The Word On Fire Show - Catholic Faith And Culture

In a recent talk, Bishop Barron presented on the importance of not dumbing down the faith as we engage in religious education. Young people enjoy asking about and discussing the big questions, from God’s existence, to how to be a good and moral person, to the problem of suffering. A disconnect takes place when we meet these intellectual questions with watered-down catechesis. Instead, we must remember the central teachings of Christianity. We must present the fullness of truth, the reality of the Incarnation, and the good news of grace. NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Friends, today we continue our “Word on Fire Show” series on how to understand Genesis by discussing Abraham and Isaac. Watch and learn about these two pivotal figures in salvation history. A listener asks, where can I learn more about God’s non-competitive transcendence? Links Fear and Trembling by Soren Kierkegaard Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus The God of Faith and Reason: Foundations of Christian Theology by Robert Sokolowski NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Friends, at the recent FOCUS SEEK, seminarians and young people discerning their vocation asked me range of questions about calling and vocations, including: Did Bishop Barron ever consider religious life? How should we use philosophy to approach and interact with theology? What should we do about a “dark night of the soul” when it comes to discernment? How should one discern between dating versus pursuing a religious vocation? What should women in particular look for when discerning a religious order? How should one sift through fears and anxieties during discernment? What is something that Bishop Barron learned as a priest, that he wish he had known as a seminarian? NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Modern psychiatry tends to downplay spirituality, but in today's episode of "The Word on Fire Show," Bishop Barron and Brandon discuss a new Scientific American article suggesting that "Psychiatry Needs to Get Right with God." The author explains how belief in God is associated with significantly better treatment outcomes for many patients, and therefore patients should have the option to include spirituality in their treatment.  A listener asks, where does one go to get the Catholic Church’s official interpretation of Scripture? NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Earlier this year, Bishop Barron joined Sal Di Stefano from Mind Pump Media for a great conversation. They discussed the great social upheaval and political division in our culture—including its intellectual, moral, and spiritual dimensions—and why a purely secular framework is not enough to solve it. Links Dei Verbum Reading Challenge NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we continue our series on “Understanding Genesis.” Last time we focused on Creation and today we’re discussing Adam, Eve, and the Fall. How should we understand the creation of Adam and Eve? What actually happened at the Fall? Bishop Barron and Brandon Vogt discuss. A listener asks, why would Mark end his Gospel with the women not telling the Apostles about the resurrection? NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we share a Q&A session between Bishop Barron and Maronite clergy following a talk he shared on the priesthood. In the Q&A, he answered several questions, including: Did Adam love Eve for the sake of God? What is Mary’s role in Jacob’s ladder? Do you have practical advice for people feeling confined by their vocation? How should we pick our battles as we wrestle with the world? How do you approach the concept of free will and reconcile it with our slavery to God? What practical steps can we take in our parishes to keep people from disaffiliating from the Church? NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Pope Francis just announced he’s planning to declare a new Doctor of the Church, St. Irenaeus of Lyon. Who was he? What were his key ideas? Why does he still matter? That's what Bishop Barron and Brandon discuss in today's episode. Topics include: What’s a Doctor of the Church, and why should Irenaeus be declared one? How did Bishop first become acquainted with Irenaeus? What was Irenaeus’ approach to battling Gnosticism? Irenaeus taught that God has no need of anything outside of himself. What does this mean, and why is it good news? How to understand Irenaeus’s pithy line, “The glory of God is man fully alive”? Irenaeus’ theology of recapitulation How Irenaeus remains a great spiritual and theological bridge between Eastern and Western Christians Why Irenaeus is still relevant today A listener asks, how should I respond to the idea that nothing really exists because we can’t prove that it exists? Links New editions of Bishop Barron's books: https://bookstore.wordonfire.org NOTE: Do you like this podc

In today's episode, we share a talk Bishop Barron offered earlier this year to the Catholic educators of the Archdiocese of Vancouver. He exhorted teachers to boldly proclaim the resurrection and lordship of Jesus, affirming that all Catholic teachers are, fundamentally, evangelizers. NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we begin a five-part series of discussions on the book of Genesis. In this first episode, we focus on the Creation story. Genesis is of course the first book in the Bible and perhaps the most foundational, but it’s also the source of so much confusion. Bishop Barron clarifies what the author is intending to convey and the theological and spiritual truths we can pull from the narrative. A listener asks, how do I start mental prayer, especially if I’m always distracted? Links Get your copy of the new Evangelization & Culture issue on poetry! NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

C.S. Lewis wrote more than 30 books which have collectively sold over 100 million copies, including the Chronicles of Narnia series, Mere Christianity, and The Screwtape Letters. But of those thirty books, there was only one which Lewis described himself as “almost my favorite among my books,” yet he was disappointed that “in general [the book] has been almost totally ignored by the public.” The book was his prophetic text titled The Abolition of Man. It’s an important book but one that many readers find dense and challenging. Thankfully, Michael Ward, one of the world’s leading C.S. Lewis scholars, has stepped in to help. His groundbreaking new book titled After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's ‘The Abolition of Man was just published by Word on Fire Academic. Today, Brandon Vogt sits down with Michael to discuss Lewis' original text and how Michael's new guide and commentary help readers make sense of Lewis’s argument. Learn more: https://www.wordonfire.org/humanity NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become

Dr. Christian Smith has written a new book titled Handing Down the Faith: How Parents Pass Their Religion on to the Next Generation. It's based on new research about how parents successfully raise children to become religiously-practicing adults. In this episode, Bishop Barron and Brandon Vogt walk through his findings and discuss what actually helps our kids to retain their faith into young adulthood. A listener asks, how do we know which religion is right, Catholicism or Protestantism? Links Handing Down the Faith: How Parents Pass Their Religion on to the Next Generation by Christian Smith "Keeping the Faith" by Christian Smith (First Things) Return: How to Draw Your Child Back to the Church by Brandon Vogt NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

In this Q&A session with students at Yale University from February 2021, Bishop Barron answered a variety of questions from students, including: Do you think that the culture’s view of sex has kept people outside of the Church? How do we charitably share our view? What did you decide to give up for Lent? How do we discern if bad things are tests from God, Satan, or just the way of the world? What are some opportunities for evangelization that COVID has produced? Why is confession necessary for the forgiveness of mortal sins? If you could have dinner with one saint, who would it be and why? Links A Journey with Jonah: The Spirituality of Bewilderment by Fr. Paul Murray, OP NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

A recent poll from the Survey Center on American Life revealed that people are rapidly losing their close friends, especially men. The number of American men who view themselves as having "no close friends" quintupled over the last 30 years, increasing from 3 percent in 1990 to 15 percent in 2021.  Why is this happening, and how can we reverse it? How can we develop closer friendships? Bishop Barron and Brandon Vogt discuss those questions today. A listener asks, why does God love us? Links “The Creed” film series and Light from Light book NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we share the latest “Bishop Barron Presents” discussion, featuring theologian and educator Dr. Larry Chapp.  Larry and Bishop Barron discuss topics such as: Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement Traditionalism and liberalism in the Catholic Church The Second Vatican Council And several other topics Stay tuned for future “Bishop Barron Presents” conversations. These intellectually invigorating discussions feature varying religious and political perspectives to encourage greater understanding and civility. Links Gaudium et Spes 22 - Larry Chapp's blog The Creed film series and Light from Light book by Bishop Barron NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we continue our discussion of a recent article by Tim Keller, the popular Protestant pastor, titled “The Fading of Forgiveness: Tracing the Disappearance of the Thing We Need Most.” We previously explored why forgiveness has faded in our culture. Today, we focus on the path forward, how we can practice and encourage more forgiveness. A listener asks, what is, for Bishop Barron, the most annoying passage in the Bible? Links “The Creed” film and Light from Light book >> https://wordonfire.org/creed NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we share the latest “Bishop Barron Presents” discussion, this one featuring American legal scholar, political philosopher, and public intellectual Robert George. Robert and Bishop Barron discuss virtue, focusing on topics such as Natural law, the “woke” phenomena, how we can engrain virtue in our society today, and more. Stay tuned for future “Bishop Barron Presents” conversations. These intellectually invigorating discussions feature varying religious and political perspectives to encourage greater understanding and civility. Links The Creed film series and Light from Light book by Bishop Barron NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we discuss a recent article by Tim Keller, the popular Protestant pastor, titled “The Fading of Forgiveness: Tracing the Disappearance of the Thing We Need Most”. Why are people increasingly skeptical about forgiveness? Keller proposes two reasons: a therapeutic culture, and religion without grace.  A listener asks, how did God create the universe if not from potentiality? Links WOFI Faith & Science Summit >> https://wordonfire.institute/science NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we share the latest “Bishop Barron Presents” discussion, this one with author Dr. Jennifer Ratner-Rosenhagen. Jennifer and Bishop Barron discuss the history of ideas that shaped American culture, and her two books, American Nietzsche: A History of an Icon and His Ideas and The Ideas That Made America: A Brief History. Stay tuned for future “Bishop Barron Presents” conversations. These intellectually invigorating discussions feature varying religious and political perspectives to encourage greater understanding and civility. Links Jordan Peterson, God, and Christianity: The Search for a Meaningful Life by Christopher Kaczor and Matthew R. Petrusek NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!

Today we share the latest “Bishop Barron Presents” discussion, featuring author and political science professor Dr. Jason Blakely. In Jason's conversation with Bishop Barron and Jared Zimmerer, he discussed topics found in his new book, We Built Reality: How Social Science Infiltrated Culture, Politics, and Power, including hermeneutics, economics, and more. Stay tuned for future “Bishop Barron Presents” conversations. These intellectually invigorating discussions feature varying religious and political perspectives to encourage greater understanding and civility. NOTE: Do you like this podcast? Become a patron and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fire is a non-profit ministry that depends on the support of our listeners…like you! So be part of this mission, and join us today!