The Office of Special Trial Counsel
How Article 24a, UCMJ — enacted in the FY 2022 NDAA and effective 27 December 2023 — created the Office of Special Trial Counsel and stripped commanders of authority over covered offenses.
· 5 min read
Faith, Law, and the Free Society
Faith. Service. Law.
This is where I think out loud about the things that matter most — how faith shapes public life, what the law demands of us, and why community is worth the work.
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Army JAG School: A Complete Guide to the Judge Advocate Officer Basic Course
The Army's Judge Advocate Officer Basic Course (JAOBC) at TJAGLCS in Charlottesville: schedule, curriculum, daily life, and a week-by-week firsthand account.
· 9 min read
The Yale Divinity School Application Guide: Acceptance Rate, Essays, Degrees, and What to Expect
Yale Divinity School's acceptance rate is roughly 23%. I got in — my complete 2026 guide to degree options, essays, full-tuition aid, and what admissions actually looks for.
· 18 min read
What I Write About
Thoughtful writing at the intersection of faith, public service, and constitutional principles.
New Here? Start With These
A curated introduction to the ideas and themes I explore most.
Faith and Public Life
The Abuse Scandal and the Authority of the Church
Does the clerical sexual abuse scandal disprove the Catholic Church’s authority to teach? The answer turns on infallibility, indefectibility, and impeccability.
Service and Sacrifice
JASOC: The Complete Guide to Air Force JAG Training
Everything you need to know about JASOC—the Air Force Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course at Maxwell AFB. Schedule, curriculum, and firsthand tips from a former JAG officer.
Rule of Law and Liberty
The Article 32 Preliminary Hearing
How the Article 32 preliminary hearing works after the FY 2014 and FY 2015 NDAA reforms — narrower scope, paper-based practice, waiver, and the OSTC interaction.
Community and Place
The Inhospitable Table: On Political Hatred and the Death of Civic Courtesy
Governor Sanders was asked to leave a Little Rock restaurant. This essay examines what the Croissanterie incident reveals about political hatred, tolerance, and the slow death of civic life in America.
Recent Writing
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The Abuse Scandal and the Authority of the Church
Does the clerical sexual abuse scandal disprove the Catholic Church’s authority to teach? The answer turns on infallibility, indefectibility, and impeccability.
· 32 min read
Did Rome Break Away from the Orthodox Church?
The charge that Rome rebelled against the Orthodox Church and forfeited apostolic authority gets the history backwards. A Catholic answer from the primary sources.
· 22 min read
Jansenism: The Augustinian Heresy That Divided the Church
What was Jansenism? The 17th-century Augustinian movement on grace that the Church condemned—its five propositions, Port-Royal, Pascal, and the bull Unigenitus.
· 14 min read
Saint James the Less: The Apostle and the Brother of the Lord
A scholarly Catholic account of Saint James the Less—the apostle son of Alphaeus, whether he is the brother of the Lord and bishop of Jerusalem, and the three theories of the brothers of Jesus.
· 33 min read
Nestorianism Explained: The Heresy That Made the Church Define Mary as Mother of God
Nestorianism split Christ into two persons and refused to call Mary Theotokos. Here is what Nestorius actually taught, how Ephesus answered, and why the 'Nestorian Church' is misnamed.
· 24 min read
Saint Simon the Zealot: The Apostle Who Is Only a Name
A scholarly Catholic account of Saint Simon the Zealot — what “Cananean” really means, why the “Zealot party” label is anachronistic, and the tangle of legends about his death.
· 28 min read
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