The Word on Fire Show - Catholic Faith and Culture - Bishop Robert Barron

Latest Episodes:

WOF 039: St. Catherine of Siena, The Mystic Sep 06, 2016

Show notes

We are taking the next few episodes of the show to discuss each of the great men and women featured in Word on Fire's epic new film series, CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players. Today we're focusing on St. Catherine of Siena. One of the most beguiling figures in Church history, St. Catherine had a profound connection to the Lord that was displayed by her miraculous mysticism, her impact on the papacy, and her love for the poor. Our listener question asks Bishop Barron how he chose the Pivotal Players and what's next on the horizon for Word On Fire.

*In this episode we include a limited time Word on Fire Show discount on CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players with Coupon Code: SIENA33

Click on www.PivotalPlayers.com to purchase and act now because this offer expires soon!

Topics Discussed

1:15 - Bishop Barron discusses his upcoming trip to Rome
2:44 - Who was Saint Catherine of Siena?
7:33 - How does St. Catherine represent the power of women in the Church?
10:20 - What is found in St. Catherine's "Dialogues with God"?
13:31 -Why does St. Catherine use the metaphor of a bridge for Christ?
15:13 - How is St. Catherine a doctor of grace?
16:23 - How is St. Catherine accessible to people unfamiliar with mysticism?
19:00 - Why is it significant that she is named a "Doctor of the Church"?
21:00 - Why is Saint Catherine a pivotal player?
22:35 - Listener Question: How did Bishop Barron choose the Pivotal Players?

Bonus Resources

Calendar and Prayer Cards
- Pivotal Players Calendar (Bishop Barron)
- Pivotal Players Prayer Cards (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Praying with the Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)
Study Guides
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Leader's Guide (Bishop Barron)
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Study Guide (Bishop Barron)
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Leaders Kit (Bishop Barron)
DVDs
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 038: Why Mother Teresa is a Saint Aug 30, 2016

Show notes

We have been taking the past few episodes of the show to discuss each of the great men and women featured in Word on Fire's epic new film series, CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players. Today we're focusing on a pivotal player of our own time, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. Globally recognized as Mother Theresa, this diminutive Albanian nun was widely considered the greatest living saint during the latter half of the 20th century. Now, nineteen years after her death, she will be officially canonized, "Saint Teresa of Calcutta" by Pope Francis. In this episode Bishop Barron discusses her life, her faith, and why, according to Fr. Paul Murray, she's a saint who "loved Jesus in the night." Our listener question wonders how it's possible to unite our suffering with Jesus on the cross.

Click on www.PivotalPlayers.com to get your copy of this film series right now!

Topics Discussed

0:18 - Bishop Barron's Pivotal Players Premier
1:10 - Bishop Barron's friend, Father Paul Murray
3:29 - Who is Mother Teresa?
9:00 - How does Mother Teresa represent all the best of Catholicism?
11:05 - What was Mother Teresa's connection to the Eucharist?
12:5o - How do we explain Mother Teresa's "dark night of the soul"?
18:25 - Bishop Barron explains his experience in Calcutta
21:29 - How is Mother Teresa a spiritual master?
21:03 -Listener Question: How can we offer up our suffering?

Bonus Resources

Calendar and Prayer Cards
- Pivotal Players Calendar (Bishop Barron)
- Pivotal Players Prayer Cards (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Praying with the Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)
- I loved Jesus in the Night: Teresa of Calcutta- A Secret Revealed (Father Paul Murray)
Study Guides
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Leader's Guide (Bishop Barron)
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Study Guide (Bishop Barron)
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players - Leaders Kit (Bishop Barron)
DVDs
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 037: St. Thomas Aquinas, The Theologian Aug 23, 2016

Show notes

We are taking the next few episodes of the show to discuss each of the great men and women featured on Word On Fire's epic new film series, Catholicism: The Pivotal Players. The focus of this episode is Saint Thomas Aquinas. Widely considered one of the greatest minds in the history of Western Civilization, Thomas angelically and definitively articulated our Catholic understanding of God in his famous Summa Theologica. Our listener question asks about Thomas' argument of God as the "unmoved mover."

*In this episode we include a limited time Word on Fire Show discount on Catholicism: The Pivotal Players with Coupon Code: DumbOx

Click on www.PivotalPlayers.com to purchase and act now because this offer expires soon!

Topics Discussed

1:30 - Bishop Barron discusses his meetings with local ministries
2:47 - Who was Saint Thomas Aquinas?
5:16 - Why was Saint Thomas nicknamed Dumb Ox?
6:50 - What can Thomas teach us about who God is?
11:16 - How does a misunderstanding of God form modern atheism?
12:3o - What light does Thomas shed on who we are as humans?
16:25 - What makes Thomas Aquinas a saint?
18:46 - What was the most poignant part of filming Thomas' history?
20:24 - What is the connection between Aquinas and Chesterton?
23:30 - Listener Question: How can God be the "Unmoved Mover"?

Bonus Resources

Calendar and Prayer Cards
- Pivotal Players Calendar (Bishop Barron)
- Pivotal Players Prayer Cards (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Praying with the Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)
- Aquinas (A Beginner's Guide) (Edward Feser)
- Thomas Aquinas: Spiritual Master (Bishop Barron)
Study Guides
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Leader's Guide (Bishop Barron)
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Study Guide (Bishop Barron)
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Leaders Kit (Bishop Barron)
DVDs
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 036: St. Francis, The Reformer Aug 16, 2016

Show notes

We are taking the next six episodes of the Word on Fire show to discuss each of the great men and women featured on Word On Fire's epic new film series, Catholicism: The Pivotal Players. The focus of this episode is Saint Francis, the great reformer of the Church from the early 13th century who truly embodied the life of Christ through his radical ministry of mercy and love. Our listener question asks about mysticism in the Church today.

*In this episode we include a limited time Word on Fire Show discount on Catholicism: The Pivotal Players with Coupon Code: Fran1226

Click on www.PivotalPlayers.com to purchase and act now because this offer expires soon!

Topics Discussed

0:19 - Bishop Barron discusses his trip to Poland for World Youth Day
3:00 - Intro about Pivotal Players and St. Francis in particular
6:23 - Why is Saint Francis so universally revered?
8:18 - What's the most misunderstood element of Francis?
10:17 - How did Saint Francis come to faith?
12:25 - How did the Franciscan order come to fruition?
14:44 - What does it mean that the Pope chose the name Francis?
16:14 - What are some of Bishop Barron's favorite Francis stories?
19:48 - Why is Saint Francis a pivotal player?
21:25 - Listener Question: What does it mean to be a mystic today?

Bonus Resources

Calendar and Prayer Cards
- Pivotal Players Calendar (Bishop Barron)
- Pivotal Players Prayer Cards (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Praying with the Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)
- The Little Flowers of Saint Francis (Brother Ugolino)
- The Strangest Way (Bishop Barron)
Study Guides
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Leader's Guide (Bishop Barron)
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Study Guide (Bishop Barron)
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players - Leaders Kit (Bishop Barron)
DVDs
- Catholicism: The Pivotal Players (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 034: Don't Be a 'Beige' Catholic Aug 02, 2016

Show notes

"Beige Catholicism" is a phrase Bishop Barron coined early in his career as a way of describing the Church's lackluster adoption of the post-conciliar movement. Much of Bishop Barron's evangelical work, including his famous Catholicism book and film series, focuses on bringing Christ's radical distinctiveness and the Tradition's beautiful vibrancy back into our understanding of the Church. In this episode Bishop Barron details the problems with beige Catholicism as well as the path to a solution. Finally, a listener asks about the Benedict Option for Catholics struggling to keep the faith alive in contemporary culture.

Topics Discussed

0:17 - Bishop Barron discusses the new Word On Fire office and studio
2:32 - What is beige Catholicism?
4:45 - What is the history of beige Catholicism?
6:48 - What is the problem with accommodating the culture?
9:30 - What does it mean to domesticate Jesus?
11:45 - Why should we see Jesus as "dangerous and strange"?
13:55 - How the hit show Vikings illustrates the strangeness of Christianity
15:33 - What does a full sacramental vision of the church look like?
17:36 - What does a vibrantly colorful Catholicism look like?
19:20 - How has Bishop Barron's work targeted this problem?
20:20 - Question from listener: How about the Benedict Option?

Bonus Resources

DVD
- CATHOLICISM series (Bishop Barron)
- CATHOLICISM: The Pivitol Players series
Books
- Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith (Bishop Barron)
- Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture (Bishop Barron)
- Vibrant Paradoxes: The Both/And of Catholicism (Bishop Barron)
- The Strangest Way (Bishop Barron)
Videos
- The Centrality of Christ (Bishop Barron)
Articles
- How Strange is the Cross (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 033: How to Evangelize the Culture (2 of 2) Jul 26, 2016

Show notes

How should we go about evangelization? Especially for those of us living in a highly-secularized society, what techniques should we employ and what pitfalls ought we avoid? Bishop Robert Barron shares his advice in Part Two of his popular keynote talk on evangelizing the culture.

Bonus Resources

Videos
- Bishop Barron on Evangelizing Through Beauty (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on Effective Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on the Seven Great Qualities of a New Evangelist (Bishop Barron)
DVD's
- CATHOLICISM: The New Evangelization (Word On Fire)
- Faith Clips (Word On Fire)
Articles
- The Joy of Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
- Practical Strategies of Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture (Bishop Barron)
- Word On Fire: Proclaiming the Power of Christ (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 032: How to Evangelize the Culture Jul 19, 2016

Show notes

How should we go about evangelization? Especially for those of us living in a highly-secularized society, what techniques should we employ and what pitfalls ought we avoid? In this episode we get advice from one of the greatest evangelists of the postmodern age, Bishop Robert Barron, as we listen to Part One of his popular keynote talk on evangelizing the culture.

Bonus Resources

Videos
- Bishop Barron on Evangelizing Through Beauty (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on Effective Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on the Seven Great Qualities of a New Evangelist (Bishop Barron)
DVD's
- Catholicism: The New Evangelization (Word On Fire)
- Faith Clips (Word On Fire)
Articles
- The Joy of Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
- Practical Strategies of Evangelization (Bishop Barron)
Books
- Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture (Bishop Barron)
- Word On Fire: Proclaiming the Power of Christ (Bishop Barron)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron..

WOF 031: 5 Ways to Pray Better Today Jul 12, 2016

Show notes

Whenever there's a survey asking Christians, "What's one area in your spiritual life you'd like to improve?", the answers almost inevitably center around prayer. In today's episode, Bishop Barron explains what precisely prayer is and then offers some simple steps as well as some more advanced techniques to help us all grow in intimacy with God. With this goal in mind, Bishop Barron leads listeners down five different avenues of prayer that range from informal dialogue to the mass itself. Finally, the listener question comes from a seminarian in Phoenix who wonders where Catholics should draw the line when it comes to the teachings of a notable 21st-century Christian writer.

Topics Discussed

0:18 - Bishop Barron discusses his upcoming trip to World Youth Day
4:00 - What is prayer and how does conversational prayer begin?
8:42 - How does God speak to us in prayer?
10:58 - What is "Lectio Divina" and how do we pray it?
14:45 - What are some forms of rote prayers and what is their benefit?
20:40 - What is the Liturgy of The Hours and how do we access it?
24:00 - How is the Liturgy of The Hours a universal prayer?
26:00 - How can enter into the Holy Mass specifically as a prayer?
28:00 - How might we advance through these five forms of prayer?
29:25 - What does Bishop Barron's holy hour entail?
35:20 - Listener Question: Where should we draw the line with N.T. Wright?

Bonus Resources

Videos
- Bishop Barron on the Disorienting Quality of Real Prayer (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on the Lord's Prayer (Bishop Barron)
Articles
- The Hundreth Anniversary of Thomas Merton's Birth (Bishop Barron)
Homilies
- Hearing the Voice of God (Bishop Barron)
- The Mystery of the Mass (Bishop Barron)
- The Shepard's Voice (Bishop Barron)

Books
- Praying with The Pivotal Players (Pre-Order)
- And Now I See: A Theology of Transformation (Bishop Barron)
- The Resurrection of the Son of God (N.T. Wright)

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 030: Listener Q&A w/ Bishop Barron Jul 05, 2016

Show notes

Normally, in each episode we take one listener question. But we've received such a large number of outstanding questions from around the globe that we've decided to devote this entire episode to answering questions from listeners like you. Bishop Barron answers several questions, rapid fire, on many different topics.

Topicss Discussed

0:24 - Intro: Bishop Barron talks about his recent work and vacation plans
4:17 - How should Catholic school teachers evangelize their pupils?
5:19 - Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?
9:28 - Has the Church ever changed its doctrine?
13:10 - How does one evangelize the culture and not be corrupted by it?
20:22 - How do we encourage young people to engage in philosophy?
26:00 - What is the difference between faith and belief?
31:30 - What book is Bishop Barron currently reading?

Bonus Resources

Books
- Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith (Bishop Barron)
- The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ (Fleming Rutledge)
- Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture (Bishop Barron)
- Vibrant Paradoxes: The Both/And of Catholicism (Bishop Barron)
Homilies
- Father Robert Barron on Faith and Reason
- Father Robert Barron on The Development of Doctrine

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

WOF 029: What God's Mercy Really Entails Jun 28, 2016

Show notes

Pope Francis recently invited Bishop Barron to speak to hundreds of English-speaking priests at a gathering in Rome for the Jubilee Year of Mercy. In today's episode, Bishop Barron reflects on the talk he shared with his fellow clergymen about Jesus' encounter with the woman at the well. From this account, he distills four major lessons on divine mercy. The listener question comes from a practicing Catholic in London who wonders whether a vigorous spiritual life is necessary if we are ultimately reconciled to God.

Topics Discussed

0:17 - Bishop Barron goes to Rome to talk about divine mercy
3:03 - How is God's mercy relentless?
5:28 - How does the story of the woman at the well dismantle religious mythology?
8:01 - How is God's mercy divinizing?
11:40 - Connections to marriage and the Old Testament
13:14 - What does "God became man that man might become God" actually mean?
16:11 - How is God's mercy demanding?
20:01 - The vibrant paradox of extreme demands, extreme mercy
22:34 - How is God's mercy a summons to mission?
25:30 - The highest life is a summons to Mission
26:42 - Question from listener: Why bother engaging in the spiritual life?

Bonus Resources

Videos
- Bishop Barron on Extreme Demands, Extreme Mercy (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on Pope Francis and Mercy (Bishop Barron)
- The Best Thing You Can Do in the Year of Mercy (Bishop Barron)
- Bishop Barron on Pope Francis' "Amoris Laetitia" (Bishop Barron)
Articles
- Pope Francis and True Mercy (Bishop Barron)
- 4 Lessons on Divine Mercy from the Woman at the Well
Homilies

Find bonus links and resources for this episode at http://WordOnFireShow.com and be sure to submit your questions at http://As kBishopBarron.

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