The Sower
The Sower is a Podcast of the Ciceronian Society. The Ciceronian Society exists to equip and encourage Christian scholars to serve the church as a center of cultural and civic renewal. Through our events, publications, and podcasts we provide the space and opportunities that Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox scholars need for professional growth and intellectual discipleship. Since 2012, we have been building a network of friends with a love for our core themes - tradition, place, and ‘things divine’ - and with a genuine commitment to the church and the life of the mind. To learn more about our society, our conferences, and the peer-reviewed journal, Pietas, visit https://ciceroniansociety.org/
Episodes
In this episode Josh Bowman welcomes a selection of the instructors serving in the Ciceronian Society’s new Logres Institute for Classical Liberal Studies. We talk about our seminar style, the opportunities and challenges of teaching online, and kinds of readings and courses that excite us, and what it means to be a good student. Joining this particular episode we have Josh Herring, Annie Crawford, Sean Hadley, and Tracey Lea...
The continuing relevance of C.S. Lewis to our own time and place.
Presentations by Rod Miller (Hendrix College) and Clayton Carver (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary).
Audio recording of a panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 14, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 101 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
0:35 Rod Miller: That Hideous Job
16:21 Clayton Carver: The Pursuit of Happiness:...
In this episode Josh Bowman welcomes a group of fellow Ciceronians to celebrate the 100th episode of the Sower podcast, reflecting on where we’ve been and where we’re going. We specifically hear from Rachel Ferguson, Claire Aguda-Baker, William Batchelder IV, and Chris Anadale.
Support the Ciceronian Society: https://ciceroniansociety.org/give/
Links and Images:
Episode 1 - https://youtu.be/wCt4d8ZR8JI
Episode 2 - https...
Perspectives on Adam Smith's 1776 Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.
Presentations by Erik Matson (CUA), Paul Mueller (AEIR), Jordan Ballor (CRCD), and John Robinson (JMU).
Audio recording of a panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 15, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 99 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
1:00 Panel introduction by Erik Matson
2:58 Erik Matson: Theo...
In this episode, Josh Bowman welcomes Ben Peterson, assistant professor in the Department of Government and Criminal Justice at Abilene Christian University. We discuss his new book, Community, Character, and the Governance of the Social Commons: Sanctuaries of Order, published by Bloomsbury Press.
We specifically address notions of social poverty, the “social commons,” and how the church might play a role in renewing t...
Theological, philosophical, and humanist reactions to the challenges of A.I.
Presentations by John Moore (Walsh College), Thomas Dias (Acton Institute), and Jeff Bristol (independent scholar). Panel chaired by Rachel Ferguson (Concordia University Chicago).
Audio recording of a panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 13, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 97 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
1:00 ...
In this episode, Josh Bowman welcomes Michael Lucchese, member of the Ciceronian Society, to talk about the work of Russell Kirk and his thoughts on the American Founding and political tradition.
Michael is Founder and CEO of Pipe Creek Consulting, as well as a contributing editor to Providence Magazine and an associate editor of Law & Liberty.
Michael is the editor of a new collection of writings by Russell Kirk, On America: H...
Benjamin Rush, John Jay, and the promotion of republican virtue.
Presentations by Dennis Durst (Kentucky Christian University), Jonathan Den Hartog (Samford University), and Nick Blanda (Hillsdale College).
Audio recording of a panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 15, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 95 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
0:50 Panel introduction by Ethan Alexander-Davey
2:15...
Spring 2027 Conference at Regent University
In this episode, Josh Bowman welcomes back Simon Tarr, who is dean of both The Honors College as well as the School of Communication & the Arts at Regent University. We discuss Regent University’s Honors College and Christian identity while looking forward to the Spring 2027 conference to be held on their Virginia Beach Campus.
To learn more about the Honors College, visit: http...
Tracking religious liberty legislation & policy at the state level, the 2025 Religious Liberty in the States Report from the Center for Religion, Culture, and Democracy.
Audio recording of a plenary panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 15, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 93 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
1:13 Panel Introduction, by Paul Mueller
3:12 A Theological Defense of Religio...
A paradigm for Christian leadership & engagement with the secular world.
Josh Bowman interviews Dr. Stephen O. Presley, the Director of Education and Engagement at the Center for Research, Culture, and Democracy (CRCD) as well as a Senior Fellow for Religion and Public Life. The CRCD was one of the Tullia Sponsors for the Ciceronian Society’s 2026 conference in Omaha, and a long time partner and friend.
Looking at two of ...
An Oakeshottian view of the Declaration of Independence. And a historial look at the Declaration's relation to the Articles of Confederation. Presentations by John Grove (Liberty Fund) and Adam Tate (Clayton State University).
Audio recording of a panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 15, 2026.
0:00 The Sower Episode 91 Introduction by Christopher Anadale
0:52 Panel introduction by Joh...
Are liberalism and Christianity compatible? Is the American tradition of liberty at odds with Christian teaching? What role might the church have in the civic and economic formation of citizens?
Josh Bowman interviews Dylan Pahman and John Pinheiro about a new reader they’ve edited called The Christian Roots of American Liberty.
The Christian Roots of American Liberty: A Reader
https://shop.acton.org/collections/featured-p...
Hillsdale College historian Wilfred McClay discusses: the Sorcerer's Apprentice, allusion, Ariadne, Peter Lawler, Walker Percy, Ted McAllister, Blake, Burke, Chesterton, Emerson, Jaroslav Pelikan, tradition, heritage, Dana Gioia's poem "Planting a Sequoia," Mary Austin, WH Auden, Tocqueville, The Golden Thread, and the nightmarish possibility of an AI Thomas Jefferson.
Poem: https://danagioia.com/planting-a-sequoia/
Keynote address...
The widely circulated first draft of the Virginia Declaration of Rights was a key influence on the Declaration of Independence.
Chris Anadale interviews law professor Nathaniel Fouch about the influence of the Declaration of Independence on state constitutions, the authority of America's founding principles, different responses to Jefferson's egalitarian rhetoric, and more.
Nathaniel Fouch is Assistant Professor of Law at Capital U...
A content focused certificate program for classical school teachers & other adults.
Josh Bowman and Josh Herring discuss the Ciceronian Society’s most ambitious project to date: The Logres Institute for Classical Liberal Studies, which will be directed by Dr. Herring.
The Logres Institute aims to provide the education you wish you had received. Designed with the busy professional in mind, our certification programs delive...
We honor Jane Calvert for her book Penman of the Founding: A Biography of John Dickinson.
Plenary panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 12, 2026. Featuring speakers Joshua Bowman, Michael Maibach, James Patterson, and Jane Calvert.
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Penman-Founding-Biography-John-Dickinson/dp/0197541690
Joshua Bowman, Introduction
Michael Maibach, About Prof. Storing
James Patt...
Working to make it normative to stay in your local place for higher education.
Josh Bowman interviews Dr. Nick Ellis, Founder and CEO of Christian Halls International (CHI), which is “reimagining collegiate education through local learning communities that form virtuous people who contribute to flourishing places.”
We revisit the unique model (unique at least in America) of CHI and how this quickly-growing network of ed...
Josh Bowman interviews Dr. Josh Herring on his new book, Sons of Adam, Daughters of Eve: C.S. Lewis's Images of Gender. We discuss Lewis’s fiction and non-fiction, and how the great Christian apologist, scholar, and author gives us ways to think through masculinity and femininity.
Josh Herring is the Curriculum Program Manager for the Rafiki Foundation and Director of the Logres Institute for Classical Liberal Studies.
How do we humanize economics? Are formal & final causes necessary for economics?
Plenary panel from the 2026 Ciceronian Society Conference in Omaha, Nebraska, March 12, 2026. Featuring presentations by Michael Thomas, Steven Miller, Paul Mueller, and Diana Thomas. Panel sponsored by the Menard Family Center for Economic Inquiry at Creighton University, https://www.creighton.edu/menard-center-for-economic-inquiry
Michael Thomas,...
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