News & Media

From 2012 to 2020, Fr. Paul Mankowski, SJ delivered hundreds of lectures and master classes at the Lumen Christi Institute. Seeking to share the depth of his scholarship, this podcast offers many of his lectures (edited for coherence and quality) to the public in digital format for the first time. 

The first season features a course that Fr. Mankowski gave on Joseph Ratzinger’s Jesus of Nazareth, and dozens of lectures centered around the books of the Bible (including Genesis, many of the prophets, the Gospel of Matthew, and St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans). Two interviews with people who knew Fr. Mankowski well and can offer an entry point to his person and scholarship conclude the season.

Media
April 8, 2026

Developing a Catholic Social Vision for the Modern World: A Century of Church Teaching – Ever Ancient, Ever New: The Sources of Pope Leo XIV | West Suburban Catholic Culture Series

Join us as David Cloutier traces the development of Catholic social teaching from Rerum Novarum through Quadragesimo Anno to Centesimus Annus.
News
April 8, 2026

Seeking Graduate Reading Groups for the Fall Quarter

The Lumen Christi Institute follows St. Paul’s injunction to attend to whatever is true, noble, right, admirable, and lovely (Phil 4:8). LCI supports this endeavor by sponsoring a number of graduate student reading groups that may explore any genre, theme,

News
April 5, 2026

“Bring me the life-giving mysteries”

Christ is Risen! On Easter Sunday, I write to tell you about St. Mary of Egypt, who is remembered by the Catholic Church on April 2 – Holy Thursday this year.
News
April 1, 2026

How the Lumen Christi Institute Formed My Adult Faith

Rose Johnson, one of our Development Associates, tells her story of how Lumen Christi has shaped her adult relationship with Christ, especially during her time as a graduate student at UChicago.
News
March 31, 2026

The Lion and the Lute: Music of Pope Leo X

Learn More and Register for the concert in Wilmette (May 21st) Learn More and Register for the concert at UChicago (May 22nd) The Lumen Christi Institute is excited to host Schola Antiqua for a series of concerts on the music

News
March 23, 2026

Christ Did Not Travel Alone

In the season of Lent, the Church calls us to reflect upon Christ’s years of ministry. In pondering His revelation and His divine miracles, I am particularly reminded of one essential part of Christ’s journey toward Jerusalem: He did not
Media
March 18, 2026

Wisdom and the Tranquility of Order: Reflections on Popes Leo XIII and XIV – Ever Ancient, Ever New: The Sources of Pope Leo XIV | West Suburban Catholic Culture Series

Rerum Novarum served as the foundation for a series of monumental encyclicals on Catholic social thought. Although written in 1891, its counsels are prophetic and as pertinent to contemporary man as they were at their writing.
News
February 24, 2026

Applications Open for The Nicklin Fellows Program

The Nicklin Fellows are the recipients of a competitive, application based fellowship for undergraduate students. Nicklin Fellows are granted exclusive access to research and development grant funds to pursue their intellectual interests. Applications are due March 22.
News
February 18, 2026

“Dust called to glory”

At the Ash Wednesday liturgy, the priest says, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” These special words remind me of a fundamental tension in humankind, described by Bishop Erik Varden.
Media
February 5, 2026

Mythmaking and the True Myth – A Conversation with Martin Shaw

How do stories assist us in the making of a real human being? In troubled times how could we forge a deeper life? Join the Lumen Christi Institute as it welcomes Dr. Martin Shaw for an event celebrating the release
Media
February 4, 2026

Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking

In this event for UChicago students, acclaimed mythographer and storyteller Dr. Martin Shaw will explore both the theory and practice of mythmaking. First, Shaw will guide us through the “ancient technologies” of myth, and its relationship to initiation rites and
News
January 19, 2026

“The church was a thermostat”

Today, our country remembers Martin Luther King, Jr. On April 19, 1963, King wrote his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," addressed to fellow clergymen who criticized his activities as "unwise and untimely."