Stay ConnectedBased on the book, “Return to Order” by John Horvat II, this podcast addresses the root causes of the nation’s moral decay and shows how we can return to those God-given institutions and principles that naturally regulate society and put it back in balance.
Hosted by Edwin Benson, Matthew Miller and John Horvat II himself, the Return to Order Moment brings you insights, analysis and information for a culture in crisis.
Visit our website at: http://www.returntoorder.org/
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As this podcast goes live, we are on the verge of one of the most exceptional days in the Church year, the Ascension of Our Lord into Heaven forty days after Easter. The Ascension fills us with hope. All believers base their lives around the desire that their souls will eventually follow Our Lord into heaven. Mr. Gustavo Solimeo spoke of that hope in this essay, published in Crusade Magazine in March-April 2005, titled simply “Heaven: The Hope of Our Souls.” Interested listeners can get a one-year trial subscription to Crusade by calling 888-317-5571. Thank you for listening.
Natural Law is an often misunderstood concept. Much of that misunderstanding is deliberate. Leftists do not want to understand or consider it. In this essay, Mr. John Horvat considers and explains the reasons that leftists fear and are repulsed by the ideas behind Natural Law. Listeners who wish to read the essay in its original format may use this link - https://www.returntoorder.org/2023/05/why-the-left-hates-and-is-terrified-by-natural-law/. Thank you for listening.
Humanity stands at a precipice. Many have already given their lives into the control of their devices. Our computers and cell phones organize our thoughts, keep track of our schedules, and mechanize our communications with others. The keys to this process appear to be convenience and amusement. Modern people seem unable to tolerate moments of inactivity – even the body and mind’s natural needs for rest are often forgotten. At the same time, they expect constant amusement. It is possible to see young moderns – and even some in middle age – simultaneously watching a movie through a streaming service on television while using their smartphones to play a game and text friends and acquaintances. All the while, there is a disquieting sense of being prepared for something far worse – perhaps even fatal to the whole idea of humanity. The coming of artificial intelligence thrills some and fills others with dread. Sometimes, both the trill and dread can be found in the same person. There is the sense that we don’t want to be left out of the marvelous future – but aren’t totally sure that the future will be marvelous at all. Of course, at the same time, there are those who stand to profit astronomically from the coming of the Metaverse. Like the “snake oil salesmen” of the nineteenth century, they promise the moon, and assume that the public will believe those promises. In his essay “The Metaverse: What Is It?” Mr. John Horvat considers those promises, and whether humanity should follow these modern Pied Pipers. This article was originally published in Crusade Magazine in March/April 2022. A free one-year subscription to this important publication is available by calling 888-317-5571. Thank you for listening.
For many Americans, the mention of Vladimir Putin brings one of three images to mind. First, there is the voice of George Bush the younger saying, “I looked the man in the eye. I was able to get a sense of his soul.” The second is then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offering Putin a cheap plastic “Reset Button.” The third is then-President Obama telling Putin’s associate Dmitri Medvedev that “This is my last election ... After my election I have more flexibility.” In all of these cases, you have an American leader trying to convince themselves that they can trust and work with Vladimir Putin. They were wrong. If the war in Ukraine has convinced us of anything, it should be that Putin is not to be trusted. This podcast brings you important insights into the Russian philosophers - most of them largely unknown in the West - that influence Mr. Putin's point of view. Listeners who wish to read the essays in their original formats can use the following links - https://www.returntoorder.org/2023/02/trying-to-explain-alexander-dugin/ and https://www.returntoorder.org/2022/07/putins-ideology-in-his-own-words/.
Modern Americans have a complicated relationship with the idea of leadership. We understand instinctively what good leadership is, but that understanding conflicts with our mistaken ideas about equality. At the same time, we enjoy pointing to the mistakes of those in leadership over us – whether that person be a shift supervisor in a convenience store or the President of the United States. So, we know that we need leaders, yet we resent them at the same time. Part of the problem is that so many people in leadership positions are not true leaders. This podcast compares true leadership with the false leaders in which our modern world abounds. To read the essays in their original formats, listeners may use the following links - https://www.returntoorder.org/2023/03/when-true-elites-take-charge-problems-get-resolved/, https://www.returntoorder.org/2023/03/imagining-a-heretical-president/, and https://www.returntoorder.org/2023/03/can-chinas-xi-jinping-keep-his-authority-over-a-nation-of-pessimists/.
Pope Francis and his supporters are engaged in a feverish attempt to change the Catholic Church before they pass away and a more traditionalist generation assumes control of the Church. This podcast considers the roles played by Pope Francis and two of his closest allies within the Church in the United States. Cardinals McElroy of San Diego and Cupich of Chicago. Those who wish to examine Mr. Solimeo's essays, which are extensively footnoted, in their original printed formats can use the following links - https://www.tfp.org/pope-francis-wages-unjust-war-on-the-latin-mass/, https://www.tfp.org/cardinal-mcelroy-homoheresy-and-the-churchs-apparent-eclipse/, and https://www.tfp.org/cardinal-cupichs-modernist-concepts/. Thank you for listening.
When Russia attacked the Ukraine on February 24, 2022, there was a wide-spread consensus that the United States should assist the beleaguered nation. Much of that consensus has dissolved. Today, there is a good deal of controversy concerning the United States’ role in the War in the Ukraine. That controversy is unusual in that it cuts across normal party and ideological lines. You can find conservatives and liberals on both sides. The same can be said for Republicans and Democrats. This episode of the Return to Order Moment attempts to clarify that controversy and spell out some of the essential elements of that struggle. Listeners who wish to see the essays in their original format may use the following links - https://www.tfp.org/8-facts-about-russia-and-its-ukrainian-war/?PKG=TFPE3044, https://www.tfp.org/will-the-west-let-itself-be-squeezed-between-russia-and-china/, and https://www.tfp.org/the-errors-of-russia/. Thank you for listening.
Holy Week is often a difficult time for Christians who need to live their lives in a largely secular society. On one level, we know that this is the most important week of the year. It is a time when our Lenten disciplines reach a crescendo. At the same time, it seems that everyone around us is living their normal lives – and they expect that we are doing the same thing. So, then, how do we observe Holy Week properly in the midst of those who do not believe in its importance? To assist our listeners, we bring you a marvelous article written by the founder of the international TFP movement, Professor Plinio Correa de Olivera. Professor Plinio left us with hundreds of articles, written over a long and active life. There was virtually no part of Christian life on which he did not write. We pray that you will be blessed by this reading of Professor Plinio’s 1947 essay “Embracing Christ and the Cross: What Does it Mean?”
As God created our first parents in the Garden of Eden, He said, “Let us make man to our image and likeness: and let him have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and the beasts, and the whole earth, and every creeping creature that moveth upon the earth. And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him: male and female he created them. And God blessed them, saying: Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and rule over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and all living creatures that move upon the earth.” (Genesis, Chapter 1, Verses 26-28). Two things are clear about humanity from these verses. First, humans were invested with at least some of the characteristics of God, specifically the ability to reason. Second, God intended humanity to use the earthly resources that He Created. Today, there are those who are fighting a revolution against humanity. They are self-hating people who carry a label devised by the atheist philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, nihilists. This podcast takes a closer look at those revolutionaries and their motivations. Those listeners who wish to examine the essays in their original written formats can use the following links - https://www.tfp.org/only-the-pursuit-of-wisdom-can-overcome-the-triumph-of-nihilism/, https://www.tfp.org/the-revolt-against-humanity-describes-a-future-without-god/, and https://www.tfp.org/the-human-extinction-movement-targets-god-and-you/. Thank you for listening.
Complain about the nature and content of a movie, and someone is almost sure to complain, “Get over it. It’s just a movie!” That reaction emphasizes the fact that few people think about the effects of the movie industry on society. The Movie industry’s larger-than-life images take on a power all their own. It also trivializes real dangers. In Hollywood’s make-believe world, all situations can be resolved in two hours. Hollywood is also a deeply seated enemy of religion and morality. Since its very beginnings in the early twentieth century, immorality has been its stock in trade. Those with upright consciences are made to look boring and silly. Those who break the rules appear daring and exciting. However, the movie’s worst offenses have been against the Church herself. When the industry blasphemes against Holy Mother Church, the TFP has been quick to respond. Those responses have been effective. In several cases, that influence has cost Hollywood millions as films that were thought to be upcoming blockbusters fell flat at the box office. This podcast will examine three such cases. Listeners who wish to read the essays in their original formats may use the following links: https://www.tfp.org/why-the-movie-benedetta-is-blasphemous-and-anti-catholic/, https://www.tfp.org/catholics-cannot-silent-scorseses-silence/, and https://www.tfp.org/the-da-vinci-code-one-year-later/. Thank you for listening!
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