures published as the Abolition of Man. Fr. Ward is the author of several books, including the award-winning Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis and the 2021 book After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man. Fr. Ward spoke about ethics and the consequences of the denial of objectivity on Wednesday, September 20, 2023.
Dr. John Boyle - "What is Catholic Studies?"
Dr. Boyle is a Professor (and at the time, Chair) of Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minnesota. Dr. Boyle is also a founding member of this oldest running Catholic Studies Program in the world. Dr. Boyle discussed the meaning and uniqueness of Catholic Studies and its role in the Catholic College curriculum. This lecture was delivered on Thursday, February 6th, 2020.