You Tube Theology

Episode Topic: Metaphysics of Prayer (https://go.nd.edu/8e9338)

If God is all-wise and all-good, why ask Him for anything? Fr. Stephen L. Brock invites us to explore this mystery through the lenses of C.S. Lewis and St. Thomas Aquinas. While Lewis offers an intuitive account, it faces significant theoretical hurdles. In contrast, Aquinas’s metaphysical approach, though more challenging, ultimately provides a deeper answer. Join us to contemplate how his vision honors divine transcendence while surprisingly granting our prayers a more powerful role in shaping the course of events in our world.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome
03:01 Father Brock's Lecture: The Metaphysics of Prayer
06:21 C.S. Lewis on Petitionary Prayer
14:48 Thomas Aquinas on Prayer
26:06 The Role of Free Will and Divine Providence
32:36 The Significance of Prayer in God's Plan
40:41 Q&A

Featured Speakers:
-Fr. Stephen L. Brock, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome

Read this episode's recap over on the University of Notre Dame's open online learning community platform, ThinkND: https://go.nd.edu/e159b5.

This podcast is a part of the ThinkND Series titled Faith and Philosophy. (https://go.nd.edu/a9a045)