Episode 320: Matthew Vander Vennet on the Sacra Doctrina Project (July 22, 2026)

In this episode of The Open Door, panelists Thomas Storck and Andrew Sorokowski talk with Matthew Vander Vennet about the Sacra Doctrina project.What is the Sacra Doctrina project?What do you see in the current practice of theology that needs correction or enhancement?On your website you speak of "speculative theology" as the foundation for theology. In current usage speculative generally means making good guesses or musing about something. Is that what you mean by "speculative theology"?How is good theology related to good philosophy? How is St. Thomas important for both these sciences?One of the issues in current theological discussion involves the question of whether historical and cultural particularities ought to be the starting point for theology or whether we can know certain universals from which we can then deduce other facts, even though we must still take account of historical and cultural facts. Can you comment on this, and on how differing approaches to this question have affected Catholic intellectual life since the Council?