Francis X. Maier

Senior Fellow

Francis X. Maier is a Senior Fellow in the Catholic Studies Program at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Mr. Maier’s work focuses on the intersection of Christian faith, culture, and public life, with special attention to lay formation and action.

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Francis X. Maier is a Senior Fellow in the Catholic Studies Program at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Mr. Maier’s work focuses on the intersection of Christian faith, culture, and public life, with special attention to lay formation and action.

Mr. Maier served as senior adviser and special assistant to Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., for 23 years in Denver and Philadelphia. He previously served as editor in chief of the National Catholic Register and as a story analyst and screenwriter based in Los Angeles. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and New York University’s School of the Arts, he is a former Fellow of the American Film Institute’s Conservatory for Advanced Film Studies, and the inaugural Senior Research Fellow (2020–22) at Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government. He is a cofounding board member of the University of Pennsylvania’s Collegium Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture and a board member of the Napa Institute and the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS).

His bylined work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, First Things, National Review, The American Spectator, The Catholic Thing, Crisis, This World, America, Commonweal, the New York Times Sunday magazine, Christian Science Monitor, and other national and foreign outlets. His book True Confessions: Voices of Faith from a Life in the Church, was released by Ignatius Press in early 2024.

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The Flawed System of Sexual Abuse Settlements

Francis X. Maier

There was a window from the late 1980s through the early 2000s when the sex abuse of minors seemed to…

Articles

First Things / July 4, 2025

Reading the Red Tory

Francis X. Maier

Jacques Ellul, the French Protestant philosopher, sociologist, and theologian, famously argued that technology evolves autonomously.  In effect, technology shapes society more than…

Articles

The Catholic Thing / July 2, 2025

A Priest for Our Times

Francis X. Maier

I’m a sucker for history because it’s a great teacher.  And I talk a lot about the Reformation because, while…

Articles

The Catholic Thing / June 18, 2025

Augustine, Patron of the Age

Francis X. Maier

Earlier this month, I returned from two weeks in Rome covering the run-up and conclusion to the recent conclave.  It…

Articles

The Catholic Thing / May 21, 2025

To Restore All Things in Christ

Francis X. Maier

The following lecture was delivered at the 2025 Christendom College Commencement. A few days ago, I returned from two weeks…

Articles

Christendom College / May 17, 2025

The Shape of Things to Come

Francis X. Maier

H.G. Wells was a gifted writer.  He was also a tiresome socialist.  He was also a callous thug when it…

Articles

The Catholic Thing / May 7, 2025

Carnal and Holy, Sacred and Profane

Francis X. Maier

Letters from Rome 2025, No. 8—The Papal Interregnum

Articles

First Things / May 6, 2025

Letters from Rome 2025, No. 8—The Papal Interregnum

Francis X. Maier, Noelle Mering

Carnal and Holy, Sacred and Profane by Francis X. Maier The Basilica of San Clemente is one of Rome’s treasures….

Articles

First Things / May 6, 2025

Along the Tiber: Lessons from the Past for the Present

Francis X. Maier

From “Letters from Rome 2025—The Papal Interregnum No. 3.”

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First Things / April 30, 2025

Pope Francis’ Legacy of Question Marks

Francis X. Maier

The Argentinian pontiff, who died today at 88, sowed confusion within the Catholic Church on matters of doctrine.

Articles

The Wall Street Journal / April 21, 2025

There Will Come Soft Rains

Francis X. Maier

I’m a 4 a.m. guy.  I rise early to think and work in the silence.  But every once in a…

Articles

The Catholic Thing / April 9, 2025

Aging and the Quest for Immortality

Francis X. Maier

Nobody wants to live to be a hundred, except the guy who’s ninety-nine. Or so the saying goes. But it’s…

Articles

First Things / April 1, 2025