AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast

You might have read or thought about how the rise of artificial intelligence is affecting the economy or higher education or medicine or pretty much any other area of life. Our guest today has been focusing on an intersection you might not have thought about yet. Father Phil Ganir has been spending time recently writing and teaching about AI’s impact on liturgy and sacred music. An assistant professor of religious education at Boston College’s Clough School of Theology and Ministry, Fr. Phil focuses on liturgical theology and music among other subject areas. He’s also one of the very best singers you could ever hear. Host Mike Jordan Laskey was excited to welcome Fr. Phil onto the show to reflect on how artificial intelligence is already affecting the prayer and worship of the church, and how its impact could continue to grow. They also talked about what liturgy and sacred music claim and reveal about the nature of the human person, and how there are some human activities that computers will never be able to replace or take away. It was a fascinating conversation with a fabulous scholar and practitioner who is responding to Pope Leo’s call to wrestle with big questions about technology and humanity facing all of us today. Fr. Phil Ganir, SJ: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/stm/faculty/faculty-directory/phillip-ganir.html An article on a recent talk by Fr. Phil: https://www.thebostonpilot.com/article.php?ID=201316 AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

Last year, Pope Leo XIV published an apostolic letter called “Drawing New Maps of Hope.” (This is not to be confused with his apostolic exhortation on poverty called “Dilexi te.” There are lots of types of papal writings and it’s tough to keep them all straight.) Anyway, “Drawing New Maps of Hope” was all about Catholic education, and the letter itself was released to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Vatican II declaration on education called “Gravissimum educationis.” It seemed like a good time to talk to an expert on primary and secondary Catholic education and find out how things are going in today’s environment. How do Catholic schools stand out in a crowded marketplace? How do we keep energy going even when some Catholic schools especially in the northeast and the Midwest have been forced to merge or close? So host Mike Jordan Laskey got his old college friend Dr. Michael O’Connor on the line, who serves as Program Director of Outreach and Professional Development at Boston College’s Roche Center for Catholic Education. That essentially means Michael spends most of his time working with faculty and administration at partner Catholic schools and dioceses around the country, helping them live their mission even more deeply. Anyone interested in the present and future of Catholic education in the U.S. will enjoy hearing Michael’s reaction to the new letter from Pope Leo and how Catholic schools are responding to our challenging times with creativity and boldness. Pope Leo XIV’s “Drawing New Maps of Hope” apostolic letter: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/apost_letters/documents/20251027-disegnare-nuove-mappe.html Learn more about Michael O’Connor, Ph.D., on the Roche Center staff page: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/lynch-school/sites/roche/About/Bios.html Roche Center for Catholic Education: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/lynch-school/sites/roche.html AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

Last May, America Magazine ran an article entitled “Dungeons & Dragons—and Jesuits” by Robert Buckland, a Jesuit in formation. Buckland admits to being a longtime fan of D&D, but even he is surprised by how popular the game has become — and in the most surprising of places. Buckland describes how this role-playing game that was once shunned by religious communities is now aiding in the imaginative and moral formation of young men in religious life. “Playing D&D,” Buckland writes, “can reveal dimensions of character that might otherwise remain hidden in the structured environment of houses for religious formation.” Today’s host, Eric Clayton, was enchanted by this argument; Buckland’s essay has stayed with him for these many months since. And it’s perhaps thanks to Buckland’s writing that he then encountered today’s guest: Dr. Susan Haarman. Dr. Haarman is the associate director at Loyola University Chicago’s Center for Engaged Learning, Teaching and Scholarship. In that role, she facilitates the university’s service-learning program and publishes on community-based learning. But her real love is the research she conducts into the capacity of tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons as formative tools for civic identity and imagination. Most important for today’s conversation, Susan wrote a chapter entitled “Roll for Discernment: Dungeon Master as St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Director” in the 2025 book “Theology, Religion and Dungeons and Dragons: Explorations of the Sacred through Fantasy Worlds.” Susan will be a panelist at an upcoming conference co-sponsored by the Jesuit Media Lab and Loyola University Chicago’s Hank Center for the Catholic Intellectual Heritage, and it was in preparing for that conference that Eric read Susan’s work and wanted to talk with her more for our podcast. You might be tempted to think that D&D is something just for fantasy nerds, but as Susan so passionately details, games like Dungeons & Dragons are really experiences in shared storytelling, in co-creating and inhabiting a common space in which our imaginations — and our ability to cultivate empathy and understanding — run wild. Whether you’re a long-time fan of role-playing games or just hearing about them for the first time today, we think you’re going to enjoy this conversation. And, if you do, we encourage you to check out the links in our show notes—there you’ll find a link to the America Magazine article, the anthology in which Susan’s chapter appears and the homepage for our upcoming in-person conference on March 14th—“A Faith that Builds Worlds: The Catholic Imagination and Speculative Storytelling.” We hope to see you there. * “Dungeons & Dragons—and Jesuits” | https://www.americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2025/05/29/dungeons- dragons-religious-life-250622/ “Theology, Religions and Dungeons & Dragons” | https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/theology-religion-and-dungeons--dragons-9781978716025/ “A Faith that Builds Worlds: The Catholic Imagination and Speculative Storytelling” | https://sites.google.com/view/a-faith-that-builds-worlds/home?authuser=0

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. As we welcome 2026, host Mike Jordan Laskey wanted to have a deeply thoughtful and faith-filled guest on the show to propose some spirituality-related New Year’s Resolutions for us. The award-winning Catholic writer Laura Kelly Fanucci did not disappoint. Laura is the author of great books like “Everyday Sacrament” and “Called on the Way,” among others, and she came to the show with four creative, spiritually deep, totally doable resolution ideas, and she’s so enthusiastic about New Year’s that she almost convinced Mike that he has underrated it on his holidays ranking list, where it has traditionally dwelled somewhere down around Flag Day. Laura Kelly Fanucci: https://laurakellyfanucci.com/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

For you eleventh-hour Christmas shoppers out there, have I got a treat for you. There’s a new book out from Loyola Press, the second volume in an increasingly essential collection of Ignatian spirituality readers. This one is, aptly named, “An Ignatian Spirituality Reader: Contemporary Writings on St. Ignatius of Loyola, the Spiritual Exercises, Discernment and More—Volume II.” The first of these volumes was crucial for my own formation in the Ignatian tradition, covering key topics like the life of St. Ignatius, tools for discernment and ways to pray in the Ignatian tradition. I quote this book all the time. That’s why I was so excited to get my hands on this new volume. Some of those classic topics are there—discernment, Ignatius’ life, and more—but we get chapters on racial justice, caring for the environment and the role of the imagination in the Exercises. We hear, too, from a wide ranging array of voices and experiences, adding to the richness of this edition. (I even have a chapter in there on the Two Standards and social media.) And so, today we’re going to hear about this book from two of the editors who worked on it. But more importantly, we’re going to hear why Ignatian spirituality continues to matter in our world—and what it has to offer this moment. Fr. Mark Mossa is a professor of religious studies at Loyola University of New Orleans and a Jesuit priest. He serves as program director of the Canizaro Center for Catholic Studies and is the author of “Already There: Letting God Find You” and “Saint Ignatius of Loyola The Spiritual Writings.” Lori Stanley is the executive director of the Loyola Institute for Spirituality in Orange, CA. She is the first layperson to hold the role. In 2020 she was appointed to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops anti-racism taskforce for the state of California, and is a collaborator with the Jesuit Antiracism Sodality and the Jesuit West Collaborative for Racial Equity. Both Lori and Fr. Mark are real founts of Ignatian wisdom—and I know you’ll enjoy our conversation. If you’d like to get a copy of the book, visit this link: https://store.loyolapress.com/an-ignatian-spirituality-reader-volume-2

In this special crossover episode of "AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast" and "The Jesuit Border Podcast," we hear from both Fr. Brian Strassburger, SJ, the executive director of Del Camino Jesuit Border Ministries and Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, NJ. First, Fr. Brian gives us an update on what it's like living and working on the US-Mexico border. He reflects on how Advent provides an important lens in approaching this ministry and shares stories and reflections from both his daily work and Scripture. Then, we hear Fr. Brian's interview with Cardinal Tobin. Brian is joined by his cohost, Joe Nolla, SJ, and together they talk with Cardinal Tobin about immigration and the Church's role in accompanying the most vulnerable. This interview originally aired as the final episode of the ninth season of "The Jesuit Border Podcast." If you want to learn more about Fr. Brian's work, visit: https://www.jesuitscentralsouthern.org/our-work/del-camino/ If you want to subscribe to "The Jesuit Border Podcast," visit: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-jesuit-border-podcast/id1593208023 If you want to subscribe to Del Camino Jesuit Border Ministries' newsletter, visit: https://mailchi.mp/thejesuitpost/del-camino-jesuit-border-ministries If you want to read the US Catholic bishops' statement on immigration, visit: https://www.jesuits.org/stories/society-of-jesus-in-the-united-states-applauds-u-s-bishops-special-message-on-immigration/

Jesuit Media Lab fellows Mike O'Connell and Renée Roden join host Mike Jordan Laskey to draft their favorite things about Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." It's a celebration in honor of the Jesuit Media Lab's first published book -- a communal read-aloud version of the classic novella, formatted as a play. We're encouraging folks to gather with their friends, family, neighbors or fellow parishioners to read " A Christmas Carol" aloud. More on our version of "A Christmas Carol" and how you can host a read-aloud gathering: https://jesuitmedialab.org/weve-published-a-read-aloud-adaptation-of-a-christmas-carol-here-are-6-tips-for-hosting-your-own-communal-reading-party/ The scan of Dickens' own copy of the novella he used for public readings during his life: https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/e1951b10-d507-0136-fa03-60f81dd2b63c More about our Jesuit Media Lab fellows: https://jesuitmedialab.org/meet-the-first-ever-jesuit-media-lab-fellow-michael-oconnell-ph-d/ https://jesuitmedialab.org/meet-our-newest-jesuit-media-lab-fellow-renee-d-roden/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

It’s a bit of a cliché to say that we live in uncertain times. Just look at the headlines. Relationships — from the global to the intimate — are fraying. We swim in waters full of fear and worry, contempt and disdain. Anxiety abounds. That’s why today’s guest — writer and cultural commentator, Sara Billups — has written a new book. It’s called “Nervous Systems: Spiritual Practices to Calm Anxiety in Your Body, the Church and Politics.” It’s out now and — spoiler alert — Billups writes quite a bit about Ignatian spirituality. She looks to Ignatius’ all-important idea of holy indifference as a way of approaching the anxiety-inducing moment in which we all find ourselves. You may recall that when Ignatius says “indifference,” he’s not promoting a lifestyle that is apathetic or callous to the signs of the times. Rather, Ignatius wants us to let go of how we want things to go and to instead allow God’s Spirit to use us as they Spirit wills. In short, God’s ways are not our ways; so, let’s put aside our preferences and discover God’s. In addition to this new book, “Nervous Systems,” Billups has bylines in the New York Times and Christianity Today. She completed a Doctor of Ministry in the Sacred Art of Writing at Peterson Cetner for the Christian Imagination at Western Theological Seminary. She writes a Substack called “Bitter Scroll” and hosts a podcast called “That’s the Spirit.” You can learn more about Sara and her work by exploring the links below. Website: https://www.sarabillups.com/ Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Nervous-Systems-Spiritual-Practices-Politics-ebook/dp/B0F2NC1QDL Substack: https://www.sarabillups.com/bitter-scroll

Whenever a man joins the Society of Jesus, his family and friends have to process that big life change and figure out how it’s going to affect their relationship with the new Jesuit. In that way, Kristin Gilger is not unlike the thousands of mothers who have watched their sons join the order. Her son Patrick – who everyone else calls Paddy – joined the Jesuits in 2002. But one big way Kristin is different from other moms of Jesuits is that she has just published a book about her experience. It’s called “My Son, the Priest: A Mother’s Crisis of Faith,” and it has all the makings of an instant spiritual classic. Kristin Gilger is a longtime journalist and journalism professor, and she brought her reporting chops to a topic much closer to home than her usual subjects. Kristin is not afraid to ask big, tough questions, she’s not afraid to be vulnerable, she’s not afraid to share about her struggles with the Catholic Church and her son’s vocation. “My Son, the Priest” is honest, human, deeply researched and often hilarious. Kristin and Fr. Paddy recently joined host Mike Jordan Laskey to record a podcast, and we found that mother and son had so much to say and so much fun talking to each other that we could take Mike right out of the episode. So you’ll be hearing just from Kristin and Fr. Paddy here, a glimpse into the Gilger family and their story. It feels just perfect to be sharing this episode with you during Thanksgiving week, when families around the country gather with love, joy, and maybe just a bit of tension or stress. “My Son, the Priest: A Mother’s Crisis of Faith”: https://www.monkfishpublishing.com/product/my-son-the-priest/ Kristin Gilger: https://search.asu.edu/profile/494566 Fr. Paddy Gilger, SJ: https://www.luc.edu/sociology/faculty/profiles/patrickgilgersjphd.shtml AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

Rob Lorenz was a National Park Ranger who spent time working at places Arches National Park in Utah and Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. One of his favorite things to do was to give tours and ranger talks to groups, explaining the extraordinary places of natural beauty in ways that were accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds. During a post in Washington, DC, where he worked near the National Mall at places like the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, he started feeling like God might be calling him to something else. Long story short, Rob joined the USA East Coast province of the Jesuits in 2019. Today, he’s in the stage of formation called regency, which is typically two or three years of active ministry that falls in between periods of philosophy and theology study. Rob is spending his regency as the outreach coordinator for the Vatican Observatory. Founded in 1891 by Pope Leo XIII, the Vatican Observatory is led by Jesuit astronomers who are doing high-level scientific research in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, and Tucson, Arizona. Rob’s job is to speak with groups about the wonders of the cosmos and the work the observatory – a job not too dissimilar from what he was doing as a National Park Ranger. He stopped by our Washington, DC, studio recently for a conversation with host Mike Jordan Laskey. Rob Lorenz, SJ: https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/profile/rob-lorenz-s-j/ The Vatican Observatory: https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

“To many, Fantasy, this sub-creative art which plays strange tricks with the world and all that is in it, combining nouns and redistributing adjectives, has seemed suspect, if not illegitimate. To some it has seemed at least a childish folly” writes J.R.R. Tolkien in his classic essay, “On Fairy-Stories.” He goes on to insist: “Fantasy is a natural human activity. It certainly does not destroy or even insult Reason; and it does not either blunt the appetite for, nor obscure the perception of, scientific verity. On the contrary. The keener and the clearer is the reason, the better fantasy will it make.” In short, Tolkien is saying that the fantastical—stories of elves and dragons and magical staffs—are not escape hatches from this world but rather invitations to delve deeper into the truth of our own reality. Today’s guest tests that hypothesis—and, in my humblest of opinions, proves just how right Tolkien was. Rose John Sheffler is a Catholic writer who has been telling stories her whole life. She’s written a delightful volume of Biblically inspired fairy tales called “Past Watchful Dragons: Biblical Stories Retold.” Her book invites us into the world of Erith where we meet characters we know from the Bible but…different. Still—and, as you’ll hear—the truth of these stories, the values and the hopes that they point to, are familiar and likely resonate with what lies deep in your own heart. If you want to learn more about Rose’s work or get a copy of her book, visit rosejohnsheffler.substack.com.

If you love old books – if you love how they smell, if you love imagining their journeys through the world into your hands, if you can’t pass by a used bookstore without popping inside – then you’ll love today’s episode. Our guest is Fr. Michael Suarez, SJ, a Jesuit priest and the director of the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia. The Rare Book School runs courses for students and practitioners from all disciplines on the history of written, printed and digital materials with leading scholars and professionals in the field. Fr. Suarez is also an English professor and an honorary curator of UVA’s special collections. Host Mike Jordan Laskey asked him about the work of the Rare Book School and why he is fascinated by books (and all matter of printed material) as cultural objects. They also discussed how Fr. Suarez’s work has deep connections to his faith, and how the Jesuits through the centuries have often been at the forefront of writing and making books around the world. Fr. Suarez is so clearly passionate about his work and teaching that it’ll make you want to travel to Charlottesville, Virginia, to check out all the fascinating stuff housed in the special collections at the university. Rare Book School: https://rarebookschool.org/ Fr. Michael Suarez, SJ: https://rarebookschool.org/faculty/general/michael-suarez/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

If you’ve hung around Jesuits and Jesuit organizations long enough, you surely have come in contact with the phrase cura personalis. In short, practicing cura personalis means caring for the whole person: body, mind and spirit. It’s an invitation to ask more questions, deeper questions, about who we are and where we’re going and what unique tools and experiences we might need to get there. You know cura personalis. But have you ever heard of cura personalis mission-driven, organizationally-minded little sibling, cura apostolica? Cura apostolica means a care for the apostolate. This principle—like care for the fullness of a person—means recognizing and caring for the fullness of a mission. What is an organization meant to do? How can it persist in the work of shepherding a mission as time and circumstances change? I’ll confess that I was far more knowledgeable of and comfortable with cura personalis. Cura apostolica seems a bit esoteric, relevant only to CEOs and HR departments. What has it got to do with me in my daily life? Well, as today’s guest, Jesuit Fr. Matt Carnes insist, a lot. In fact, cura apostolica and cura personalis go hand-in-hand; they’re two sides of the same coin. Understanding and embodying one leads us to better live out the other. Fr. Carnes is the Vice President for Mission and Ministry at Santa Clara University, as well as the Executive Director of the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education and Professor of Political Science. Prior to joining Santa Clara University, he was an associate professor at Georgetown University in the Department of Government and the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, and he served as Vice Dean for Faculty Affairs in the School of Foreign Service and as the Director of the Center for Latin American Studies. Most important to today’s conversation, Fr. Matt is the editor of an upcoming book from Georgetown University Press entitled “Leadership Lessons from the Jesuits: Cura Apostolica and the Mission-Driven Organization.” It’s due out sometime next year. I had a chance to read an early copy—and I found myself inspired by how cura apostolica can revolutionize how we approach our mission-driven work. I hope you get a sense of that today, and leave inspired to return to your own singular part of our shared mission. Preorder the book: https://press.georgetown.edu/Book/Leadership-Lessons-from-the-Jesuits Meet Fr. Carnes: https://www.scu.edu/cas/political-science/faculty--staff/matthew-e-carnes-sj/

Fr. Chris Kellerman, SJ, the Jesuit Conference's Secretary of Justice and Ecology, joins host Mike Jordan Laskey to discuss Pope Leo XIV's apostolic exhortation "Dilexi te," which calls on the church to remember that the care of those on the margins is at the heart of our mission. Read the exhortation: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/apost_exhortations/documents/20251004-dilexi-te.html The Jesuit Conference's Office of Justice and Ecology: https://www.jesuits.org/our-work/justice-and-ecology/oje/ Fr. Kellerman's book, "All Oppression Shall Cease": https://www.amazon.com/All-Oppression-Shall-Cease-Abolitionism/dp/1626984891 AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

The Jesuit Border Podcast has just launched its ninth season, and to commemorate the event, we're featuring the first episode of season nine here on AMDG. You'll hear stories, reflections and an interview from hosts Fr. Brian Strassburger, SJ, and Joe Nolla, SJ, of Del Camino Jesuit Border Ministries. Bishop Michael Pham of the Diocese of San Diego is today's guest. Bishop Pham was the first U.S. bishop appointed by Pope Leo XIV. He shares the harrowing story of fleeing Vietnam as a young boy on a small boat that nearly capsized in the sea. Bishop Pham also talks about an experience this summer attending immigration court to walk with migrants. He calls out our immigration enforcement approach that is criminalizing migrants and separating families, when our country should be a place of refuge, as it was for him and his family decades ago. Fr. Brian and Joe open up the new season talking about what it means to find refuge. Brian shares the story of Naomi, a single mom from Honduras with a five-month old son. They were denied refuge in the U.S. when they crossed the border and were rapidly sent back into Mexico. At the local shelter, the women rallied to support this young mother, showing her what it means to provide refuge. Joe shares the story of Marialex, a young girl in Matamoros, who showed how small actions can speak loudly in offering welcome and inclusion. You can learn more about the work of Del Camino Jesuit Border Ministries and subscribe to the Jesuit Border Podcast here: https://www.jesuitscentralsouthern.org/our-work/del-camino/

Fr. George Drance, SJ, is a great example of the fact that Jesuits can do and be anything. Fr. George is a theatre artist, which, in his case, encompasses acting on the stage, directing, teaching acting classes at Fordham University in New York, and writing and adapting his own shows. He’s also the artistic director for the Magis Theatre Company, which he founded. His work takes him all over the world: he has performed and directed in more than 25 countries on five continents. This past summer, Fr. George’s work took him to his ancestral homeland: Ukraine. Ukraine, of course, has been facing wartime conditions since 2014, and the full-scale invasion of the country Russia launched in February 2022 has disrupted or destroyed countless lives. In that context, Fr. George visited a former Fordham student of his who is now living in the city of Kyiv and running an experimental theatre company there. Fr. George ran a workshop with Ukrainian actors and was involved in some performances in the city. Host Mike Jordan Laskey asked him to talk about the experience of doing theatre in a war-torn land and why he thinks it’s so vital to keep making art in a world that’s on fire. It was a powerful conversation about his experiences in Ukraine and the inspiring artists he met there who are bringing beauty within a heartbreaking, enraging situation. Magis Theatre Company: https://www.magistheatre.org/ Nashi Experimental Theatre Club in Kyiv, Ukraine: https://www.instagram.com/nashi.etc/?hl=en Fr. George’s “Forming a Practice of Hope” series at the Jesuit Media Lab: https://jesuitmedialab.org/category/forming-a-practice-of-hope/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

On October 4 and 5, the Catholic Church will observe the 111th World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Today’s guest, who recently stopped by our studio in Washington, DC, is a perfect guest for the occasion. His name is Michael Petro, SJ, and he’s a Jesuit of the American East Coast province who is currently in the regency stage of his formation. Michael’s regency has been quite far from the norm, though – he’s working in Beirut, Lebanon with Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS). Michael has worn a lot of hats in his time in the country, including setting up and running an emergency shelter for men, women and children who were displaced by the war between Israel and Hezbollah. During a visit home to the U.S., Michael stopped by to share stories from his work in Beirut and to talk about his Jesuit vocation. It’s safe to say he never imagined he would be running a temporary emergency shelter in Lebanon when he joined the Jesuits in New York not long after he graduated college. Host Mike Jordan Laskey loved hearing from Michael about the people he has met and why it’s so important for the church to keep accompanying and serving migrants and refugees, even and especially when it’s not politically popular to do so. We think you’ll be moved by Michael’s stories and inspired by his faith in action. Learn more about Michael: https://jesuitspro.com/6373/ https://jrs.net/en/story/amid-bombs-in-lebanon-a-church-opens-its-doors-to-hundreds-of-migrants/ https://www.jesuits.global/2025/08/18/arrupe-migrant-center-in-beirut-to-gather-to-pray-to-play/ JRS in the Middle East and North Africa: https://jrs.net/en/jrs_offices/jrs-middle-east/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

St. Kevin is a 6th century Irish saint, best known, perhaps, for the monastery he founded at Glendalough, tucked deep into County Wicklow. Beyond the monastic community, Kevin has been immortalized by Irish poet Seamus Heaney in a poem called “St. Kevin and the Blackbird.” It’s a poem that speaks of a legend, a peculiar moment of prayer and stillness. Our own communications team member, Eric Clayton, knew very little about St. Kevin until a statue was erected on the campus of his alma mater to honor his late friend and spiritual mentor, the Jesuit priest Jim Bowler. The statue depicted Kevin and his blackbird, and Eric wondered why. Today’s episode tracks Eric’s own pilgrimage from a Connecticut university library to a cave over an Irish lake. His guide is the pilgrimage expert, Irish Jesuit Fr. Brendan McManus. Brendan is an award-winning author who has penned multiple books on the life-changing pilgrimages he’s made, most notably along the Camino de Santiago. Journey with Eric and Brendan as they set out into the spiritual heart of Ireland. Resources: Take a look at some of Eric's photos from the pilgrimage: https://www.jesuits.org/stories/now-discern-this-chasing-after-st-kevin/#anchor2 Read the poem, “St. Kevin and the Blackbird,” by Seamus Heaney: https://glendalough.wicklowheritage.org/new-contributions/st-kevin-and-the-blackbird-read-by-seamus-heaney Get a copy of Fr. Brendan’s classic book, “Redemption Road:” https://store.loyolapress.com/redemption-road

The screenwriters Brian Gunn and Mark Gunn are cousins, and they grew up in the 1970s and ’80s in a big Catholic extended family in St. Louis. The Gunns are an incredibly creative clan that has produced all sorts of actors and writers and directors, including Brian’s brother James, who you might know as the director of the most recent “Superman” movie and the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise. Brian and Mark are both Jesuit educated twice over, alumni of St. Louis University High School and the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. It was during college that they started performing sketch comedy together, and they both moved to Los Angeles in the ’90s to pursue Hollywood dreams. Since then, Brian and Mark have worked together on films and TV shows, including the family adventure movie “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and a 2019 superhero horror film called “Brightburn” featuring Elizabeth Banks. Their first project that made it big was a movie and series called “2gether,” which debuted on MTV in 2000. It was a hilarious parody of the boy band era of Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC and it was influential on the development of AMDG host Mike Jordan Laskey’s sense of humor. The actors playing the boy band became an actual boy band themselves, opening for Britney Spears and hitting the Billboard charts with two different albums. If you are an elder millennial, all we have to say is, “I know my calculus,” and you’ll sing back: “You plus me equals us.” Mike asked Brian and Mark about their family and their Jesuit education, how they work together as a writing team, and what it’s like to work in the film industry. Mark and Brian also shared some creative tips they’ve learned in more than a quarter century in the trade. Finally, Mike couldn’t let them go without reminiscing about “2gether” and marveling at the fact that 25 years after the movie’s debut, the most popular film in the world right now is another movie about a fictional boy band. Though this new one is composed of demons and they’re being hunted by a KPop girl group... Anyway, we think you’ll enjoy this sneak peek into the lives of Hollywood screenwriters. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

It’s hard to believe, but Pope Leo XIV just passed the four-month mark of his papacy. That’s more than a full season. After the incredible amount of press coverage here in North America reacting in shock to the election of a pope originally from Chicago, the media frenzy quieted quickly and starkly. It’s fair to say Pope Leo doesn’t have a big, splashy personality, and add to that all the wild political headlines in the months since his election, it’s not surprising that Pope Leo has receded from the spotlight a bit. That’s probably a good thing; celebrity culture and Catholic culture don’t go all that well together anyway. But Pope Leo has certainly been busy despite fading from the headlines, filling his days with meetings and setting about the work of governing the church. At this point in his papacy, we thought it was worthwhile to check in on these four months, and today’s guest is among the most qualified people on the planet to talk about it. Christopher White is the associate director for strategic initiatives and senior fellow of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University, and he’s also the author of the recent book “Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy,” published by Loyola Press. Before Chris started his job at Georgetown this past summer, he spent four years as the Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter. He lived in Rome and spent his days meeting with Vatican sources and attending big papal events. He visited more than 20 countries with Pope Francis as part of the press corps. He is one of most astute and thoughtful church observers and commentators. Host Mike Jordan Laskey asked Chris about these first months of Leo’s papacy and what we might want to be looking out for in the months ahead. We also talked about life as a Vatican reporter and what it’s like to cover an institution that is also your own spiritual home. We think you’ll learn a lot from Chris about Pope Leo’s priorities and how the institutional Church operates. "Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy": https://bookshop.org/p/books/pope-leo-xiv-inside-the-conclave-and-the-dawn-of-a-new-papacy-christopher-white/a5f501d1c6a575db?ean=9780829459470&next=t Chris' page at the Georgetown Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life: https://catholicsocialthought.georgetown.edu/people/christopher-white www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/