Aristotle or Aquinas? Aquinas, because his Christianity gives him a huge philosophical advantage. If you know your Christian faith, you’ve already absorbed a lot of important philosophy! But of course, Aquinas could never have stood so high without standing on Aristotle’s shoulders.

Favorite quote from the curriculum? Too hard, too hard. (That’s not a quote.)

Favorite book or work in the curriculum? The Book of Revelation. It’s my favorite book anyway, but it’s especially good reading during a pandemic!

Favourite class to teach? Maybe THL 101, because of the amazing biblical stories. Or maybe THL 201, because that’s when students realize who God really is. Or maybe … OK, I should stop.

Dante or Shakespeare? Dante, just because I’ve read him more. I read through the Comedia once per year, taking about a canto per night. My current schedule: Inferno in October (best ever prep for Halloween); Purgatorio in November (the month when we pray especially for the souls of the departed); Paradiso during the Easter season, the time of resurrection.

What was the worst grade you ever got on a paper? I got a C on my first paper for a grad class on Romans. The teacher said that in charity she had to assume I just didn’t understand the assignment. So I went to the library, found the teacher’s dissertation, read it, and modeled my next paper closely on her argument. Her response: “Where did you learn to do this?” Needless to say, I got an A on that one.

Advice to students trying to study remotely? Find someone to talk with, either in the house or by phone or by chat or whatever. Don’t forget that truth is a common good and we need to pursue it as such.

Advice to students just starting college? Go to bulletjournal.com and watch the 4 minute video. Poor time management is the number one freshman killer.

How many all-nighters did you pull in college? One, and one only. It was for a paper in grad school. (Same class as the one I mentioned above–see a pattern?) I tottered into campus the next day, turned in my paper, proctored exams for a professor most of the day, and by the end of the day I was a wreck. Probably shouldn’t have driven home. I swore I would never pull an overnighter again.

Hobbies or pastimes? Now that I have eight kids, I don’t get a lot of time for my hobbies. But as life permits, I enjoy doing sleight of hand magic. I play the piano. I also enjoy writing fiction and poetry. In fact, last year for a final exam I wrote a short story and required students to fill in the missing dialogue to show that they had understood our theology class.

Can you share the best advice you ever received? Make prayer the last thing you do before you go to sleep and the first thing you do when you wake up.