402 avsnitt • Längd: 20 min • Veckovis: Tisdag
Join well-known theologian and author Edward Sri for weekly insights on understanding and living out the Catholic faith. Delve deeper into the Bible, prayer time, virtue, relationships, marriage and family and culture with practical reflections on all things Catholic. Don’t just go through the motions. Live as an intentional Catholic, a disciple of Jesus Christ.
The podcast All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri is created by Ascension. The podcast and the artwork on this page are embedded on this page using the public podcast feed (RSS).
What happens when a Pope passes away? In this sepcial bonus episode, Dr. Sri delves into the ancient and solemn traditions that take place when a Pope dies. Learn about the role of the Vatican Chamberlain, the centuries-old funeral rites, and the process leading up to the conclave to elect the next Pope.
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The Church has beautiful traditions and ceremonies during the sacred transition between Popes.
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As we mourn the loss of Pope Francis and pray for his soul, Dr. Sri reflects on the impact of his pontificate. He shares three gifts of his pontificate that we can all appreciate and learn from: understanding the depth of human sin and wounds, leading with mercy, and the importance of missionary discipleship.
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"Pope Francis understood the woundedness of humanity."
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How did Jesus go from the joys of Palm Sunday to the sorrows of Good Friday? Dr. Sri delves into the pivotal events leading to Jesus' death, examining the dramatic shift in the way the Jewish people and leaders perceived him. He explains how Jesus' radical ministry, particularly seen in his cleansing of the temple, led the Jewish leaders to plot against him.
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During the cleansing of the temple, Jesus reminds the Jewish people that he came to save everyone—sinners, tax collectors, lepers, the poor, and Gentiles alike.
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Dr. Sri and Fr. Mike continue their conversation about the richness of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. They highlight their favorite sections, particularly those about the nature of true love and the transformative graces of the sacraments. They conclude by emphasizing the importance of trust in our relationship with God.
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"The Catechism is a beautiful tapestry of our faith."
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The Catechism of the Catholic Church is so much more than a reference book. In this special edition of All Things Catholic Fr. Mike Schmitz joins Dr. Sri at the SEEK 25 conference to discuss the significance of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. They discuss how the Catechism serves as a vital resource for understanding the Church's teachings and deepening one's prayer life. Discover practical ways to engage with this incredible treasure of the Faith so you can grow closer to Christ!
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"The Catechism is not just a reference book; it's a guide for life.
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Mary's fiat reflects her deep love for God and willingness to serve. Dr. Sri explores the significance of Mary's response to God at the Annunciation. He delves into the meaning of the term 'slave' as used by Mary, contrasting modern and classical views of freedom and emphasizing the importance of virtue in living a life of authentic love.
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"Mary has the inner self-possession to be able to give her life truly as a gift to others."
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The Catholic Church has a rich heritage of apostolic succession. In this special episode, Dr. Sri takes us on a pilgrimage through the historical roots of the Catholic faith in Rome. He explores the significance of early Church fathers like St. Clement of Rome and St. Ignatius of Antioch, highlighting their contributions to our understanding of apostolic succession and the spirituality of martyrdom.
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The seeds of the papacy can be traced back to the first generation of the Apostles.
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If we don't pay close attention, we can easily miss the wonders of St. Peter's Square. In this special episode of All Things Catholic, Dr. Sri explains the rich theological and historical symbolism behind the incredible design of St. Peter's Square, from its majestic dome to the hundreds of saintly statues on Bernini's columns.
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St. Peter's Square symbolizes the Church's outreach to the world.
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In the Stations of the Cross, Jesus falls three times. Have you ever wondered why three? Dr. Sri reveals how these falls symbolize the three main areas where we need God's healing during Lent: lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life. Dr. Sri also explains how the Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving can serve as antidotes to these core battles.
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The three falls of Jesus point to the three main battles we face every Lent and the three main places of healing God wants to do in our hearts.
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Indulgences aren't magic, so how exactly do they work? By sharing practical examples, Dr. Sri explains the teachings of the Catholic Church regarding indulgences, focusing on the double consequence of sin, and clarifying how devotions and spiritual exercises heal our souls and help us overcome our attachment to sin. Whether it's a pilgrimage, prayer, or acts of charity, learn how these practices help us grow in devotion and find greater spiritual freedom.
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Indulgences are not random magical acts; they are intentional spiritual exercises that strengthen our souls._
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Do you find yourself feeling trapped? This year marks a Jubilee Year in the Church, a time that offers us unique graces for experiencing the freedom and healing that God desires for each one of us. Dr. Sri unpacks the Biblical roots of the Jubilee Year and explains how Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 61 by releasing us from our sins and wounds with his power and mercy.
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The Jubilee Year reminds us that Jesus brings spiritual release, freeing us from sin, death, and the devil—the deepest form of oppression we all experience.
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The Rosary is a powerful source of grace, peace, and conversion. Dr. Sri welcomes Fr. Mark-Mary Ames to discuss the profound impact of praying the Rosary and the inspiration behind the Rosary in a Year podcast. They explore our challenges while praying the Rosary and offer practical advice for families, individuals, and beginners trying to incorporate it into their busy lives.
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When you put your life in the rhythm of the rosary, you're uniting your life with the life of Christ.
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Living as a faithful Catholic in a secular, post-Christian culture can be difficult. Dr. Sri highlights St. Paul's timeless advice about renewing our minds to remain steadfast in the Faith. By immersing our minds in the teachings of Christ, Scripture, and the lives of the saints, we can stay close to Jesus in a world filled with conflicting ideas and pressures.
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If we don't fill our minds with Christ's teachings, the Scriptures, and the lives of the saints, then our vision for life becomes a bit blurry.
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How do we live a life truly led by the Holy Spirit? Dr. Sri explains how Simeon illustrates for us what it looks like to be receptive to the Holy Spirit. Dr. Sri shares practical ways to become more like Simeon, such as asking for divine inspiration, showing gratitude for it, practicing trust and detachment, and maintaining interior peace.
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A man in tune with the Holy Spirit, Simeon exemplifies the trust and detachment necessary to respond to the Holy Spirit's invitations.
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Dr. Sri explores the social media trend where couples reveal secrets in a judgment-free space. Delving into the implications of this phenomenon, he examines what it reveals about the human desire for connection and how it impacts modern relationships. Dr. Sri compares this trend to the true meaning and practice of Confession within Catholicism, highlighting the importance of private reconcialiation, contrition, and sincere change.
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The "we listen and we don't judge" culture is a cry to be seen at the deepest level. In the sacrament of Confession, God does precisely this in a way that truly frees us..
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Have you ever meditated on Mary’s actions at the Wedding at Cana? Dr. Edward Sri explains the weight of Mary’s decision in this story and what it reveals about her soul. Dr. Sri encourages each of us to turn to Mary so that we can grow in trust, generosity, and courage.
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Mary held nothing back and trusted completely in the Father’s plan.
Is there an area of your life that you feel needs a new beginning? Dr. Sri explains the significance of the upcoming feast of the Baptism of Jesus and shares practical takeaways as we begin to walk with Jesus in the new liturgical year.
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The Baptism of the Lord teaches us that Jesus comes to give us new beginnings.
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Dr. Sri shares a special New Year's message and asks for prayers for the upcoming SEEK conference.
Do you find it difficult to maintain your spiritual focus during this beautiful (yet sometimes stressful) holiday season? In today’s episode, Dr. Sri encourages us to maintain our focus on Christ this Christmas by creatively making time for prayer when we find ourselves outside our normal routines. Remember: the Lord really appreciates it when we just try.
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Did Mary unplug from prayer during the Nativity? No, she maintained her spiritual focus.
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Do you ever feel like Advent slipped by without fully engaging your heart? You’re not alone—and it’s not too late to refocus! In this episode, Dr. Sri explores the rich tradition of praying the O Antiphons, a beautiful part of the Church’s evening prayer and Liturgy that dates back to the early Church.
These 7 powerful titles of Christ—prayed before the Gospel in the days leading up to Christmas—invite us to cry out for God to come and act in our lives. Dr. Sri dives into their meaning and discusses how they can help refocus our minds, hearts, and souls on what matters most in these final days of Advent.
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"There is a rich theology and spirituality centered around these 7 titles of Christ"
Often perceived as a simple greeting, the first word of the Hail Mary, 'Hail,' has deep biblical roots connected to the prophetic messages from the prophet Zephaniah. Dr. Sri explains how the word encourages us to find strength and joy in God's promises in the midst of seasons of waiting and suffering.
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"Just as Zephaniah called daughter Zion to rejoice, so does the Archangel Gabriel call Mary to rejoice."
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What can we learn from the dogma of the Immaculate Conception? In this special episode recorded at the Grotto where Mary appeared to St. Bernadette in Lourdes, Dr. Sri explores the profound meaning of the Immaculate Conception and how Mary is a model of holiness for each one of us. Drawing from the life of St. Bernadette, Dr. Sri explains how this Catholic doctrine offers us hope in our struggles and a vision of God’s purpose for each of us.
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“When you look at Mary, you see someone who has the fullness of what God wants to accomplish in every human person.”
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Advent is a time of preparation as we anticipate the coming of Jesus at Christmas. How are you getting ready this season? Dr. Edward Sri challenges us to have a focused Advent season and provides ideas on little things we can do that would make a profound difference in our hearts and lives.
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Mountains are being moved in our soul when we do little acts of love and sacrifice.
Join Dr. Edward Sri as he leads a pilgrimage in Lourdes, France. Through the story and experiences of St. Bernadette of Lourdes, we see what it looks like to completely trust and surrender to God. By allowing God to come in and work in our souls, pure clear water has the opportunity to come out of the filth in our lives.
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Sometimes we want things so ordered, controlled, planned out, and thought through that we are not as willing to trust God and allow Him to work deeply in our lives and guide us.
Are you struggling with prayer? How do we fit prayer into our busy lives? How do we teach our children to pray? Dr. Edward Sri, joined by Beth Sri, discuss the importance of prayer and how to navigate common struggles with prayer. Their new book, Pocket Guide to Prayer, goes even deeper into this essential topic.
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Prayer is more than just a task on your to do list in order to be a good Catholic. Prayer is a relationship.
Do you have friends or family members who are away from the Catholic church? Do you long to bring them back? Dr. Edward Sri offers suggestions on sharing the faith with those we love. From finding the right words to the right timing, there are ways to approach this seemingly daunting task with the Lord’s grace, love, and compassion.
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Anything that we think is impossible, God can do!
What does it mean to keep holy the Sabbath? What does living Sunday as a Catholic look like? This episode is the second part of a two part series addressing these questions and more. Dr. Edward Sri shares practical tips on how we can live this sacred day and receive Jesus’s gift of rest.
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Man wasn't made for the Sabbath, the Sabbath was made for man; it’s a gift.
Do we approach Sunday as something sacred? Is the Sabbath the ordering principle for our lives? Does Sunday set the tone for our entire week? Cultural challenges today make it more difficult than ever to keep Sunday from getting lost in the weekend. Dr. Edward Sri takes a step back to look at this dilemma through a biblical and historical lens in this first episode of an upcoming two part series.
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If we are really living Sunday as we should, then we are getting a foretaste of what Heaven will be like.
Have you ever felt like you are simply going through the motions when it comes to the sacrament of confession? Most Catholics know the necessary steps in order to make a good confession, but how are we preparing our hearts for this sacrament? Dr. Edward Sri dives into how we can approach this sacrament with reverence and prepare to receive the full abundance of the Lord’s mercy.
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Confession isn’t transactional; it’s a relationship.
As Catholics, we know about the power of prayer and the importance of having a personal relationship with God. But are we able to say that we make prayer the top priority in our busy lives? Dr. Edward Sri shares ideas on how we can add prayer to key moments of our day and set the rhythm of our day in prayer.
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Let prayer shape your daily life.
We all struggle with periods of sadness, worry, fear and doubt. Even saints including St. Thérèse of Lisieux have experienced these very same trials. With Dr. Edward Sri we explore the life of St. Thérèse and the great darkness that she experienced. From her suffering and perseverance, we can learn how to trust in God’s healing love to get through our hard times.
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God gives us the saints we need for our times.
Have you ever stopped to ponder the line “lead us not into temptation” while praying the Lord’s Prayer? We all experience different types of temptations daily, but it is our response to that temptation that matters. Dr. Edward Sri brings inspiration from St. Thomas Aquinas on why God allows us to be tempted and ways in which we can use our everyday temptations for good in our soul.
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We will never be tempted beyond our strength if we learn to rely on God.
What does it mean to really follow Jesus? Being a serious Catholic involves much more than just following set rules or believing the dogmas of the Church. Dr. Edward Sri explains that being in relationship with Jesus is at the heart of being Catholic. Jesus is inviting each one of us to an intimate relationship with him, to follow him. How do we respond? How do we surrender everything and follow him?
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The same Jesus who walked the streets of Galilee loves you and desires a personal relationship with you.
The story does not end on Good Friday. Yes, it is the climax of the story, but it is not the end. Jesus rises on Easter Sunday and he also rises in us and makes us a new creation. In this episode, Dr. Edward Sri addresses the fourth “R” in his series on the Kerygma. He explains what it means for each of us to be a “re-created” in the Lord.
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God comes to heal us. He is the Divine Physician. God’s love descends into the dark corners of our souls and brings light into the darkness of our souls.
There is a big difference between knowing about God and actually knowing God. As Dr. Edward Sri continues his series on the Kerygma, he breaks open reconciliation with God. Each of us struggles with sin. In some way or another, sin has had a hold over us. Dr. Sri explains how Jesus freed us and reconciles us to himself.
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The deepest reality of the universe is not power, but love.
It is easy to look at the world and see what a mess it is and to blame the world around us for the anxiety and fear we experience. However, we often fail to see the darkness and woundedness within ourselves. Dr. Edward Sri continues his five part series on the Kerygma by discussing the brokenness within each of us and how we must acknowledge it in order to know our need for Jesus Christ.
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God brought us into existence so that we could be one with him.
Why did God create us? Why did he bring us into existence? God doesn’t need anything and yet he freely chose to bring us into existence. Dr. Edward Sri ponders these questions and offers his responses to them to start off a five part series on the Kerygma. In this series, Dr. Sri aims to return to the basics in order to help us renew our encounter with Christ through the foundational Gospel message.
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We do not earn God’s love. God brought us into existence and delights in us. He brought us into existence because he wanted to share his life and love with us.
As Catholics we often hear that the point of marriage is to get our spouse to Heaven. And if we have kids, we need to get them to Heaven too. This can be incredibly overwhelming. However, Dr. Edward Sri is joined by his wife Beth Sri to help offer a better understanding of this daunting task. Together, they share their insight and encouragement.
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Be present to your children at all times and love them in every way.
While many of us understand the importance of Adoration, it can still be very challenging. Perhaps, it feels boring or you struggle to stay awake. Whatever your experience, Dr. Edward Sri has some great practical ideas for how to make the most of your time in Adoration. He also reminds everyone that just showing up can bring about grace.
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God rejoices whenever you come to him in Adoration whether it's for one minute or one hour.
The Eucharistic Revival has placed a lot of emphasis on a need for Eucharistic devotion and evangelization. What is one straightforward way to do this? In this episode, Dr. Edward Sri shares about his experience at the National Eucharistic Congress. He encourages everyone to start doing one thing that he is confident will increase Eucharistic devotion.
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“Do you realize that Jesus is there in the Blessed Sacrament expressly for you, for you alone? He burns with desire to come into your heart!” -St. Therese of Lisieux
How do you respond when you feel overwhelmed in life? You don’t have enough time, enough sleep, enough resources. Or perhaps, you feel like you aren’t enough. What do you do in these moments? Dr. Edward Sri shares the good news found in this Sunday’s Gospel regarding how God responds when we are overwhelmed.
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God can always provide for what we lack.
Is it better to enter the priesthood or religious life than it is to get married? Dr. Edward Sri is joined by Fr. Gregory Pine to discuss what the best way is to accomplish holiness, and ultimately, sainthood. They offer simple and straightforward advice for discernment and living out your particular vocation.
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That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. (Litany of Humility)
What can you learn from the life of St. Peter? Dr. Edward Sri shares this special episode while on location in Rome, Italy at the Basilica of St. Peter. He provides an overview of some of the significant architectural aspects of the square and the basilica. He also looks at the life of St. Peter to help each of us understand how to approach Jesus and allow him to heal us.
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Trust that God can change you like he changed St. Peter.
Do you find time to truly rest? Is it challenging to allow yourself moments of leisure? The lives of most people are very busy and full of noise. However, it is essential in our relationship with God to find moments of rest. Dr. Edward Sri is joined by Sr. Marie Veritas and Sr. Ann Immaculée of the Sisters of Life to discuss the importance of rest and how to build it into your daily life.
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Leisure and rest are not a luxury but a necessity.
What do you give the majority of your time and attention to? God desires to shape us into our best selves. He wants to sanctify us. Dr. Edward Sri discusses how God sees beyond our sin and weakness and wants to shape us into his masterpiece. However, unless we give our time and attention to this goal, he cannot be the center of our lives. Dr. Sri provides examples of what God desires to do in our lives and what sorts of things frequently get in the way.
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If Jesus is at the center of our lives, our souls will be well-ordered.
The secular culture accepts and even encourages an unbridled pursuit of pleasure. This attitude is so prevalent that it can seep into the lives of Christians. Do you ever find yourself dependent on some sort of comfort or small enjoyment in order to feel happy? Dr. Edward Sri discusses how what we listen to, what we watch, our particularities can affect our soul’s capacity to hear the voice of God and truly live the Christian life.
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What we listen to, what we watch can crowd our souls and leave less room for the voice of God.
What do you seek in life? There are many different things to seek throughout life: a career, a relationship, or simply a good cup of coffee. However, what is the most important thing you can seek in life? Dr. Edward Sri walks through every person’s desire for happiness and explains how the void within us can only be filled by one thing.
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“What draws us to the goodness within something is ultimately something of God’s own goodness and beauty.”
Do you ever feel helpless in the face of the challenges within the Church? Challenges within the Church are not new to this generation or even this century. There have always been crises within the Church. So, how does God work through these crises? Dr. Edward Sri examines some of the past crises of the Church and highlights the good that has come from them. He offers encouragement for anyone feeling discouraged in the current times.
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“Stand confident in the theological virtue of hope.”
What do you do in the face of concerns over the state of the Church? There are problems in the Church on the parish level all the way to the Vatican. So, how do we understand these problems and what role do each of us play in truly reforming the Church? Dr. Edward Sri weighs in on this topic and offers his advice on how to respond to it.
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The most important spiritual battle to fight is the one within our own souls.
Should we be open to having another child? This is a question that many married couples face throughout their marriage. Having children requires a lot of sacrifice. However, the Church and experience teaches us about the “supreme goodness” of having children. Dr. Edward Sri is joined by his wife Beth Sri to discuss the discernment process of having children and some practical tips to aid you in the process.
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Children are meant to bring a husband and wife into deeper unity.
Join Dr. Edward Sri on this special edition episode from the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome, Italy. Dr. Sri guides listeners through the center aisle of the basilica and explains the magnificent artwork found there. He reveals the significance of the Biblical scenes depicted and emphasizes the importance of understanding both the Old and New Testaments.
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“Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” -St. Jerome
Are you able to maintain a sense of peace in your soul? Or do you struggle with constant disruptions and feel weighed down by your emotions? Emotions are not a bad thing, but at times, a person can become ruled by their emotions. So, what is the proper role of emotions? Dr. Edward Sri delves into this question and also explains the roles of the intellect and the will.
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God wants to heal our emotions and give us greater freedom.
Does it ever feel like work is keeping you from your relationship with God? Work can be stressful, exhausting, and overwhelming. So, how can we bring God into our work instead of allowing it to separate us from God? In preparation for the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, Dr. Edward Sri shares some contemplation on the work of St. Joseph. He also shares ways in which we can turn our work into a prayer.
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"Saint Joseph was a just man, a tireless worker, the upright guardian of those entrusted to his care. May he always guard, protect and enlighten families." -St. John Paul II
Do you ever feel like God is not listening? Is prayer just merely a game to God? So many of the saints have gone through seasons of dryness and darkness in prayer. In today’s episode, Dr. Edward Sri looks to the wisdom of St. Catherine of Siena, a Doctor of the Church, who shows us how to faithfully respond and cooperate with God amid those most difficult seasons.
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"Prayer is the meeting of two desires: our desire for God and God's desire for us."
St. Catherine of Siena
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How do we navigate the anxieties and pressures that come with parenting? Beth Sri joins Dr. Sri for an honest conversation about the challenges of parenting, particularly when you're trying to raise your kids in the Catholic Faith. Together, they share valuable insights and advice to help you parent from the Lord's peace rather than from a place of fear.
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"Connection is more important than perfection."
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What does it mean to rejoice? How do you continue to rejoice even in the midst of struggle? According to Dr. Edward Sri, Mary offers an extraordinary example of what it means to rejoice. Dr. Sri explores some of the key moments of Mary’s life and reveals how she rejoiced in each one. He offers practical advice on how we too can rejoice throughout our lives.
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Take time to rejoice at every Communion. Don’t go through the motions at Mass. Take time to rejoice like Mary and marvel over the mystery that my God is dwelling within the walls of my soul.
Jesus’ death on the Cross is not enough; we need the Resurrection. Dr. Sri explains the significance of celebrating Jesus’ Resurrection and why this event is essential in his work of salvation. We also discover how Easter resolutions can help us build upon our Lenten spiritual growth as we move into the Easter season and beyond.
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What Jesus did in the Resurrection is what he wants to do in your soul every day.
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Do you know what Jesus’ last words were before he died on the cross? More importantly, do you know what his last words meant? This Holy Week, Dr. Edward Sri reflects on the final moments and words of Christ. He explains their deeper meaning so that each of us can better understand Jesus’ passion and death on the cross.
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Jesus poured out everything. He held nothing back. He gave it all.
Are you prepared for the most important week, the holiest week of the entire year? This Sunday is Palm Sunday which begins Holy Week. Dr. Edward Sri helps you prepare for these sacred days by digging into the Gospel for Palm Sunday which is Mark’s passion narrative. Dr. Sri explains some of the unique aspects of Mark’s narrative and what they mean for our understanding of Jesus’ passion and death.
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“Truly this man was the Son of God."
How do you handle the stress and anxieties of life? Does it frequently overwhelm you and rob you of your peace? Martha is a character from Scripture that many can relate to. She struggled with anxiety and became overwhelmed. Dr. Edward Sri examines the stories of Martha from the Bible and reveals what we can learn from her about overcoming anxiety and finding interior peace.
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Be Mary before becoming Martha.
No other collection of poetry has influenced the world more than the Book of Psalms. In this episode, Dr. Sri explains the different types of Psalms and how they are a powerful vehicle for prayer.
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The Psalms remind us to put God’s Word first.
How do we see the ten commandments? Are they just hoops to jump through? For many, rules and laws can feel controlling and cold. It can be difficult to understand how we can be in a loving relationship with God when he imposes rules and laws upon us. To answer these questions, Dr. Edward Sri looks into the story of the Israelites and the ten commandments. He explains the goodness of God’s commands.
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“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path.”
What are you holding back? As a person pursues holiness, they sometimes find that they are still holding certain things back from God. Dr. Edward Sri addresses this challenge by walking through the story of Abraham and Isaac. He shows how both were ready to give everything to God. Dr. Sri explains the result of such incredible trust in God.
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The more we learn to trust and the more we learn to sacrifice, the better we are able to give our entire hearts to God.
Is there a part of your life that you are afraid to share with God? Perhaps, there are things you would like to keep hidden from everyone. Dr. Edward Sri dives into the Gospel passage from last Sunday about Jesus and the leper. He explains how Jesus responds to the leper and what that reveals about how Jesus responds to each of our wounds.
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Jesus wants us to come to him and admit that we cannot do this on our own.
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by Lent? There are so many different devotions, fasts, and studies to participate in. How do you figure out what God is calling you to this Lent? Dr. Edward Sri answers this question and offers five practical ways to transform your life this Lent.
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If we truly know ourselves, we know that we cannot rely only on ourselves. We must rely on God. His grace makes all things possible.
Perhaps, you are familiar with the story of Joseph and Mary taking the baby Jesus to the temple after his birth. This event is called the Presentation. But why is it called this and what is so significant about this event? Dr. Edward Sri answers these questions and explains the deeper meaning of the Presentation that few Christians understand.
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Our lives are meant to be a sacrifice to God.
Do you want to live your faith as a true disciple? St. Paul desired that his student St. Timothy know and live the faith. However, he also desired for St. Timothy to pass on the faith effectively. Do you pass on the faith effectively? Dr. Edward Sri discusses the importance of passing on the faith and how to do it effectively.
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We should always be on the lookout for opportunities to share our faith.
Do you treat your prayer life like a chore? Many of us find ourselves treating it like a checklist. However, prayer isn’t just about completing a task. Rather, it is about responding to God. Dr. Edward Sri goes in depth on this topic and explains what is really at the heart of prayer.
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Prayer is not about a performance. It is about responding to the thirst of Jesus for your soul.
What is the real reason behind the increase in loneliness and anxiety? There is almost an inability, in our world today, to cope with life. Monsignor James Shea addressed this question in his keynote at the SEEK conference. Monsignor Shea offers that perhaps this struggle is a result of growing up in a world without God. Dr. Edward Sri discusses the deeper meaning of Monsignor Shea’s words.
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The heart of all our suffering in this world is because we find ourselves under Satan’s power.
Imagine being one of the magi. Who were these men? What were they searching for? Dr. Sri shares what we can learn from studying the three magi and their encounter of Jesus. He explains how an understanding of the magi can help in our own search for Jesus.
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Our hearts are the greatest gift we can offer to Jesus.
Dr. Sri would like to extend a “Merry Christmas” to all of you! He hopes you enjoy this recording of his sons playing “O Holy Night.”
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“Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!”
Did you know that every detail matters in the Biblical account of Jesus’ birth? Sometimes, we take this Biblical story for granted because we have heard it so many times. However, the details of this story have so much meaning. Dr. Edward Sri shares some of that deeper meaning so that each of us can grow closer to Christ this Christmas.
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Jesus was born into a suffering world. Even now, he desires to enter into our suffering with us.
What do you do when you’re going through a rough time? How do you respond to pressure and conflict? God can feel absent at these times. Prayer may feel dry. To help offer encouragement for times such as these, Dr. Edward Sri shares a story from the life of St. John of the Cross. This story reveals a time of intense suffering for St. John of the Cross and his response to that suffering.
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God’s love pierces through all attachments and all suffering. God opens our hearts to be more receptive to him as he is the only one who satisfies.
Are you ever intimidated by Mary? Because of her sinlessness, imitating Mary seems like an impossibility. However, Dr. Edward Sri explains that she reveals what we are called to. Although she was free from Original Sin, Mary still experienced many of life’s trials that we face as well. To help us understand her better, Dr. Sri shares examples of some of Mary’s very human experiences.
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Although Mary was conceived without sin, she still had to walk by faith and not by sight.
There can be so much excitement and anticipation when waiting for the arrival of a new baby. Have you ever imagined what it may have been like for Mary as she waited for the arrival of Jesus? What did she do to prepare for his arrival? As Advent draws near, Dr. Edward Sri encourages us to look to Mary’s example as we prepare ourselves for Christ’s coming.
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Be attentive to the presence of God. In his presence, you will find peace.
How often do you think about death? Every person will eventually die and it is essential to remember that we are made for eternal life. Dr. Sri addresses the topic of death focusing primarily on judgment. He explains the difference between particular judgment and final judgment and offers insight for how we can prepare for death and judgment.
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Your bad choices affect others, but remember, your good choices also make an impact.
Why is this happening? Where are you God? These are the sorts of questions people sometimes ask when they experience great suffering or doubt. To show how God responds to us in these situations, Dr. Edward Sri dives into the story of one of the greatest figures of the Old Testament: Abraham.
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“Lord, if this is how you treat your friends, no wonder you have so few.” - St. Teresa of Avila
When you face fears or troubles, where do you turn? There are so many challenges we face: at work, in our families, with our parishes. In these times of trial, do you turn to God? Do you turn to the Eucharist? Dr. Edward Sri discusses the importance of the Eucharistic Revival so as to bring more people into deeper intimacy with Jesus in the Eucharist.
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Jesus wants to be with us in our struggles, our trials, everything. He is waiting for us to turn to him in the Eucharist.
When you hear the stories of the saints is it ever overwhelming? Some of their stories are so extraordinary that they can feel quite unrelatable. Dr. Edward Sri shares some of the saint stories that are very relatable. There are saints who made human mistakes, who struggled to pray, and didn’t always feel loved by God. Dr. Sri talks about those stories and how we can be more like the saints.
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You need a heart that is willing to be united to Jesus in his loneliness, in his misunderstanding, and in his suffering.
“I receive Holy Communion every week, so why am I not more holy?” Perhaps, this is a question you have asked yourself. Receiving Holy Communion is an essential part of striving for sainthood. So, how do we do it well and who gets to receive Communion? Dr. Edward Sri explains multiple ways that we can prepare ourselves for receiving the Eucharist and why some people should not receive.
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The Eucharist is an expression of unity with the Church, unity of faith, and unity of life.
Do you live your life with confidence in God? This can be incredibly hard to do, but fortunately we have great examples to follow, especially St. John Paul II. As the feast day of St. John Paul II approaches, Dr. Edward Sri shares some lesser-known stories of him and lifts him up as an amazing example of courage.
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Even amidst relativism, secularism, and the sexual revolution, St. John Paul II courageously called people to the truth.
Is Mass simply an opportunity to come together as a community? Is music the focus of Mass? While those things are good and important, the purpose of Mass is even greater. Dr. Edward Sri discusses the significance of the Mass and its ancient roots that go far back into the Old Testament.
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There is nothing more fulfilling than worshiping God.
St. Francis of Assisi loved nature and talked to birds, but is there more to him than that? Of course there is! The life of St. Francis of Assisi is filled with incredible examples of doing God’s will and emptying oneself for God’s sake. There is so much we can learn from St. Francis and Dr. Edward Sri outlines four of those lessons in this episode.
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It is essential that we set aside our feelings as we strive to do God’s will because more often than not, it will be difficult to do God’s will.
Do you ever feel like you are failing or coming up short in the different areas of your life? Perhaps, you are struggling at work or in your marriage. In this episode, Dr. Edward Sri uses the wisdom of St. Therese of Lisieux to reveal the goodness that can come from acknowledging our failings and shortcomings.
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When we encounter our weaknesses and shortcomings, it reminds us, “Lord, I need you.”
We are fallen human beings. As a result, sometimes we hurt one another. How should we address conflict in our friendships, families, workplace, and community? Dr. Sri breaks down the importance of fraternal correction and how we can effectively communicate with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
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God wants to write his love on our hearts.
“I want to pray but I’m not sure how.” This is a challenge many people face when it comes to the spiritual life. How do you start? Using examples from The Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila, Dr. Edward Sri explains how to progress in the spiritual life.
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If we don’t have daily meditation, we cannot progress in our spiritual lives.
Surrendering to God is difficult. Even the holiest men and women struggled to surrender to God. Fortunately, we can learn from them how to give our lives completely to God. Dr. Edward Sri shares in this episode Mother Teresa’s struggle to surrender to God’s will for her life. He reveals how we can follow her example.
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God will help you do the things you cannot do on your own.
Do you struggle to get over bad habits or to choose the right thing? St. Augustine did. Dr. Edward Sri shares about the life of St. Augustine and his struggle with the virtue of chastity. Dr. Sri explains the importance of chastity and what true love looks like.
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When we lack chastity, we are not free to truly love others.
Why aren’t things going your way? Perhaps, you have been facing a lot of challenges or disappointments lately and you can’t help but wonder why. Today, Dr. Edward Sri and his wife Beth Sri talk about the struggles of life and how to discern their origin. Is the devil attacking us? Or do we need to work on something within ourselves?
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When we over-spiritualize the problems we are facing, it can keep us from an opportunity to work on ourselves and to grow as individuals.
Does reading the book of Revelation intimidate you? As an apocryphal text, it can be difficult to read. However, this book of the Bible has much to teach us about our faith. In fact, it teaches us something about Mary. Dr. Sri explains some of what we can learn about Mary from the book of Revelation.
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It is a great gift that Christ gave us Mary to be our spiritual mother. She intercedes for us before the throne of her Son.
What does it mean to have heroic virtue? Today, Dr. Sri is joined by Dr. Andrew and Sarah Swafford to discuss their new book Gift and Grit: How Heroic Virtue can change your life and relationships. Together, they talk about the challenges young people are facing spiritually and socially.
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Chastity liberates love from use.
What are the most important virtues? How do you attain them? Dr. Sri explains what the most important virtues are and how they bring us into deeper union with God. He also shares how we can attain these virtues and live them out in our everyday lives.
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If I want to see reality clearly, I must have faith. Faith is a light for our feet.
What’s the point of a pilgrimage? Is it just about sightseeing? Today, Dr. Sri explains the reasons it is good for any person to go on a pilgrimage. He also shares ideas on how to make pilgrimages without even leaving your own diocese. Finally, Dr. Sri offers four tips to follow when preparing for a pilgrimage.
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We need to step out of our normal routines and see the whole of our lives. We need to see where we’ve been and to see where God is leading us next.
Have you ever set out to do God’s will, but later experienced confusion or discouragement? On location in Rome, Dr. Sri shares the story of St. Camillus and some of the significant challenges he faced. Dr. Sri also points to the examples of many other saints who overcame discouragement, disappointment and other challenges as they pursued the will of God.
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When you dare to boldly trust God with your life, anticipate that the devil is going to come and try to rattle you. But remember, you are not alone. The Lord is with you.
How do you change the world? How are we supposed to influence the people in our lives so that they can know Christ? Dr. Sri shares the story of St. Benedict and encourages us to follow his example in seeking interior renewal so that we can renew the world for Christ.
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If you want to be someone who influences the world, someone who makes a difference for Jesus Christ, you have to be willing to pull back from the world.
In this second part of Dr. Sri’s interview of Fr. Mark-Mary, they continue their discussion of growing in holiness. Fr. Mark-Mary shares more wisdom from his book, Habits for Holiness: Small Steps for Making Big Spiritual Progress.
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Caring for the poor is an essential component of our faith.
No matter where we are in life, we are able to grow in holiness. Today, Dr. Sri sits down with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR to discuss his book, Habits for Holiness: Small Steps for Making Big Spiritual Progress.
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The spiritual life is real life.
How do you deal with the struggles you have in prayer? It can be very easy to become discouraged in prayer. Perhaps you are experiencing dryness in prayer or loneliness. Maybe you are being attacked with doubts. Today, Dr. Sri addresses some of the challenges we may face in prayer and how we can respond to those challenges.
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It is in the moments of dryness and darkness in prayer that God is inviting us to take that next step in our relationship with him.
Prayer is essential in the Christian life…but why is it so hard sometimes? Dr. Edward Sri shares insights from the Saints about where God is in the midst of our struggles and how we are called to respond.
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It’s the Devil who wants you to think that your prayer isn’t worth it.
What does it mean to radiate Christ and how do you do it? Dr. Edward Sri shares what is most essential in order to radiate Christ: personal prayer. He explains how some of the most important things in our lives are affected by whether or not we have a personal prayer life.
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The people around us are depending on us to have a daily prayer life.
Are some apologies better than others? Knowing how to apologize is an essential part of life. But do you know what a good apology is? Today, Dr. Edward Sri is joined by his wife Beth Sri to discuss what makes a good apology and why it is so important.
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Do not underestimate the power of forgiveness.
Dr. Edward Sri continues his conversation with his wife and Fr. Mike Schmitz. They continue their conversation on marriage and how to best prepare yourself for this vocation. They also discuss some of the challenges of marriage and why God is so essential for a good marriage.
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The goal of marriage is for our hearts to change and become more like Jesus’ heart.
Join Dr. Sri and his special guests Beth Sri and Fr. Mike Schmitz to hear their thoughts and opinions on preparing for marriage. Fr. Mike Schmitz offers his perspective as a spiritual father and his experience of walking with couples as they prepare for marriage. Dr. Sri and his wife Beth share the wisdom and advice they have acquired from their own marriage.
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True love wants to promise forever.
Can we love like Christ loves? This is what Christ commands us to do, but is it possible to do on our own? Dr. Sri explains the importance of the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, when it comes to loving others as Christ loves us.
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If we want to love as Christ loves, we must ask for the help of the Holy Spirit.
Are we giving Mary too much attention as Catholics? Will a devotion to her take away from my relationship with Jesus? Dr. Sri discusses these questions in light of the Church’s invitation to honor Mary throughout the month of May.
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Have you ever connected what we do at Mass to Sacred Scripture? Dr. Sri shares a glimpse into this by explaining the “Sanctus” or “Holy, Holy, Holy” and its Biblical roots. By understanding the Biblical roots of the Mass, we can more fully participate in the Sacred Liturgy.
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The words and small gestures we do at Mass are profound ways that we can profess our ardent love for Jesus.
Are you experiencing a conversion right now? Conversion is something that should be ongoing, but may look different for each person. Using the story of the Prodigal Son, Dr. Sri explains some of the different types of conversion. Dr. Sri provides encouragement so that we can continue turning back to God.
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Whenever you are not feeling worthy, know that the Father says to you, “You are my beloved child.”
Do you really believe that Jesus rose from the dead? Perhaps, you have asked this question or maybe someone has challenged you with this question. Either way, it can be difficult to answer. In this episode, Dr. Sri shares many good reasons to believe in the resurrection and how we can respond to arguments against it.
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“If Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14).
Why did Jesus die on the cross? How does the suffering of an innocent man fix anything? These are good questions and Dr. Sri shares the answers given to us by the Church. Dr. Sri helps bring an even deeper understanding of Christ’s passion and death.
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God doesn’t just want to pardon us. He wants to rescue us and heal us.
Why does Jesus ride a donkey into Jerusalem? Is it significant? Dr. Sri provides the answer to this question in today’s episode. Dr. Sri also offers encouragement in being faithful to Christ both when life is good and when life is difficult.
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Even when it is not apparent what you might get out of it, be faithful to what the Lord is asking you to do. Especially, be faithful to him in your suffering.
Perhaps you have heard the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, but do you know how connected it is to Christ’s Passion and Resurrection? Today, Dr. Sri explains the significance of Christ raising Lazarus from the dead and how it helps prepare us in a particular way for Christ’s Passion.
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Each of us must strive for confidence and humble abandonment when we speak to Christ in prayer.
Offer it up! Carry your cross! These aren’t bad things to do, but our response to suffering can be even greater. There is so much that can come from our suffering, from carrying our crosses. Dr. Sri describes what fruit can come from not just bearing our crosses, but embracing them.
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In your suffering, do not miss the opportunity to encounter God and experience his deep healing.
It is always important to spend time meditating on the Passion of Christ, especially during Lent. But why is it important and what is the best way to meditate on Christ’s Passion? In this episode, Dr. Sri shares about the Stations of the Cross. He describes how, when, and why you should pray them.
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God became man so that we could know what real love looks like.
What does the moment of the Transfiguration have to do with me? In today’s episode, Dr. Sri draws a parallel between this weekend’s Gospel, the Transfiguration of Christ, and the transformation that God wants to work in all of our lives to become more like him. Saint Peter ties everything together, teaching us to let His light in.
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Let tha moment of Christ’s presence in your past be the light of His presence for your now.
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Do you trust that God the Father will provide for you? The Gospel for the First Sunday of Lent is about Jesus being tempted in the desert. Dr. Sri walks through these passages as well as passages from the Old Testament to help us understand the importance of trust in the Father. Dr. Sri reminds us of all that God has done to provide for us.
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When you feel discouraged or anxious, surrender to the Father.
Lent is just around the corner and in this episode, Dr. Sri offers guidance in preparing for the Lenten season. He describes four different characteristics that each of us should strive to attain in our penances. He also offers ideas for what might be good goals in prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to strive for this Lent.
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Prepare your heart to meet God in the unexpected.
There are so many questions when it comes to intimacy within marriage. Each marriage faces its own challenges, especially when it comes to the different stages of life. Dr. Edward Sri with his wife Beth Sri answer listener questions on intimacy in marriage.
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Every couple needs to spend dedicated time enriching their relationship.
Do you want to be able to discern God’s will in your life? Do you want to have the strength to trust God? Dr. Sri explains how the best example in doing these things can be found in Mary. Primarily, we must seek to know Scripture as Mary did.
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If we want our thoughts to be more attuned to God’s thoughts and our desires to be shaped by his desires, then we must bring Scripture more into our lives.
What does it mean to live like Jesus? What does it mean to love as he loved? The answer can be found in the beatitudes. In this special episode, on location in the Holy Land, Dr. Sri examines the story of Jesus sharing the beatitudes. He explains the context of the story and what it teaches us about how we are meant to live our lives.
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You will be a light to the world by imitating the radical love of Jesus.
What is the feminine genius? In this episode, Dr. Sri talks with special guest Lisa Cotter about her new book Reveal the Gift. They discuss the feminine genius, the unique gifts of women, and some of the women featured in Lisa’s book.
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No woman is meant to live the Christian life alone. Together women can be a loud voice for the good and for the truth.
Do you want to be healed? Maybe this sounds like a silly question, but for many it really is hard to accept healing from Christ and his Church. We would rather do things on our time and do them our way. Today, Dr. Sri shares how and why we need healing from Jesus Christ through his Church. He explains what it means to be healed through "earthen vessels."
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If you want to be healed, you will follow a standard outside of yourself that comes from Jesus through his Church.
We know that we need forgiveness. However, do we also recognize our need for healing? Dr. Sri shares that Jesus is ready to give us both. He explains our need for healing and how we can follow the examples of the saints as we pursue it.
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Jesus doesn’t just pardon us like a judge. He heals us like a physician.
With his family, Dr. Sri shares a special Christmas message. He also shares the musical talents of his son Paul.
Dr. Sri has shared about scheduling prayer and four keys to prayer. Now, he shares about two popular forms of prayer. Dr. Sri also offers his thoughts on why prayer is important and how it impacts our daily lives.
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It is always important to end our prayer with some sort of resolution. We want our time in prayer to spill over and shape our lives.
Are you looking for a simple, straightforward approach to prayer? Dr. Sri shares about the 4 keys that ought to be incorporated into our prayer each day. He explains why each one is important and beneficial to our prayer.
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When we adore God, we are acknowledging that he is the creator and we are his creations.
Do we depend on God as much as we depend on oxygen? In the first installment of this two-part miniseries, Dr. Sri shares basic principles of how to prepare our hearts for prayer in order to fully receive what God desires to give to us.
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If we realize how important daily prayer is, we are going to make it a top priority no matter the circumstances.
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How much does your phone have control over you? We might not realize it, but the devices we use can have great control over our minds and hearts. In this week’s episode, Dr. Sri uses a prayer from St. Ignatius of Loyola as a roadmap to keep us focused on the world around us instead of the digital world.
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We feel the pull to engage with our devices. Why don't we also feel the pull to engage with God or with those around us?
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As we approach Advent, are there areas of your life that seem empty? This week, Dr. Sri connects our longing for the Lord to the longing of the first century Jews, who inspire us to look deeply into the disposition of our hearts, to weed out fruitless distractions, and to invite God into the areas of life that we long for him to fill.
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During this Advent season, may I never stop longing for a God who never stops longing for me.
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"I love Jesus...do I really need a Church? Why do we need religion?" In this episode, Dr. Sri reveals how the history of the Kingdom of God is woven with the thread of the inseparable bond of Christ and his Church throughout the Old and New Testaments.
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You can't love the king and ignore his kingdom.
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Is God like ice cream? We live in a culture where people just think God is kind of like ice cream, purely based on my own personal taste. In this special episode recorded on location from Mount Carmel in the Holy Land, Dr. Sri tells us the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal and reminds us to conform our hearts and minds to the truth and reality of the power of God.
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It's here on Mount Carmel that we really remember what God did, and we ask him to come and shine his light in the darkness in the world once again.
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Please note: This episode contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.
In today's episode, my wife Beth joins me to address the unique challenges Catholics face in their marriage and families. We respond to listener questions about building the emotional climate that we talked about in the first part of this mini-series, as well as improving the work-life balance for the good of the family, how to handle interfaith marriages, as well as finding deeper healing when it comes to sins of lust.
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Thank God in prayer for the awareness to see the difficulties (as well as the blessings!) in your marriages: then, ask God for the grace for you to take the next step towards transformation and healing through those difficulties.
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“My spouse is in the mood for sex, but I’m not. What should we do?” Whether you’re about to be married or if you’ve been married for decades, Dr. Sri and his wife Beth share practical and spiritual insights from Saint John Paul II, encouraging couples to overcome obstacles by focusing on the needs of their beloved.
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There are times when sex is awesome, and there are times when it’s not. The pursuit of virtue, holiness, and sanctification happens inside the bedroom as well as on the outside!
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How can sex be so beautiful and so bewildering at the same time? Using lessons learned from St. John Paul II's Love and Responsibility, Dr. Edward and Beth Sri reflect on the emotional connections within marital intimacy, and how a couples' preparing their own emotional climate can be the key to achieving deeper physical and spiritual intimacy.
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The heart of sex is not physical pleasure, but what that pleasure points to: a deeper interpersonal union--physically, emotionally, and spiritually--of husband and wife.
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“Yes, I love you … but could you please stop leaving your things around the house?” God made us male and female, complementary yet different. We can choose to see the differences in our spouse as bewildering frustrations…or we can see them as opportunities to encounter Jesus and love more.
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In marriage, God is inviting us to take our initial love for each other to the next level: To deepen it, purify it, and make it ever more like his love.
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Pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary with Dr. Sri. Hopefully, this bonus content makes it possible for you to pray the rosary anytime, anywhere each day. Pray in your car, on a walk, and many other places.
What is your impression of the Rosary? Does it seem like a prayer only the older women at your parish pray? In this episode, Dr. Sri shares about St. John Paul II’s special devotion to the Rosary, how he lived his life in rhythm with the Rosary and how you can do the same.
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Praying the Rosary can teach us how to surrender more and trust in God just as Mary did.
There are so many important conversations to have in marriage. Dr. Edward Sri is joined by his wife Beth Sri to share what they have discovered is the most important conversation in marriage. It is not a conversation between spouses, but instead a conversation with God.
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We need to become attuned to the ways in which God speaks to us.
Do you ever experience dryness in your spiritual life? Throughout our journey in the spiritual life, there may be times without consolation or feeling the nearness of God. Dr. Sri explains why this might happen and how to respond to it.
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Sometimes, our wounds are so deep and our attachments are so strong that God has to step in in a profound way.
Why does Christ ask us to “deny ourselves?” Within Catholicism, there is a fair amount of emphasis on penance and giving things up. Using wisdom from St. John of the Cross, Dr. Sri explains why we must “deny ourselves” in order to gain what we truly desire.
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We are made for God, and so, he is the soul’s deepest desire.
Do you welcome Mary into your heart? In this episode, Dr. Sri explains the Biblical foundation for why we call Mary our mother. He also shares why it is essential for us, our families, and the world that we strive to grow closer to her.
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If we want to grow in our relationship with Christ and if we want to bring truth into this world, we must draw closer to Mary.
What is so daring about saying “Our Father”? Dr. Sri explains historically why praying in this way to God was so daring. He also shares what this reveals about God and what this reveals about who we are.
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We are called children of God because we really are children of God.
Are you willing to suffer for the truth? Are you willing to be misunderstood, even hated for it? Using the example of St. John the Baptist, Dr. Sri explains why it is essential that we suffer for the truth and how we can prepare ourselves to proclaim it.
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Out of love for others, we must share the truth.
Do you ever struggle to control your emotions? Sometimes, our emotions can be overwhelming and difficult to orient towards what is good. Dr. Sri shares in this episode how Christ wants to heal our emotions and help us orient them towards what is good.
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The virtuous person does not just do the right thing, but also desires the right thing.
What difference does the Assumption of Mary make on your life? In this episode, Dr. Sri explains why we believe that Mary was assumed into Heaven body and soul. He also explains what this means for you and your relationship with God.
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Mary reveals what God desires to do in each of our souls.
Do you struggle with anxiety or worry? So many in the world do. Dr. Sri shares how increasing our trust in God can help alleviate much of the anxiety we experience. Dr. Sri offers five tips to help anyone grow in trust and let go of worry.
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There will always be something to trouble us, but we must bring God into our worries and anxiety.
There will always be something to trouble us, but we must bring God into our worries and anxiety.
Are you a Martha or a Mary? Do you struggle to find moments to sit with Jesus in the midst of a busy day? In examining the story of Martha and Mary, Dr. Sri offers that we can find balance between the busyness of life and attentiveness to Jesus’ presence.
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Take a moment to pull back from the busyness of life and recall the holy presence of God.
Do you want to hear the voice of God more in your life? For many of us, hearing the voice of God is a constant struggle. Dr. Sri recommends that in order to hear the voice of God, we need more silence in our lives. He offers four ways to build moments of silence into our daily lives.
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“The more we receive in silent prayer, the more we can give in our active life” - Mother Teresa
Is there someone in your life that is hard for you to love? In this episode, Dr. Sri explains the call of every person to love their neighbor despite how we feel about them. Using examples from the saints, Dr. Sri encourages us to rise above our feelings and choose to love.
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A real sign of conversion is in how we choose to love our neighbor.
How do you handle decision making? For some of us it can be an agonizing process. In this episode, Dr. Sri is joined by guest Fr. Gregory Pine to discuss the virtue of prudence and how pivotal of a role it plays throughout our lives.
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God created us in such a way so that we move towards the goal of life by our own choosing.
Where do you turn in times of need or celebration? In this special, on location episode, Dr. Sri shares about the power of Mary’s intercession and how it is good to turn to her in times of celebration and in times of need.
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Every detail about Mary tells us about Jesus Christ.
How do you respond when your spouse does or says something hurtful? It is not uncommon in marriage for hurtful moments to occur. Dr. Edward and Beth Sri share some helpful advice on how to respond to such moments.
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Speaking words of forgiveness is an act of the will.
Did you know that God desires deep healing for you? In this episode, Dr. Edward and Beth Sri continue their conversation on real marriage. They dive into the topic of weaknesses, struggles, and wounds coming to the surface in marriage and how God desires to heal us.
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In marriage, God wants to transform us with his healing love.
Want to hear about real married life? In this episode, Dr. Sri is joined by his wife Beth Sri to share about the realities of marriage and their own experiences in marriage. They also share about their new book: The Good, the Messy, and the Beautiful: The Joys and Struggles of Real Married Life.
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Marriage cannot be based on feelings, but rather it must strive for a love like God’s; a love that is merciful, generous, and compassionate.
Do you struggle with anger? It is very likely that most, if not all, of us struggle with anger. In this episode, Dr. Sri takes on this struggle and offers practical tips from the saints on how to grow in control of our anger.
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“Fresh wounds are the quickest healed.” -St. Francis de Sales
Is it ok to be angry? Anger is a common experience and can occur for many reasons. But how do you know if anger is good or bad? In this episode, Dr. Sri shares the answer to this important question.
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When we truly love someone, we desire the very best for them.
How do you make prayer work in the pressures of daily life? Dr. Sri responds to this question with lessons learned in his own life as well as some key advice for the practice of daily prayer.
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“The soul needs prayer like the body needs oxygen.” -St. John Paul II
How are we called to participate in the battle for life? Dr. Sri explains some of the spiritual elements of this conflict and how the battle for life has existed since the beginning of time. Dr. Sri also offers practical ways you can join the fight for life.
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"The liberating message of the Gospel of life has been put in your hands." -St. John Paul II
What does it mean to say Mary is “blessed among women?” Dr. Sri shares how meaningful these three words are and what they reveal to us about Mary. Dr. Sri also offers three practical ways to keep Mary more present in your life.
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Mary's strength is apparent in her surrender to God's will.
“Do you love me?” In this special episode, Dr. Sri reflects on the exchange between Jesus and Peter where Jesus asks Peter three times, “Do you love me?” Dr. Sri reveals some of the deeper meaning within this exchange and how it pertains to our own lives.
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“Go to Jesus as you are.”
Do you desire Christ’s mercy? As we prepare for Divine Mercy Sunday, Dr. Sri shares examples of Christ’s mercy to St. Mary Magdalene and St. Peter. He shows how closely their experiences can relate to our own.
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Remember how gentle and patient Christ is to us in his mercy.
What did Christ mean by his final words "It is finished"? Dr. Sri explains the meaning of Christ's final words on the cross at Calvary and how they are words of triumph and not defeat.
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Jesus wants his sacrificial love to live in our hearts.
Have you ever heard the slogan “You do you”? Dr. Sri discusses the negative connotations of this statement and how we are called to live and love in a much greater way.
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I don’t want to just be me, I want to be like Jesus.
Are you dependent on God? Dr. Sri explains the negative impact of not accepting our dependence on God. He reveals four common ways that this leads us to spiritual pride.
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Each day, we must take time to breathe in the life of God through prayer.
How do you respond when you encounter difficult moments? Do you allow your life in Christ, your peace and joy to be taken from you? In this episode, Dr. Sri examines Christ’s arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane and explains how we can lay down our lives instead of having our life taken from us.
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Do not let the difficult moments you encounter take the peace and joy of Christ from you.
What are you thirsting for? In this episode, Dr. Sri explains the great depth of the story of the Samaritan woman at the well. He explains its significance and also reveals our place in the story.
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Do you thirst for Jesus?
What was it like to be a Christian in the early days of Christianity? Journey with Dr. Edward Sri in this special episode as he takes a pilgrimage through the beautiful Basilica of San Clemente in Rome. Hidden behind a simple green door, this basilica conceals holy places of the 12th, 4th, and 1st centuries.
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“We are not asked merely to call ourselves Christians; we are asked to be Christians through our deeds.” -St. Ignatius of Antioch
Pray the Stations of the Cross with Dr. Sri. This meditation makes it possible for you to pray the Stations of the Cross at almost any time each day. Pray in your car, on a walk, and many other places.
What does it mean to rend your heart? Dr. Sri explains what this means, why it is so important to do this Lent, and a practical guide on how to do it.
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A good Lent is when our hearts are drawn closer to the Lord.
Are you looking for a way to transform your Lent this year? Perhaps, it is time to rediscover a traditional Lenten devotional: the Stations of the Cross. Dr. Sri describes his experience with the Stations of the Cross, their meaning, and 5 different ways to pray them.
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This Lent, create space in your heart so that you can encounter Jesus Christ.
Do you live in fear? There is so much to fear in life, but Christ wants us to be free from fear and live in courage. Dr. Sri explains the different ways to act in courage and how living courageously is living for others.
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We need patience and perseverance in courage so that we can give the best of ourselves to others.
Are we allowed to judge others? Dr. Sri points out the difference between making judgements and judging someone’s soul. He shows how one is required of love and the other is for God alone.
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Do you love the people in your life enough to show them the better way?
What do you do when it feels like God is prompting you to do something? Using the example of Simeon from the Presentation of Jesus, Dr. Sri discusses how we ought to respond when prompted by the Holy Spirit. Dr. Sri gives three steps to help us prepare for, identify, and act on inspirations of God.
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“The Holy Spirit will always lead you to love and serve.”
How do you love God with your mind? Using the example of St. Thomas Aquinas, Dr. Sri explains how learning more about God can lead us to a greater love for him. With stories and meaningful insight, Dr. Sri reveals how we can love God with our minds.
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The more we learn about God, the more reasons we have to love him.
What is God asking you to surrender? Dr. Sri explains how Jesus invites us to surrender in every moment, big or small, throughout our lives. Using real life examples, Dr. Sri reveals how the small difficulties of daily life are encounter moments where we can meet Jesus. Dr. Sri provides three steps to take when faced with any difficulty.
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“Jesus is inviting us to surrender moment by moment throughout our lives.”
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Do you respond to God’s Will promptly and wholeheartedly? Dr. Sri focuses on Mary’s powerful words to the servants at the Wedding Feast of Cana and explains how those words are rooted in old testament language around covenant obedience and how they can inspire us to respond boldly to Jesus in discipleship.
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“At the Wedding Feast at Cana, when Mary says, ‘Do whatever he tells you’ it’s as if she has on her lips the profession of faith that Israel made at Mount Sinai when they respond to Moses ‘We will do everything the Lord has said.’ “
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How do we get 2022 off to a good start spiritually? Dr. Sri shares three basic habits that you can incorporate into your routine that will help you get your spiritual life back on track and rekindle your devotion in the new year.
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The beginning of the year is a great time to renew your commitment to daily prayer, to visit the Blessed Sacrament, and to receive God's healing by going to Confession regularly.
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In this special edition of All Things Catholic, the Sri family shares a special Christmas and New Year's message accompanied by some beautiful music!
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Where did the first Christmas really take place? Dr. Sri unpacks the story of Christ's birth, offering us biblical insights into the context of his birth and explaining the significance of Christ entering this world as a fragile and vulnerable infant.
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"The cry of the baby Jesus is the cry of the son of God who longs to enter into our lives."
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How do we discern God’s will for our lives? Whether it’s contemplating a big move, asking someone on a date, or accepting a job offer, we all face moments in life when desire to know the will of God for our lives. Dr. Sri takes us through a foundational moment in his life when he had to make an important choice and offers us three key insights on how to discern the will God in our lives.
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Discernment often involves wrestling with God, learning to surrender, and discovering our own desires, attachments, and fears.
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How much did the Blessed Virgin Mary know about Jesus? Dr. Sri reflects on a popular Christmas song that challenges us to think about whether Mary knew that Jesus was the Savior of the world. Dr. Sri explains how Mary's familiarity with Scripture prepared her to understand that Jesus was the fulfillment of all the prophecies of the old testament.
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Mary's mind was so deeply immersed in Scripture that she was able to identify the incarnation of Christ as the great crescendo of the story of salvation.
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What does it mean to prepare the way of the Lord? Dr. Sri explains how we can use this Advent season to prepare the way of the Lord by growing in virtue so we can give ourselves as a gift of love to God and to others.
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The Advent season offers us an opportunity to meet Christ in a transformative way so he can fill the valleys in our souls and straighten our path to salvation.
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It can be easy for us to rush into the joy and excitement of Christmas without truly living the Advent season. Dr. Sri offers us three simple and essential ways to prayerfully enter into the season of Advent.
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Advent is the season when we patiently wait for the Lord and prayerfully meditate on the great gift of his birth.
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Imagine a throne at the very core of your heart, who is sitting on that throne, you or Christ? As we approach the great feast of Christ the King, Dr. Sri invites us to acknowledge the kingship of Christ by kneeling before his throne, surrendering our whole lives to him, and letting him reign in our hearts.
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“Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything. When we give ourselves to him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ- and you will find true life.”- Pope Benedict XVI
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What does it mean to be true to yourself? Dr. Sri unpacks Adele's new hit song, Easy On Me, and explains how this popular song expresses an inverted definition of personal happiness. Although we are all tempted to find happiness within our own feelings, Dr. Sri reminds us that true happiness is found when we live for God and for others.
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"We find our identity and purpose not in an inward quest of our own feelings, but rather in an outward quest that leads us to love God and those he has placed right in front of us."
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It's easy for a Christian to feel like an outsider in today's secular age. Dr. Sri draws our attention to the early Christian martyrs and reveals how they can inspire us in our walk with the Lord. We learn that the secret of these martyrs wasn't necessarily their extraordinary strength, but rather, it was their passionate love for Christ.
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"The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church."
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As the Catholic Church gets ready to celebrate All Saints Day, Dr. Sri reminds us that this great solemnity is not just about remembering those great canonized saints, it's also about recognizing all those unknown holy men and women who faithfully followed Jesus throughout the ages. Dr. Sri invites to reflect how God may be calling us to be saints and to love extraordinarily in our ordinary circumstances.
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On All Saints Day we remember all the holy women and men, both canonized and unknown, who loved God and others extraordinarily in their ordinary circumstances.
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Have you ever been accused by friends, family, or acquaintances of being judgmental or intolerant because you believe that some things are right and some things are wrong? Try this response tactic to flip the conversation around and start challenging the relativism that pervades today's culture.
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"When someone accuses you of intolerance, don't be afraid to push back and start asking questions. If you let the other person do the explaining, it will become clearer and clearer that relativism is completely illogical, and he or she might start wondering if there's a better lens through which to view reality."
Feeling overwhelmed in parenting can often be a discouraging experience. Today, Dr. Sri and his wife share openly about the struggle of parenting, and how parents can turn to God in those hard moments when they are tempted to feel disappointed in themselves.
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Parents often feel unseen in their struggle raising their kids, but in the eyes of God, every loving effort of a parent is seen by him and precious to him.
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Do you ever feel like you have nothing left to give? There are seasons in our lives when we feel like we have nothing left to give to God, to our relationships, or to our jobs. Today, Dr. Sri encourages us to see our nothingness as an opportunity to meet God in humility.
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When we have nothing left to give, we can turn to God, knowing that he can take our nothingness and turn it into something beautiful.
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St.Thérèse of Lisieux spent ten years trying to overcome her deep seated weakness- her sensitivity and inability to control her emotions. Today, Dr. Sri reveals what we can learn from this beautiful saint’s example as we struggle with our own inability to change and overcome our own faults.
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“The work I had been unable to do in ten years was done by Jesus in one instant.”- St. Thérèse of Lisieux
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What was it about Padre Pio that made him so extraordinary? Dr. Sri gives us an insight into the holiness of Padre Pio, and the secret to his incredible life.
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My past, O Lord, to your Mercy; my present, to your Love; my future, to your Providence! - Padre Pio
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Why do Catholics exalt the Cross? Today, the Church celebrates the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Dr. Sri explains the history behind this great feast day, and how the Cross reveals the love of Christ and teaches us to lean on our heavenly Father in times of suffering.
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"Jesus didn’t go to the Cross so we wouldn’t have to, he went to the Cross, so he could live his perfect gift of self giving love in us and through us."
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Have you ever wondered what it would have been like for Mary to receive her first Holy Communion? Dr. Sri invites us to reflect on the mystery of that moment, and explains the profound connection between Mary carrying Jesus in her womb and a person receiving Communion.
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“For Mary, receiving the Eucharist must have somehow meant welcoming once more into her womb that heart which had beat in unison with hers.” - St. John Paul II
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Who was the Roman Centurion? What makes his words so remarkable that they amazed Jesus and now precede the most important moment in Mass—the reception of Jesus’ body into our own bodies? Dr. Sri reveals how this surprising figure of faith and humility models the way we should approach our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in Holy Communion—and in all that we do.
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"When you approach the Sacrament of the Eucharist with great humility, realizing your utter unworthiness, you have the opportunity to throw yourself into the Father's arms and entrust yourself to his incredible mercy."
At every Mass, Jesus invites us to be his bride in the mystical wedding supper of the lamb. Today, Dr. Sri unpacks the biblical significance of the image of the wedding supper of the lamb mentioned in the book Revelation, and helps us see Christ as the bridegroom of our souls.
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"Every Mass is a mystical marital union with our Lord Jesus Christ, the bridegroom of our souls."
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Do you easily get anxious about the concerns of this world, or about the future? Drawing from the work of St. Thomas Aquinas, Dr. Sri breaks down the roots of an anxious heart, and how we can overcome anxiety so we can live in Jesus’ peace.
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There are two demons that keep us from living in the present moment. The demon that reminds us of our past and fills our hearts with regrets, and the demon of “what if?”, that fills us with fear about the future.
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Following through with our decisions can often feel overwhelming and paralyzing. Dr. Sri teaches us today about the virtue of decisiveness, and how God wants us to set us free from the fears that hold us back from committing to our decisions.
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"Our indecisiveness often keeps us from living in God’s peace."
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How do we learn to make decisions we won’t regret? Dr. Sri teaches us about the virtue of prudence, and why this virtue is so important when it comes to making good decisions that orient us towards love and goodness.
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Prudence is the foundational virtue because it directs and guides all of the other cardinal virtues.
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How can we possibly learn to love like Christ? Today, Dr. Sri shares a powerful story about how reading Thomas Aquinas' work on the virtues changed his life and helped him to love his wife, his family, and God the way he truly desired.
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“Aquinas provides a beautiful vision for the virtuous life, and a roadmap for how to grow in it. His treatment of the virtues is so inspiring, through it we see the beauty of an integrated human person.”
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Pope Benedict XVI once said that we have lost the “art of living,” but what does that really mean? Today, Dr. Sri dives into what it means to rediscover the art of living, and how we can pass it on to our friends, family, and loved ones. The world likes to tell us that the highest form of enlightenment is thinking for ourselves and ridding our lives of traditions, but in doing so we’re also ridding them from the teachings of the Church, and of the summation of our faith.
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_ _The secular world likes to tell us that we can pave our own way through life, only using our own resources and making our own truths, but by living according to our own judgement we are blocked off to the classical roots of our faith and what this life is meant to be.
Although the Catholic Church is facing many challenges today, the faith will never die. Dr. Sri reminds us that as we continue to navigate an increasingly secular culture, we also approach new and exciting opportunities for apostolic mission. It’s clear that our approaches need to change in the home, in parishes, in seminaries, and in schools so that Christ can bring about a renewal and his Church and in our hearts.
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Christ promised he would be with us until the end of the age. No matter what crises we face, we trust not in ourselves, but in the power of the Holy Spirit to renew the face of the earth.
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God speaks to each one of us directly at each Mass, but most of us miss it. Today, Dr. Sri reminds us of the power of God’s Word spoken to us in the Liturgy of the Word and shows us how to receive God’s Word into our hearts in a personal and transformative way.
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"During the Liturgy of the Word, the God of the universe’s eternal Word travels through time and space to touch your life today."
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Do you have a hard time receiving God’s love and mercy? Today, Dr. Sri shows us the three ways we can encounter God’s mercy during Mass when we recite the simple yet powerful “Lord, have mercy” prayer.
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While God wants us to acknowledge our sins and sincerely repent, he does not want us to condemn ourselves. God is a loving, kind, and tender Father, the devil is the accuser.
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The architecture of a Catholic church is not random, it's meant to share the story of our faith. In this special episode, Dr. Sri joins us from the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome to teach us how to read a Catholic church. Using this historic Basilica as an example, Dr. Sri helps us understand and appreciate the rich theological meaning behind its architecture.
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"Catholic churches are theology in stone, mosaics, and glass. The very architecture of our churches is meant to share a story."
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When we publicly acknowledge our sins in front of God and others at Mass, we are reminded that our personal sin affects the body of Christ. Today, Dr. Sri breaks down the purpose and meaning behind the Confiteor prayer we recite during the penitential act of the Mass.
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By publicly acknowledging our sins in front of God and others during Mass, we recall that our sins are personal but not private, for every sin wounds the body of Christ.
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Do you have a hard time entering into the Mass? It’s easy to just go through the motions during the introductory rites of the Mass when we don’t understand their meaning. In this three part series of the Mass Explained, Dr. Sri breaks down the biblical significance of the opening prayers of the Mass so we can prepare ourselves to fully encounter Christ.
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"Tracing the sign of the Cross over our bodies is a powerful liturgical gesture that drives away the demons that surround us, for every demon flees in the face of Christ crucified."
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If you doubt that the Eucharist is truly the body of Christ, then celebrating the great feast of Corpus Christi can open the eyes of your heart. Dr. Sri explains the significance and history of the feast of Corpus Christi, and offers us four practical ways to celebrate it with true devotion.
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"Let us pray for an outpouring of Eucharistic faith and love in our own hearts and in the world."
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Do we truly believe that the Eucharist is the real presence of Jesus? Today, Dr. Sri reminds us that the God of the universe is dwelling among us in all the tabernacles of the world. He encourages to live a Eucharistic faith so that we may draw near to Jesus who longs to be close to us.
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The Jesus who walked the streets of Galilee giving sight to the blind, raising the dead, and making the paralyzed walk, is the same Jesus who is present to you in the Eucharist longing to work miracles in your life.
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Does God just want us to feel good about ourselves? Therapeutic Christianity has become increasingly popular because it emphasizes the part of the Gospel that makes us feel good but ignores the reality of the Cross. Today, Dr. Sri highlights three dangers of therapeutic Christianity which has become increasingly popular in our culture. We learn that we must not shy away from the Cross, for in the Cross we find true freedom.
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Don't be afraid of the Cross just because it's hard, for in the Cross we find true freedom.
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If we want Christ’s kingdom to truly reign in our hearts, let us learn from Mary. As we honor Mary during the month of May, Dr. Sri highlights how Mary’s queenship exemplifies three key biblical aspects of discipleship- she listened to God's voice, she gave up everything, and she persevered through sufferings. If we do these three things we too can reign with Christ.
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“No other human person has allowed Christ’s kingdom to reign more in their hearts than Mary.”
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Is picking a religion to follow just like picking an ice cream flavor? Does it just come down to personal preference? We live in a society that has normalized religious relativism and reduced belief to individual taste. Today, Dr. Sri explains how to navigate the major differences between religions, and teaches us why as Christians, we cannot conform God to our personal opinions.
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Christianity boldly proclaims that the Lord of the universe wants to be the Lord of your heart.
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Do you recognize the voice of Good Shepherd in your life? Do you have a sense that God is guiding and leading you? Dr. Sri teaches us how to practically hear the voice of Christ in our lives so we can follow him faithfully just as the sheep follows his shepherd.
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“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”- John 10:27
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Nothing comes close to the influence of parents in the religious formation of their children. Today, Dr. Sri looks at the latest sociological research on religious parenting so we can better understand how to raise kids in the Catholic faith in contemporary society. He summarizes the four main principles that every parent should learn when passing on the faith to their children in today's secular age.
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Nothing replaces the influence of parents when it comes to passing on the faith to their children.
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When our prayer is dry and something seems off within us, it might be time to go to confession. Today, Dr. Sri reminds us of the power of confession, and helps us to understand this sacrament in the context of God’s love so we can encounter God’s mercy without fear and shame.
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Jesus breathed life into the apostles so they can breathe life into us through the power of confession.
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What do we mean when we profess that Jesus descended into hell after his death? Today, Dr. Sri unpacks this mystery of the Catholic faith and shows us how Jesus’ descent into hell is a crucial aspect of our salvation and a source of hope when we find ourselves in deep darkness.
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Jesus’ descent into hell reminds us that Jesus is not afraid of the dark. He desires to descend into the darkest corners of our soul, where his light can shine the brightest.
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As we enter into Holy Week, we remember the moment Jesus entrusted his life into the hands of the Father on the Cross. What might the Father be inviting you to place into his hands? Today, Dr. Sri explains the significance of this prayer, and encourages us to also place our lives in the loving hands of the Father.
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“The Father’s hands are trustworthy.”
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At first glance, Jesus' words to the weeping women of Jerusalem on his way to Calvary can seem strange and harsh. Today, Dr. Sri unpacks the meaning behind the eighth station of the cross. He shows us how Jesus' response to the women demonstrates that even during his Passion, Jesus never focused on himself.
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On his way to Calvary, Jesus never focused on himself.
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This week, the Catholic Church celebrates one of the most important people in all of Biblical salvation history- St. Joseph. Dr. Sri explains why St. Joseph is such a crucial figure in the Catholic faith, and shares the virtues and attributes that make this saint such an admirable hero.
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St. Joseph is the silent hero of salvation history. His virtue, sacrifice, and courage alone speak volumes.
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How can someone so close to Jesus suddenly turn away from him and betray him? Judas’ tragic betrayal of Jesus reminds us that sin always begins in the heart. Dr. Sri offers us various possible explanations for Judas’ betrayal of Jesus and teaches us how to avoid turning away from Christ.
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"The betrayal of Jesus started in the heart of Judas first."
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What should we do when we are tempted by the devil? Dr. Sri reminds us of the reality of the devil’s temptations in our lives and walks us through Christ’s response to the devil’s attacks during his passion. Learning from Jesus’ example and words, we come away with three practical ways to resist the devil’s temptations.
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“When we call on the Holy name of Jesus, the demons around us fall to the ground.”
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Do you have family members who have fallen away from the faith? Today, Dr. Sri is joined by missionaries Erin and Fallon Scanlan, to talk about how to share the faith with family members. We learn how God can use us as powerful instruments of love and deeper conversion within our own families. Erin and Fallon Scanlan serve as regional directors for the Fellowship of Catholic University Students.
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When we pray with deep trust, the Holy Spirit makes space for powerful conversions in the hearts of our loved ones.
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As we enter into Lent, Dr Sri. draws our attention to the scene in the Gospel when Jesus enters into battle with Satan and the wild beats in the desert for forty days. We learn about the symbolism of wild beasts in Scripture, and how lent gives us an opportunity to rise above our comforts and carry the cross with Jesus.
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“Jesus wants to heal and tame the wild beasts within our souls.”
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As we prepare for lent, it is easy to get carried away finding new and creative lenten practices and forget the simple purpose of this liturgical season. Today, Dr. Sri brings us to the heart of the Catholic tradition of lent and reminds of the three timeless lenten practices that will help us make space in our hearts for God this lent.
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“It happened one day I was entering the oratory and I saw a statue representing the wounded Christ. I felt so keenly how poorly I thank him for those wounds that it seems to me that my heart broke. I threw myself down before him with the greatest outpouring of tears.”- St. Teresa of Avila
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Do you ever feel like God is asking to give more of your heart to him? Today, Dr. Sri teaches us how to take that next step in our faith journey so that we can offer our whole lives to God and experience his love on a deeper level.
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"God doesn’t just want obedience, he wants our hearts."
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Dr. Sri sits down with former NFL player, Joe Reitz to talk about faith, family, and football. Joe opens up about his experience living out his Catholic faith while he was in the NFL, and how he continues to follow Christ today as a husband and father.
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" We are called to be winning teammates for Christ who try to get our friends, family, and loved ones to heaven. At the end of the day, that's all that matters."- Joe Reitz
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God’s mercy is the most profound expression of his love. Today, Dr. Sri unpacks the beauty behind the "Lord have mercy" prayer we say during mass, and provides us with Biblical context to better understand the meaning and power of God's mercy.
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"God’s mercy is the most profound expression of his love."
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What’s so special about the Jordan River? Today, Dr. Sri helps us look at the baptism of Christ the way a first-century Jew would have, explaining the symbolism behind his ministry.
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“This is the inauguration of his messianic mission. His public ministry begins now.”
Was it really a star that led the Magi to Jesus? Today, Dr. Sri talks about different theories of what could have guided the Magi to the nativity.
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_ _“We as Christians need to believe that we have a God that can do the supernatural.”
As we get ready to welcome the new year, Dr. Sri reflects back on the year and shares a special message for all his listeners.
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Are you experiencing sadness or disappointment this Christmas? That’s okay, because Mary did too. Today, Dr. Sri talks about the meaning of Luke 2, and what this could mean for our prayer and preparation for the Christmas season.
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_"Mary had some disappointment in the midst of great joy. If that was okay for Mary, it’s okay for you and I.”
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How do we remain faithful to Jesus amid those misunderstandings, pressures, and even persecutions that we face living in a secular culture? It's not easy being Catholic today, but if we look at the story of Israel in Salvation history, we can find great strength and consolation. Today, Dr. Sri teaches us how to live as strangers in a strange land by looking at prophet Daniel in the Bible and how he remained faithful to God in times of persecution.
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If Mary was immaculately conceived, is she really human? Did she actually have free will? Today, Dr. Sri explains the dogma of the immaculate conception and helps us understand how we can still relate to her even though she was sinless.
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Though sinless, Mary was nevertheless completely human. She laughed with her cousin Elizabeth, walked by faith with Joseph, and wept at the foot of the cross.
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There are four virtues that every human person needs to live a happy and successful life- prudence, temperance, courage and justice. Today, Dr. Sri explains how these cardinal virtues allow us to flourish in our careers, personal goals, and relationships.
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Prudence, temperance, courage and justice are the four cardinal virtues that set us free to pursue the good.
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Advent is a season of expectation, longing and hope. No matter how chaotic the world may be around us, we place our joy and hope in Christ because we know he will save us. Today, Dr. Sri unpacks a prophecy in the book of Isaiah that brings us to the heart of advent and also offers us hope in our turbulent times. By understanding the biblical context of Christ’s birth, we can enter more deeply into this beautiful season in the Church.
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“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” -Isaiah 11:1-2
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We aret trained to run businesses, build skyscrapers and create rockets, but we don’t know how to build the most basic things in life; friendship, marriage, and family. Today, Dr. Sri continues his discussion on virtue and teaches us how to educate ourselves in the virtues, how to intentionally practice the virtues in our daily lives, and how to rely on God’s grace to grow in virtue.
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"We get training to run businesses, build skyscrapers and create rockets, but we don’t know how to build the most basic things in life; friendship, marriage, and family. "
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It’s not enough to just have good values, we need virtue to put those values into practice and really see a difference in our lives. Drawing from the Catechism and Scripture, Dr. Sri explains what virtue is, and why it’s important to have virtue in order to be truly free.
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“The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God.”- CC 1803
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Do you long to be free on the inside? All of us struggle with fears in life that keep us from achieving interior freedom and peace. Today, Dr. Sri encourages us to cultivate an interior freedom that does not depend on external circumstances. He walks us through the three stages of achieving interior freedom and explains why our character plays a big role in our journey to interior freedom.
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"We live in a society that may appear to have many outward freedoms, but we are far from achieving interior freedom."
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Do you find yourself struggling with certain Catholic moral teachings or doctrines sometimes? Today, Dr. Sri explains the difference between doubting and turning to God with our difficulties accepting everything the Catholic Church teaches. Using examples from the Gospel, he offers us practical tips to help us entrust our questions to God with great faith.
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“Doubt is trusting our own intellect more than the revelation of God.”
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Do we really see a difference in our lives every time we receive Jesus in Holy Communion? It can be easy to receive the Eucharist frequently without realizing the power it can have in our lives. Today, Dr. Sri explains the Biblical roots of Holy Communion to help us appreciate it better, and walk away changed every time we receive Jesus at Mass.
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It can be easy to receive the Eucharist frequently without realizing the power it can have in our lives. Let us never forget that when we receive the Eucharist, we receive God himself.
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How do we know if we are truly making the right moral decisions? Our conscience affects all kinds of decisions we make in life- from the shows we watch to the way we vote and everything in between. Today, Dr. Sri explains the Catholic view on conscience and emphasizes the importance of forming it according to God’s plan.
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Our conscience is not just a vague feeling, it is the very voice of God echoing in our hearts and minds that propels us towards the good and the truth.
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This week the Catholic church celebrates the feast of our Lady of the Rosary and honors her miraculous intercession in the iconic Battle of Lepanto in 1571. Dr. Sri shares with us the historical context and story behind this important feast and reminds us of the power of Our Lady’s intercession when we entrust seemingly impossible situations to her.
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On October 7th 1571, our Lady intervened in the Battle of Lepanto and changed the course of Western civilization. Let us also turn to Mary in our personal battles and entrust the impossible to her.
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Angels are real and they are at work in the world. Today, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of the archangels- St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael. Dr.Sri explains the nature of angels and teaches us how to develop a friendship with the angels that surround us.
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The angels are ready and eager to help us fight the spiritual battles in our souls, in our families, and in the culture around us.
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Do you long to feel more united to Jesus at Mass? It’s easy to just go through the motions at Mass when we don’t understand the rich symbolism behind all the rituals. Today, Dr. Sri uncovers the biblical symbolism behind the Liturgy of the Eucharist so we can more fully unite our whole lives to Christ during the Holys Sacrifice of the Mass.
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In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we have the opportunity to give our whole selves to Christ as he offers up his whole self to the Father.
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Do you ever struggle to forgive the people in your life when they hurt you? When people hurt us, it’s easy to get frustrated and defensive but Jesus invites us to be compassionate and forgiving. Today, Dr. Sri teaches us three ways to cultivate a heart of forgiveness in our daily lives.
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"Forgiveness is not always easy; ir is one of the most unselfish acts of love."- Fr. Jacques Philippe
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Today the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of Mary’s nativity. Mary’s life is a source of wisdom for all of us, particularly when we face uncertain seasons and moments in life. In this episode, Dr. Sri unpacks the mystery of Mary’s fiat, and shows us how we can learn from Mary when life takes unexpected turns.
Snippet from the Show
Mary’s fiat was not a passive surrender, but rather a joyful abandonment and longing to fulfill the dreams of her beloved God.
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Sometimes we approach the Gospel readings as a sitcom rather than a series. Today, Dr. Sri dives into the Gospel of Matthew to show us how the stories in the Gospel are not isolated events. Dr. Sri teaches us about four key moments in the Gospel of Matthew and explains the historical context behind these stories to grasp the larger story revealed in the life of Jesus.
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The stories we hear in the Gospel are not isolated events. If we truly understand the larger context of these stories, we will marvel at the grand love story God reveals in the life of Jesus.
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This week, the Catholic Church celebrates the great feast of St. Augustine. Many of us are familiar with his first conversion story but we often forget his second conversion story. Today, Dr. Sri shares St.Augustine’s ongoing conversion and how we can learn from this saint’s complete reliance on God in his weakest moments.
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“It is not as though I do not suffer wounds , oh Lord, but I feel rather that you heal them over and over again”- St. Augustine
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Our hunger for God cannot be forgotten, even during COVID we can find ways to encounter him. Today, Dr.Sri uses St.John Paul II’s leadership and perseverance in Communist Poland to inspire us to seek the Sacraments and cling to Christ in a safe but faithful way during COVID.
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Our hunger for God cannot be forgotten, may we continue to seek him with all of our hearts no matter how difficult our external circumstances are.
Today we celebrate the feast day of St. Clare of Assisi, a heroic saint who was known for her courage, perseverance, and indomitability in times of trial. In this episode, Dr. Sri shares riveting stories about St. Clare and offers us valuable lessons we can learn from her life. This episode was originally recorded back in 2018 right outside the church of St. Clare in Assisi while Dr. Sri was on pilgrimage.
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What made St. Clare so heroic was her indominability in moments of trial. When her faith was tested, she turned to Jesus, clung to the altar, dropped to her knees, and ran to the Eucharist.
Jesus’ Transfiguration is not just a magnificent scene in his life, it’s a sign of what Jesus wants to do in all of us, he wants us to share in his glory. Today, Dr. Sri shows us the parallels between Moses at Mt. Sinai and Jesus at Mt. Tabor during the Transfiguration. Most importantly, he reminds us how Jesus wants to change us so we can also radiate God’s glory.
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“Jesus wants to meet us in the valley so he can take us up the mountain of Transfiguration, and make us so radiant that we begin to reflect the Glory of God.”
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Do you ever have moments or seasons in life when you don’t feel close to God? Although dryness in prayer can be frustrating and defeating, it is a natural part of our relationship with God. Today, Dr. Sri offers us advice to navigate those times when God feels far away, and encourages us to remain faithful no matter how we may feel in prayer.
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“One act of trust at such moments, gives greater glory to God than hours passed if prayer is filled with consolations.”- St. Faustina
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There is a battle for our minds and modern media often presents images and narratives about life and happiness that are contrary to the Gospel. Today, Dr.Sri explains why the media we consume matters and challenges us to examine whether the media we use is leading us closer to God.
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“God made us in such a way that what we put in our minds matters.”
Have you ever wondered where Christ fits in the story of salvation? The letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament beautifully shows us how Christ is the fulfillment of the old covenant and the pinnacle of this story. In this episode, Dr. Andrew Swafford gives us an insight into his new study on the letter to the Hebrews, which unveils the heavenly grandeur of the new covenant. In Christ, we can now experience heaven on earth!
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“What you get out of Hebrews is that the new covenant is not a text, it’s a living liturgical reality”
Parables in the Gospels represent a key turning point in Jesus' public ministry. By unfolding the details of parables, we can better understand their purpose and context in Jesus’ teaching. In preparation of this upcoming Sunday’s Gospel, on the parable of the sower, Dr. Sri unlocks the secret of parables to help us integrate them into our lives.
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“The more we understand the historical context of these parables, the more we can make a direct application that really challenges us today.”
Falling in love is easy, but persevering in marriage can be challenging. In this episode, Dr. Sri explains the difference between eros and agape love, and reminds us that marriage must go beyond our own personal feelings and emotions. He offers couples four ways to move from eros to agape love in order love like Christ in marriage.
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“If you want to grow in agape love in your marriage, you’ve got to turn to the source of agape love itself, Jesus Christ.”
Distracted during Mass? Focusing on the liturgy of the word during Mass can be difficult, especially when you have pressing issues on your mind. To help focus on God’s voice in the scriptures, Dr. Sri shares three practical ways we can prepare our hearts for the liturgy of the word.
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“Every time you go to Mass, there’s a personal word that God has for you. Are you welcoming it into your life?”
This week’s episode is from a LIVE Facebook event that was done on Corpus Christi last week. Dr. Sri covers the beauty of the Eucharist, and answers questions from listeners.
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“The greatest place to offer your life as a gift from God, to worship him, is in the Mass, because you’re united with Jesus who made the perfect gift of self.”
For full shownotes, visit Ascensionpress.com/Allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.
In this week’s episode, Dr. Sri is joined by his wife, Beth Sri, as they talk about the Holy Trinity and its relationship with marriage and family life. They talk about things like how love plays its part in the Trinity, fighting perfectionism in marriage, and practical ways to build unity in your marriage and family.
Snippet From the Show
“The real goal in marriage is embracing the truth of our imperfections.”
In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic and so many other life-altering events taking place in our world, Dr. Sri poses a question that is very important for Catholics to consider: Should physical health be our first priority? Drawing from the Saints and from Church doctrine, this episode reminds us that while physical death is inevitable for all of us, what comes after death is determined by how we prioritize here on earth.
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“The true foundation of our lives is God. ”
As we approach the feast of Pentecost, Dr. Sri explains the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit: what they are, where they come from, and how they are important to our faith.
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“We’re talking about the simple things: what God wants to do in every ordinary Christian is to guide them, prompt them, and for them to live according to his plan.”_
For full shownotes, visit Ascensionpress.com/Allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.
This week, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord! In honor of this solemnity, Dr. Sri spends time reflecting on the days surrounding the Ascension, and what they could mean for our faith.
Dr. Sri will be speaking on “Men, Women & the Mystery of Love” at the Free virtual LoveLife Conference.
Text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.
Even in Catholic circles, it’s not uncommon to hear, “Emotions are neither right nor wrong.” But would St. Thomas Aquinas fully agree? In this week's episode, Dr. Sri encourages us to seek emotional healing from God and gives us a tool from St. Thomas Aquinas to help us evaluate whether our desires and emotional reactions are firmly rooted in Christian virtue.
For full shownotes, visit Ascensionpress.com/Allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.
It’s officially May, and you know what that means: It’s Mary’s month! In today’s special episode, recorded on location at the Wedding Church in Cana, Dr. Sri explains the unprecedented moment during the wedding feast wherein Jesus calls his mother, “Woman." Dr. Sri then points out the often overlooked choice that Mary faced in response to Jesus’ strange words.
For full shownotes, visit Ascensionpress.com/Allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.
You may have heard of St. John of the Cross’ “Dark Night of the Soul,” but do you know how to endure it? Using the writings of St. John of the Cross, Dr. Edward Sri explains how to turn to God when you don’t feel his presence.
Without the Resurrection, the story of Salvation is only half complete! In today’s episode, Dr. Sri explains how the Resurrection confirms Christ’s divinity and enables us to join God in heaven as his children. Dr. Sri also reflects on how the Resurrection fulfills the Old Testament, pointing out how Jonah and the Whale foreshadows Christ’s resurrection and our call to spread the Gospel to all we meet.
For full episode shownotes, visit AscensionPress.com/AllThingsCatholic or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
In today’s episode, we focus on Luke 24: 36-43 and discover that Jesus’ appearance to the disciples in the Upper Room was about more than simply convincing them that he had risen from the dead. Jesus did then what he wants to do with us now: he broke through the walls of their hearts, calling them to face their weakness and meeting that weakness with his peace.
For full episode shownotes, visit AscensionPress.com/allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
Every single detail in the Good Friday story shows us God’s love and the fulfillment of his amazing plan for salvation. In today’s episode we look at seven symbolic details of the Crucifixion—the climax of Salvation history. Through these details, we gain immense insight into who Christ is, how he fulfills the Old Testament, and the nature of his relationship to the Church.
For full episode shownotes visit AscensionPress.com/allthingscatholic or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
As Holy Week draws near, let’s turn our focus away from the events of our world and instead focus on Jesus. The best way to do this is to dive into the Scriptures and meditate on certain moments leading up to and through Jesus’ Passion. Dr. Sri suggests four scripture passages for reflection, walking through Jesus’ Agony in the Garden to demonstrate a method of meditation that will enable you to grow closer to Jesus this Holy Week.
For full shownotes, visit [AscensionPress.com](media.ascensionpress.com) or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
Turning to Scripture can help dispel our worries and fears. Dr. Sri sits down with Dr. Marcellino D’Ambrosio, author of Jesus: The Way, the Truth, and the Life, to talk about the ways that God shows up in Scripture during the sufferings of his people, and what we can learn from these examples in this period of uncertainty.
See the full shownotes at ascensionpress.com/allthingscatholic or subscribe by texting “allthingscatholic” to 33-777
Jesus wants to meet us in our uncertainty, our fears, and our disappointments. He wants to do something in our souls. In all of this, he’s inviting us to rely more on him and not on ourselves. On today’s special edition podcast, my wife Beth joins me to address unique challenges Catholics are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic. We respond to listener questions about financial fears, the dangers of working outside the home when one has vulnerable family members, discernment without time before the Blessed Sacrament, and diocesan recommendations to receive Communion on the hand. We then give you tips to help you respond with openness to the graces the Lord wants to bring to you during this time.
For full episode shownotes, visit AscensionPress.com or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
Today’s special episode reflects on the escalating climate around COVID-19 and provides three concrete actions to take when faced with Sunday Mass cancellations in your area. What should you do on Sunday if your diocese has been affected by the novel coronavirus or your health requires you to self-isolate? Tune in for a step-by-step guide to keeping the Sabbath holy and trusting in the Lord during these times of great uncertainty.
For full episode shownotes, visit AscensionPress.com or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
We celebrate the Transfiguration as we inch closer to Christ’s Passion, but it’s easy to forget that the two events are closely related. During the Transfiguration, God tells Peter, James, and John, “This is my beloved Son, listen to him.” What does God mean when he says “listen to him”? Dr. Sri explains the hidden message embedded in this command.
For full episode shownotes, visit AscensionPress.com or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
Society preaches three seemingly innocent phrases: “Be true to yourself;” “You be you;” and “You do you.” They all communicate the same philosophy: everyone should unapologetically do what he or she wants, because that’s the path to freedom. Dr. Sri argues how much more freeing and incredible it is to follow the call of the Christian Gospel, which shows us how we are most true to ourselves when we die to ourselves and “put on Christ.”
Snippet from the Show
The world tells us “you be you,” but Jesus didn’t die so that I could just be “me”... he died so that I could become like him.
For full episode resources, text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777
A device of torture, shame, and suffering, the image of the cross struck fear into the hearts of first century Jews. Against this backdrop, Jesus tells his disciples, “Pick up your cross and follow me.” And he doesn’t just say to pick it up once; he says we must do this daily if we want to be his disciples.
To pick up our cross, we must accept and embrace the sufferings that God has allowed in our lives, knowing that they can sanctify us. It's not easy, but the paradox is that we will find joy by picking up our cross and following the savior who took up his own cross for our sake.
For full episode shownotes, text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777.
What are the three essential practices that all Catholics are called to embrace during the Lenten Season? What does the desert have to do with these practices?
This Lenten season, let's commit wholeheartedly to the three disciplines of fasting, prayer and almsgiving. By doing so, we go into the desert of our hearts to encounter our Lord and hear his spirit prompting, challenging, and encouraging us.
Peace in the present moment doesn’t come easily. It’s part of human nature to fixate on disappointments of the past, and if we’re honest, the self-talk can be brutal: “How could I ever have said that?” “Why did I make that horrible mistake?” “Will everyone remember me for this?” Worries about the future can be overwhelming, too: “Will everything turn out OK with this relationship?” “What if I make the wrong choice?” “What if we don’t have enough?”
Today’s episode focuses on how to gain peace by inviting Christ’s presence into all these moments of anxiety. By totally surrendering and entrusting your past, present, and future to the Lord, you can rest in his love, here in the present moment.
On Candlemas, Catholics celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus and bless the candles that will be used in the Church's liturgical life throughout the following year. Reflecting on the prophesy of Simeon that we read in Scripture on this great feast, Dr. Sri explains how Jesus’ Presentation marks a climactic moment in all of Salvation History.
Today’s episode draws amazing connections between God’s “glory” in the Old Testament, Jesus’ incarnation in the New Testament, and Christ’s continued real presence in the Holy Eucharist.
Pontius Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, but he didn’t have the courage to stand up for truth. So, he allowed Jesus to be crucified. While literal crucifixions don’t happen today (at least not in our society), that’s figuratively what happens when we don’t stand up for truth—people suffer.
Standing up for truth is often incredibly uncomfortable, especially when we’re facing today’s hot-button issues. But Jesus tells us that the truth will set us free. Only by trusting in that promise will we find the courage and the fortitude to do what’s right—and say what’s true—in the face of criticism.
St. Mother Teresa's chapel was bare, austere, and simple, yet two simple words were written on the wall where a large crucifix hung: “I thirst.” What do you think these two words meant to Mother Teresa? Is this phrase simply a statement of God’s collective love for mankind, or did Mother Teresa understand it to mean more than that?
Today’s episode begins by reflecting on this simple, yet amazingly profound phrase that reminds us of how much Jesus longs for love from each one of us. It ends with the reminder that the way to quench our Lord's thirst is by making time to encounter him in prayer.
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Jesus thirsts for you. He thirsts for your soul, your love, your time, your attention, your surrender. The infinite God begs for your whole-hearted love—how often do you make time to quench his thirst?
If you’ve ever had the chance to visit a chapel of the Missionaries of Charity, you’ll notice that they are marked by three characteristics: simplicity, devotion, and austerity. However, in every chapel the sisters have a large crucifix, with the words “I thirst” painted next to it. These words are among the last words said by Jesus before dying on the cross, and they acted as a constant reminder to St. Mother Teresa about the Lord’s love for each one of us.
The word “thirst” can be found several times throughout the Bible and within the writings of the saints, but Mother Teresa had a special way of understanding this phrase. Often times, when people think of thirst, they think of people’s thirst for God, such as in Psalm 42:
“As a heart longs for flowing streams, so longs my soul for thee, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.”
And in the writings of St. Augustine when he says:
“...our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”
However, another way we can look at thirst is through God’s love for each of us, and further, his thirst for souls. St. Mother Teresa takes this even further, explaining that it’s not just God’s thirst of souls in general, but a thirst for her soul, for my soul, and for your soul. She makes this thirst incredibly personal, saying:
“At that most difficult time on the cross, Jesus proclaimed “I thirst.” People thought he was thirsty in an ordinary way and gave him vinegar, but it was not for that thirst, it was for our love, for our affection, that intimate attachment to him. He said “I thirst” instead of “give me your love.” “I thirst.” Let us hear him saying it to me, and saying it to you.”
Mother Teresa would often encourage her sisters to picture themselves as the subject of the Lord’s thirst, and we can do the same. Take some time to sit in front of the Blessed Sacrament and prayerfully imagine Christ calling out your name and saying, “I thirst.” For example, I’d pray, “Edward, I thirst.”
Mother Teresa gives further advice on this prayer, saying:
“Just put yourself in front of the tabernacle, don’t let anything disturb you, hear your own name, and “I thirst.” I thirst for purity, I thirst for poverty, I thirst for obedience, I thirst for that whole-hearted love, I thirst for that total surrender. Are we living a contemplative life? Jesus I thirst for that total surrender.”
How should we respond to this overwhelming thirst Jesus has for each one of us? Mother Teresa was in awe of this thirst—that the Lord, who’s so great a being, wanted her, little tiny her.
“[How bewildering] that God, who is so big, needs something from me. That he wants my love, he thirsts for my love, he begs for my love. I cannot understand it, I cannot understand it, I cannot understand it."
Have you ever been overwhelmed by God’s love? The saints realized how profound God’s love was and how he craves our love and attention.
If you look at this story under the original Jewish context, Jesus’ meeting with the Samaritan woman becomes much more powerful. Back then, Samaritans were seen as great sinners for their separation from Israel, intermarriage with pagans, and idolatry of pagan gods. Because of this, Jews did not have any relations or contact with the Samaritans. So Jesus spending time with a Samaritan, let alone a Samaritan woman who’s had several impure relationships, was wildly shocking.
Despite her past, however, Jesus seeks to give her a future with him. In John 4 we read that Jesus, for some reason, has a strong urge to go to Samaria, and no doubt to meet this woman. In fact, in John 4:4, Scripture tell us Jesus had to take this route to get to his destination of Galilee, saying:
“He had to pass through Samar′ia.”
John 4:4
Yet, it’s easy to see on a map that there are other routes Jesus could have taken to get to Galilee. In fact, going through Samaria would have been one of the tougher and more rugged paths to take, as he would have had to go through mountains and rocky terrain, not to mention through a city as hostile as Samaria. But Jesus “had to pass through Samaria” not for geographic reasons, but because he was on a mission. Love is what drove him to that well. And what does he say to the woman when he sees her?
“There came a woman of Samar′ia to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”
John 4:7
This theme of thirst again! The Lord needs something from this woman, this woman that everyone views as sinful and as someone with nothing good to offer. Yet, Jesus longs for her, he needs something from her, he thirsts for her. The Catechism points out that we become the woman at the well in our prayer. When we pray, the Lord reaches out to us, and expresses his need for us, even though we’re sinners.
Mother Teresa spent most of her ministry serving and aiding the poor and suffering of Calcutta. There were often times when she would encounter a person dying of thirst, and would do anything she could to get them water. Taking this practical example, Mother Teresa challenges us to ask ourselves, “Do I react the same to God’s thirst of me as I would a man dying of thirst?”
How do we react when we feel God is calling us to do something? How do we prioritize our prayer? Do we view it as a chore or do we value our time of encountering God’s thirst? Mother Teresa says this about spending time with God:
“Jesus longs for you. He misses you when you don’t come close. He thirsts for you.”
Don’t think of prayer as an obligation, think of it as a response to the thirst the Lord has for you. Let’s make time to come close to him, to quench his thirst.
Resources
We know that spending time in Eucharistic Adoration is an incredible thing, but it’s so easy to get distracted! And when it comes to the practicals, should you sit, stand or kneel? Should you read a spiritual book or write in your journal? What kinds of things should you pray about? How can you listen better and actually hear God’s voice?
Father Josh Johnson joins me live at the SLS20 FOCUS conference in Phoenix to share helpful advice on how exactly to spend your time in Eucharistic Adoration. In this conversation, Father Josh shares insights from his own Adoration experiences, the writings of the Saints, Church tradition, and Holy Scriptures that will help you focus on the face of our Lord in Eucharistic Adoration.
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If you wouldn’t look at your cell phone in the middle of your wedding ceremony, why would you look at your cell phone in the middle of your prayer time? _
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SHOWNOTES
What Should You Do in Adoration?
What we know:
Jesus is fully present in the Eucharist.
The Eucharist is Christ’s body, blood, soul, and divinity
In Adoration, we can encounter God in the Eucharist, in what’s normally called a “holy hour”
But the question is, what should we do in a holy hour?
Father Josh’s First Holy Hour
Fr. Josh first encountered Christ in Adoration at a Steubenville Youth Conference, and the experience was so powerful for him that he vowed to go to Adoration every single day after that. However, when he went to Adoration away from the conference, without the lights and music and incense that Steubenville had, Father found himself not knowing what to do.
Father realized that a lot of people are faced with this question in Adoration, which drove him to write his book, Pocket Guide to Adoration.
Tips from Father on what we should and shouldn't do in Adoration:
We should…
Pray vocal prayers: if you’re alone, take the opportunity to pray out loud
Bring our Bible: Fulton Sheen says that the Eucharist is the face of Christ, and scripture is the voice of Christ
Bring our thoughts and desires to the Lord, and listen to what he says: tell the Lord what’s on your heart and mind, but then stop and listen to what he has to say
Meditate on the Gospels: if you’re reading the Bible in Adoration, Fr. Josh recommends starting with the life of Jesus told in the Gospels
Have a resolution upon leaving Adoration: this is recommended by the saints and will help build upon the graces you received in Adoration
Be open to the Holy Spirit: it’s good to have a plan going into Adoration, but we have to make sure we’re allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to us in our prayer
We shouldn’t...
Adore ourselves: know who you’re talking to, and what you’re talking about
Ignore the way we live outside of prayer: the way we live outside of prayer affects the way we live in prayer
Have our cell phones nearby: if you have to have it for prayers, put it on airplane mode to avoid distractions
Turn Adoration into study hall: it’s okay to read in the presence of the Holy Sacrament, but we shouldn’t call it Adoration because we’re not adoring the Lord
Why go to Adoration?
Fr. Josh explains why Adoration is so important through the context of the mass. Not only does it intensify our relationship with God, but it causes us to long for him more. When we go to Adoration and see the Lord in the Eucharist, we are drawn to him more, so much so that we want to experience his love in a more intimate way, such as in mass. Adoration calls us to live a life of worshiping God in everything we do.
“Adoration leads to imitation.”
The more we hang out with Christ in Adoration, the more we become like him. You’ve heard it said that you become a combination of the three people you hang with most, and the same is true with spending time with God. If we want to imitate Christ in his thoughts, words, and actions, we have to spend time with him.
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Additional tips from Fr. Josh: If you struggle with...**
Getting distracted in Adoration
Sit near the front of the chapel: This will prevent you from being distracted by others
Focusing too much on the discomfort of kneeling
Sit down or lay prostrate: It’s better to focus fully on the Lord than to do what you think is “correct” or “normal”
Staying focused for a full hour
Start with 15 minutes: begin with either Lectio Divinia or a rosary, and stay longer as you build endurance
Resources
Pocket Guide to Adoration by Fr. Josh Johnson
He and I by Gabrielle Bossis
Check out Fr. Josh’s podcast, “Ask Father Josh”
Broken and Blessed: An Invitation to My Generation by Fr. Josh Johnson
Subscribe to our show by texting “allthingscatholic” to 33-777
In this special live interview with Father Mike Schmitz, Father identifies the major barrier to decision-making that he sees plague so many Catholics: the fear of making the wrong choice and disappointing God. This fear might keep someone from making a major vocational step of discernment, (e.g. entering the seminary or proposing), or it could keep someone from making other types of life decisions, (e.g. starting a Bible study or sending your kids to a new school). Father and I talk about this paralyzing tendency and share observations, insights, and practical steps to help you peacefully move forward in following God’s will for your life.
Today’s episode was recorded last week live at the FOCUS SLS Student Leadership Conference in Phoenix Arizona. Thank you for all your prayers during this incredible, life-giving week spent with so many amazing young people on fire for the Lord!
Snippet from the Show
Our emotions don’t necessarily reveal the truth about reality, but they do reveal the conditions of our heart.
SHOWNOTES
“I just want to do what God wants me to do!”
Father Mike talks about the tendency to want God to intervene in our lives in explicit ways so that we don’t have to bear the responsibility of making decisions.
In a new book he helped co-author with the Angels, Pray, Decide, and Don’t Worry, Fr. Mike explains that a large part of discernment is actually making decisions, and trusting that even if we’re wrong, God will take care of us. And in almost all cases, this decision is simply the first decision in a series of decisions that will lead us to in our walk of faith.
Over-Spiritualization
We often hear the phrase “I don’t feel called” when opting not to do something, but how much of that is truth versus just not feeling like doing something. Dr. Sri explains that some things we are meant to be called, and that’s a beautiful thing, but other decisions are meant to be made with a little uneasiness. Think of Jesus in the Garden: was Jesus totally at peace and calm about his decision to die on the cross? No! He was terrified, stressed out, he was even sweating blood! But he did it anyway because it was what he needed to do, same with some of the situations we find ourselves in. Not everything we do in life is going to be pleasant, but even unpleasant and difficult can be led by God. However, when we do God’s will, we will experience a deeper peace that is stronger than fleeting emotional responses.
Early Jesuit Maxim: “Your first emotional response usually is not a sign of God’s will, it’s a sign of your own disordered attachment to something.”
Fr. Mike’s Scuba Diving Analogy
When Father made the concrete decision that he was going to enter seminary, he knew he had a deep peace about the decision that could not be stirred. He relates this feeling to the experience of scuba diving. He explained that before jumping into the water, sitting on the edge of the boat, all you can see are these rough and rocky waves that you’re about to submerge into. The waves have no peace to them, and are even quite violent, but once you make the jump and submerge, you get a couple feet down and find that everything is still—so still that you can’t believe just a few feet above you such violent waves are forming.
Deciding to join seminary was not an easy decision for Father. He was jumping into a new realm of life, and saying goodbye to a girl he was ready to marry. But through that jump, though he experienced heartbreak and trials, he could feel a deep-rooted peace within him that evidenced his decision was aligned with God’s will.
Emotions and Discernment
We’ve been told to follow our passion and pursue them with everything we have, but Fr. Mike disagrees. He explains that our passions change and that what we should focus on are our passions paired with our God-given abilities and gifts. If we focus on what we can do, using the specific abilities God has given us, and cultivate them into a skill, then we will find passion in doing our jobs well, no matter what they are.
Fr. Mike’s Steps in Discernment
Gather data: seek advice, get more information, go explore… just learn!
Move forward with the Lord: our steps become clearer the closer we get to our goal
**Discernment Tip: **If your intentions are true and good in your discernment, God will bless whatever you’re doing, even if it’s only for a short time
Resources
Pray, Decide, and Don’t Worry by Fr. Mike Schmitz, Bobby and Jackie Angel
Subscribe to our show by texting “allthingscatholic” to 33-777
How do you know if you truly love someone? Is it when you have a powerful romance with intense feelings? Is it simply a deep desire to be with a certain person? St. Pope John Paul II reveals THE indicator of true love for another: a profound sense of responsibility to care for their heart.
Today’s episode of All Things Catholic examines that reality through the lens of Adam and Eve’s relationship before the Fall, giving you keys to understand how this mystery of love can unfold in your own relationships.
**_Snippet from the Show
Ask God to help you to tear down the walls of shame and sin in your marriage so you can care for your beloved and have a greater sense of responsibility for their heart._
What is the True Measure of Love?
Saint Pope John Paul II on Love (4:33)
“The greater the feeling of responsibility for the person, the more true love there is.”
Genesis 2:25 (6:22)
“And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed.”
*St. Pope John Paul II (JPII) Unpacks the Concept of Shame
*
What does it mean for Adam and Eve to be naked and unashamed? First let’s define shame: shame is when we are afraid of another seeing us as we are, we are afraid of being vulnerable.
JPII suggests in his Theology of the Body, that God’s original plan for marriage was for there to be no shame between the couple, using the first couple, Adam and Eve, as an example of this (Genesis 2:25) They were able to fully be themselves and to share their souls with each other.
*Imagine you’re in a marriage like Adam and Eve's…
*
Before the Fall, there was no sin, no selfishness, no use in marriage. Adam and Eve had total trust and security in their relationship, and sought the good of their spouse at all times. Because of this, they were able to fully love one another as God intended it, and were able to be fully intimate with each other, without the barrier of shame.
Saint Pope John Paul II
They lived their marriage “Looking at each other with the vision of the Creator.” They looked at each other like God looks at them.
“Freedom exists for the sake of love.”
*How did God look at Adam and Eve?
*“And it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) God is delighted in humanity, he rejoices in us. Just as we are, Adam and Eve are his children made in his own image and likeness.
When Adam looks at Eve, he sees more than just her physical beauty, her purpose as a “helper” (Genesis 2:18), and as a feminine companion. He saw her as a daughter of God, that she was made in his image, and that she is very good. Adam is in awe over the gift of Eve, and the fact that she chose to be with him.
**Adam and Eve had free will.
**God created Adam and Eve with free will, meaning that when God created Eve, she didn’t have to marry Adam, she didn’t have to give her life to him, but she did anyway. Eve gave up all the other things she could have done for herself in the garden and chose to give herself fully and intimately to Adam, to serve him, to seek his good, and to give herself to him.
*My Baseball Card Analogy…
*
I love to collect baseball cards, and there’s one particular card that I have that is worth a lot: a Nolan Ryan mint condition (brand new) rookie card. It’s worth thousands of dollars, and if the slightest scratch, bend, or mark is made on the card, it loses thousands of dollars in profit.
Now imagine I hand you that baseball card. How would you feel? Nervous? Anxious? Honored?
That’s what Adam experienced when God handed him Eve in Creation. Eve, something much more valuable and important than a baseball card, was given to Adam by God, and then chose, with her free will, to love and serve him wholly and selflessly. Adam is holding the heart of Eve in his hands, and is in awe of this gift God has given him. He had a profound sense of responsibility for her heart.
How can we model our marriages after Adam and Eve’s Marriage before the Fall?
The first step is fostering that attitude of responsibility for the other. Think to yourself:
The more we create an environment to treasure, honor, and respect our spouses as something much more important than a Nolan Ryan Rookie card, the more we will show them that they can give their hearts to us, and we can give our hearts to them.
Resources
Text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC at 33-777 to subscribe to the free weekly shownotes email.
Visit my website at www.edwardsri.com
Men, Women, and the Mystery of Love by Dr. Edward Sri
Merry Christmas to you and your family! I’m taking a break from my regular recording schedule to celebrate this beautiful Christmas octave, but if you're looking for some extra spiritual and theological enrichment, I encourage you to check out Episode 62 from the All Things Catholic Archives: "Christmas Through Jewish Eyes."
Please pray for me as I join Fr. Mike Schmitz, Sister Miriam, and other Catholic speakers at the FOCUS SLS Conference. Please pray that the Lord guides our words as we speak to thousands of Catholics and Christian young adults, and that the Holy Spirit guides their hearts into a deeper union with him.
Resources
FOCUS SLS 2020 Conference
SLS 2020 Live Streaming on Facebook
As Christmas draws closer, the Gospel readings focus on the Gospel of Matthew, which begins with something seemingly mundane—the genealogy of Christ.
Why does Matthew start his Gospel with a genealogy? If you look at it from the point of view of a first century Jew, it’s completely captivating. These names reveal a lot about the history of God’s chosen people, and builds up to reveal the identity of the new king and Emmanuel, Jesus.
Snippet from the Show
“Jesus is Christ the King and Emmanuel, God with us.”
Get the shownotes at ascensionpress.com/allthingscatholic
Do you put Mary on such a pedestal that you feel like you can’t relate to her at all? As we celebrate the feasts of the Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dr. Sri explains the beauty of God’s choice to create Mary without sin and offers several practical ways you can seek Mary’s help in your own quest for holiness.
Please share any traditions that help you celebrate Christmas as a Catholic with Dr. Sri at [email protected] so that he can include them in next week’s episode!
_
Snippet from the Show
What God did in Mary in an instant, he wants to do in you throughout a lifetime. Mary is an icon of God’s plan for your holiness. _
Why would God preserve Mary from sin?
*What Does the Immaculate Conception Mean for Your Spiritual Life? *
Two Ways to Seek Grace Alongside Mary
From assigning secret “Advent Angels” to your family members to a Las Posadas door-to-door procession and celebration, these ten meaningful Advent traditions will bring your whole family closer together as you experience the joyful anticipation of this liturgical season.
*_Snippet from the Show *
People who are truly alive in the Catholic faith shape their entire lives with the Gospel. This next four weeks, let’s shape our homes, shape the minds of our children--shape everything we do around the joyful anticipation of this holy Advent season._
*Advent Wreath: *
Ours is a circle of evergreen branches surrounding four candles (four violet, one pink) representing the four weeks of Advent.
Bless your Advent wreath with this special liturgical blessing
Put it on your dinner table (or nearby), and light it each night leading up to Christmas with your children or grandchildren.
*Advent Prayers During Dinner *
During dinner, pray a short Advent prayer or sing an Advent hymn with your family.
O God, Who gladdens us by the annual expectation of our Redemption, grant that we, who now receive with joy Your only-begotten Son as our Redeemer, may behold him without fear when He comes as our judge.
Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to prepare the ways of Your Only begotten Son, that we may attain to serve You with purified minds, through His Advent. Who with you lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.
The Empty Manger
Place an empty manger in a special place in your home. Have your family members place a piece of straw in the manger every time they do a kind deed or make a sacrifice. This symbolizes their effort to prepare a special place in their hearts for the baby Jesus.
“Advent Angels”
Randomly assign your family members as secret “Advent angels” to each other. The goal is for each person to perform acts of kindness and service for the person to whom they’ve been assigned.
*Make a Jesse Tree *
The tradition of the Jesse tree comes from the passage in Isaiah:
“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.”
The symbols hung on the Jesse tree tell the story of salvation history and lead up to the birth of Christ at Christmas
Dr. Sri’s “Advent Cards:
Retell the story of salvation history with simple illustrations
Bless Your Christmas Tree (and Recall the Tradition's Historical Roots)
If possible, wait to put it up later, like the original tradition of the Christmas Tree (symbolized the tree of Adam on Christmas Eve, was decorated with Candles on Christmas to symbolize Christ the light of the world)
Special blessing of a Christmas Tree
*Celebrate the Feast of St. Nicholas *
Have your children put their shoes by the fireplace or by their bedroom door. While they are sleeping, put little surprises in their shoes (saint cards, gold chocolate coins, a few pennies)
Teach your children about the life of this great saint. A great way to do this is through the animated movie Nicholas: the Boy Who Became Santa
Celebrate Las Posadas
Read Tomie dePaola’s book The Night of Las Posadas
Gather friends and neighbors to organize a night of Las Posadas in your community.
Children dressed in nativity costumes go from house to house asking for lodging but are refused until they reach the final house, whenthey are welcomed into the “inn,” where they have a party with food and drink
** Listen to Advent Music Instead of Christmas Music**
Follow the Church’s lead--the Church does not sing Christmas hymns until the Christmas Eve Vigil Mass.
Dom Gueranger: “The Church also, during Advent … suppresses the angelic canticle, Gloria in excelsis Deo, et in terra paz hominibus bonae voluntatis; for this glorious song was sung at Bethlehem over the crib of the divine Babe; the tongues of the angels are not loosened yet; the Virgin has not yet brought forth her divine Treasure; it is not yet time to sing. It is not even true to say, ‘Glory be to God in the highest, and peace on earth to men of good will.’”
*Some suggestions: *
Advent of Ephesus by the Benedictines of Mary
Advent Promise by Roger Wilcock & The London Fox Players
The Advent of Christmas by Matt Maher
Handel's Messiah
After Thanksgiving, it’s all too easy to jump into the chaos of December, and Advent takes a backseat to the busyness of the season. How do we avoid that frantic pace and actually make room for Jesus in our hearts this year?
Dr. Edward Sri explains how this Advent, the Lord has special graces in store for you, if only you make space for him in your life.
Snippet from the Show
“Make room for the Divine infant, for he desires to grow within your soul.” -Dom Prosper Louis Pascal Guéranger
**Why four weeks of Advent?
**Recalls the four thousand years of Biblical history. Advent walks us through that biblical story. We’re entering into Israel’s longing for the messiah—into humanity’s yearning for a savior. That’s what the season is all about.
**Why So Much Purple During Advent?
**Advent is a penitential season, a time we do some acts of penance. In the early Church, it was almost treated as if it were another lent. It included forty days of fasting, from the feast of St. Martin through Christmas. In the ninth or tenth century, the Church eventually changed the fasting to abstinence.
*What Abbot Dom GuérangerSays about Advent
*
There are three different kinds of men:
Advent is for those of us who are in that final group..those of us who feel like we aren’t progressing in the spiritual life, or who are going backwards.
“Our Lord knocks at the door of our hearts. He comes to ask us if we have room for him, for he wishes to be born in our house.”
When we are so busy, we don’t hear him knocking.
“You who have had him within you, without knowing him, and have possessed him without relishing the sweetness of his presence, open your hearts to welcome him this time with more care and with more love.”
“Jesus repeats his visit of this year with an untiring tenderness. He has forgotten your past slights. He would make all things new.”
Maybe we’ve become slack in our spiritual life or in our relationships with others
This Advent is the time to start over: “Make room for the Divine infant, for he desires to grow in your soul.”
**
Practical Ideas to Make Room for Jesus **
Resources
The Advent of Christ
Sometimes we think our intercession for others will work only if we say enough prayers or say the right ones, but the power of intercessory prayer lies in the love we put into the prayer and the love of our God who hears them.
Dr. Edward Sri records this week’s episode from a place on the Sea of Galilee near Capernaum--where Jesus healed the paralyzed man who was lowered through a roof by his friends. Reflecting on the story of the paralyzed man lowered through the roof by his friends, Dr. Sri explains how Christ invites us to be part of his healing ministry by interceding for our friends, loved ones, co-workers, and even total strangers.
Snippet from the Show:
"God does not need our help or our prayers. But even though he doesn't need them, he invites us to pray. He is moved by our love for someone else."
The Healings of Christ’s Public Ministry
St. Luke and St. Matthew’s Gospels tell us about many sick people who were brought to Christ by their loved ones for healing.
In Matthew 8, we see that Jesus cleanses a leper, heals a centurion’s servant, heals many at Simon’s house, and drives out demons from the Gadarene demoniacs. In Luke 4, we also hear about the healing of the man with an unclean spirit.
Perhaps one of the most famous of Christ’s healings was that of the paralyzed man who was lowered through the roof of a house by his friends.
This paralyzed man could not walk to Jesus on his own. We don’t have any record of the paralyzed man asking his friends to take him to Jesus, but we know that his friends take the initiative to do just that … they bring their friend to Jesus. Determined, they go through great lengths to do this—they take him through crowds, up onto the roof of a house, and lower him down through the ceiling. That’s how much they love their friend and that’s how much faith they have in Jesus Christ.
We know the end of the story—Jesus heals the man and forgives his sins. But we often forget what the scripture says—Matthew tells us that when Christ saw “their faith” (the faith of the paralyzed man’s friends), he forgave the paralyzed man’s sins and healed him.
What does this teach us about the power of intercessory prayer? It’s not the prayer itself, it’s not about how many prayers or novenas you say, it’s about how much love we put into those prayers.
It Is Good for Us to Intercede for Others
God doesn’t need our help or our prayers, but he invites us to help. Why?
Interceding for others is good for us...it grows our love and expands our hearts
God is moved by our love. When he sees a humble heart come before him petitioning him for someone else, he can’t resist.
Practical:
The first thing to do is identify what friends, family members, co-workers need prayers. Ask yourself, who in my life is “paralyzed?” Who can’t/won’t walk to Christ themselves?
Next, commit to interceding for them. Ask yourself, do you love them enough to pray for them?
Finally, bring them to Jesus. Bring them to him especially in the Eucharist. Pray for them at Mass, offer communion for them, pray for them in the Adoration chapel.
Our chapels should be packed! When Jesus visited towns, he couldn’t even move because of the crowds who gathered.
Mark 3:7-12
Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed … a great multitude, hearing all that he did, came to him. And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him; for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. And whenever the unclean spirits beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” And he strictly ordered them not to make him known.
Resources:
God With Us: Encountering Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew
Matthew: The King and His Kingdom
Purgatory often gets treated like a time out—the place you go because you did something bad—but it’s much more than that. Dr. Sri uses biblical images of fire and an analogy from St. John of the Cross to illuminate the Catholic teaching of purgatory.
This episode will leave you with an essential truth about the all consuming love of God, motivation to continue your own spiritual growth, and several spiritual practices to help you remember the dead.
Who Goes to Purgatory?
Sometimes Catholics think of purgatory as a place where bad Christians go for a supernatural “time out” before they can get into heaven. But, that’s not at all what the Church teaches. At its simplest level, we can understand the three states of the afterlife as this:
Heaven is for those who die loving God with “all their heart, all their soul, and all their strength” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).
Hell is for those who die without loving God at all.
Purgatory is for those who die with divided hearts—they love God, but their hearts are also held captive by love of sin or attachments to this world.
*What Are the Fires of Purgatory Really All About? *
In 1 Corinthians 3:15, St. Paul says that some will be saved, but only through fire. Oftentimes, we view fire as dangerous and frightening, but the Bible uses fire as an image of God’s closeness. This is the type of fire that is associated with purgatory; it’s not fire of God’s wrath—it’s fire of God’s love.
Scripture provides us with several images where fire indicates the closeness and power of God’s presence:
Hebrews 12:28-29 – “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.”
Exodus 3:1-3 – “Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Mid'ian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and lo, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.”
Exodus 13:21-22 – “The LORD preceded them, in the daytime by means of a column of cloud to show them the way, and at night by means of a column of fire* to give them light. Thus they could travel both day and night. Neither the column of cloud by day nor the column of fire by night ever left its place in front of the people.”
Acts 2:3-5 “And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
St. John of the Cross on the Fires of Purgatory
St. John of the Cross provides us with a beautiful analogy of a heart in love with God as a log in the midst of a burning flame. The flame consumes the log, and the log begins to burn from within. St. John of the Cross explains that this is what happens when a soul is consumed by God’s love—flames of love leap up through the soul itself
But what happens when God draws close to souls who have many imperfections and weaknesses? Those souls experience the flame of God’s love in a way that is painful or afflictive. It’s similar to a damp log placed into a fire—it resists the fire, causing it to take longer for it to catch and burn.
So what difference does the doctrine of purgatory make in our lives today?
The doctrine of purgatory reminds us that in order for us to enter into heaven, our hearts must be fully in love with God and detached from all sin. So, let’s not wait for purgatory to begin this purification of our hearts and souls. Let’s root out sin in our hearts and try to love God with all our hearts here on earth.
This doctrine calls us to remember the dead. We must not assume that our relatives and loved ones are in heaven, and thus neglect to pray for their souls. In her final words to her son, St. Augustine, St. Monics begs him to pray for her after she dies. If such a holy woman asked for continued graces through prayer after her death, we shouldn’t assume anyone is in heaven unless they are canonized by the Church.
*How do we pray for the dead? *
Write a list of names and pray daily for each soul
Offer up a rosary, a decade, or even just a Hail Mary for those souls.
Pray for those holy souls in purgatory who don’t have anyone to pray for them by name.
Offer communion for all holy souls in purgatory
Visit a local cemetery and pray for the dead
Which biblical figure showed the most trust in God? Dr. Sri makes a good case for a man from the Gospel of John whose son is dying and explains how we can use his example to trust God more.
Snippet from the Show
“We can’t experience God’s providence unless we let go, unless we have confidence in his promise, unless we are willing to jump.”
SHOWNOTES
John 4:46-54 - So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Caper′na-um there was an official whose son was ill. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Jesus therefore said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went his way. As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was living. So he asked them the hour when he began to mend, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live”; and he himself believed, and all his household. This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.
Fr. Jacques Philippe - As long as a person who must jump with a parachute does not jump out into the void, he cannot feel that the cords of the parachute will support him, because the parachute has not yet had the chance to open. One must first jump and it is only later that one feels carried. And so it is in spiritual life: “God gives in the measure that we expect of Him,” says Saint John of the Cross. And Saint Francis de Sales says: “The measure of Divine Providence acting on us is the degree of confidence that we have in it.” This is where the problem lies. Many do not believe in Providence because they’ve never experienced it, but they’ve never experienced it because they’ve never jumped into the void and taken the leap of faith. They never give it the possibility to intervene. They calculate everything, anticipate everything, they seek to resolve everything by counting on themselves, instead of counting on God. -Fr. Jacques Philippe
How to Trust God More
Resources
What does the Bible say about praying to saints? Are there biblical foundations for the Catholic tradition of asking saints to intercede for us?
Oftentimes we’re challenged by our protestant brothers and sisters with the question, “Why pray to saints when you can just pray to Jesus?” You’re not alone if you believe there’s a good answer to that question but struggle to explain it yourself.
As All Saints Day approaches, Dr. Edward Sri walks us through scripture passages wherein holy men and women from the Bible intercede before God for their communities.
This episode not only will leave you with a good apologetic answer to these questions, but—more importantly—will leave you with a renewed sense of appreciation for the cloud of witnesses who inspire us, intercede for us, and draw us deeper into communion with the blessed Trinity.
*Intercessory Prayer Is Scriptural *
The Bible shows us that the saints aren’t disconnected from and uninterested in those who are living.
*Old Testament: *
Jeremiah 15:1–Long after their deaths, Moses and Samuel are depicted pleading for the Israelite people on earth
*New Testament *
Revelation 8:3–The prayers of the saints rise up before God, and then God acts on earth.
John 15 – “I am the vine, and you are the branches.”
St. Paul – We are the “body of Christ.” It doesn’t make sense that death would rupture this bond.
Hebrews 12:1 The saints are a “cloud of witnesses”
*Intercession Is Not Optional for Christians *
Love of God and love of neighbor go hand in hand. The saints are our neighbors. They are our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. When we grow in fellowship with our fellow Christians, we grow in fellowship with Christ.
2 Corinthians 1:11–St. Paul commands the Christians in Corinth to pray for him.
1 Timothy 2:1–Timothy commands the Christians to pray for each other
*How to Grow in Fellowship with the Saints *
If you’re stressed or anxious, you will find great comfort in Pope John Paul II’s famous phrase: “Be not afraid … Open wide the doors to Christ!” In this episode of All Things Catholic, Dr. Sri explains the meaning behind Pope John Paull II’s words and shares a simple way you can begin bringing your fears and anxieties to Christ in prayer. Once you surrender those fears to Christ, you might be surprised at the amazing plan that unfolds.
_Snippet from the Show
Whatever is burdening you right now, talk to Jesus, name your fear, and beg Jesus to give you the grace to open the doors of your heart to him.
_
*Our Modern Condition
*
How many of us live in fear and anxiety? We’re anxious about work, success, our relationships, our dreams for our family ... Pope John Paul II addressed this reality in his inaugural address:
“So often today man does not know what is within him, in the depths of his mind and heart. So often he is uncertain about the meaning of his life on this earth. He is assailed by doubt, a doubt which turns into despair. We ask you therefore, we beg you with humility and trust, let Christ speak to man. He alone has words of life, yes, of eternal life.”
So what did Pope John Paul II urge us to do? He prescribes a life-changing remedy for our anxiety:
“Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power…. Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ.”
What Christ Says about Anxiety:
Matthew 6:25-34
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day.”
Questions to Ask Yourself when You’re Anxious or Afraid
What is God trying to tell me?
Is this a sign that something is off spiritually?
Am I too attached to something—someone’s esteem of me, my position at work, a plan for my children or family?
Do I want too much control in my life?
The First Step to Opening Your Heart Wider to Christ
In prayer, name your fear to Jesus. Tell him everything about it. Don’t ask him to resolve it; just be honest with him.
Admit your weakness and ask for his grace.
Ask Jesus if there’s something he wants to do in your heart surrounding the issue of your anxiety.
Pray a prayer of surrender. Tell Jesus you want to let go of your attachments and open the doors of your heart to him
Tell him you trust in his plan for your life! Repeat St. Faustina’s prayer of trust: “Jesus I trust in you.”
*Pope John Paul II: An Example of a Man Whose Heart Was Wide Open to Christ *
Think about Pope John Paul II risking his life to meet in clandestine Catholic small groups during the Nazi occupation. It was by taking that risk and opening his heart that his vocation took root. See the great fruit that has come from his surrender!
God will do incredible things with you as you surrender your life more completely to him. When you ask him to open your heart and help you overcome your fears, you’re going to be able to bless others in an incredibly powerful way.
For an exclusive bonus episode on what we can learn from three historic moments in the life of Pope John Paul II, sign up for the All Things Catholic weekly shownotes!
Do we really need a church? Why can’t we just be spiritual instead? Dr. Edward Sri explains not only why God gave us the Church, but why it is a gift for us and a necessity to be brought into a familial relationship with him.
Snippet from the Show
“God sent his son, Jesus Christ, and he set up a church. He gave his authority to the apostles and their successors to pass on his teaching.”
Go to ascensionpress.com/allthingscatholic to get the shownotes!
We’ve talked about the Biblical roots of the Hail Mary, but what about the Rosary? What makes this prayer so powerful that St. Padre Pio called it “the weapon for these times”?
Dr. Edward Sri explains why the Rosary is not “vain repetition”, points to the Biblical source of each prayer in the Rosary, and gives practical advice on how we can better incorporate this impactful prayer into our daily lives.
Get the shownotes for this episode at ascensionpress.com/allthingscatholic
When we fall short, it’s easy to despair and berate ourselves for our failings. We’re tempted to turn our focus inward, and that’s exactly where the enemy wants us.
Using the theology of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Dr. Sri explains how this is the opposite of what God wants us to do. When we fail, instead of navel-gazing, we can recognize our littleness and let the Lord into our hearts by surrendering our shortcomings to him.
Snippet from the Show
Paradoxically, the real victory in the spiritual life comes from surrender. When you say, “Lord, I give this to you because I can’t do it on my own.”
SHOWNOTES
St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Letter 243 - “As soon as God sees us convinced of our own nothingness — He stretches out His hand to us; but if we wish to attempt great things, even under the pretext of zeal, He leaves us alone. It is sufficient therefore to humble oneself and to bear our imperfections meekly: that is true sanctity.”
2 Ways to Surrender
O my God! I offer Thee all my actions of this day for the intentions and for the glory of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart, my every thought, my simplest works, by uniting them to Its infinite merits ; and I wish to make reparation for my sins by casting them into the furnace of Its Merciful Love.
O my God! I ask Thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in Heaven for all Eternity. Amen. (Offering Prayer by St. Thérèse of Lisieux)
Offer up your suffering.
Next time you face a trial or difficulty, use it as an opportunity to surrender your weakness to God. Say, “God, I give this to you.”
Resources
* Men, Women, and the Mystery of Love
Every faithful Catholic goes through a season where prayer is difficult. Whether you’re unable to feel God’s presence, get easily distracted, or find yourself avoiding prayer altogether, Dr. Sri points out four reasons why we may struggle in prayer, and what we can do to persevere and build an ever-stronger relationship with God.
4 Reasons We Struggle with Prayer
Tips for Prayer
Catholics are often criticized for praying to Mary, but every part of the Hail Mary has biblical roots which reveal that the focus of this prayer is actually Jesus. St. John Paul II put it this way, “Although the repeated Hail Mary is addressed directly to Mary, it is to Jesus that the act of love is ultimately directed, with her and through her.”
Dr. Sri unpacks the biblical roots of the Hail Mary to help us truly understand the significance of this powerful prayer.
Snippet from the Show
“Every time we pray the Hail Mary, we enter into the ecstatic praise of heaven and earth. Heaven represented by Gabriel, earth represented by Elizabeth. We’re entering into their words of praise, which are in Scripture and are inspired by God.”
SHOWNOTES
“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you … ”
Luke 1:26-28 - In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!”
“ ... Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb … ”
Luke 1:39-45 - In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechari′ah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit* and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
“ … Jesus … ”
Philippians 2:8-11 - And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow*, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
“ … Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.”
Luke 1:8 - And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”*
RESOURCES
What gives the cross its redemptive value is not the amount of suffering or bloodshed, but the amount of love that was put into Christ’s sacrifice. The cross is less about taking on punishment and more about the total gift of love Jesus offered to the Father on our behalf.
As the Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross this week, Dr. Sri takes us into the heart of the cross—which is ultimately the heart of God and his passionate love for his people.
We’re not called to be like the Amish, separating ourselves completely from the world. But we must be careful how much of the world’s influences we allow into our homes and into our hearts. How do we strike the right balance?
Dr. Sri draws on wisdom from Blessed John Henry Newman to help us live a Christians in this world without being of this world.
Do you have family or friends away from the Catholic Faith? St. Monica’s example offers six practical things we can do to help bring our loved ones back to Christ and the Church.
Too often we focus on how to change our son, sister or friend. But the first step in evangelizing our loved ones might involve changing our own heart and approach to evangelization itself. Are we willing to make the sacrifices necessary to reach them with the Faith?
Where is Mary’s Queenship in the Bible? Is this just Catholics exaggerating Mary’s role, trying to put Mary on par with Jesus the King, so they make her a Queen?
In this episode Dr. Sri unpacks the rich Biblical foundation for the feast the Church celebrates this week - the feast of Mary’s queenship - and shows clearly that the Bible reveals Mary to be our Queen.
Get a chance to win a free signed book from Dr. Sri by taking the short survey on the podcast at edwardsri.com/podcast
Did Mary experience death before she was assumed into heaven? Or was she preserved from death because she did not have original sin?
You might be surprised about what the Catholic Church actually teaches on Mary's Assumption.
“How can we stay with a Church that has so many problems?” Dr. Sri unpacks key insights from Bishop Barron’s recent book “A Letter to a Suffering Church” - a book that takes a hard look at the clergy abuse scandal and offers hope and some practical ways forward.
If you don't have time to read it, listen to this brief summary of the many gems in this helpful book.
Shownotes:
Learn more about this book by Bishop Barron https://www.sufferingchurchbook.com
Why would Catholics build a whole basilica dedicated the Blessed Virgin Mary? Isn’t this distracting from Jesus? Shouldn’t we be building churches in honor of Jesus, not Mary?
And why would the Catholic Church have a special liturgical feast day celebrating the dedication of this Marian basilica?
In this special edition, we go to the principle church dedicated to Mary all the world, as we prepare to celebrate on August 5 the memorial of the dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major’s - one of Dr. Sri’s favorite churches in all of Rome.
Our marriage began with JP2 blessing it in Rome on our honeymoon. So for our 20th wedding anniversary last week, we wanted to do a special marriage pilgrimage to Krakow and walk in the footsteps of this great saint.
In this episode, Beth and Edward Sri discuss the importance of couples getting time away and share from their experiences at the sites of JP2's youth and years a priest and bishop in Krakow where he poured his life into university students, battled the atheistic Communists, and guided young couples in their marriages.
They also share their experiences at Auschwitz and the shrine to Our Lady of Czestochowa as well as inside stories from locals who lived through Communist Poland and saw their country transformed through the interventions of Pope John Paul II.
Every detail of the Gospels is there for a reason: to show Jesus fulfilling all the ancient prophecies from the Old Testament.
More than any other Gospel, Matthew is constantly alluding to Jewish hopes and expectations to demonstrate how God has been preparing humanity for the Savior and how Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah.
Do you know the two main ways Matthew shows prophecies coming to fulfillment in Christ?
Why does the Catholic Church hold up Matthew’s Gospel as so crucial for passing on the Faith--whether as a parent, teacher, catechist or friend?
And why does Matthew stand out in times of evangelization and renewal in the Church?
Matthew’s background as a tax collector gives an important clue into how he gave his Gospel a beautiful structure - a structure that is the key to understanding the story of Jesus as the climax of the history of the world.
When the saints die, they don’t get cut off from the Body of Christ. They’re closer to Jesus and thus even closer to us, able to hear our prayers and intercede powerfully for our needs.
In this episode, Edward Sri answers listeners questions on a range of topics, including Mary, the Saints, Purgatory, and responding to our teen and young adult children’s questions about the Catholic Faith.
You can send your questions to Dr. Sri at edwardsri.com/contact
Mercy is the highest expression of God’s love. But His mercy is not like that of a judge who merely pardons our violations of the law or a demanding boss who one day decides to overlook the mistakes in our work.
This week’s Solemnity of the Sacred Heart invites us to ponder the Biblical truth of God’s mercy - a mercy rooted in God’s amazing unconditional love, a love that remains faithful even when we are unfaithful.
How can Catholics believe the Eucharist is really the Body of Christ? ‘It’s just a piece of bread! It’s just a symbol of Jesus, not his real presence,’ some would say.
But there’s one Biblical passage that offers the richest theology of the Eucharist and most clearly demonstrates how much Jesus wanted to give us his very Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the total gift of Himself in every Holy Communion.
This special edition of All Things Catholic was recorded on location in Capernaum in the Holy Land at the remains of the Synagogue where Jesus gave his famous ‘Bread of Life Discourse” in John’s Gospel, chapter 6.
You can learn more about pilgrimages with Dr. Sri to the Holy Land at edwardsri.com/pilgrimages
Do you want your heart to have more space to receive God’s Love in your life? Learn from one of Dr. Sri’s favorite saints in Rome, St. Philip Neri, who is a patron saint for the New Evangelization. This special edition was recorded in Rome outside Chiesa Nova, where St. Philip Neri is buried.
“Holy Spirit, inspire me in all my actions….guide me in all my decisions….”
After Pentecost, the Apostles were transformed men. We can experience that same transformation in the Spirit today - if we grow in deeper relationship with the Third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.
Mary isn’t just open. She actually allows God to act in her life - even when it’s hard and unclear and when all she can do is walk by faith and not by sight. How can we be more like Mary, living trustful surrender as she did?
For more on this topic, see Edward Sri's book "Walking with Mary" (Image Books).
Mary’s "Yes" was not a one-time "Fiat" in Nazareth. She had to renew her trustful surrender to the Father’s plan repeatedly throughout her life. Will we, like Mary, always be on the lookout for the next step God is asking us to take?
“What makes the Bible different from Muslim, Hindu or other sacred texts from the world’s many religions? Can a modern serious thinker really believe that God inspired human beings to write his Scriptures? Doesn’t that sound like fairy tales?”
In this episode, Edward Sri addresses these and other questions about the divine inspiration of Scripture.
Does your mind wander when you pray the Rosary? Discover five keys to help you overcome distraction and encounter Jesus and Mary more in this powerful prayer. May is Mary’s month and a good time to reinvigorate our devotion to Mary.
In this episode, Edward Sri draws on insights from his book "Praying the Rosary Like Never Before"
Why do the Gospels never mention Jesus appearing to Mary on Easter? Does that mean it didn’t happen? Actually, the Risen Jesus probably appeared to Mary first - eagerly rising from the dead as early as possible on Easter morning so he could be reunited with his mother.
Can a serious thinker in the 21st century really believe in the resurrection of Jesus? When people die, they stay dead. How can Christians claim Jesus was different? The resurrection of Christ seems like a fairy tale—a Christian myth, invented by the apostles.
That’s what many people in our secular age might think about Easter. How would you respond? Gain the clarity and confidence to explain our belief in the resurrection to others in this week’s episode.
The Cross is not Christ's defeat. It's his moment of triumph. Discover the Biblical meaning of the last three sayings from the Cross: "I Thirst"...."It is finished"....and "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit."
For example: "I Thirst." Jesus isn't just thirsting for something to drink. He thirsts for you—for your love, time and attention..for your total surrender to him. Will you make more room for him in your soul this Holy Week?
Was Jesus abandoned by his Father on Good Friday? What is the meaning of his words, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
It's far from a cry of despair. It's actually a cry of confident hope amid great darkness. And the Biblical background to Jesus’ words gives us a roadmap for facing our own trials today.
Shortly before he dies, Jesus gives us one last gift: the gift of Mary as our spiritual mother. Indeed, this scene of Mary and the beloved disciple at Calvary is one of the most crucial Biblical passages for demonstrating Mary’s important role in the life of every Christian.
In this episode, Edward Sri walks through the Biblical foundations for Mary's spiritual motherhood as he considers the third of Jesus' last words on the Cross: "Woman, behold your son...Behold, your mother."
Did you know that the Good Thief was blaspheming Jesus at Calvary, joining the others in their mocking of Christ? What made him suddenly have a change of heart and encounter God’s amazing love and mercy?
Edward Sri unearths the Biblical background of this last minute conversion and Jesus' final words to him: “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
Imagine being at Calvary with Jesus looking you in the eye and speaking these Seven Last Words personally to you.
In this episode, Edward Sri unpacks the Biblical meaning of Christ's Seven Last Words. But don’t think of these merely as words spoken to the world in general.
Jesus was thinking of you on Calvary. He know what you’d be going through this year, this month, this day—and He spoke these Seven Last Words personally to you—to comfort you, challenge you, and encourage you today.
“God loves us with all the passion of a true love,” says Pope Benedict. Discover how the theological background of the word ‘passion” can help us encounter God’s love for us in a deeper way this Lent.
Special give-away in this episode. To enter a drawing for a signed copy of Edward Sri's new book "No Greater Love," email topic ideas for future episodes to: [email protected]
Enter the very heart of Lent this year - not just Lent’s devotions and sacrifices. For Lent isn’t about simply giving up something like chocolate. It’s more about creating space in our souls to encounter God at a deeper level.
Does love really exist? Am I worthy of love? We hunger for a deeper love than what the secular world has offered us.
This week, Edward Sri interviews Frances Hopkins of the Culture Project in Sydney, Australia, who shares how God’s amazing love can still penetrate the thickest darkness in our secular age.
“I should be free to decide for myself my own spiritual values and make up my own morality. I don’t need a pope telling me what to do!” How would you respond to these challenges?
This week is the perfect time to ponder these questions as the Church celebrates the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, remembering the teaching authority Jesus gave Peter and his successors, the popes. Edward Sri unpacks six Biblical keys for explaining the papacy.
We all sin and fall short. But in those moments of unfaithfulness, will we be faithful at least in repentance? Faithful in admitting our faults, saying sorry and intentionally trying to be better next time?
Though Peter denied Jesus three times, he models true repentance - and the path to new life.
Was Jesus having second thoughts & thinking of backing out when he prayed, "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass?"
Jesus goes on to model how to respond when God invites us to do what's difficult - when we face our own Gethsemane moments.
In this episode, Edward Sri shares from his new book, "No Greater Love: A Biblical Walk through Christ's Passion" (Ascension Press)
What was Mary thinking when she heard Simeon say to her, “A sword will pierce your soul also”?
Edward Sri unpacks the Gospel account of Christ's Presentation in the Temple and helps us enter into this feast this week.
“Anyone can say, ‘I love you.’ Some people might sincerely mean it. Few people, however, have the virtue to truly seek what is best for you and be a committed friend.”
This week, Edward Sri unpacks Aristotle’s three kinds of friendship—and why knowing the difference can make or break our friendships, communities, dating relationships and marriages.
For more on this topic, see the free articles on virtue at edwardsri.com
Marriage is hard. But it’s right there in the hard that God wants to bring out something beautiful.
Join Beth and Edward Sri with International TOB speaker Damon Owens for a conversation about the deeper love that can be found in the real struggles of marriage.
Learn more about Damon’s ministry at joytob.org
Learn more about Beth’s ministry at borntodothis.org
“I said to her, ‘What if we stopped having sex?’ It wasn’t a serious proposal. But she started to cry. It tapped into something deep in her heart. I saw in her eyes that she saw me as a man that I wasn’t yet, but a man that I wanted to be.”
International TOB speaker Damon Owens shares how his relationship with his wife was completely transformed when they realized the emptiness of the world’s view of sexuality - and found joy in God’s plan.
Learn more about Damon’s ministry at joytob.org
Mary's world was turned upside down: a Roman census, an unexpected move in her last trimester and giving birth in such poor conditions. How could this be the King? She might have been wondering where was God in the midst of all this suffering?
What was that first Christmas really like? Was Joseph really a carpenter? Was Jesus born in a stable, a house or a cave?
Join Edward Sri on location in Israel as he discusses the Christmas story from an ancient Jewish perspective. He interviews his favorite Jewish guide - a man full of faith and passionate about helping Christians see their own faith through ancient Jewish eyes.
The goal of Advent isn’t checking off boxes: I did this devotion, made this sacrifice, did this activity. The goal is becoming like the child Jesus we await at Christmas, who is the Jesus of the Cross.
Edward Sri explores the many Biblical connections between Christmas and the Cross and how those insights can help us finish our Advent well.
A successful Advent is about becoming more like Christ, even in one small way: more patient with our kids, kinder to our spouse, more generous with our friends, more humble with our coworkers.
Everything Catholics believe about Mary is not meant to focus primarily on her. It’s meant to help us understand and love Jesus more. That’s especially the case with her Immaculate Conception.
Edward Sri unpacks the Biblical foundations for the Immaculate Conception as he shares insights from his newest book on every key New Testament reference to Mary: Rethinking Mary in the New Testament (Ignatius Press)
Beth & Edward Sri share from their successes…and failures in living Advent well.
Personal devotions, family traditions and a spirit of sacrifice are key to keeping a spiritual focus on what matters most in this season.
Do you have the virtue of gratitude? With your spouse? With your friends, family and God? Not just saying “thank you” every once in a while, but the consistent disposition to first recognize the blessings others bestow on you and then express thanks to them.
St. Thomas Aquinas offers three key aspects for living the virtue of gratitude.
Your friend says, “I can make up my own truth…What’s true for you may not be true for me!” How do you respond?
How do you engage people who embrace Pilate’s relativistic philosophy of ‘What is Truth?’
The devil attacks us with voices of discouragement, self-condemnation, and rationalization to keep us from facing the truth about ourselves and experiencing God's mercy and healing power. Learn how to recognize these false voices of the enemy and learn how to rebuke them.
This episode is based on Edward Sri’s recent filming in Jerusalem for his new series, “No Greater Love: A Biblical Walk through Christ’s Passion” filmed on location at the sacred sites from Good Friday. https://shop.ascensionpress.com/pages/no-greater-love-optin
Men and women are different. Discover how that impacts almost everything marriage, including conversation, emotional connection & sexual intimacy.
This special edition is Part 2 of Edward Sri’s presentation featured in last week’s episode.
A young mom once said to me, “No one every told me how hard marriage would be!” But it’s through the challenges and messiness of marriage that God wants to shape us the most.
Engagement. Listening to God’s voice in prayer. Marriage troubles. The PTSD of Cubs fans.
These are some of the topics Beth & Edward Sri address as they answer listeners’ questions in this week’s podcast.
Ever feel you’re just going through the motions at Mass? Distracted? Your heart not in it?
The start of the Eucharistic Liturgy wakes us up with rituals and prayers that inspire us to “lift up our hearts” to God as we approach the sacred mysteries of the Mass.
It’s not enough to be open to God’s will. We must allow him to act in our lives.
A true Christian disciple doesn’t put parameters around God’s will. But when we truly surrender to His plan and give our “Fiat,’ He begins to act in us and through us in amazing ways.
What was Mary’s life like before the annunciation? Before that day when Gabriel announced she would become the mother of the messiah?
The Bible itself doesn't tell us a lot - only two verses about the pre-annunciation Mary. But Edward Sri unpacks them for all their worth to give us a truly Scriptural picture of Mary's early years.
What are the stigmata? Why do some saints receive them? And what difference do they make for my life?
Look beyond the bodily marks and discover something deeper: a soul totally conformed to Christ’s self-giving love.
Do you ever feel your world is turned upside down? “Where is my life going?…Where is God?”
Mary is right there with you. God drew her many times to step into the darkness and encounter Him there. In your darkness, turn to her, Our Lady of Sorrows.
You've heard of her care for the poor. But do know about her extraordinary interior life?
“I have been burning with a longing to love Him as He has never been loved before.” - St. Mother Teresa.
What does one do when the Pope is accused of being associated with covering up abuse in the Church? On one hand, one must avoid rash judgment and jumping to conclusions. At the same time, Cardinal DiNardo (president of the US Bishop’s Conference) calls for a “thorough examination” of the questions surrounding Archbishop McCarrick. DiNarco wrote: “The questions raised deserve answers that are conclusive and based on evidence. Without those answers, innocent men may be tainted by false accusation and the guilty may be left to repeat sins of the past.”
The Church needs heroes who will pursue the truth, wherever it leads. The Church needs heroic saints to guide us through this crisis. Will you do the heroic in your life?
Many Catholics are feeling bewildered in the wake of horrific revelations about clergy abuse. We must, however, go deeper spiritually and theologically to face the present challenges. In times of sorrow and crisis, Scripture and the Catholic Tradition have always pointed to the three crucial acts of penance as a source of healing and hope.
But can my prayer, fasting and almsgiving really make a difference? Can these practices really help the Church through these troubled times and comfort the victims, their families and the wider community of believers and even unbelievers alike who have been effected by these atrocities? Discover a Biblical response to the recent scandal in the Church.
Where do Catholics get the idea that Mary was assumed into heaven? Is there any Scriptural basis for this doctrine? Or is this just a Catholic exaggeration of Mary’s role in the Christian life?
When it comes to romantic relationships, people often question whether they should follow the head or the heart. But what about our friendship with God? Is the head or the heart more important in the spiritual life?
The two, of course, go together. If you want to love Jesus more, it's absolutely crucial that you form your mind with his truth. For every new thing you learn about God is another reason for loving him.
How do you respond when you feel stretched: overwhelmed, in-over-your-head, drowning, not sure you’re up for the task? Jesus reminds us to turn to him. He can make up for our deficiencies, just as he did that day when he fed 5,000 with only five loaves of bread.
Do you know the one verse that gives the framework to the entire Gospel of Mark? Edward Sri unpacks the opening of this Gospel, which the Church is focusing on this liturgical year.
God wants to meet the real you - as you are - with all your weaknesses, wounds and faults. As St. Therese of Lisieux once told her sister Celine, "You want to scale the mountain of sanctity. But God wants to meet you down low, in the fertile valley of humility." Only when we allow God to encounter us as we really are, can we be fully lifted up by his grace and transformed.
How do I experience the transformation God wants to work in my life? How do get my spiritual life from where it is now to where God wants it to be?
It’s not enough to go through the motions of the faith and believe the right things. We must learn to follow Jesus each day as a disciple. Only then will we be "changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another" (2 Cor. 3:18).
This presentation is based on Edward Sri's newest book, Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple of Christ.
You become a Tabernacle when you receive Holy Communion—a holy dwelling place for the presence of God. You also become like Mary: Just as Mary carried Jesus in her womb for nine months, you carry the Body and Blood of Jesus sacramentally within your soul in those moments after receiving the Eucharist.
So when we sit down after Communion, this is not the time to look around and see who is at Mass or to develop your "parking lot exit strategy." This is the most intimate time we have with God. Edward Sri reflects on this mystery and offers three things we can do to make the most of this sacred time with Our Lord.
Love wants to be near the one it loves. That’s why Jesus remains close to us in the Eucharist. He gives us his very Presence in all the Tabernacles throughout the world - And He longs for us to draw near to him.
Do you make it a priority to meet him? To visit him in the chapel? To spend time resting in the presence of the One who loves us so much? Encounter the blessing and power of Christ's presence in the Eucharist for your daily life.
Catholics talk about "The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass." But how was the Mass like those Biblical sacrifices of old - violent rituals with animals being cut up, set on fire and their blood being poured out on altars? The Mass I attended each week didn't look like that!
But if we can understand Jesus' words at the Last Supper the way a first century Jew would, we'll come to see that Jesus didn't just give us his Body and Blood when he instituted the Eucharist. He gave us a way to encounter and enter into his sacrificial offering of himself on Calvary. Indeed, his sacrifice on the Cross is made present in every Mass.
If we want to grow in sacrificial love, we want to participate more fully in the sacrifice of the Mass where we encounter sacrificial love Himself transforming our hard hearts a with his perfect love.
"He's a great guy, BUT...." Many Christians have fallen into the sin of gossip with statements like this - statements that begin with a compliment but end with criticism. Yet, sins of speech fall under the 5th Commandment, "Thou shall not kill." For when we gossip, we kill a person's reputation, which lives on long after they have died.
In this week's episode, Edward Sri shows how our speech can be used to build others up or tear them down. Do we talk about others in an edifying way that gives life? Or do we tend to fall into complaining, negative humor and gossip?
The emerging generation brings many gifts and energies. But fear of discipleship may keep many from being the best they can be.
In this episode, Edward Sri traces how the Enlightenment and the 20th century psychology of self-esteem movement have shaped a generation of parents, educators and young people - making it harder for people to receive the tradition of the virtues and the "art of living."
Dream big dreams - for your career, friendships & family. But root those big dreams in the little way of humility.
Do you take the Eucharist for granted? Yes, we know it's the Real Presence and that we "have to go" to Mass each week, but do we long for the Eucharist like the early Christians did?
As we approach the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, Edward Sri reflects on three ways we can rise above the routine and deepen our devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist. Recorded in Rome, he sums up three reflections based on the early Christian devotion to the Eucharist that he shared with his pilgrims this past week in Rome.
We're in Rome today for the very first celebration of "Mary Mother of the Church" - the new feast instituted by Pope Francis this year. But why do Catholics call Mary "Mother of the Church"? Is there any Biblical basis for this? And what does this mean for us today?
Recorded live in St. Peter's Square with Edward Sri's annual Rome pilgrimage group.
"Heaven is not a place in the universe, but a person: Jesus Christ. And the closer we draw near to Jesus, the more we bring heaven on earth." - from this week's podcast.
As we reach the climax of the Easter Season, Edward Sri takes us through the last chapter of Mark's Gospel as he unpacks the three key events of the last 50 days: the Resurrection, Ascension and Commissioning of the Apostles.
Episode Notes:
Dr. Sri referred in this episode to a prayer attributed to Blessed John Henry Newman called "Radiating Christ." Here's a link to the prayer: https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=1629
Dr. Edward Sri answers listeners' questions about topics such as Mary, marriage and this week's feast of the Ascension of Our Lord.
Edward Sri discusses the real challenges every married couple faces but not many people talk about. And he unpacks three practical ways to experience the beautiful transformation God wants to work in our hearts - not in spite of, but precisely through the real struggles of daily married life.
Let’s unpack the Church’s top 3 ways to grow in virtue.
Episode Notes:
Edward Sri recommended the following books in this episode:
- Donald DeMarco, The Heart of Virtue
- Stephen Jensen, Living the Good Life
- Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
The real question is not “Do I tolerate others?” but “Do I have the ability to love people?” We tolerate cold weather or a traffic jam. But Jesus calls us to love the people in our lives, not just tolerate them. And that requires virtue.
If we want to have good friendships and dating relationships; if we want to build a strong marriage and family life; if we want to care for the poor and build a civilization of love, there is one thing we need that goes far beyond tolerance and coexistence. And that’s virtue.
This episode is based on Edward Sri's best-selling book, Who Am I to Judge? (Ignatius Press-Augustine Institute)
"Don't impose your views on me! I'm free to do whatever I want with my life!"
There are two views of freedom competing for our attention. Knowing the difference can make or break a marriage. It can start a dating relationship on the right foot or lead you toward another dead-end romance. It can help you to succeed or fail in your parenting.
Will you embrace the modern notion of freedom - the freedom to do whatever you want? Or will you discover true freedom - the freedom to love?
This episode is based on a chapter in Edward Sri's book, "Who Am I to Judge?" (Ignatius Press/Augustine Institute)
There’s great spiritual power for us in the title “Mary, Ark of the Covenant”—much more than anything Harrison Ford and the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark may have imagined. But what does the ancient Ark of the Covenant have to do with the Blessed Virgin Mary?
In this episode, Edward Sri unpacks the Biblical background of this Marian title and how turning to Mary as the New Ark of the Covenant can help us fight the spiritual battles we face each day.
Why is Simon of Cyrene a model of compassion? He didn’t lovingly volunteer to carry Jesus’ Cross. He was forced to do so!
The Gospels, however, give us one small detail that indicates Simon was personally transformed through his encounter with the Cross on Good Friday. And his example reminds us that the crosses bearing the most fruit are often not the ones we seek out, but the unexpected crosses--if we embrace them when they come.
Do you know the Palm Sunday Prophecy? Discover the Biblical background to Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.
Edward Sri unpacks the prophecies fulfilled in this scene and the personal application for our lives today. Finish Lent strong by starting Holy Week well.
"Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass." What did Jesus mean by this prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. Was he trying to back out of the cross at the last minute?
This prayer actually offers a window into Jesus' soul, revealing how he gives it all in the garden. Jesus goes on to say, "...not my will, but yours be done." And in so doing, he shows us the model of perfect love.
What did Jesus mean when he cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Did Jesus really think he was abandoned by the Father?
Far from a cry of despair, Jesus' words are a prayer of great hope in the midst of great darkness. Jesus quotes Psalm 22, fulfills prophecy and models for us how to turn to the Lord amid the crosses we face.
Episode Notes:
For the YouTube video of Edward Sri's presentation on this topic, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRfDD10q6z0
This episode is based on a chapter in Edward Sri's book 'Love Unveiled: The Catholic Faith Explained" (Ignatius Press)
Finding silence in a house with 8 kids and a busy apostolic life is not easy. But Beth and I both felt drawn this Lent to turn off the noise, be more unplugged and more tuned in to God in silent stillness.
In the silence, we encounter our true selves at a deeper level. And we also have the interior space to encounter God and others more. Why do we tend to fill the spaces in our day with so much noise and distraction? Edward and Beth Sri share from their own experiences and offer practical ways to build more silence in the midst of busy lives.
Right now there's a battle going on for your mind - for how you look at reality. What is love? What brings happiness? What is a successful life?
The secular world is doing everything it can to get you to look at these fundamental questions a certain way. But Jesus offers an alternative view. How can you make sure you are not conformed to this world but are transformed by a renewal of your mind?
Episode Notes:
This episode is based on a chapter in Edward Sri's latest book, Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple (Ignatius Press-Augustine Institute)
The words "Lent" and "Romance" typically don't go together. Lent brings to mind drudgery, sacrifice and slogging through the dreary days of February without your favorite treats. What's romantic about that?
At its essence, however, Lent is all about love. It's about creating more space in our hearts to encounter God. Edward Sri offers practical ideas for starting Lent well as he unpacks how the three main devotions of Lent help us love God with all our heart, soul and strength.
Episode Notes:
See Edward Sri's article "The Romance of Lent" at edwardsri.com
A crucial moment in the spiritual life comes when we hit the wall: when we experience our weaknesses and sins and fear that we'll never get better - we'll never change. In those low moments, we might be tempted to give up trying and settle for mediocrity. But when we dare to come to Jesus in our weakness, as we really are, in the valley of humility, God does the most profound work of healing and transformation in our souls.
Episode Notes: Edward Sri, Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple (Ignatius Press-Augustine Institute)
The Feast of the Presentation (Feb 2) commemorates a significant turning point in the history of the world: God's glory returning to the temple. Edward Sri unpacks the prophecies fulfilled in this scene to help prepare our hearts for this great feast. Recorded on location in Jerusalem on the Southern Steps of the Temple.
Episode Notes:
For more on the Biblical background of the Presentation, see Edward Sri's Walking with Mary (Image Books); Dawn of the Messiah (Servant) and Praying the Rosary Like Never Before (Servant). See also his film documentary Mary: A Biblical Walk with the Blessed Mother (Ascension).
We like to pray when we feel we're getting something out of it. But what do we do when the feelings fade, when we're "too busy" or prayer is dry? Will we still show up?
Faithfulness to Jesus in prayer is more important than the feelings we might receive in prayer. And sometimes God withdraws the feelings of His closeness in order to test our hearts - to test whether we'll still come to Him for Him alone - and not what He gives us in prayer.
Episode Notes
References Edward Sri's new book Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple of Christ (Ignatius Press - Augustine Institute)
Nothing can fully prepare you for the real challenges of married life. Edward Sri hosts his first guest, his wife Beth, as they share three things they wish they did before they were married...and they continue to work on today.
Many say, "What I do in my private life doesn't matter - as long as I'm not hurting anyone." But there are many ways we hurt people simply by failing to be the best we can be. In this week's episode, Edward Sri helps us respond to this objection and talk about moral truth, underscoring how what we do in our 'private lives' greatly impacts other people - for better or for worse.
Episode Notes:
References:
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Edward Sri, Who Am I to Judge?
Our choices matter. They lead us either to becoming the kind of person we most deeply desire to be or to falling short of the greatness to which God calls us. In this episode, Edward Sri helps us engage the culture of moral relativism with a Catholic moral worldview.
Episode Notes
References:
Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue
Edward Sri, Who Am I to Judge?
What was Mary thinking and going through on that first Christmas night? Recorded on location in Bethlehem, Edward Sri helps us enter into Mary's experience: The joy of giving birth to her son, the messiah, and the bewilderment and sorrow over watching him enter the world in such poverty, humility and rejection.
What if we had never heard the Christmas story before? What if we were first-century Jews encountering the story of Jesus' birth for the very first time?
In this week's podcast, Edward Sri takes us back into the world of Jesus, Mary and Joseph and unpacks for us the prophecies, historical context and Jewish hopes that come to fulfillment in Luke's account of Christ's birth (Luke 2:1-7).
Episode Notes
Christians are called to rejoice, especially in the Advent season. But can we experience joy even in the midst of difficulties and trials? Edward Sri unpacks what true joy is and how we can radiate it more, even in the face of life's daily challenges.
Don't miss out on Advent this year. Edward Sri helps us stay focused on the special graces that await us in this liturgical season - if we understand its meaning and key practices.
Episode Notes
The Sign of the Cross is not just the way Catholics begin their prayers. It is itself a powerful prayer—one that’s rooted in Scripture and one that the earliest Christians often turned to for strength in spiritual battle and protection from all harm and evil. In fact, Christians in the first centuries of the Church prayed the sign of the cross throughout their days, when the rose in the morning and went to bed at night, when they left the house and when they returned, when they began a project or began a meal. They especially found strength in this prayer when facing times of temptation and suffering.
What did the early Christians see in the Sign of the Cross that we often miss? In this week’s podcast, Edward Sri unpacks the Biblical foundations of this prayer, walking through the Old Testament prophetic foreshadowings of the great sign of the cross to the early Christian practice with this prayer. Discover how the Sign of the Cross can be a source of strength to face the spiritual battles we face each day—battles against discouragement, fear, anger, anxiety, impurity and pride.
If you’re at Thanksgiving dinner and the topic of life after death comes up, how confident would you be in articulating the Catholic position? Is there really a hell? If God is so merciful, would he really send people to hell? And what’s purgatory all about? Does God really bake us for a few hundred years in purgatory before letting us into heaven? Where is that in the Bible? The Church has rich teaching about judgment, heaven, hell, and purgatory. But some Catholics are fuzzy on the details or have never heard about these matters from a truly Catholic perspective. In this episode, Edward Sri clearly and concisely unpacks what you need to know about the Last Things and equips you to answer confidently the question, “What Happens After We Die?"
Why does Jesus sometimes seem to push Mary away? For example: When people inform Jesus that his mother has arrived in Capernaum to see him, he says, “Who is my mother?” (My. 12:48).
What does he mean by that? Far from disrespecting his mother, Jesus is honoring her – for he goes on to say “Whoever does the will of my Father is mother to me?” And Mary is the first to do the will of the Father. Indeed, these passages present Mary as a preeminent member of the supernatural family of disciples Jesus is forming. She is the first and model disciple.
This event originally took place at Capernaum in Israel and this episode was recorded there during Edward Sri’s Holy Land pilgrimage last week.
Imagine waking up along the Sea of Galilee, walking out your door and seeing the place where Jesus calmed the storm, walked on water and called his first disciples. You pinch yourself and ask, “Am I really here?” By seeing the very places where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount, healed many people of their illnesses, and taught the parables, suddenly makes the Biblical stories more real. It’s as if you’ve walked right into the middle of the Bible. And they way you encounter the Scriptures will never be the same.
That’s the experience many pilgrims have on their first day on pilgrimage in the Holy Land.
This week’s podcast was recorded in anticipation of Edward Sri’s Holy Land Pilgrimage this week to give you a taste of a day on pilgrimage in the land of Jesus. A pilgrimage is much more than a vacation. It’s a sacred journey. As we walk in the footsteps of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the Apostles and many Old Testament heroes, we’re reminded of the choices they made for God
“Why do you Catholics give so much attention to the saints? Shouldn’t we just focus on God?”
Indeed, Catholic devotion to the saints is quite puzzling to some Christians. The whole idea of kneeling before a statue of Mary, doing a nine-day novena to St. Therese or asking St. Anthony to help you find your lost keys seems scandalous. After all, these are just human beings who died a long time ago—they’re not God!
When Catholics honor the saints, however, we are simply recognizing the great things God has done in their lives and celebrating it. This in no way takes away from the attention and praise we should give to God. In fact, we give God more praise when we acknowledge his achievements in the saints.
Indeed, Catholic devotion to the saints is all about Jesus. The greatest work God accomplishes in the universe is taking weak, fallen human beings and transforming them into holy men and women of God. God is the divine artist and the saints are his most magnificent masterpieces. So if you want to love God with all your heart and give God more praise, then take time to recognize his masterpieces and honor the saints.
Show Notes
For more on catholic devotion to the saints, including apologetics arguments and Scriptural support for this, see Edward Sri’s book Love Unveiled--The Catholic Faith Explained (Ignatius Press).
Along the Sea of Galilee some 2,000 years ago, Peter was stunned when the Risen Jesus asked him, “Do you love me?” It was the word for “love” that got to him. Jesus didn’t speak of ordinary human affection. Another Greek word, phileo, describes that kind of love. Jesus instead uses the word agape, which describes a total, self-giving, sacrificial love.
And that is what’s so troubling for Peter. After Peter just denied Christ three times, he painful knows he is incapable of agape love. He is sad that the best he can offer is only the imperfect, human love of phileo.
And we often feel the same.
We know we don’t love as well as we should. Our love falls short. But the good news is God wants to do in us what he did in St. Peter. In a beautiful play on words, John’s Gospel chapter 21 shows how Jesus will lower himself to Peter’s level and accept Peter’s broken, imperfect gift of phileo love and transform it into agape. It doesn’t happen all at once. But from this point forward, Peter is a changed man. He will go on to lead like Christ, serve like Christ, teach like Christ and even suffer like Christ. Like his Master, Peter will be handed over to the Romans and stretched out on a cross as he is crucified upside down in Nero’s circus. At this climactic moment, as Peter gives the heroic witness of his martyrdom, he lives agape love in a most profound way.
The same Jesus who transformed Peter’s phileo love into agape will do the same in our hearts—if we follow him faithfully as a disciple.
Before you say you’re pro-life, you might want to consider themes from JP2’s hard-hitting encyclical “The Gospel of Life.” It’s like an examination of conscience. It not only challenges us to take a deeper look at what’s really happening in “the culture of death.” It also invites us to consider the ways we Christians might be contributing to it through our own individualistic tendencies in our families, work environments and local communities.
Be inspired to combat the culture of death and build a civilization of love—one soul at a time, beginning with the people God has placed in your daily life.
In this week’s podcast, Edward Sri brings together two themes this week: St. John Paul II’s feast day (which normally is celebrated October 22) and Respect Life month.
Show Notes:
Here’s a link to the Encyclical discussed in this podcast: John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae (1995).
Are you too busy to pray the rosary? Get distracted? Get bored? Prefer shorter prayers?
For many, the rosary is the marathon of all Catholic devotions. “I prefer shorter prayers like the Divine Mercy chaplet.” Who has time for 50 plus beads of prayers?
But what if I were to tell you the rosary is not beyond you. That you don’t have to pray it all at once. And that there are creative ways to incorporate it into your daily life.
There was only one request that Our Lady of Fatima made in all six apparitions: to pray the rosary daily. In this week’s episode, Edward Sri explores the importance of Our Lady of Fatima for today, including her call for us to return to the rosary. So whether you’re an avid devotee of the rosary or a beginner or someone who has not prayed it in a while, discover five easy ways to jumpstart your rosary devotion and experience the power of this prayer.
Show Notes
For more on the Rosary see Edward Sri’s latest book, Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven & Earth (Servant Books).
Imagine a non-Christian friend asking you to explain the Trinity: “How does 3=1? Do you believe in three Gods? Or is it just like three different names for the same one God?” How would you respond? And does it really matter?
Does it really make a difference whether we believe in just a solitary divine being or a God who exists as Father, Son and Holy Spirit? Absolutely! In fact, understanding the Trinity is the key to understanding what love is, where our happiness is found and the purpose of our lives. For we are made in the image and likeness not of some vague higher power, but of the God who is love (1 Jn 4:8)—the God whose very inner life is all about total self-giving love. As St. John Paul II taught, we are stamped with a “Trinitarian character,’ meaning we are meant to live like the Trinity in self-giving love. Only when we live self-giving love for others and for God will we find our happiness.
Show Notes
For more on how to explain the Trinity and the importance of this central mystery for our lives, see chapter one from Edward Sri’s book, “Love Unveiled: The Symbolon Book” (Ignatius Press).
Ed Sheeran’s recent popular song repeatedly boasts, “I’m in love with your body.” But will that kind of love satisfy the depths of the human heart? We long to be loved for who we are, not just for our bodies. But in our over-sexualized world, many young people think, “I’ll never find someone who will love me for who I am, as a person…The best I can do to focus on my physical appearance, dress a certain way and hope that someone will at least love my body.”
Edward Sri helps us discover the real purpose of sensual attraction. According to JPII’s ‘Theology of the Body,’ God wired us to notice the ‘good looks’ of the opposite sex in order to lead us to a deeper appreciation of the person who has those good looks. But relationships built on the “I’m in love with your body” kind of love never last. For such is love is not focused on the person. It reduces the person to a mere body to be exploited for one’s own pleasure, enjoyment and sexual satisfaction. We are made for much more than that.
Rise above the culture of “I’m in love with your body.” Pursue your heart’s deepest desires, which is for authentic love. Learn the proper use of sensual attraction and how it can lead to genuine friendship, lasting relationships and even a true appreciation of the beauty of the body.
Your past doesn’t have to define you. This week’s feast of St. Matthew inspires us to consider how the God who transformed this sinner-tax collector into the great apostle can transform us in our own walk with Him today. Edward Sri takes us on a mini-tour in Rome to two of his favorite pieces of art depicting the life of this great saint. Along the way, we learn how to answer the call of God in our lives and take the next step of faith to which he is inviting us. God had amazing things in store for Matthew, but he first needed to leave his money bags behind. What might the Lord be asking you to do to follow him more closely this week? Put yourself in Matthew’s shoes and be ready not only to answer the call, but live it deeply day-by-day.
How do you know if you’re truly growing in your relationship with God or just going through the motions with your faith? One key to answering this question is the theme of discipleship. Being a true follower of Jesus involves more than just going to Mass, believing the right doctrines and following the 10 Commandments. To be a disciple of Jesus is to imitate his whole way of life. Do you long to love Jesus with all your heart? Discover three simple things you can do to help ensure your relationship with Christ doesn’t grow stagnant, but is always being rekindled and deepened throughout your life.
In this opening episode, Edward Sri launches his ‘All Things Catholic’ podcast with a topic to help us get ready for the feast of Mary’s Birthday this week: The Hail Mary. Perhaps you’ve prayed this prayer countless times. But what does it mean? Discover the rich Biblical roots of this prayer, along with insights from St. John Paul II that will transform the way you pray it. Experience the Hail Mary in a new way that is truly Christ-centered. For as JP2 said, in this prayer we encounter ‘the wonder of heaven and earth’ over the mystery of Christ.
En liten tjänst av I'm With Friends. Finns även på engelska.