Thomas Aquinas and the Philosophy of Punishment – Dr. Peter Koritansky

Dr. Peter Koritansky argues that Thomas Aquinas grounds punishment in natural law and retributive justice, where punishment is justified not merely to deter or rehabilitate, but to express the moral order and the common good. This lecture was given on March 5th, 2026, at Cornell University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events . About the Speakers: Dr. Peter Karl Koritansky is a professor and Director of the Center for Civics, Culture, and Society at Cleveland State University. He has previously taught at Malone University, Walsh University, The University of Prince Edward Island in Canada, and the Ateneo Pontificio Regina Apostolorum in Rome, Italy. He has also been a visiting research scholar with the Jacques Maritain Center at The University of Notre Dame and at Princeton University with the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. He is the author of several articles and books, including Thomas Aquinas and the Philosophy of Punishment (The Catholic University of America Press, 2012), Engaging the Skeptic: Addressing the Modern Secularist’s Objections to the Catholic Worldview (Justin Press, 2018), and "Thomas Aquinas and the Euthyphro Dilemma" (The Heythrop Journal, 2021). He now lives in Hambden, Ohio with his wife, Pam, and four children. Keywords: Anger, Common Good, Criminal Justice, Desert, Irascible Appetite, Moral Order, Natural Law, Punishment, Retributive Justice

You can listen to Thomas Aquinas and the Philosophy of Punishment – Dr. Peter Koritansky online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Thomas Aquinas and the Philosophy of Punishment – Dr. Peter Koritansky is an episode from The Thomistic Institute by The Thomistic Institute.

This episode is 52:48 long.

This episode was published on Apr 22, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from The Thomistic Institute when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.