In February of 2024, Jordan and Tammy Peterson joined Colm Flynn on EWTN News In-Depth for separate interviews about the Catholic faith.
On YouTube alone, the interviews generated more than 300,000 views combined.
Tammy Peterson, the wife of world-renowned psychologist Jordan Peterson, announced her conversion to Catholicism after she prayed the daily rosary with a friend in the hospital while she was ill with cancer.
Tammy’s rare form of kidney cancer had a zero-percent survival rate, according to experts. Tammy is now cancer-free and shared her conversion story with Flynn.
Tammy says growing up as a Protestant, she “felt like something was missing,” and “later found out that my great-grandmother was Catholic and that my grandmother changed our religion to United.”
Her cousin then gave her their great-grandmother’s rosary. Tammy now prays the rosary every day and says it is a “practice.”
“It’s not always going to be this Monumental thing that happens every day,” she says. “But every day, you’re going to take it out, and you’re going to pray it. But one day, you’re going to need it, and because you’ve been practicing, there it’ll be.”
“Life is suffering,” Tammy continues, “and you’re going to need to have something to hold on to when the world opens up and there is nothing beneath you.”
Click here if you cannot see the video above.
In another interview published one week later, Flynn discussed Tammy’s Catholic conversion with Jordan Peterson. They also discuss his faith and whether he plans to join the Catholic Church.
“Is there a tug towards the Catholic faith?” Flynn asks.
“There’s plenty of things the Catholic faith got right,” Jordan answers. “There’s an appreciation for it. So everybody has their own path. Tammy’s on hers I’m on mine.”
Click here if you cannot see the video above.
The Jordan Peterson interview also garnered the attention of Twitter users.
One clip generated over one million views after Peterson shared it with his followers.
In this more controversial clip, former White House speechwriter and Catholic convert Joshua Charles summarized Peterson’s words.
“Jordan Peterson: There’s a crisis in the Catholic Church because it prefers relevance to the cross,” Charles wrote.
Peterson’s response: “‘Relevance’ is for the faithless.”
Watch below:
“Relevance” is for the faithless. https://t.co/IhoFT6d1i2
— Dr Jordan B Peterson (@jordanbpeterson) February 26, 2024
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“Obviously, this doesn’t refer to everyone in the Church, but to large elements within it that prefer compromising with the world,” Charles comments. “That has been a constant struggle for 2,000 years. The tendency to downplay the cross is a constant temptation.
Along with Charles’ commentary, the post generated almost 300 comments as of this writing.
“He must have read my blog,” Father Dwight Longenecker wrote, linking his blog post, “Reverence and Relevance.”
“He has never been more on point,” another user said. “In this clip, [Jordan Peterson] is spot on. His wife recently became a Catholic. I believe it’s his destiny to do the same.”
“When [Jordan Peterson] converts, he will become the next C.S. Lewis,” Twitter user Jeremy Wayne Tate added.
What are your thoughts?