Join us with Dan Pena on August 27th

Let me say the quiet part out loud.

A lot of us are hiding. Not from the world but from the work. We turn discernment into a stall. We "pray about it" for long time. We call our fear prudence and our procrastination patience, and we say the whole thing so avoidance feels holy.

I've done it. I know the move.

So on August 27th in Manhattan, I'm putting Dan Peña at the head of our table. The "Trillion Dollar Man." The guy who curses. The guy your spiritual director would side-eye. I invited him on purpose.

He's right. And if that stings, it's for you.

Now, about the swearing

I already hear it: you're putting a man who curses in front of a Catholic room?

Yes. And remember who set the policy first: "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners." That's not Peña. That's Christ (Mark 2:17).

Mark Wahlberg a devout Catholic made and paid for Father Stu and refused to sanitize the language. He said it's what makes it honest. He wanted it "inclusive to everybody who needs people," not polished for the already-devout. His words: "He didn't come to save the righteous."

That's not Hollywood being edgy. It's the oldest pattern in the Church. If you think a blunt, unpolished man can't teach you anything about God, you don't know your own saints.

Peter the first Pope "began to curse and to swear" the night he denied Christ, a day after he cut off a man's ear (Mark 14:71). Moses the Black ran a robber gang. Camillus de Lellis was a brawling soldier who gambled away the shirt off his back. Ignatius nearly killed a man over an insult. Not one of them was polished.

And before anyone calls this too worldly: the same Jesus who preached "blessed are the meek" also made a whip, flipped the tables, and drove the merchants out of the temple by hand (John 2:15).

Holiness was never the same thing as being polite.

Padre Pio proved it in our own century.

He'd throw people out of his confessional —bark "Go away!" and shut the grille when he sensed they weren't serious.

Pilgrims traveled for days just to get scolded by a saint. It wasn't cruelty. He refused to let anyone waste the grace sitting right in front of them.

Bluntness can be the highest form of care.

Polish was never the qualification. Surrender was. Action was.

Peña is unpolished. Good. So was nearly everyone God has ever used.

What actually happens that night

• 5:30 — Cocktails. Show up. Meet people who are building real things.

• 6:30 — Dinner by candlelight, wine included.

• 7:30 — Peña takes the room. Buckle up.

• 8:30 — Open Q&A. Ask the thing you're scared to ask. That's the whole point.

• 9:30–11:00 — We stay. We talk. The best conversations always happen after the program ends.

Sign up here to join us on Thursday August 27th 

We would like to thank our sponsors!

Catholic Founders is run by my good friend Silas Mähner, and he's on a mission to help Catholics start and grow their businesses so that, through entrepreneurship, we can convert the country in the next 20 years. What sets Catholic founders apart isn't just faith as a backdrop it's the virtues. Prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance aren't just spiritual ideals; they're practical tools that shape how we build companies, lead teams, and serve customers.

Catholic entrepreneurship is about building businesses that are not only profitable, but genuinely good rooted in a moral framework that the secular world increasingly lacks. They have a weekly podcast and newsletter that explore these topics with top entrepreneurs like Alessandro Di Santo and distill those into lessons for you and me to take away. I highly encourage you to follow their podcast and newsletter and check out their peer group called the Catholic Founders Guild. You can more information here about his mission.

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If you are interested in becoming one of our sponsors please reach out to us at [email protected]