Three Dogs North

Latest Episodes:

S11 Episode 17 – Clean exit Dec 16, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about what it means to lead by love and treat others as “an end in themselves” (14:10). Their conversation on leadership spans baseball (0:50), combat (20:18), parish life (25:40), fatherhood (28:30), cycling (36:30), and basketball (33:37).

Quotes:

“How can you not be romantic about baseball?” (Brad Pitt, 03:00)

“Take care of those who are entrusted to you in the flesh.” (Rob, 5:38)

“The person is the kind of good which does not admit of use and cannot be treated as an object of use and as such the means to an end. The person is the kind of good towards which the only proper and adequate attitude is love.” (St. Pope John Paull II, 14:10)

“Being a leader requires asking other people to make sacrifices and that’s harder than just making sacrifices yourself.” (Rob, 19:43)

“Work is dignified.” (Mike, 28:10)

“I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.” (John 15:15, 30:05)

Media Mentions:

Ken Burns’ Baseball (1994)
Moneyball (2011)
Michael Lewis’s Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
Fr. Karol Wojtyla’s (St. Pope John Paull II) Love and Responsibility
Steven Pressfield’s Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae
Jason Hehir’s (ESPN and Netflix) The Last Dance (2020)
Allen Iverson’s practice press conference (7:21)
Ted Lasso (2020- present)
Marina Zenovich’s (ESPN) 30 for 30 “LANCE”
Every Time Michael Jordan Took It Personal

Shout-Outs:

Cor Coffee
Jonah Hill
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Fr. Mike Schmitz
FOCUS
Leonidas
Bishop Bartosic
Monica (manager at Cor Coffee)
Brian Snitker
Michael Jordan
Horace Grant
Scottie Pippen
Luc Longley
Chicago Bulls
Detroit Pistons
Karl Malone
Charles Barkley
Megan Ulrich
Jon Kearney

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 16 – Tears of God Dec 09, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about Michael Metz’s lack of a nickname (00:30), pig iron plants (02:30), and how to get out of the stone age (05:20). Connor returns to last episode‘s conversation about expectations and desires (08:00), Rob speaks about the temptation to squash desire (11:50) and the fruits of Kreeft’s book on suffering in one of his small groups (12:30). The dogs proceed to talk about suffering (22:58) demons in Tobit (29:40) and why God won’t answer Job’s questions (36:00).

Quotes:

“Suffering has made me more myself.” (Connor, 22:58)

“I don’t want this grief to go away.” (quote from Andrew Garfield, 24:36)

“The more you love, the more you suffer.” (Connor, 25:30)

“The only real meaning of human life is love and yet the more you let go of your own expectations and enter into communion with the other, the more you make yourself vulnerable.” (Connor, 27:51)

“Even in suffering there can be love. It’s not either joy or suffering, but the possibility of joy in suffering.” (Michael Metz, 32:00)

“I’m not answering questions so that the questions go away.” (Connor, 36:00)

“I have found enough clues to live by.” (quote from Peter Kreeft, 37:10)

“The only thing that satisfied the human heart is a face.” (Michael Metz, 39:00)

Media Mentions:

Pig Iron
Alone: The Arctic (TV 2015- present)
Peter Kreeft’s Making Sense Out of Suffering
C.S. Lewis’s Till We Have Faces
Peter Kreeft’s talk on Till We Have Faces
Luigi Giussani’s The Religious Sense (Chapter 1 for more on “elementary experience”)
Andrew Garfield on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Tobit 8:5-7
John Paul II’s Salvifici Doloris
Job, The Book of
Sheldon Vanauken’s A Severe Mercy
Blade Runner (1982)

Shout-outs:

Joe Pug
Katy Dornbos
Jon Kearney
Jordan B. Peterson
G.K. Chesterton
Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI)
Fyodor Dostoevsky

Miscellany:

(07:05) Bow Drill

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 15 – Super spreader of joy Dec 02, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about college football coaching shake-ups (00:33), the start of Advent (05:40), and the altar server pizza party at Mike’s parish (07:10). Mike asks the other dogs how they find a balance between desire and expectation (16:10). Rob describes the mystics and their posture of holy indifference as a way to heal from human expectations (21:22) and Connor pinpoints freedom as the main difference between desire and expectations (21:46). Mike very vulnerably acknowledges his own unmet expectations of priesthood and the healing transformation that came from giving those expectations back to the Lord (32:29). They finish up with some classic ribbing on “faith journeys” and “seasons” (39:55).

Quotes

“Do I know You well enough now Lord and trust You, that I can take this desire seriously, but have a holy indifference to the expectation that may come with it?” (Rob, 21:22)
“The difference between desire and expectation is freedom; you allow the other to be free.” (Connor, 21:48)
”God does not have expectations of me. He wants something for me, not something from me.” (Connor, 23:42)
“It’s a limitation on desire when we get wrapped up in expectations.” (Mike, 25:00)
“Existing in hope is tense, to be constantly fighting against expectations and allowing desire to flourish, even though you know the more you desire, the less this world is going to be able to satisfy those desires and the more you have to point your heart to God, that often looks like the cross. It’s seriously painful.” (Connor, 31:12)
“I wanna turn to the reality of this vocation, so instead of focusing on the limitedness of this desire, I can let that go. You realize you’re holding onto something that was too small and that the Lord wants something more for you.” (Mike, 33:15)
“To be able to articulate our expectations and then give them to the Lord is a way of giving our humanity to Christ, which then allows Him to transform it into His Divine desire.” (Mike, 34:54)
“If you can find that distinction, between expectation and desire, that is where humanity lives.” (Rob, 37:12)
“God gives me whatever I want because whatever God gives me, that’s what I want.” (Connor summarizing Scott Hahn who was quoting St. Therese of Lisieux, 38:52)
“Grace is not cheap.” (Mike invoking Rob who was verbatim quoting Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 39:55)

Media Mentions

Notre Dame vs Illinois (11/29 men’s basketball)
Pacific Rim (2013)
Jordan B. Peterson’s The 4 Horsemen of Meaning
St. John of the Cross’ Dark Night of the Soul

Shout-outs

Notre Dame Football
Georgia Bulldogs
Brian Kelly
Lincoln Riley
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
Louisiana State University
Pete Carroll
University of California, Los Angeles
Rams
Chargers
Philip Rivers (preceding day 3 keynote at SLS20)
Cor Coffee
FOCUS
Theresa (Mike’s sister)
Jordan B. Peterson
Bishop Robert Barron
St. John of the Cross
Fr. John Kartje
Fr. Timothy Gallagher
Fr. Walter Ciszek
Scott Hahn
St. Therese of Lisieux
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 14 – Never skip leg day Nov 25, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs catch up about beef milk (02:55) Mike’s grandfather (09:07) and Squid Game (13:10). Connor brings up Hildebrand’s delineation of the classical man (18:41). Rob then asks for an explanation of those fundamental principles (22:02) and they all discuss.

Quotes:

“I am going to be a human being in the world and not let technology trump my humanity and my embodiedness.” (Connor 20:52)

“Sanctity never goes out of style.” (Connor 23:15)

“Everything stops for a funeral.” (Fr. Baima 25:50)

“To be fully alive is to be small.” (Connor 35:00)

Media Mentions:

Parks and Recreation (2019- 2015)
TikTok
Slack
Google Docs
Squid Game (2021)
Parasite/Gisaengchung (2019)
Dune (2021)
Blade Runner (1982)
Dietrich von Hildebrand’s Liturgy and Personality (The Classical Spirit in the Liturgy)
Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons (play)
Jordan B. Peterson’s The 4 Horsemen of Meaning
Taco Bell’s Taco Neck
G.K. Chesterton’s Tremendous Trifles
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989)

Shout-outs:

Starbucks
UGG Boots
Fr. Gus
Mike’s grandfather
Dave Ramsey
Connor’s dad
St. John Paul II Newman Center
Cor Coffee
Juice Box
Maximilian Kolbe
Fr. Paul Porter
Fr. Oakes
Fr. Baima
St. Thomas More
Jordan B. Peterson
Bishop Robert Barron
John Vervaeke
Jonathan Pageau

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 13- That was delicious Nov 17, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about early mornings (1:50), trucks (9:40), and beards (10:00). Connor considers what it means to be overwhelmed by beauty (6:45) and Rob asks the dogs to differentiate possessions and belongings (12:50). They all discuss how to have a healthy attachment to material goods (19:55), their plans for the end of the world (39:10), and approaching the final horizon of death as a saint (43:08).

Quotes:

“The human heart is wired for God.” (Connor, 7:22)

“We have a longing for God, which is goodness.” (Mike 25:30)

“It’s important to have a relationship with things according to reality.” (Connor 29:55)

“Part of walking through the pilgrimage of life is being properly attached to the things that belong to you, but not in a way that makes them your final end.” (Connor, 31:50)

“The only thing you get to take with you is what you’ve given away.” (Cardinal George, 32:07)

“Here was a man words cannot describe. Death could not defeat him nor toil dismay him. He was quite without a preference of his own; he neither feared to die nor refused to live. “ (second reading from the Office of Readings on November 11th)

Media:

Impossible without Him- Season 7 Episode 10 (marathon story starts at 24:49)
Family Feud
Erazim’s Kohák’s The Embers and the Stars
Wendell Berry’s Jayber Crow
Henry David Thoreau’s Walden Pond
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince (Chapter 13)
Luke 17:11-19 (Jesus heals the ten men with leprosy)
Friedrich Nietzsche’s Eternal Recurrence
Robert Hugh Benson’s Lord of the World
SNL’s What Up With That?

Shout-Outs:

SEEK 2019 (Indianapolis, IN)
Steve Harvey
Alex Trebec
Gable (the Great)
Sr. Alicia, Sr. Kara Davis, and Sr. Kate
Jon Kearney
SEEK 2020 (Phoenix, AZ)
Ben Hasse
1997 Ford F-250
Fr. Nick Blaha
Cardinal George
Bishop Paprocki
Jay Leno
Astros
Cardinals
Michael Scott
Martin of Tours
Pope St. John Paul II Chapel (Mundelein Seminary, IL)
Pope Francis
Joe Pug

Dog Wisdom

Rob starts the day by saying, “Thank you Lord for this day.” (2:00)

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 12 – Spirit of the crowd Nov 03, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about the Atlanta Braves (0:34) and “baseball guys” (04:00). Rob brings up the objective characteristics of beauty (9:01) and his concerns over Facebook’s newest attempts to make the internet even more immersive (16:30). Connor critiques some recently viewed dystopian films (22:50). Mike speaks about the limits of technology as it relates to the human experience (34:21) and they all discuss what it means to be “gripped by the spirit of love” (36:30) so as to experience a foretaste of Heaven.

Quotes:

“Beauty is the manifestation of truth.” (Denis McNamara, 9:27)

“Relating to God in a true way helps you relate to human beings in a more embodied way.’ (Connor, 31:50)

“Part of the enticement of technology is that it gives the façade that we are capable of handling more than we actually are.” (Mike, 34:21)

“We have an infinite desire to relate.” (Connor, 35:50)

Media:

Chris Ballard’s One Shot at Forever
Ken Burns’ Baseball (1994)
Bishop Robert Barron’s “Catholicism and Beauty” // 2018 LA Religious Congress Talk (40:20)
Facebook
Google
Ready Player One (2018)
Blade Runner (1982)
Chappie (2015)

Shout-Outs:

Brian Snitker
Macon, IL
Macon, GA
Joe Madden
Dusty Baker
Premier League
Bill Belichick
Cor Coffee
Bishop Robert Barron
John Madden
Gable (the Great)
Megan Ulrich
Jacelyn from UIC (sorry….)
Jordan B. Peterson
Truist Park
Chicago Bulls
Trent Schmidt
Mundelein
March Madness
Kansas State Basketball
Mark Zuckerberg
Miguel Montero

Dog Wisdom:

Objective characteristics of beauty: Integrity (integritas), Clarity (claritas), and Composition (consonantia). (09:00)
A-R-R-R Prayer (31:40)

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 11- Hierarchy of goods Oct 20, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs discuss the renovations to the chapel at UIC (01:35). Mike brings up a Ratzinger quote about the Eucharist as thanksgiving (04:40) and Connor responds with some thoughts on what it means to live as a human who appropriately responds to value (11:12). They close by discussing how to authentically embrace suffering (14:20) and Rob brings the conversation back to Christ’s humanity and His intimate relationship with us (20:05).

Quotes:

“Is the entirety of my existence transformed into thanksgiving?” (Mike, 06:55 in response to Ratzinger’s quote)

“Can I offer up my limitations, my lack, as a way to glorify God?” (Mike, 08:53)

“The normal person is the one who responds to value according to the hierarchy of goods.” (Connor, 11:12 in summary of Hildebrand)

“God doesn’t heal places, he heals people.” (Jim Rafferty, 20:05)

Media:

Jordan B. Peterson’s 12 Rules for Life-Rule (#8 “Tell the truth-or, at least, don’t lie”)
Usedchurchitems.com
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger’s God Is Near Us: The Eucharist, the Heart of Life
Dietrich von Hildebrand’s Liturgy and Personality
Brian Regan’s The Emergency Room (broken femur)
C.S. Lewis’s A Horse and His Boy
Leo Tolstoy’s Death of Ivan Ilyich
Art of Manliness The 7 Habits: Begin With the End in Mind

Shout-Outs:

All Saints St. Anthony in Bridgeport
St. John Cantius Church
Cardinal Cody
Sistine Chapel
Maximilian Kolbe
Bishop Robert Barron
Christopher Daniels
Pinecrest Academy
Jim Rafferty
Jocelyn from UIC

Dog Wisdom:

“To be full, you have to be empty” (Rob, 31:17)

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 10 – Keep the edge Oct 14, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about situations when anger is the appropriate response to evil.

Connor recounts his experience at a recent Joe Pug concert in Berwyn, IL (02:30) and Rob’s nine-year-old nephew shot his first deer (04:45). Rob shared the fruit of his five-day silent retreat (08:30) and the encouragement he received to have anger toward evil (12:24) to the extent that it reflects God’s own steadfast resistance to sin and death (25:50). Connor brings up Lewis’s reflections on God as a skilled surgeon and they all reflect on their experiences of celibacy (37:43).

Quotes:

“Keep the edge. Don’t let go of the edge.” (Linda Couri, 12:24)

“It’s God’s goodness that is almost scary because He’s not going to stop until I’m all the way healed.” (Connor, 28:31 in response to A Grief Observed)

“I get to wake up every morning, 5 am, make some soup!” (Ignacio, 38:21)

Media Mentions:

Dietrich Von Hildebrand’s The Heart
The Hulk
C.S. Lewis’s A Grief Observed (pg. 43)
Nacho Libre
Seinfeld

Shout-Outs:

Jon Kearney
Joe Pug
Berwyn, IL
Fr. Bob Crouger
St. Rene Goupil
Fr. Bob Regan
Juice Box (Rob’s nephew)
Linda Couri
Fr. John Kartje
Fr. Lawrence Hennessey
Fr. Brian Welter (Old Welt Dog)
Jesper Parnevik
Fr. Emil Kapaun

Miscellany:

fantasy justice (14:15)
affective movements (22:20)
void of reciprocity (31:10)

Follow the dogs on Instagram @threedogsnorth and Facebook @threedogsnorth

S11 Episode 9 – Box of exploding kittens Oct 06, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about how to take care of Gremlins (2:10) and exploding kittens (4:40). Connor shares his fear of unmet expectations (6:30) and they all discuss what it means to ultimately trust that God is a good father (11:30) who will provide for his children (13:00). Rob asks for grace on his upcoming retreat (19:45) and they all come up with the characteristics of a stout heart (Rob, 21:31; Mike, 23:10; Connor: 25:20).

Quotes:

“I am not the architect of my own life and the happiness that is in store for me is not because I’ve planned it or because I chose the right thing.” (Connor, 8:30)

“My life is a story that is being written by God, not me.” (Connor, 11:05)

“You just have to be a kid and let the Father provide, because sometimes you forget to put on your pants.” (Mike, 13:05)

“A stout heart is not looking for anything other than reality.” (Rob, 22:45)

“I want my heart to be convicted of the things I assent to believe with my mind.” (Mike, 25:00)

“When one enjoys consolation, let him consider how to conduct himself during the time of ensuing desolation, and store up a supply of strength as defense against that day.” (St. Ignatius of Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises 323, 25:20)

“A stout heart is confronting reality with the absolute courage and conviction that the Lord is in it, that there is no better reality if I had just planned ahead better.” (Connor, 27:25)

“To be somebody or to do something. In life there is often a roll call. That’s when you will have to make a decision. To be or to do? Which way will you go?” (John Boyd, 29:35)

“The more and more I’m radically available, the more and more people will come and demand my love for them.” (Mike, 32:15)

Media Mentions:

Antlers (2021)
Gremlins (1984)
Band of Brothers: Bastogne (2001)
1 Corinthians 2:9
George Weigel’s The Fragility of Order (in reference to stouthearted friendship with Bishop Borys Gudziak and Bishop Robert Barron)
St. Ignatius of Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises
Robert Coram’s Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War

Shout-Outs:

Cor Coffee
Box of Exploding Kittens
Unstable Unicorns
Major Winters
Bishop Bob Lombardo
St. Ignatius of Loyola
George Weigel
Bishop Robert Barron
Connor’s Dad
John Boyd
Hans Urs von Balthasar (ego-drama vs. theo-drama)

S11 Episode 8 – All man, all priest Sep 29, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, the dogs talk about a Korean War chaplain who is a candidate for canonization as well as the specific graces they are praying for right now.

Connor talks about a redo July 4th celebration in September (4:48) and Mike shares that he will be attending Fr. Emil Kapaun’s funeral mass in Wichita, KS (6:50). Rob asks the group for help in discerning what graces to ask for on his upcoming retreat (10:45). Connor and Rob circle around the idea of Divine intimacy (11:35) and Mike shares his recent desire for a decluttered heart in prayer (13:11). The dogs close out the episode sharing inspiring stories about Fr. Kapaun’s leadership and his servant’s heart (18:24)

Quotes:

“All man, all priest.” (description of Fr. Emil Kapaun, 8:56)

“When God wants someone to die for sin, he sends his son.” (from Monsieur Vincent, 26:55)

Media Mentions:

John Philip Sousa
Toby Keith’s “The Angry American”
Lee Greenwood’s “Proud to Be an American”
Travis Heying and Roy Wenzl’s The Miracle of Father Kapaun: Priest, Soldier, and Korean War Hero
Monsieur Vincent (1947)
Step Brothers

Shout-Outs:

Anthony (Mike’s Nephew)
Ryder Cup
Fr. Emil Kapaun
Bishop Carl A. Kemme
The Blessed Mother
St. Francis
St. Vincent de Paul
Le Louvre
Netflix
Pierre and Cecile Roux
Lisieux, France
Will Ferrell

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