The House of Formation Program - Year 2
Cohort Begins Sunday, December 6
Meets Weekly on Sundays, 8:15–9:30 PM Eastern
Continue on the Path To Sainthood
Become the Saint God Created You to Be
Taught by the Great Masters of the Spiritual Life
Aquinas • Carmelite Doctors • Thomistic Tradition
Fall Cohort Begins Monday, September 14
A year-long, weekly online formation program for Catholics seeking
a clear and structured path for growth in the spiritual life.
Be one of 5 to receive $150 off tuition for the September cohort.
Be 1 of 5 to receive $150 off tuition for the Fall cohort.
Guided by St. Thomas Aquinas and the great masters of the spiritual life.
My husband and I are students at the Aquinas Institute.
It has truly been the greatest gift to our spiritual life.
These teachings transform your way of thinking and being!
-Christine Alvarez, House of Formation Member
Not sure if this is the right fit for you or your family?
You’re welcome to schedule a call.
How the Year Unfolds
Year 2 explores four fundamental dimensions of the spiritual life in greater depth. Each quarter is a self-contained course of study.
The second year of the House of Formation builds upon the foundations established during Year 1, allowing us to explore important areas of the spiritual life in greater depth.
We'll continue with the same basic structure of systematic theological instruction, discussion, personal coaching, and ongoing formation, drawing especially upon St. Thomas Aquinas and the great masters of the Catholic spiritual tradition.
Quarter D — The Discernment of Spirits
How can we recognize the interior movements that lead us toward God and those that draw us away from Him?
Drawing particularly on St. Ignatius of Loyola's Rules for the Discernment of Spirits, this quarter explores how the good and evil spirits influence the soul, how to recognize spiritual consolation and desolation, and how to respond wisely to these experiences. Particular attention will be given to applying these principles in our own spiritual lives.
Topics may include:
The nature and importance of the discernment of spirits
How the good and evil spirits influence the soul
Spiritual consolation: its nature and significance
Spiritual desolation: its characteristics and remedies
How to respond during consolation and desolation
Recognizing and resisting the tactics of the evil spirit
Continue Your Formation
Quarter A — The Virtue of Charity: Growing in the Love of God and Neighbor
Charity is the greatest of the theological virtues and the very essence of Christian perfection. Building on the foundations of Year 1, this quarter deepens our understanding of what it means to love God and neighbor with supernatural charity. Particular attention will be given to the concrete exercise of charity, the sins opposed to it, and how charity shapes our daily lives.
Topics may include:
The nature and excellence of charity
Loving God, ourselves, and our neighbor
The order of charity
The acts and effects of charity, including joy, peace, and mercy
Sins opposed to charity, such as acedia, envy, and discord
The growth and perfection of charity and the gift of wisdom
Quarter B — Understanding Sin and Active Purification
Why do we sin, even when we know what is right? And why is mortification necessary for growth in holiness?
Drawing on St. Thomas Aquinas and the great masters of spiritual theology, this quarter explores the causes of sin, particularly the roles of the intellect, will, passions, and habits. We will also examine how mortification and active purification help us overcome sinful inclinations, discipline our passions, and free ourselves from excessive attachments even to legitimate goods, so that we may love God more perfectly.
Topics may include:
The nature and causes of sin
The influence of ignorance, passion, weakness, and malice
Habits and the development of vice
The nature and necessity of mortification
The purification and education of the passions
The purification of the will and its attachments
The role of self-denial in Christian perfection
Quarter C — Penance and Satisfaction
What does sin do to us, and how is the damage it causes repaired? This quarter examines the traditional Catholic teaching on the effects of sin, the virtue of penance, and the meaning of satisfaction or reparation. Particular attention will be given to how Christ's satisfaction makes our own acts of penance fruitful, and how we can cooperate with God's grace in overcoming the effects of our sins.
Topics may include:
The effects of sin and the need for interior healing
Eternal and temporal punishment
The virtue of penance: contrition, confession, and satisfaction
Christ's satisfaction for our sins
Acts of penance and reparation
Indulgences and the remission of temporal punishment
Purgatory and the completion of purification
Year 2 Structure and Details
We continue the familiar House of Formation structure:
Nine regular live seminars per quarter, each lasting 75 minutes, with opportunities for questions and discussion.
Two live AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions per quarter, each lasting 75 minutes.
Three individual 75-minute coaching sessions with Dr. Matthew DuBroy during the year.
Access to class recordings for review or missed meetings.
Continued access to the private Circle community.
Participation for your entire household, including your spouse and mature teenagers.
Class readings and other resources to support your formation.
As before, there is no required homework.
Meeting Schedule
Beginning Sunday, December 6, 2026
Sunday evenings, 8:15–9:30 PM Eastern
The program lasts one year, organized into four quarters, with nine regular classes and two AMAs each quarter.
The Formation Ecosystem
Serious Teaching
Weekly live online sessions taught by Dr. Matthew DuBroy present the principles of the spiritual life clearly and systematically. Drawing from the riches of the Catholic tradition - especially from St. Thomas Aquinas, the Carmelite doctors, Ignatian discernment, and the classic Thomistic commentators - these sessions provide the doctrinal and spiritual architecture needed for real growth.
Teaching supplies what most Catholics lack: a unified map of the spiritual life. But knowledge alone is not enough. People naturally have questions that go beyond the weekly topic — questions that arise from their own prayer, struggles, and circumstances. That’s why further support is built into the program that is adaptive to those needs.
Personal Coaching
Every member receives three one-on-one coaching sessions directly with Dr. DuBroy at the beginning of the program. Coaching exists for a simple reason: it is not obvious how to apply the general principles of the spiritual life in the concrete reality of one's life.
It is helpful to learn these general principles, but one does not immediately become an expert in them upon having learned them for the first time. Coaching helps bridge the gap between principles and practice. It provides individualized guidance, helps establish a livable rhythm of prayer, clarifies priorities, and offers direction when obstacles arise. Without this personal application, people remain unsure, and good intentions do not become stable habits.
Regular Q&A Sessions
Beyond weekly formation and coaching, members have access to dedicated Q&A sessions for all their additional questions that fall outside the scope of the class topics. One learns best from one's own questions, and so this is the place to be able to ask them without having to wait until the topic comes up in class.
Q&A allows members to receive timely, tradition-grounded answers exactly when they need them. It helps fill in the gaps between each member's own questions and the general principles that need to be learned.
Community Support
Participants also have access to a private, moderated member forum for encouragement, shared reflection, and discussion of the weekly material.
This is not a crowded or noisy chat group, but a small and committed community of Catholics pursuing the same goal: growth in holiness.
Community provides steady motivation, accountability, and the sense of not walking the path alone — something especially important for those living their vocation in the world.
Teaching, coaching, Q&A, and community together create a complete structure for spiritual growth. Teaching gives the principles; coaching shows how to apply them; Q&A offers timely clarity; and the community provides support and stability.
This combined structure allows the program to remain serious while respecting the real limits of modern family life. Serious formation requires time — there is no shortcut to depth — and even small weekly commitments, sustained over a year, can produce genuine transformation. The aim is not to overload your schedule, but to build a steady rhythm that allows these truths to take root.
Together, these elements form a true house of formation for the laity — a traditional model adapted faithfully for ordinary Catholics seeking to grow in holiness within their vocation.
Why These Components Work Together
How the Year Unfolds
Fundamentals: Overview of the Spiritual Life
This year lays out the architecture of the spiritual life with particular emphasis on charity as perfection of Christian living . Members clarify and strengthen the foundational elements of their plan of life, supported by their initial three sessions of personal coaching with Dr. DuBroy.
Themes include:
Sanctifying grace
Justification
The perfection of the Christian life
Charity: friendship with God
The stages of spiritual growth and the place of mysticism
The primary means of growth in the tradition (sacraments, merit, and prayer)
Purpose:
To provide an overview of the spiritual life and ground members in the traditional theological principles and practices that make real growth in Christian perfection possible.
Semester 2 — Fundamentals II: Penance and the Forgiveness of Sins
This semester focuses on what the tradition teaches about the forgiveness of sins as the healing of all the effects of sin. It explores what sin truly is and how the virtue of penance — and its principal acts (confession, contrition, and satisfaction) — plays a key role in that healing and in the reconciliation of offended parties, above all God.
Themes include:
Sin as a real deformation requiring interior healing
The debts of eternal and temporal punishment
The three acts of the virtue of penance (contrition, confession, and satisfaction or reparation)
Acts of satisfaction as a means of purification and growth
Christ’s satisfaction for our sins
Indulgences in the life of the Church
Purgatory and the completion of purification
Purpose:
To ground members in the traditional principles that explain how damaged relationships — including our relationship with God — are healed, and to help them grow in the practice of the virtue of penance.
Later in the Year
After these two foundational quarters, the second half of the year continues with further topics drawn from the Church’s spiritual tradition — such as growth in the theological virtues (faith, hope, and charity), discernment of spirits, the practice of prayer, purification and mortification, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the role of the sacraments in the life of grace, the interior dynamics of the passions and temperaments, and the relationship between virtue and vice. Each cohort engages only a selection of these topics, and the specific sequence is adapted to the needs and pace of the community, always following the traditional principles of Christian perfection.
Ready for your year to begin?
Why a Full Year?
Most Catholics approach the spiritual life the way many people approach getting in shape:
energy, good intentions, a few bursts of effort — and then a slow slide back into old habits.
Everyone wants holiness.
But wanting is not training.
1. Why a Year-Long Program?
Because You Don’t Work Out for 90 Days and Call Yourself Fit.
Nobody says: “I went to the gym for three months. I’m all set for life now.”
Why?
Because fitness is not an event — it’s a way of life.
The moment you stop training, you lose strength.
It is exactly the same with the spiritual life.
Virtue grows slowly, by repetition and stability.
If you stop forming the soul, the soul drifts.
Three months can inspire you.
But it cannot form you.
Lasting transformation requires a sustained rhythm over time — not intensity for a season but constancy for a year.
That’s why the program requires a year-long commitment to begin:
to break the cycle of short-term bursts and give people the time framework that actually produces change.
And importantly: you can continue beyond the year.
Some people in our calls were worried that the program lasted only a year — but this is something you can do for years to come.
2. “But I’m Busy.”
So are all the people who work out consistently.
The key is the minimum effective dose.
Busy people can still get strong — because they follow a system designed to get maximum results in the smallest realistic time.
That’s exactly how the Institute is designed.
We do not ask people to live like monks.
We do not overload them with hours of content.
We have scaled everything down to the minimum effective dose of spiritual training:
a weekly session
a small amount of review between classes
clear principlces that build upon each other
coaching to help you apply those principles
Nothing excessive.
Nothing burdensome.
Nothing extraneous.
Just the essential structure that keeps you progressing — steadily, sanely, sustainably.
Just like a well-designed strength program, this is the least amount of training necessary to keep growing without backsliding.
3. Why This Works and Why Nothing Else Does
Reading books is like watching workout videos.
Listening to Catholic podcasts is like watching athletes train.
You may learn something — but you don’t change.
People don’t grow spiritually because they lack desire.
They don’t grow because they lack:
structure
accountability
feedback
continuity
a long-term plan
A good strength coach doesn’t just tell you what exercises to do.
He teaches you how the body works, so that:
you can troubleshoot plateaus
adjust intelligently
avoid injury
and keep progressing on your own
The Institute works the same way.
You don’t just get “spiritual workouts.”
It forms you intellectually in the principles of the spiritual life.
You are not simply “getting holier.”
You are learning why each step works so that you can navigate the spiritual life with clarity for the rest of your life.
4. The Logic Is Simple
You want holiness.
Holiness requires training.
Training requires consistency.
Consistency requires a year-long structure.
And the structure must be as lean as possible so busy people actually stay with it.
People don’t grow spiritually because they lack desire.
They don’t grow because they lack:
structure
accountability
feedback
continuity
a long-term plan
A good strength coach doesn’t just tell you what exercises to do.
He teaches you how the body works, so that:
you can troubleshoot plateaus
adjust intelligently
avoid injury
and keep progressing on your own
The Institute works the same way.
You don’t just get “spiritual workouts.”
It forms you intellectually in the principles of the spiritual life.
You are not simply “getting holier.”
You are learning why each step works so that you can navigate the spiritual life with clarity for the rest of your life.
Who is this for?
This program is for Catholics who want to take the spiritual life seriously — not as an occasional interest, but as a real path to holiness. It is for those who sense that the Church’s tradition contains far more wisdom than they have ever been given, and who want to be formed in that tradition in a steady and intentional way.
This is for you if:
You want a clear, unified understanding of the spiritual life — grace, virtue, prayer, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the stages of growth.
You want to be guided by the Church’s spiritual tradition, especially St. Thomas Aquinas, the Carmelite doctors, Ignatian discernment, and the classic Thomistic commentators.
You are tired of piecing together your formation from random talks, YouTube videos, devotions, or scattered advice.
You want to grow in charity — not vaguely, but in a structured, concrete, and traditional way.
You want someone learned, trustworthy, and grounded in the tradition to guide you and answer your questions.
You want stability and accountability, not one more short-term burst of spiritual intensity.
You are willing to give God consistent time, even if your schedule is busy.
You want clarity and confidence in your prayer life, and in discerning where God is leading you.
You want to understand how to apply general principles to your actual vocation, responsibilities, temperament, and struggles.
You want to be part of a small, serious community of Catholics who are striving for the same goal.
You want to be challenged to live up to your true calling — the call to become a saint — and you want formation that treats that vocation with the seriousness it deserves.
This program does not require you to be advanced, educated, or already disciplined.
It only requires good will, seriousness, and a desire for God.
And most importantly:
This is not a mass-market program.
It is for the comparatively few Catholics who sincerely want to be formed as the Church has traditionally formed souls — carefully, patiently, and according to sound theological principles.
Program Structure & Practical Details
Weekly Seminar on the Spiritual Life
Sundays, 8:15–9:30 PM (Eastern)
Begings Sunday, December 6
Each quarter includes nine live weekly seminars led by Dr. Matthew DuBroy.
These are interactive, discussion-oriented sessions that present the principles of the interior life clearly and systematically.
Replays of every seminar are available for the year.
Regular Q&A Sessions
We will have two live Q&A sessions per quarter. Sessions will be scheduled at the normal meeting time so no extra time slot is needed to be reserved for sessions.
Length: 75 minutes
Questions may be asked live or submitted in advance
Recordings are available for the year
Personal Coaching: Three Individial Sessions
Every member receives three one-on-one coaching sessions with Dr. DuBroy. Each session lasts 75 minutes and is scheduled through Calendly.
Coaching helps integrate the general principles into your actual life — your duties, struggles, temperament, prayer, and circumstances — so you begin the year with clarity and a realistic, livable plan.
Community Platform
The entire program community is hosted inside Circle, a private online platform designed for stability, simplicity, and focused discussion.
Weekly Zoom links and replays are in Circle
Q&A recordings and resources are organized there
Members can share reflections, questions, and encouragement
No social media noise or distraction
Live seminars are held on Zoom, with recordings stored securely via Vimeo and accessed through Circle.
Time Commitment
The weekly rhythm is straightforward and manageable:
One weekly seminar (9 seminars per quarter)
We encourage a small amount of focused review between sessions so that you have a chance to think through the material yourself and bring questions back to class. There aren't required assignments you have to complete before class.
Optional Q&A sessions (2 sessions per quarter)
3 Individual Coaching Sessions scheduled through the year at your convenience
The program is structured to fit the real life of lay Catholics — serious formation without an overwhelming schedule.
All seminars and Q&A sessions are recorded. This ensures that members with shifting family or work responsibilities never fall behind.
Testimonials
It is life changing to be taught Aquinas’ principles/teachings. . . and to learn all this in an accessible digestible way for busy parents. It’s an irreplaceable gem; I look forward to the class all week long. Truly a gift to the next generation!
The uplifting community Dr. DuBroy has cultivated feels like an ideal community of souls seeking the true, good, and beautiful.
-Christine Alvarez
"A gift to the next generation!"
"This is steady work toward something better."
My prayer life is better, my interest in growing is elevated, and I am learning things of use in the course. For example, I have a greater understanding on the extent of the spiritual organism — its parts and how they fit together.
It's a very helpful rallying point given the challenges of family life. This is no weekend or week retreat with a major boost, and then sinking quickly back to where I was before. This is steady work toward something better.
Having the community with an expert guide and ample question time — it's a delight.
-Kyle Taljan
"I hesitated to add anything else to my schedule — but this study actually saved me time.”
As a busy homeschool mother of many, I hesitated to add anything else to my schedule but I actually found that this study saved me time by keeping me focused rather than drifting between podcasts and YouTube videos for answers to my faith-related questions. Dr. DuBroy provides a wealth of knowledge & is a tremendous asset to any friend of tradition looking to authentically live out their Catholic faith. Highly recommend!
-Kenzie M.
Tuition
The House of Formation - Year 2 Program
Payment plan: $165/month for 10 months after $350 enrollment deposit
Pay in Full: $1,800 Save $200
Standard annual tuition: $2,000. Scholarships are available for those needing financial assistance.
This membership includes access for all adults and mature teens in your home to join the Weekly Live Formation Seminars, Guided Q&A, and the member community. One personal coaching slot is included, with the option to add additional coaching slots for family members at a discounted rate.
A full-year membership includes:
Weekly Live Formation Seminars - focused teaching time with Dr. DuBroy about topics of the Spiritual life.
Guided Q&A Sessions - time to address questions that are outside of course material with Dr. DuBroy.
3 Personal Coaching Sessions – Includes 3 coaching sessions per family with the option to add additional slots at a discounted rate.
Private AICP Community Access - A moderated, mission-driven online community for accountability, encouragement, and support.
We strive to make formation accessible and offer Scholarships as we are able.
The House of Formation Program is a full-year commitment, designed to give you the stable structure and ongoing formation necessary for real growth in the interior life.
Spouse / Teen 3-Session Coaching Add-On — $200
If your spouse or a mature high-school student would also like their own set of 3 individual coaching sessions, you can add them for a one-time $200.
Ready to join?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Founders Letter
One of the great sorrows of our time is how poorly the Church’s own tradition has been handed on. In recent decades, we have seen a growing recovery of the liturgical tradition, and young theologians are once again being drawn to the depth of the Church’s doctrinal and philosophical heritage. There is real hope and real renewal underway.
But the Church’s spiritual theological tradition — the ordered, precise teaching on the spiritual life, virtue, prayer, ascetical practice, and growth in charity — has remained largely unknown to most Catholics. Even many faithful Catholics who love the tradition have never been shown this treasure.
While the Church is, in many ways, crumbling around us, I lament that there remains a treasure of wisdom left dormant — a treasury so few turn to, even though it contains the very resources needed to rebuild.
I have made it my mission to be at least some small part of the recovery of our Catholic heritage. There is a great, time-tested wisdom sitting quietly, waiting to be handed on to the people who are dying for the truth — the full truth — and nothing but the truth.
If you desire to discover some of these great riches, then I would be honored to walk with you this year.
— Dr. Matthew J. DuBroy
BEGIN YOUR YEAR OF FORMATION
If you’re ready for serious, structured Catholic formation
— grounded in the Church’s spiritual tradition —
we would be honored to walk with you this year.
House of Formation Enrollment
One Time Payment in Full
$1,620
($180 Savings)
House of Formation Enrollment
Monthly Payment Plan
$350 Today
(includes enrollment deposit & 1st month's tuition)
then $165/month for 10 months
Want More Coaching?
Add as much or as little as fits your needs
House of Formation Year 2 Enrollment
Every Membership Includes (for all adults & mature teens in your home):
Weekly Live Formation Sessions giving structured training in the spiritual life
Member Only Q & A Sessions
Community Forum & Support
3 Individual Coaching Sessions
(per enrolled family, additional slots available)
Payment Plan: $350 Deposit + $165 Monthly for 10 months
Pay in Full Tuition: $1,800 (save $200)
Tuition: $2,000
Classes begin Sunday, December 6, 2026.
Meets Weekly on Sundays, 8:15–9:30 PM Eastern
A full year of structured Catholic formation bringing clarity, order, and real spiritual growth into your daily life — grounded in the Church’s spiritual tradition and supported by faithful community.
After enrolling in the House of Formation Program, you can add optional coaching packages to support your formation throughout the year:
Quarterly Coaching — 3 × deep 90-min sessions
Monthly Coaching — 9 × 60-min sessions
Weekly Coaching — 52 × 45-min sessions
Spouse/Teen Add-On (3 Session Initial Coaching)
We strive to make formation accessible and offer Scholarships as we are able.
FAQ
NEEDS written
Founders Mission Scholarships - Now Available
These scholarships are merit-based — given to those who resonate deeply with the mission and show a sincere desire for formation.
Scholarship Amount: $500–$750
5 Spots avilable for Advent Cohort (begins Dec. 4, 2025)
To Apply:
There is no application or paperwork -simply a short, friendly Zoom meeting where we can talk about your interest and discern mutual fit.
Schedule your meeting by Dec. 1st:
