The Great Podcast List of 2017

With the year drawing to a close, a good resolution to consider would be to check out some podcasts you've never come across (or pick up podcast listening in general if this is your introduction). I mean, becoming smarter and gaining a more well-rounded perspective of the world on a weekly basis isn't such a bad way to pass 2018. So below are 120+ podcasts that both me and my wife have encountered since we first started listening.

Titles are organized by style of podcast and then sorted alphabetically. Since there is a mixture of genres as well as personal familiarity presented, the simplest way I chose to sift the wheat from the chaff was to rate them out of five stars like a standard podcast app. These ratings are based on my personal-Catholic-manly-engineering-musical background so take it all with a grain of salt.

5/5 - Recommended unabashedly for superior content and practicality.
4/5 - Frequently deep discussions that requires familiarity with jargon.
3/5 - Good content for its genre and doesn't delve into the weeds too much.
2/5 - Sometimes insightful, mostly passable.
1/5 - Avoid altogether or listen at your own risk! Usually carries a heavily contrarian agenda.
?/5 - Not enough listening experience to garner an accurate rating.

N.B. - I've complied a more detailed list of 20 podcasts here from January 2016.

P.S. - I didn't want to wait to get the list out before completely finishing the post, so there are some missing descriptions that I will include in the next couple of days.


Catholic - Commentary / Keynote / Presentation [19]

All Things Catholic (4/5) - Dr. Edward Sri offers insights on living a deeper and richer Catholic faith.

Aquinas College Lecture Series (?/5) - Older talks from Aquinas College

Aquinas College Podcast (?/5) - Guest lectures from Aquinas College in Nashville.

Augustine Institute Special Events (3/5) - Keynote speakers from the Augustine Institute in Denver.

Catholic:Under the Hood (3/5) - Franciscan Fr. Seraphim Beshoner offers a slow and thorough of the history of the Catholic Church through all its ecclesiastical conflicts and theological clarifications.

Podcast of the Week: Man Caves, The Study, and Identity

On their latest episode, Taylor Marshall and Jared Zimmerer challenge the prevalent notion of the man cave as the retreat for the modern neanderthal and argue for the necessity of the study in the live of the paternal philosopher-king. Beyond just stressing the importance of its incorporation in a man's abode, the duo propose several tips for how to go about acquiring and implementing the essential articles for this locale, even if one happens to be a bachelor with a roommate.

Listen to "Man Caves, The Study, and Identity"

Visit Maccabee Society

Be the Maccabee,

Kelvin

P.S. - The Song Exploder episode with CHVRCHES that was recorded while I was at SXSW is finally up.

Podcast of the Week: The 5 Big Questions Everyone Asks in Life

On last week's WOF Show, Bishop Robert Barron tackles quite literally the biggest questions about life and our place in it. He gives a very concise one-sentence answer to each at the end that I think represents well the height, breath and depth one can expect in listening to this discussion:

• Does God exist?
• Yes, because the world does not explain itself.
• Who am I?
• I am a hybrid of both body and soul.
• What is the meaning of life?
• The meaning of life is to return to God, from whom we came.
• What is right and wrong?
• What is right is what is in line with the teleology of my humanity.
• What happens after death?
• We are raised to a higher pitch of transfigured existence that Paul would call the "spiritual body".

All this before masterfully handling a listener question on where the omnipotence and providence of God ends and our free will begins, citing Luis de Molina and St. Thomas Aquinas in his response.

Listen to "The 5 Big Questions Everyone Asks in Life"

Visit Word on Fire Show

We've given you the easiest questions today,
Kelvin

Podcast of the Week: Orchestral Music From Latin America

Another week, another Alt.Latino pick. This time Felix Contreras sits down with Tom Huizenga as they embark on a journey following the influence and evolution of classical music in Latin America. Part music lesson and part history lesson, this podcast offers a great introduction to a genre that is as diverse as the countries that produce it.

Listen to "Alt.Latino Goes Classical: Orchestral Music From Latin America"

Visit Alt.Latino

Why not a mariachi opera, right?
Kelvin

Podcast of the Week: How LSD Works

Talk about a random topic. Stuff You Should Know is known for covering subjects that span across all forms of study and experience, and this past week Josh and Chuck decided to expound on the history and effects of the psychedelic drug LSD (a.k.a., acid). Though I did appreciate their debunking of several myths surrounding the drug, I had less regard for their advocacy of therapeutic use of acid and the considerable amount of time they allotted for the whole discussion (nearly 90 minutes, when most shows are under 45).

The episode's saving grace, however, came in a dialogue the pair had with John Hodgman (from The Daily Show) at the end. A pseudo-feud had arisen between the two parties after SYSK released their "Nostalgia" episode at the end of March in direct retaliation of Hodgman's notion that "nostalgia is the most toxic impulse". In this engrossing 20-minute conversation, the three hash out the clarifications of their own stances (in which much common ground was found) and Hodgman adeptly argues how the notion of longing for the "good ol' days" can be destructive when abused by an individual for the purpose of escaping reality or when mechanized by a political entity for the purpose of marginalizing sectors of their own and other societies. Following this, I felt a responsibility to vet his podcast, Judge John Hodgman, and another he suggested, The Dana Gould Hour (at least the episode "Happysad!"), as possible additions to my subscription list.

Listen to "How LSD Works"

Visit Stuff You Should Know

I was not expecting jihad, Donald Trump or Darth Maul to make an appearance,
Kelvin

Podcast of the Week: Reservation Missionary

One podcast that stood out from all the downloads last week came from Catching Foxes where the duo of Luke and Gomer conversed with Kenn Cramer about his work with a unique class of poor America. This was a very enlightening discussion as it brought to mind the continued existence of Native American reservations and the particular challenges the inhabitants of these face in terms of poverty, discrimination, identity, purpose and religion.

Listen to "Reservation Missionary Kenn Cramer"

Visit Catching Foxes

You can wear a cassock and be a nice guy,

Kelvin

Podcast of the Week: Breaking Bad and Dealing with Darkness

Now that I live life outside of the realm of academia proper, I find myself with not only more time to watch television but also with more maturity of perspective in approaching this media. But as Uncle Ben says with every Spider-Man reboot, "With great power comes great responsibility." So although I can watch movies like Taxi Driver and series like Peaky Blinders and not feel the urge to beat up random people on the street (or vice versa, fear random people on the street beating me up), it is important to be aware of the sensibilities and temperaments of others when discussing or suggesting things to watch. This podcast was very helpful in reminding me that it's OK for everyone to not be into every show I enjoy and that even if a work of art cannot be commended because of its content (be it the graphic violence in Breaking Bad, the psycho-emotional manipulation in Jessica Jones or the stark sensuality of Game of Thrones) it can be lauded for the creativity of the writers and producers, which ultimately reveal an aspect of the Beauty of the Creator.

Listen to "Breaking Bad and Dealing with Darkness"

Visit Pop Culture Coffee Hour

Logos, yo,
Kelvin

Podcast of the Week: The Science of Cheating

No, this is not a tutorial on how to cheat on your significant other. Instead, this podcast has the exact opposite purpose, namely describing the circumstances that would lead a reasonable and caring person into infidelity and what all parties involved can do to prevent this from happening (in the best case) and make amends to reconcile the relationship if it does happen (in the worst case).

I personally found the release of this episode very timely because it came shortly after a deep discussion I had with a close friend about how we would each react to being cheated on during a dating relationship or a marriage. Like anything in love, the will is the driving force and though one's conscience and intellect may be strong this does not equate to immunity from committing the most heinous offenses to those we care about most. However, there are definitive habits that those in relationships can cultivate, such as openness and transparency, in order for the probability of performing these acts to be at their lowest.

Listen to "The Science of Cheating — How to Prevent and Deal With Infidelity"

Visit The Art of Manliness

To love is to will the good of another,
Kelvin

Casting Pods

When I was younger, I thought that podcasts were just glorified radio shows that only old people listened to. Now that I'm older, I think that they are one of the greatest media avenues ever created! Though I don't claim to know the first thing about podcast broadcasting, it is suffice to say for the layman still living under a rock that a podcast is an audio / video channel where the channel's host can upload episodic content to the podcast client server (which I presume is maintained by Apple) which is downloaded by the subscribers as often as the channel is updated. Basically, it's like TV for your earbuds.

The genres of podcasts seem as varied and versitile as what you could find on your phone's app store: news, sports, music, food, history, religion, comedy, education, etc. And I've yet to find any podcast whose content isn't free! So whatever you're into, it's likely that there's a podcast about it and that it's being regularly updated.

Below I've listed the podcasts I'm currently subscribed to and the reasons why I keep listening. I know there's dozens more I should also check out (some of which I'll list at the end), but I've kinda got my hands full with the content I already get from these 20 podcasts. If you have any suggestions, though, don't hesitate to leave a message on the (very lonely) comment bar :)

1. Lanky Guys (Runtime: 45 mins) (Updated: once a week)

This list is structured in the order that I have my podcast app (Podcast Republic) check for new updates and it's no surprise that I have it check for Lanky Guys first. Every week, Scott Powell and Fr. Peter Mussett call in from Bolder, Colorado, to break open the Scriptures and try and find the themes and topics that tie together each of the Sunday Mass readings from the Catholic Lectionary. I can always trust on the duo to be well researched, but far from sounding like a graduate lecture they do a good job of interspersing light banter and offering concrete take-aways that are pertinent to the Christian of today.

2. Word on Fire Sermons (Runtime: 15 minutes) (Updated: once a week)

On Word on Fire Sermons, Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles, California, shares his homily on the upcoming Sunday's Mass readings which is regularly dense with theological, philosophical, sociological and historical discussion.

3. St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology (Runtime: 3 minutes) (Updated: once a week)

Every week Dr. Scott Hahn from Steubenville, Ohio, offers in his podcast a short reflection on the Sunday Mass readings and draws out the implications of not only where do the readings fit in Salvation History but also how we are called to participate in the same.