Daniel Horan is professor of philosophy, religious studies and theology at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. A columnist for the National Catholic Reporter, he is the author or editor of sixteen books, including Catholicity and Emerging Personhood: A Contemporary Theological Anthropology, A White Catholic’s Guide to Racism and Privilege, and The Way of the Franciscans: A Prayer Journey Through Lent. His most recent books are titled Engaging Thomas Merton: Spirituality, Justice, and Racism and Fear and Faith: Hope and Wholeness in a Fractured World. Dan regularly lectures throughout the United States and abroad and serves on several university, academic, and publication editorial boards. He is recipient of numerous awards for his writing and service and is co-host of The Francis Effect Podcast.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Dan walks us through his spiritual autobiography and shares why he sees his decision to move on from ordained ministry “not as an end and a beginning, but a transition.” We explore the practice of writing as an act of discernment, look at how the “geographic perspective” of Pope Francis and Leo XIV has changed the tenor of the church, and discuss why the core of the Franciscan charism—to “see each other as the siblings that we are in God, and to recognize that that sibling connection extends beyond the human family to the more-than-human world”—is so vital to us today. We also make time to review some of the issues and concerns around artificial intelligence developed in Magnifica Humanitas, and Dan offers a series of images to help us think through the idea of “catholicity” as a theological and ecclesiological framework.
