The Paul Street Journal podcast has some very informative and insightful answers
“… Sensing myself called to continue in this same path, I chose to take the name Leo XIV. There are different reasons for this, but mainly because Pope Leo XIII, in his historic encyclical, “Rerum Novarum,” addressed the social question in the context of the first great Industrial Revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another Industrial Revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor.”
Pope Leo XIV: Address to Cardinals
The first, inaugural episode of The Paul Street Journal podcast was posted a little over two years ago, on May 29, 2023. As you can read in the show notes, “The Paul Street Journal is a podcast all about Catholic social teaching on economics. We discuss everything from the economic principles laid out in scripture to the economic questions that come up in our daily lives. This show will be your guide to making your own economic decisions with the heart of the Church. Hosted by Freddy Garcia and Brian Honsberger.”
In addition to being co-host of The Paul Street Journal, Brian Honsberger serves as executive director of St. Paul Inside the Walls and director of Mission and Technology Integration for the Diocese of Paterson. He also serves as the administrator of the Certificate in Catholic Evangelization, a graduate-level program co-sponsored by the Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology at Seton Hall University and St. Paul Inside the Walls. Brian also teaches Biblical Studies, Theology, and Evangelization courses at the seminary.
In addition to all of the above, Brian and Jai Agnish, our Diocesan director of Communications, with the help of others, were the “driving force” that led to our diocese having three podcasts: Beyond the Beacon, Coffee with Kupke, and The Paul Street Journal.
Freddy Garcia, the other co-host of The Paul Street Journal, works with Brian, Father Paul Manning, vicar for Evangelization and Education, and the Evangelization team at our Diocesan Evangelization Center, St. Paul Inside the Walls. Freddy serves as the associate coordinator of Evangelization and Campus Minister (at Fairleigh Dickinson and Drew Universities).
I listened to the first few episodes of The Paul Street Journal when they first came out in the summer of 2023, but then got out of the habit and had been meaning to get back to listening and catch up on what I had missed. While I am a little sad to say that it took me a while to return, I was so glad and grateful to hear the latest episode, Season 3, Episode 9, posted on May 28, 2025 (one day short of the show’s second anniversary).
The title of “S3 E9” is: “Pope Leo XIV and Catholic Social Teaching.”
Since our new Holy Father was elected and chose the name Leo XIV, many Catholics, including “yours truly,” have been wondering, not only why he chose the name, but also what the pontificate of Pope Leo XIII can tell us about what we might expect from our new Holy Father. Brian and Freddy do an excellent job answering those questions. They also invite us to go back to some previous episodes of the podcast, especially Season 2, Episode 1 “Rerum Novarum.”
Many see “Rerum Novarum” as the foundational document for modern Catholic Social Teaching. Brian and Freddy provide some background, history and biography of the life and ministry of Pope Leo XIII, explaining how his gifted intellect, administrative skills and experience allowed him to read the “signs of the times” in order to bring the light of the Gospel and apply Catholic principles to the economic and other challenges of those times. You will see that, throughout Season 2 of The Paul Street Journal, in Episodes 2 — 10, Brian and Freddy review eight Papal Encyclicals (from Pius XI, John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul II, to Francis) and “Gaudium et Spes,” the Pastoral Constitution from the Second Vatican Council, as they discuss the development of Catholic Social Teaching over the past 134 years. With the choice of the name Leo XIV, we can be sure that our new Holy Father will build on this very strong foundation, as he says in the quote above, “offering the treasury of (the Church’s) social teaching in response to another Industrial Revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence…”
I encourage you, not only to listen to the latest episode of The Paul Street Journal, but to join me in “going back,” either to Season 1, Episode 1 or, at least, to the 10 Episodes of Season 2 that will prepare us well for receiving some the teaching that Pope Leo XIV is sure to be offering to us, to the whole Church and to the world in these challenging times. Just in case you may need a little more encouragement, I would like to leave you with some “highlights” of Brian’s description of the similarities in the world and society of Pope Leo XIII with our world and society of today, as Pope Leo XIV begins his pontificate:
“Late 1800’s we were in the middle of a “tech revolution”, trains, steamships, all of this new “industrialization,” there were major market disruptions, there were new economic models being proposed … We were in the middle at that time of a political and social polarization, capital versus labor, major wealth disparity, very few rich people, many, many poor people …”
Sound familiar? I am writing these words on Sunday, June 29, the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul. We continue to pray for the Church and her leaders. In the challenging times of our present day, we pray especially for our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV, and we give thanks to Brian Honsberger, Freddy Garcia, and The Paul Street Journal for helping us to understand and appreciate the importance and meaning in the choice of a name.
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