A podcast and community dedicated to evaluating politics and economics from the perspective of Catholic Social Teaching. The hope is to turn education and collaboration into actionable community building to effect real change.
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Journey through the history of public transportation in the U.S., from its early rise to its deliberate dismantling by the auto industry. This episode exposes the high costs of car dependency—financial, environmental, and to public health—and highlights how public transit can be a powerful tool for building a more just and equitable society. Learn how robust transit aligns with Catholic social teaching and serves the common good.
18 Aug 2025
Episode 12: Economic Indices
Discover the surprising origins of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a metric born from crisis and war. This episode reveals how GDP's focus on market transactions leads to profound blind spots, including its failure to account for unpaid labor, environmental costs, and inequality. We then offer a Catholic vision for an economy that measures what truly matters: human dignity, the common good, and a diverse set of indicators that promote holistic well-being.
14 Aug 2025
Episode 11: Working Hours
Dive into the surprising history of the workweek, from hunter-gatherer and medieval rhythms to the brutal realities of the Industrial Revolution. This episode explores the hard-won fight for the eight-hour day and its alignment with Catholic social teaching on the dignity of work and the theology of the Sabbath. We conclude by examining the modern push for a four-day workweek as a new way to achieve a just wage and a truly human life.
14 Aug 2025
Episode 10: Just War Theory
Explore the evolution of Just War Theory, a rigorous framework designed to make war a last resort. This episode traces the theory's foundations from the Old Testament to its refinement by St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas. We then apply its criteria to U.S. interventions, concluding with Pope Francis's shift towards a "just peace" rooted in non-violence and a call to build a world where war is obsolete.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 9: Public Banks
Reclaim finance for the common good! This episode defines public banking as a model that prioritizes community over private profit. We connect this idea to Catholic Social Teaching's call for ethical finance, from ancient prohibitions on usury to modern encyclicals. Finally, we explore the rich history and promise of public banks, from the Bank of North Dakota to international successes and a cost-benefit analysis.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 8: Community Gardens
Discover the power of community gardens! We explore their history as a response to hardship, from Pingree's Potato Patch to Victory Gardens. We then connect them to Catholic Social Teaching, emphasizing our call to be stewards of creation from Genesis to Pope Francis' Laudato Si'. Finally, we discuss the extensive health and economic benefits, along with practical steps to start a garden in your own community.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 7: Jobs Guarantee
Explore the Jobs Guarantee, a policy to ensure everyone who desires to work can. We trace its history from the WPA and CCC to its deep roots in Catholic Social Teaching on the dignity of labor. This episode concludes by exploring a modern implementation, its economic benefits, and a case study of how a Jobs Guarantee could transform a city like Houston, creating a stronger local economy and community.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 6: Jubilees
Explore the radical concept of the Jubilee Year, from its ancient roots in Israel to its transformation in the Catholic Church. This episode examines its core mandate of societal reset and debt relief. We then consider what a modern Jubilee might look like today, proposing concrete debt cancellation initiatives to address our staggering household debt and promote economic justice.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 5: Worker Ownership - Practice
Shift from theory to practice. We explore different models of worker ownership, from financial-focused ESOPs to democratic worker cooperatives. This episode unpacks the benefits—economic resilience, lower turnover—and weaknesses of these models. We then highlight practical strategies, historical examples, and a case study of Houston, on how to build a thriving cooperative economy from the ground up.
8 Aug 2025
Episode 4: Worker Ownership - Theory
Explore the surprising history of worker cooperatives! This episode delves into foundational Catholic Social Teaching—from Rerum Novarum to Mater et Magistra—to reveal how these documents grappled with property, labor, and capital. Discover how centuries of thought built a framework for a more just economy, one that points directly toward worker-owned enterprises.
12 Jun 2024
Episode 3: Public Housing
The Church calls us to shelter the homeless. How might we go about doing this as a society? How can we improve housing costs for the majority of Houstonians who are rent-burdened? By building more housing of course!
25 May 2024
Episode 2: Cantina Publica
What would it mean as a society for us to take seriously the Corporeal Works of Mercy to feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty? Programs exist today to help people afford meals, but in the richest society in the history of humanity, how do we let anyone go hungry at all? In this episode, I talk about a bold proposal to help fix this problem: public kitchens!
11 May 2024
Episode 1: Introduction
Hello and welcome to the Catholic Workers' Podcast! This is a short episode about what I hope to accomplish by creating this, and a roadmap for other topics I hope to explore!
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