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.
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, will be released by Ignatius Press in early 2024.
Archbishop Paglia: Financial Reform?
Francis X. Maier
Given the gaffes, problems, and lapses in judgment that seem to trail Archbishop Paglia like an unpleasant perfume, the correct thing to do would be to resign his positions.
Articles
The Catholic Thing / December 16, 2022
Everything is (not) Broken
Francis X. Maier
Every so often an article appears that demands to be shared. So I’m doing that here.
Articles
The Catholic Thing / November 30, 2022
How to Resist the New Totalitarianism
Francis X. Maier
Helen Alvaré’s new book is an extremely helpful aid in understanding the root of today’s legal battles over the nature and limits of religious freedom.
Articles
First Things / November 28, 2022
Confusion and Its Cost
Francis X. Maier
One of the lessons taught by the past is that conflict in matters of faith, at both the personal and cultural levels, can have the effect of a wrecking ball.
Articles
First Things / November 16, 2022
The Jesuits: What Went Wrong
Francis X. Maier
My unease with the Jesuits began right alongside my respect.
Articles
The Catholic Thing / November 10, 2022
‘Tis the Season
Francis X. Maier
We need to be wary about appeals to the “complexity” of issues like abortion because they so often amount to alibis and evasions.
Articles
The Catholic Thing / November 2, 2022
The Substance of a Choice
Francis X. Maier
What kind of people do we really want to be? What kind of world do we choose to create?
Articles
First Things / November 1, 2022
The Vatican Extends Xi’s Pontificate
Francis X. Maier
Chinese Catholics might reasonably feel betrayed and abandoned, or worse.
Articles
Wall Street Journal / October 25, 2022
Vatican II’s Long Wake
Francis X. Maier
We live in a time of celebrated worldliness and belligerent mediocrity, both in our public square and in our religious leadership. But there are islands of light — testimonies that remind us of who we really are.
Articles
National Review / October 13, 2022
Understanding the New Abnormal
Francis X. Maier
The New Abnormal is a forthcoming book about the tech-driven “surveillance and control” state written by Aaron Kheriaty, a doctor and scholar who has experienced first-hand the dangers of medical technocracy.
Articles
First Things / October 4, 2022
