Who Are We?
The Social Catholic was founded in the summer of 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Jethro Higgins and his wife, Lizanie, wanted to do their part to help Catholics continue to grow in truth and virtue while the Catholic community was deprived of access to the Eucharist. At first, we sought to do this by promoting devotional prayer through little-known devotions such as the St. Benedict Chaplet and the Flying Novena.
We were founded in the second year of Jethro's studies at the Augustine Institute, and our mission quickly expanded to include creating digital content to help Catholics learn more about their faith and grow together in virtue. We distribute that content through Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X (Twitter), TheSocialCatholic.com, podcast services like Apple & Spotify, and here on substack.com.
The name 'The Social Catholic' was chosen for a couple of reasons. First, we were founded to share the faith. You'll notice that the keys in our logo are turned 90 degrees to resemble a share icon. Second, we believe that true Catholic social teaching — not the popular caricature created by politics, the media, and celebrity Catholics — can be a stabilizing force in our Church and in our world, helping reduce unnecessary conflict. And third, we observed that social media — and online content in general — can be an incredibly toxic force, absent the transcendentals of truth, beauty, and goodness. We want our work to contribute to an opposing force, bringing the transcendentals into a space that desperately needs them.
Our Founders
Jethro Higgins — Founder of The Social Catholic
Jethro was born and raised in Eugene, Oregon, when the Pacific Northwest was known as the "unchurched belt." His faith was forged in the fire of constant challenges to defend his beliefs. In the 90's, Eugene held the title of the most unchurched city in the most unchurched state. Jethro received his undergrad degree from the University of Oregon in Religious Studies. He would go on to receive a Master's degree in Business from The Catholic University of America, and a Master's degree in Theology from The Augustine Institute. Jethro is a 4th-degree Knight of Columbus. He has been involved in liturgical music for 32 years, and currently serves as a cantor for the 8:00 A.M. mass at their parish.
Jethro has been a youth ministry leader for 25 years — primarily in the LifeTeen model — and has taught catechesis for the last 20 years. In that time he has also worked with, and for, many Catholic organizations including The Augustine Institute, Source & Summit, The National Eucharistic Revival, Formed, Word of Life, Ignatius Press, The Amen Prayer App, Oregon Catholic Press, OpusFidelis, Aleteia.org, The Archdiocese of Arlington, and dozens of Catholic schools and parishes in Oregon and along the East Coast. Jethro met his wife, Lizanie, through Catholic Match and likes to joke with his kids that he searched the entire planet to find the very best mama for them in the entire world. Jethro and Lizanie have been married for 15 years and have six kids on earth, and number seven is in heaven — St. Ezekiel Michael, pray for us! They live "out in the sticks" in a small town south of Eugene, Oregon, where they homeschool their children and enjoy handicrafts and homesteading projects.
Lizanie Higgins — Co-founder of The Social Catholic
Lizanie was born in the Philippines in Mandaue, Cebu. With 80% of Filipinos being Catholic, the Philippines has the third largest Catholic population of any country in the world, with 93 million Catholics — behind Brazil (140 mil - 46%) and Mexico (103.3 mil - 67%). Lizanie was heavily involved in youth ministry as a teen and a young adult. She was a leader for her Youth for Christ chapter in Mandaue, part of the parent organization of Couples for Christ. Lizanie was a cheerleader and a Girl Scouts of the Philippines Cadet — the equivalent of an Eagle Scout for girls. She never once heard about cookies during her days as a scout, but she learned bushcraft, martial arts, and how to decipher and communicate using various codes.
Lizanie received her Civil Engineering degree from the Cebu Institute of Technology University in 2006, and worked for nearly six years in the Philippines as a Civil Engineer. Lizanie immigrated to the United States in January of 2012 — 17 months after her marriage to Jethro. Ask her sometime about the transition from tropical 90-degree weather in the Philippines to winter in Northern Virginia. Lizanie currently works as a homemaker and a teacher to their six homeschooled children. She enjoys baking and crafting. Lizanie prefers to work behind the scenes so you won't see her much on camera, but she produces the majority of the handcrafted products available on thesocialcatholic.com.
About the VirTrue Podcast
VirTrue is a Catholic podcast dedicated to rebuilding the moral life through the recovery of virtue.
If you have ever searched for meaning in moral philosophy, human flourishing, or the deeper subject matter behind virtue and vice, this podcast is for you.
VirTrue explores the theological virtues and the cardinal virtue tradition through the lens of Catholic teaching, Aristotelian virtue, and the wisdom of the 13th century masters like St. Thomas Aquinas. We connect ancient Greek insights from the Nicomachean Ethics with the Catholic Encyclopedia tradition and modern virtue ethics to help you live with moral excellence in everyday life.
This is not abstract theory.
This is about your moral character. Your human nature. Your real decisions.
Each episode breaks down one moral virtue at a time, examining how it acts in accordance with reason, how it strengthens particular moral choices, and how it shapes the habits that determine your moral worth. We look at concepts of virtue through the lens of classical moral philosophy, moral psychology, political philosophy, and the metaphysics of morals. Then we bring it home to family life, business, leadership, and culture.
You will hear references to:
- Accounts of the virtues from Aristotle and Aquinas
- The golden mean and natural tendencies
- Intellectual virtue and moral virtue
- Virtue and vice in real human relationships
- The development of character traits that lead to true virtue
VirTrue bridges the gap between encyclopedia of philosophy discussions and lived Catholic practice. Whether your interest comes from Oxford University Press editions of Aristotle, Harvard University Press commentaries, the Catholic Encyclopedia published by the York Robert Appleton Company, or simply a desire to grow in moral excellence, this podcast brings those streams together in one accessible place.
This is virtue ethical formation for real life.
We move beyond dictionary definitions and example sentences. We focus on formation. On the habits that lead to human flourishing. On what it means to live in accordance with reason and divine revelation.
If you care about:
- Building strong families
- Forming disciplined leaders
- Raising children in true virtue
- Restoring moral clarity in a confused age
- Understanding vices and virtues at their root
Then you belong here.
VirTrue is not about modern virtue trends or surface-level positivity. It is about the deep structure of the moral life, grounded in Catholic tradition and ordered toward heaven.
If you are ready to move from ideas about virtue to acts in accordance with virtue, subscribe and join us.
Let's fill the world with virtue. Deus Vult!
The VirTrue podcast is listener-supported. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Why Subscribe?
Your subscription helps create podcasts from The Social Catholic, such as VirTrue. We want to expand by including kids' content on Catholic theology and a podcast to help integrate your business and your faith life, but we need your support to make those ideas a reality.