St. Josemaria Institute Podcast
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“Glowing Witnesses”: Third Sunday of Advent
15 december 2023 · 27 min
In this podcast for the Third Sunday of Advent, Fr. Leo Austin encourages us to continue our interior journey this season -- a journey to (re)discover our vocations by asking ourselves the deeper questions of life: Who am I? What's my identity? What's the reason of my existence? Lees meer
St. John the Baptist was asked a similar question to which he immediately answered, “I am not the light, but came to testify to the light” (Jn 1:6-9). We will discover that our vocation is also to testify to the light and to be glowing witnesses of Christ who walks by our side and calls us to happiness.
Pope Paul VI said, "In our world today, we need glowing witnesses who know how to break open the dark skies of the world, not with words, but with the witness of their lives." As witnesses to Christ, we can look around at the world and at every single human being as tabernacles-- all of our friends are dwelling places of the Blessed Trinity.
In this meditation, therefore, Fr. Leo helps us to consider the importance of our mission and our vocation as apostles in order to make a lot of friends and to be a friend of friends who radiates the light and friendship they have received from God.
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Visit Show PageMissed the podcasts for the first and second Sundays of Advent? It's not too late to tune in! Explore "A Time for Hope: Advent with St. Josemaria Escriva" - a collection of devotions, readings, and meditations from the St. Josemaria Institute to help you prepare for the Nativity of Our Lord and the season of Christmas.
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“An Invitation to the Desert”: Second Sunday of Advent
9 december 2023 · 22 min
In this podcast for the Second Sunday of Advent, Fr. Leo Austin reflects on the invitation we receive this season to go to the desert-- a mysterious and quiet place where we can meet Our Lord face-to-face without distractions and without hiding to contemplate our lives and specifically our vocations. Lees meer
Even if he already knows everything, it is good for our relationship with Jesus Christ to open our hearts to him and tell him the story of our lives. This is always a little bit scary, as Fr. Leo explains, but God does not come to accuse us or threaten us. He comes to walk with us and offer us his light.
This Advent, therefore, can be a great opportunity to open our eyes and allow Our Lord to point out things that maybe need to change or scars from the past that are not completely healed. Through an examination of our lives and through confession, we experience God's healing and the peace of having him inside us.
A bonus of being forgiven is being able to forgive and to bring that peace and dignity to the world that sometimes is so hectic and also in need of God.
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Visit Show PageDid you enjoy this podcast? Explore "A Time for Hope: Advent with St. Josemaria Escriva" - a collection of devotions, readings, and meditations from the St. Josemaria Institute to help you prepare for the Nativity of Our Lord and the season of Christmas.
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“Come to Me”: First Sunday of Advent
1 december 2023 · 23 min
In this podcast for the First Sunday of Advent, Fr. Leo Austin offers an inspiring meditation to help us focus not necessarily on what we are going to give to Jesus, but on the gifts that Jesus gives to us. He is not asking us to be perfect. He is inviting us to a relationship with him saying, "Come to me." Lees meer
Advent is a preparation for an encounter. It's not about being scared or tense because God is going to show up at any moment and catch us. Advent is a time for us to realize that Our Lord is coming to this world to call us to happiness.
As Fr. Leo explains, "It's God coming to see you, to be with you." This is our vocation: God coming into this world, creating us, and then giving us freedom to develop, to unfold, to discover, and to explore. God is telling us, "I love you before you were aware of that and I'm preparing for you something special--an encounter, a friendship, that is unconditional."
Yet, if sometimes we don't trust God, the funny thing is that he trusts us. God knows that sometimes we are blind, scared, wounded, and discouraged. For those moments, he provides us with the gifts of faith, hope, and love. And, as we read in the Gospel, he comes to heal us and he tells us these three consoling words, "Come to me."
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Did you enjoy this podcast? Explore "A Time for Hope: Advent with St. Josemaria Escriva" - a collection of devotions, readings, and meditations from the St. Josemaria Institute to help you prepare for the Nativity of Our Lord and the season of Christmas.
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Long Live Christ the King
24 november 2023 · 20 min
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai reflects on the authority of Christ as King of heaven and earth to help us renew our desire for Christ to reign deeply in our hearts and to proclaim with the saints and martyrs, "Long live Christ the King!" Lees meer
The Solemnity of Christ the King was established in the 1920s by Pope Pius XI in response to the great rise of secularism in which people increasingly lived their lives as if God didn't exist. It is not unlike the battles and crises that we are confronting today that also fuel our desire to spread God's kingdom on earth. But for that to happen, Christ has to reign in our hearts now.
Fr. Eric reflects on the ways in which we see Christ depicted as king in scripture and in art. Among those images is Jesus's entry into Jerusalem on a humble donkey. "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest” (Mt 21:9). What is an hosanna? Hosanna is a word that was used in the Hebrew liturgy, and then later in the Christian liturgy, as a shout of jubilation and a sign of respect and honor for he who saves. But in Jerusalem, it was especially a shout of praise and adoration and a kind of recognition of Jesus as the Messiah.
Like those people, we can also offer so many hosannas to Our Lord to acknowledge him as our king. Fr. Eric encourages us to throw our cloaks under Our Lord as a beautiful sign of our submission to his will. We want to let him trample on our comforts and willfulness, under his donkey, so that we rely more not on our things but on his will, and so that his will is what really reigns in our heart.
Tune in as we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King.
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The Great Project of Our Life
13 november 2023 · 32 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Fred Dolan guides us to pray and ask God to help us to stand back to take a look at our life on earth and to realize that our time here is very short. Lees meer
The great project of our life is gradual transformation into another Christ, explains Fr. Fred. We long to change and to be transformed. Therefore, a sign that we truly and passionately want to be fully alive is our willingness to be mindful of every moment and day of our life.
We don't want to be sleepwalking or flying blind through life. We want to reflect on deeper things and focus on things that are important, asking ourselves often: Why do I give so much importance to things that just do not matter in the bigger scope of things? This gives us perspective and peace. And it allows us to give ourselves and our souls space to take time to do things calmly and in the right order.
Fr. Fred also shares strategies that can help us to live heroically every minute of our life, including not allowing ourselves to waste time trying to undo the past and focusing on the importance of helping our loved ones prepare for death. The fact is that a life well lived, which is what we're all looking for, will have reverberations down through the centuries.
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Contemplating Christ Through the Holy Land
7 november 2023 · 18 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reminds us of our invitation as disciples of Jesus Christ to connect with God through the humanity of Jesus, especially through the Gospels and through the geographic area revealed by the Gospel itself. Lees meer
Like Christian pilgrims throughout the ages, Fr. Peter shares how he had always dreamt and aspired to the possibility of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and how the experience exceeded his expectations. It is a very profound spiritual experience and an extraordinary privilege to walk among the sites and landscapes where Jesus lived.
The Holy Land is the only place on earth that also has an eternal dimension to it because of Jesus Christ, God made man. These places are not just sites from a historical period of time, but they are sites made holy by the Eternal Word made flesh who lived there, worked there, socialized there, worked miracles there, died there, and redeemed us there. The redemption of the world took place there in a given place and set of circumstances.
Therefore, Fr. Peter explains, it is obviously the will of the Holy Spirit that we encounter Christ in a special way in the Holy Land. We encounter Christ by contemplating his humanity and seeing the land where he was born and dwelt among us.
The Holy Land holds a special place in the hearts of all Christians around the world. During this period of war and unimaginable suffering in the region, we join our prayers with the Holy Father, Pope Francis, asking for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land, especially through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace.
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In Life and in Death, We Are Never Alone
31 oktober 2023 · 21 min
In this podcast, Fr. Donncha Ó hAodha guides us to pray about the gift of the month of November. It is a great gift because it gives us the opportunity to focus on reality, to focus on the truth and love of God, and to recover our perspectives on our own journeys through time and to eternity. Lees meer
This is important, as Fr. Donncha explains, because when we elevate and perfect all the bits and pieces that make up our day, seeing them within the horizon of eternity-- one universal horizon-- we will find the integrity and maturity that give meaning to all the aspects of our being.
In the month of November, especially with the Feast of All Saints and then the Commemoration of All Souls, we're also reminded straight off that when we consider time and eternity, we're not alone before this mystery; we're not alone before this journey. In life and in death, we're always accompanied, loved, and supported by our brothers and sisters who have gone before us, who love us, and intercede for us.
The saints are our good friends. They're our brothers and sisters. We can be sure that we are always surrounded by the reassuring company and consoling presence of the saints and the souls in purgatory, and by the whole Church.
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Increase My Faith
23 oktober 2023 · 24 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on how our faith and fidelity can increase through our genuine self-giving to the will of God. Lees meer
Faith is more than just believing or trusting. An ongoing faith or fidelity requires us to go beyond the limitations of our experiences and of our intellects in order to give ourselves more to the will of God and to our vocation as Christians. And, as Fr. Peter explains, our collective vocation as Christians is to evangelize and to attract people to Christ through our friendship, through our charity, and through our counsel.
Our Lord is asking of us to bring everyone to him which requires a fidelity and partnership with him. And, we enter into a partnership and into the heart of Christ through three entrance ways: the Eucharist (the vine), the Cross (pruning), and the Word of God (nourishment).
Under no uncertain terms, therefore, Jesus says we will be fruitful and we will work miracles. But without that kind of fidelity, we can do nothing. Even as an instrument, we could do nothing. An intimate and faithful union with Christ needs to be there fueled by prayer, sacrifice, and our self-giving.
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Time for a Spiritual Health Check-Up?
16 oktober 2023 · 27 min
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai leads us in a time of reflection and prayer to check up on our spiritual health. He explains that when we are spiritually healthy, we are grateful and cheerful. But when we are not, even the smallest thing drives us crazy. Lees meer
All those times when we're kind of irritable, restless, disconcerted, really worried about how things are going to turn out, what people might say, that's a sign we need a checkup and we need to get more spiritually healthy.
Our spiritual health will come, he explains, if we are men and women of prayer; if we are men and women who turn prayer into a real dialogue with God. Prayer puts us in contact with God, with our purpose and meaning, and therefore has the profound effect of giving us hope. There is nothing more essential for us than hope, to live by hope. We can't really live without hope. We can't even pray without hope.
The hope that comes from our prayer is also a reminder that we're never alone-- that's how some of the great saints survived. Prayer doesn't have to be a super perfect, forceful, or calm concentration. Prayer is a correspondence and dialogue with Our Lord.
As St. Josemaria Escriva says, “Prayer is the most powerful weapon a Christian has. Prayer must make us effective. Prayer must make us happy. Prayer gives us all the strength we need to fulfill God's commands" (The Forge, no. 439).
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Mary: The Shortcut to Jesus (Rebroadcast)
9 oktober 2023 · 33 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio challenges us individually to answer the question, Why must I pray the Rosary? Lees meer
October is the month dedicated to Our Lady through the Holy Rosary. Our Lady herself has asked us to pray the rosary in the battle against evil and to win sinners back, ourselves included. She wants our prayers because they connect us with her Son-- she is the shortcut to him. As Fr. Peter explains, when Mary takes our prayer and brings it to her Son, it has more effectiveness. And Mary, what does she want more than anything else? She wants to bring everlasting life to every human being. And how does her Son want this done? Through his children--his saints and witnesses.
We must be inspired to pray the rosary, meditating on the life of Christ through the mysteries, so that Mary can facilitate our growth in holiness and charity and so that we can take on this war of love and peace, drowning out evil, with an abundance of good in the world.
Note: This podcast was recorded live during an Evening of Recollection in October 2016.
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Christ is Unstoppable: Commemorating the Canonization of St. Josemaria Escriva
6 oktober 2023 · 28 min
BONUS EPISODE OF THE WEEK - Lees meer
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on the commemoration of the canonization of St. Josemaria Escriva (October 6, 2002). The commemoration of feasts and anniversaries are designed for conversion and inspiration from the Holy Spirit to connect with Jesus Christ in a closer way.
As Fr. Peter says, "although we may feel like a zero or insignificant, if Christ is dwelling in us, Christ is unstoppable." He will use us as that divine pathway to spread the Gospel "to every corner of the earth,” as he did with St. Josemaria.
A canonization is an infallible declaration of the Church, which means there is no possibility of error in this determination or judgment of the Church that this person is a saint. This person has lived the Gospel to a heroic degree, which does not mean that the person didn't have defects or weaknesses or sins. Cooperating with the work of the Holy Spirit, he or she has allowed Christ to reach a culmination in their life that they could say, "It is no longer I that live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal 2:20).
Fr. Peter helps us to pray and remember that holiness is not about me, it's not about my devotions, or my interior life. We have as much responsibility in evangelizing and spreading the Gospel as anyone else in the Church. And, we are called to have the same level of heroic love for God as any saint. St. Josemaria, the saint of the ordinary, is a great example for each one of us!
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Called to Change the World: On the Founding of Opus Dei (Rebroadcast)
3 oktober 2023 · 27 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio shares how God desires everyone to be a recipient of his message to become saints in the middle of the world and to change the world. This message probably sounds familiar to us today, but it was an unprecedented message in the Church in the early 20th century. Lees meer
In 1928, St. Josemaria Escriva was a young priest in Spain who since seminary had developed a reputation for special graces and holiness. However, as Fr. Peter explains, he was not a mystic or visionary, a missionary, or a founder of a religious order, like St. John Bosco, SS. Jacinta and Francisco, St. Teresa of Avila, or Mother Theresa.
Yet, God chose to show St. Josemaria a specific pathway through which he wanted to be in the world in a way that he had never been there before. It was a reiteration of what Our Lord did with his disciples when he ascended into Heaven. God didn't show St. Josemaria a specific institution or organization; he showed him how all the faithful, especially the laity, are called to change the world and bring Christ to the middle of the world through their work and ordinary lives.
From that moment on October 2, 1928, when St. Josemaria saw Opus Dei, the Work God, he dedicated his life to spreading the message and specific pathway to finding God in the world, to being contemplatives in the world, and to leading holy lives that truly change the world.
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The Universal Call to Adoration
22 september 2023 · 20 min
In this podcast, Fr. Donncha Ó hAodha reflects on how the universal call to adoration is the source of our happiness and the source of our true human flourishing and maturing. We can achieve our fullest human and spiritual potential insofar as we worship and adore God with our whole being and with our lives. Lees meer
The universal call to adoration, to give all the glory to God, especially through our ordinary, secular, daily, and sometimes mundane/repetitive realities, in no way demeans the human person, but rather raises us up, embellishes all that we have, and enhances all that we are.
As we celebrate the Feast of the Archangels (September 29), Fr. Donncha reminds us that the first function of the angels is to give glory to God. St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael are adorers of the Lord! It's not surprising that the saints, like St. Josemaria Escriva, would have great devotion to the Archangels, who stand before the throne of God and who kneel before the throne of God in adoration.
The Book of Job tells us that man's life on earth is a struggle or battle. There is, undoubtedly, a battle going on between good and evil. For all of us in the Church, the Archangels are our great allies. We're not alone in our battle. In our call to adoration, we are praying within the warmth, the company, the presence of a family, in communion with the Holy Church.
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Dinner with Jesus
18 september 2023 · 30 min
In this podcast, Fr. Leo Agustina invites you to imagine inviting Jesus to dinner as he passes by you at home, your dorm, your office, your kitchen, or your desk. Would you welcome him and listen to him? Would you allow him to open your horizons and give meaning to your whole life? This was the way of St. Matthew (also called Levi) as we read in the Gospels. Lees meer
Jesus was sending a huge message by passing by people at their jobs and at work. He is present, he is aware, and he really cares. But you must be humble enough to accept that your vocation means you inviting Jesus to meet you first, to talk to him, and to follow him.
Jesus says “follow me,” if you want to. The calling of St. Matthew reminds us that our vocation is a combination between our freedom and the grace of God--our freedom and his invitation--and that's the beauty of every vocation. In every vocation, there's a story to be told and to be unfolded. And, Jesus is happy to be creating that story together with the protagonist.
Our vocation is truly a treasure. But the principle and most important treasure of our life is our relationship with Jesus—-it's the treasure that we should rediscover every single day.
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At the Foot of the Cross with Mary (Rebroadcast)
11 september 2023 · 18 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Fred Dolan reflects on Our Lady, the Woman of Sorrows, and how contemplating her during the Passion of her Son and at the foot of the Cross helps all of our worries and sufferings to pass away. Lees meer
Our Lady of Sorrows places us at her side before Jesus on the Cross to help us mature in our share in the mission of her Son. Bringing us to the Cross means helping us to face up to the difficulties of life, since learning how to deal with suffering is a major step in our personal growth. And, it means sharing in the mission of the redemption of Christ, which gives great depth to the purpose of our lives.
As we celebrate the feasts of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 14) and Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15), Fr. Fred invites you to also place yourself at the foot of the Cross:
Ask yourself: How do I handle difficulties? Do I dig deeper to find its deeper meaning?
Contemplate the great miracles of Jesus and see how most of them were messy.
Consider: If we don't have the Cross, what are we left with?
Ask for the grace of great serenity, joy, and efficacy in your mission to co-redeem with Christ.
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The Good News of Mary
4 september 2023 · 28 min
In this podcast, Fr. Leo Agustina helps us to prepare our hearts for the feasts of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (September 8) and Mary's Holy Name (September 12). Her feasts remind us, like St. Joseph, that God is also telling us, “Do not be afraid to take Mary” (Mt 1:20). Mary is a wonderful reality that makes us want to do like St. Joseph, like St. John the Apostle, and bring her into our lives and into everything. Lees meer
In human history, there is a deep line that divides it into two: before and after Jesus Christ. Because of divine providence, we happen to be in the afterwards of His birth and life; and that happened, in part, because of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is wonderful to think about the unity between Mary and Jesus: both hearts beating at the same rhythm, both eyes looking at the same people with the same love, both of them connected in a beautiful symphony of thoughts, loves, and desires. They both look at us individually, wanting to help us in every step we take and in every situation we live.
The connection that we have with Mary is very special. The good news is that it's not just for some people, it's for everyone, just like the love of God that precedes us.
So, on Mary's birthday, we unite ourselves to thank God for creating such a beautiful Mother, for pouring all His imagination, all His creativity in such a wonderful human being. And especially we want to say thank you for sharing His Mother with us, for giving us the possibility of calling her Mother, and to be adopted in such a wonderful family.
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At the School of Prayer with St. Josemaria
28 augustus 2023 · 21 min
In this podcast, Fr. Donncha Ó hAodha offers a profound reflection on St. Josemaria Escriva as a great teacher of prayer to help us renew our awareness of the essential nature of prayer and how transformative it is. Lees meer
In society, we tend to measure things by people's doings and achievements. But what ultimately gives value to any life is communion with Christ. Without prayer, nothing! With prayer, everything! Prayer produces the fine wine of Christian holiness in and around us. Prayer fills ordinary life with the greatness of God.
Our Christian faith teaches us that it is God who seeks man out. He does everything to seek us out and to win our hearts. Therefore, we don't want our prayer to be purely formal, routine, or superficial. We want our prayer to be a genuine conversation, an expression of love, and real communion.
To learn how to do this well, we have the example of Our Lady, because there is nobody who surpasses her in the life of prayer. She also reminds us that a person who prays, who seeks an encounter with Christ, leaves a deep, lasting, and somehow eternal imprint on history.
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Contrition: The Secret Ingredient of Joy
21 augustus 2023 · 20 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Fred Dolan reflects on how the secret ingredient of contrition gives our spiritual life tremendous dynamism and keeps us joyful, youthful, and approachable because we no longer give excuses for our improper behavior and it restores our proper place in God's eyes. Lees meer
Contrition plays an important role in helping us shake things up and renew our quest for holiness. Contrition also leads us to seek the Sacrament of Confession, which restores and rejuvenates our friendship with the Lord. We allow Jesus to enter our life and give us the grace to be freed from our tendency to simply do the things as we've always done them, simply because we've always done them that way.
To be a contrite soul is to recognize the heights to which we are called and the result is that we then fight harder to root out the obstacles that prevent us from experiencing true joy.
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The Joy of the Assumption of Mary [Rebroadcast]
13 augustus 2023 · 29 min
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai reflects on the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and how this feast is a cause for joy and hope for all of us. Lees meer
Whenever we see the Assumption depicted in art, it's always joyful and beautiful! Why? Because it is a reminder of the ancient teaching that Mary knew no corporal decay, but entered into Heaven and was received by God in body and soul. It fills us with peace to know that she is waiting for us and wants us to come to be with her Son.
The Assumption is a feast that we're encouraged to not let just pass us by without really, truly being affected in some deep way. One way to be affected is to enter into a deeper joy, regardless of our situation in life, as we contemplate that something really wonderful happened to Mary because she let herself be guided by God's Divine Logic.
We are sons and daughters of Mary-- St. Josemaria took this deeply to heart, and we should try to do this too. On this beautiful Feast of the Assumption, St. Josemaria reminds us that: "the supernatural value of our life does not depend on accomplishing great undertakings suggested to us by our overactive imagination. Rather, it is to be found in the faithful acceptance of God’s will, in welcoming generously the opportunities for small, daily sacrifice. If we strive to imitate Mary’s fidelity, God will surely do great things in us” (Christ is Passing By, no. 172).
Tune in to this podcast as we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption on August 15th.
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When There’s Joy, Everybody Wants Joy
7 augustus 2023 · 20 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects upon joy as the foundation for all evangelization and how living joy in our daily lives can lead others to encounter Christ, because He is joy. Lees meer
The particular role of the laity in bringing Christ to the world, especially in the places we live and work, requires that we not only bring the truth of the Gospel to all those who we encounter, but that we always lead with joy and witness to the happiness found in our friendship with Jesus.
Fr. Peter shows that authentic joy is not artificial, but is a happiness which results from having the fullness of joy within you. This joy is easily perceived by others and is fueled by our friendship with Jesus.
In order to increase our joy, we can more intentionally abide with the Lord through the Eucharist, mental prayer, the rosary, the cross, and through our effort to love others.
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“Listen to Him”: The Transfiguration of the Lord
2 augustus 2023 · 27 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio leads us to listen and reflect on the Gospel and the meaning of the Transfiguration of the Lord, and how it continues to transform us today. Lees meer
The Transfiguration of Jesus encourages us in our commitment to discipleship. When we commit to protracted prayer—deep, silent, concentrated prayer—we can see God through the eyes of our soul and heart.
The Transfiguration helped the apostles to trust in the Cross—the raw materials that make up our crosses—and to believe that there is no such thing as failure when we follow Christ.
Contemplating this scene and Jesus’ words (Mt 17:1-8), we begin to see Him, to take on His capacity for self-giving love, and we become more empowered to give of ourselves with the heart of Jesus.
Tune in to this podcast as we celebrate the Transfiguration of the Lord on August 6th.
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Let Go and Let God
24 juli 2023 · 32 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo shares a reflection on the Gospel scene in which Martha welcomes Christ into her home (Luke 10:38-42) and reveals to us the meaning of letting go and letting God into our lives. Lees meer
In the Gospel passage, we notice Martha become caught up in the activity and details of serving Christ which inhibit her from fully enjoying the presence of Christ in her home. This theme is echoed in society today with a strong push for perfectionism in our work and at home.
To contradict this vice, Fr. Javier reminds us to identify the intention behind our work, so that we may glorify God in all that we do. Working with intention allows us to be receptive to the grace of the Holy Spirit and helps us to recognize the presence of Christ in the ordinary moments of everyday life.
Tune in to this podcast as we celebrate the feast of SS. Martha, Mary and Lazarus on July 29th.
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Unity with God and One Another
17 juli 2023 · 20 min
In this podcast, Fr. Fred Dolan reflects on the great gift of unity that God gives to us through His Son: “That they may be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you” (Jn 17:21). Lees meer
Jesus prayed that we may be one, united in God’s love. However, as Fr. Dolan explains, this gift of unity is not automatic. In fact, it is hard work. And, therefore, Fr. Dolan helps us to identify those attitudes that can get in the way of unity, and some of the key ingredients to establishing unity in our lives, like humility and patience.
This is especially true in family life. If we were to insist that everyone in the family — and, for that matter, everyone around us — should react, should deal with situations the way we do, we would be setting ourselves up for an awful lot of tension and a lot of disunity.
In any given setting, we want to be a source of unity through our youthfulness, optimism, and charity. We want to be the source of unity that will show the world that the Lord has indeed sent us and dwells within us.
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Freedom: A Gift from God
10 juli 2023 · 24 min
In this podcast, Fr. Fred Dolan leads us to reflect on freedom. Rightly understood, freedom is a gift from God, Our Creator and Father. If we do not recognize that fact, we run the risk of becoming existentially orphaned and homeless. Lees meer
“Do you love me?”, Jesus asks Peter. We hear the Lord looking at each one of us and asking the same thing. The Christian life is a free response, imbued with initiative and availability to this question of the Lord.
We are not self-created, but rather, we are creatures of a loving Creator. We do not dare to attribute to ourselves the so called right to define our own concept of existence, because God has given that to us.
God has given to each one of us very specific, unique qualities. Along with those qualities, come our own limitations. Therefore, Fr. Dolan reminds us that we need to remove the chief obstacles that hinder us from achieving it; for example, self-centeredness, egotism, grudges, arrogance, deceit, and resentment.
God loves each one of us, as we are, and he loves to see us struggling to become better and to be free.
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Productivity vs. Fruitfulness
3 juli 2023 · 26 min
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai helps us to reflect on the distinction between what it means to be productive/successful in life and what it means to be fruitful. Some of us might be productive, but we are called to bear fruit, which frees us from the danger of thinking that our life is useless. Lees meer
Fr. Eric explains, "God said to the first man and to the first woman, when He blessed them, Adam and Eve, to be fruitful and multiply, fill the Earth and govern it. God directs us to be fruitful, but we interpret this often to be productive."
To be fruitful requires authentic humility and transparency in our life. It requires docility to the promptings of the Holy Spirit who produces in us the gifts of love, joy, peace, and understanding. As Our Lord promised, the gifts of the Spirit lead us to a fruitful life: to patience, kindness, goodness, self-control, and gentleness. In this way, we are able to multiply the good that our lives, our undertakings, and our work would have for all souls.
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St. Josemaria Escriva: Holiness and Good Humor
25 juni 2023 · 28 min
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai reflects on St. Josemaria’s last moments on earth and how his docility to the Holy Spirit and good humor until the end led him to have so much effect on people's lives. Lees meer
God granted St. Josemaria a deep spiritual paternity through which he embraced everyone that would come in contact with him. "And since this paternity was completely supernatural," Fr. Eric explains, "it was strengthened by the fact that he went to Heaven. He could continue to exercise that spiritual paternity by interceding for us."
St. Josemaria became somebody to emulate as he was somebody with impressive dreams, magnanimity, and great apostolic zeal. He was driven by his sudden understanding that sanctity is within the reach of anyone who freely wants to let themselves be led by God. Therefore, he knew how to bring out the best in people and helped them to realize their dreams of pursing what God was really calling them to. He formed saints that came in contact with him; that is, he provoked great desires in others and opened up their horizons.
St. Josemaria had many reasons to be cynical and even pessimistic about his mission and the work that he was doing for God. But, with the grace of God, he flourished through the power of his good humor. His good humor and cheerfulness helped him to have a greater vision, for himself and for others, beyond the immediate.
As we celebrate the feast of St. Josemaria (June 26), Fr. Eric encourages us to go to St. Josemaria to learn what it means to have good humor, to be cheerful, and to open up our horizons to a greater vision of life led by the Spirit.
Note: Fr. Eric Nicolai preached this meditation in Toronto, Canada on June 19, 2023, in preparation for the feast of Saint Josemaria.
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Synchronizing Your Heart to the Heart of Christ
12 juni 2023 · 32 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo reflects on how the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus reminds us of our "need to have a heart within us that beats at the same pace as Christ's, because that's what it means to be truly human." Lees meer
St. Augustine wrote, “You have made us for you, O Lord, and restless will our heart be until it rests in you.” Fr. Javier explains that "we can interpret this as our hearts will be restless until we actually synchronize our hearts to the heart of Christ."
And, our hearts are made to be synchronized with the heart of Christ in timing, intensity, and extension. It is through these three aspects that God can renew our hearts so that we can truly love the way He wants us to love-- in a human and divine way, with one heart with which we love God and with which we love everything else.
Only a heart synchronized to Jesus' heart can love and can actually co-redeem with Him by loving with His own heart. And it all happens if we allow Him to do it... substituting our heart of stone with a heart of flesh which is capable of Divine Love.
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Corpus Christi: Transforming the World from Within (Rebroadcast)
5 juni 2023 · 35 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo guides us to contemplate the beautiful gift of the Eucharist in which Jesus fulfills the promise to remain with us and to transform the world from within. Lees meer
The Eucharist, Fr. Javier explains, has "a double effect of restoring the spiritual losses caused by sins and defects and of increasing the power of the virtues. This is what happens when we go to Communion, when we receive the Body and Blood of Our Lord... this food is not transformed into us, we are transformed into Him."
As we prepare for the feast of Corpus Christi, therefore, we can pray about "how we can correspond to Our Lord... Anything we do for Our Lord will be little in comparison to what He deserves." So, we want to be humble even though "He outdoes us in humility. He lowers Himself; He stoops Himself even more than we ever can.
The Eucharist is truly that which will allow us to persevere in our call, in our call to holiness. It keeps you going and gives you strength when you're tired, when you're exhausted, in, your works of charity, in your Christian life... Turn to Our Lord in the Eucharist and draw new life from that infinite well of holiness and charity, which is the Eucharist."
In the Eucharist, God is with us. We have to be in awe that God is with us, all the power of God. He doesn't have anything else to give, He has given everything to us. We should cast away our fears of giving ourselves to others. We should adopt this Eucharistic generosity in our lives."
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The Holy Trinity: An Eternal Love (Rebroadcast)
1 juni 2023 · 35 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo leads us to pray and reflect with humility on the mystery and eternal love of the Holy Trinity: God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Lees meer
"The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit have been in love, from all eternity, before the foundation of the world," explains Fr. Javier. “Because that love is so great… the Holy Trinity has freely chosen to create us, to have creatures with which they can share this great happiness that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit have had from all eternity.”
Especially as we prepare to celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, we recognize that our hearts and minds cannot fully understand this great mystery of faith. "It's too big to fit in our minds. And yet, through faith, it has been revealed to us that it exists and that truly it is the end of our existence. We know that there must be something we do not know towards which we feel driven, and that is the Blessed Trinity, in whose image we are made."
In baptism, the Holy Trinity sanctifies us and elevates us to a new level of children of God.
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Mary: Awaken Our Faith, Make Us Strong
27 mei 2023 · 29 min
This week, we're sharing a bonus episode as we end the Month of May dedicated to Our Lady! Lees meer
In this podcast, Fr. Eric Nicolai helps us reflect on the times when our faith and trust in God may seem quite fragile, even weak. In these moments, Fr. Eric explains, St. Josemaria would recommend recourse to little aspirations, glances at images of our Lady and other simple devotions, because these small acts end up awakening something within us.
Mary seems to stir up devotion in us. She awakens our faith and makes us strong. She helps us, as St. Josemaria would say, to “stir up that fire of faith. Christ is not a figure that has passed. He is not a memory that is lost in history.”
She does this because she was both the Mother of God, and our Mother. She has two motherhoods. She is twice a mother. First she became the mother of God when consenting freely to the incarnation, her “Fiat" made her mother of Jesus. But then she became mother again, when she stood at the foot of the Cross, and became our mother at the request of Jesus, by taking care of John. But that too required a Fiat.
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Giving the Holy Spirit a Blank Check (Rebroadcast)
22 mei 2023 · 36 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo helps us prepare for the great solemnity of Pentecost by guiding us to ask ourselves: What is my relationship with the Holy Spirit? Am I docile? Do I listen? Lees meer
"Wherever the Spirit is, there is newness, there is life," explains Fr. Javier. "There is definitely a difference between what the Apostles were before, and what the Apostles are after they received the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:1-11). And, "it's the power of humility... of the docility of the Apostles that let go and let God. Let God the Holy Spirit act in and through them in spite of their own weaknesses..."
Fr. Javier says that, "Our Lord is challenging us to be docile to the Spirit. And, to be docile means to give the Holy Spirit a blank check... It means to take a risk, it means that we won't know where He comes from and we don't know where we're going. But we know we're in sure hands. And that's what it means to commit ourselves to the Christian life."
We ask the Holy Spirit "to come in a new Pentecost" to each one of us today to help us be docile in order to let God into our lives and to take us wherever He wills. We also ask the Holy Spirit for His gifts, especially wisdom, to understand the ways of God and to understand the things of the world from God's point of view.
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The Ascension: Bringing Christ to the Periphery (Rebroadcast)
15 mei 2023 · 30 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on Christ’s last words before his Ascension issuing the commission to his disciples to preach the Gospel to every creature. In fact this commission is a “global apostolic assignment” that will remain until the end of time. It is an assignment, “to make disciples of all nations,” that reaches us today and should encompass every dimension of our lives as Christians. Lees meer
“Out of a hundred souls we are interested in a hundred,” said St. Josemaria Escriva. This means, as Fr. Peter explains, that “we need to reach for the peripheries… those people completely alienated from Christ.” To do this effectively will require that we get out of our comfort zones with God's help. It also requires that our apostolic spirit and evangelization "come from the heart and from the gut," says Fr. Peter. "We have to love so much that we will take the risk of being rejected, and being judged, and being labeled.”
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To Jesus Through Mary (Rebroadcast)
8 mei 2023 · 25 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Fred Dolan reflects on the profound role for Our Lady in our lives as Christians and our need “to embrace Our Lady to remind her of how much we love her.” He especially reflects on the meaning and devotion to the Holy Rosary and how it is an expression we can you use to repeat our love for Our Lady “again and again and again.” Lees meer
As St. Josemaria Escriva wrote: “Today as in other times, the rosary must be a powerful weapon, to enable us to win in our interior struggle and to help all souls. Exalt holy Mary with your tongue: God asks you for reparation, and for praise from your lips. May you always want to know how to spread peace and happiness throughout the world, through this beautiful devotion to our Lady, and through your watchful love.”
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Our Lady, Queen of Peace
1 mei 2023 · 19 min
In our podcast of the week, Fr. Donncha O hAodha reflects on the title of Our Lady, Queen of Peace, on this anniversary of the Dedication of the Prelatic Church of Opus Dei (May 2). The church was built by St. Josemaria Escriva as the central church of Opus Dei, the heart of the Prelature, in Rome. And he dedicated it to Our Lady of Peace. Lees meer
Like all of Our Lady’s titles, “Queen of Peace” stems from her motherhood, from being the Mother of Jesus Christ who is our peace. “For he is our peace… he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near” (Ephesians 2:14,17). Therefore, as Fr. Donncha explains, in the image and title “Queen of Peace,” we see how she is “full of joy and full of peace that comes from redemption, from salvation, from Our Lord’s cross, death, and resurrection. And that’s the peace that can never ever be taken away. And that’s also our peace."
“In the advocation of Mary, Queen of Peace, we read, we sense, we feel, we understand, all the joy of Redemption because Christ is our peace.” It is suitable, therefore, that title of the church designated by St. Josemaria would be Our Lady, Queen of Peace, because the Church is the place of peace and reconciliation—“where the peace of Our Lord, merited for us on the Cross, pours forth.”
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Christ, the Good Shepherd (Rebroadcast)
24 april 2023 · 22 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Fred Dolan reflects on the image of Christ as the Good Shepherd. The Gospel of John gives us the image of the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. This image captures the selfless, sacrificial love Christ has for each one of us. Lees meer
Further, Msgr. Dolan explains that we too are called to be good shepherds in our ordinary lives. We are called to have a constant concern for souls. He encourages us to pray about our role in the lives of others and stresses the importance of building community to create fruitful interactions with each other. In doing so, we become imitators of the love of Christ and good shepherds in our world today.
The TED Talk featuring Pope Francis referenced in this podcast can be viewed online via YouTube.
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Walking with the Resurrected Christ (Rebroadcast)
17 april 2023 · 32 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on the continual call toward conversion as we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ. Drawing on the familiar story of the road to Emmaus, Fr. Peter encourages us to persevere in our daily prayer and to remain faithful through the moments in which we may not always recognize the presence of Christ. Lees meer
St. Josemaria explains: “Persevere in prayer. Persevere, even when your efforts seem sterile. Prayer is always fruitful” (The Way, no. 101).
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"Woman, why are you weeping?"
10 april 2023 · 26 min
In this podcast for the Easter Octave, Fr. Leo Agustina takes us to the morning of the Resurrection when Mary Magdalene first encountered the risen Lord. He reminds us how “we know that it’s the morning of the Resurrection, but she didn’t know that.” Mary was just “trying to cope with the reality of Jesus being dead.” But that morning Jesus spoke to Mary Magdalene asking her, “Why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” In the voice that she recognized, he said her name in such a way that she immediately knew it was him. Lees meer
As Fr. Leo explains: “In every person’s life, there will be an encounter like the one that Mary Magdalene had… when everything seemed to be shut down, when humanity felt lost, where there was no hope.” But then Jesus Christ calls us by name, in a voice we also recognize, and he tells us to continue the legacy of Mary Magdalene and go to our brothers and to the whole world to tell them that “Christ is alive.”
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Fifth Week of Lent | You Are a Grain of Wheat
23 maart 2023 · 25 min
In this podcast, as we continue our Lenten devotions, Fr. Peter Armenio explores the theme of taking up the yoke of Jesus in order to follow him. Following Jesus inevitably entails bearing our cross daily of which suffering is the raw material: “Whether it's emotional, mental, psychological, moral, spiritual, physical, that's the raw material.” Lees meer
We all experience suffering to a greater or lesser degree. The key is not to turn away from suffering or to give up following Jesus when our suffering, our cross, seemingly becomes too great to bear. Rather we must become the grain of wheat that falls to the earth and dies; in doing so, we become Christ to others. As Fr. Peter says, “I become intimately part of the Holy Mass, the Eucharistic sacrifice, if I die with Him, if I connect with His cross, I become Christ.”
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
The cry of modern society is to see Jesus, and he wants his followers to show him to others through the witness of their lives.
Two young people used their illness and suffering to become grains of wheat and gave life to others through their unity with Christ.
When we connect with the cross of Christ, we “buy grace” for others, and as we do so, we become that “grain of wheat.”
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Fourth Week of Lent | The Four Steps of Mortification to Contemplate Christ
16 maart 2023 · 31 min
In this podcast, as we continue our Lenten devotions, Fr. Eric Nicolai reflects on Jesus' fasting in the desert for 40 days. Why did he do that? Because the desert didn’t offer him absolutely anything, so he relied entirely on his Father. He overcame the devil’s temptations. As soon as he left the desert, he began his ministry. The purpose of our mortification is not to become stoic and impervious to pain. The real purpose was outlined by St. Paul: "I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me" (Gal 2, 20). Lees meer
For Christ to live in us, we have to go up the four steps:
First, corporal mortification: The most superficial one. It is for our purification. St, Josemaria said, "One has to give the body a little less than its due. Otherwise it turns traitor" (The Way, no. 196).
Second, care for little things: The purpose is not to become obsessive about order or having things in their place, but to acquire a spirit which allows us to reach out to others and make their life more agreeable.
Third, interior mortification: This area that purifies us from all that has to do with honor, with our good reputation, our attachment to what others think of us. And the whole world of our imagination.
Fourth, passive mortification: This is the most difficult. This is where the Lord comes to seek us out. "I will tell you which are man's treasures on earth so that you will appreciate them: hunger, thirst, heat, cold, pain, dishonor, poverty, loneliness, betrayal, slander, prison..." (The Way, no. 194).
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Third Week of Lent | The Purpose of Lent: Get Closer to Jesus
9 maart 2023 · 29 min
In this podcast, as we continue our Lenten devotions, Fr. Peter Armenio reminds us of the importance of getting to know Christ, our Divine Friend, and using the Gospels as a medium to hear him and to speak to him. Lees meer
Fr. Peter explains how “the purpose of Lent is to get closer to Jesus” and one of the best ways of doing this is by following the Church’s three Lenten pillars—prayer fasting, and almsgiving—as they all lead us to keep us focused on and in communication with Christ.
In the same way that people become friends by means of conversation and spending time with each other, Jesus wants us to spend time with him. “Our Lord wants us to insert ourselves into the scenes of the Gospel. He wants us to listen to what he says...”
Lent, therefore, can be a time for us to make progress in our prayer and conversation with Our Lord. We must show up for our time of prayer and commit to it; we cannot make excuses. It is Jesus who waits for us.
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
Lent can serve as a “springboard” for asking Our Lord to teach us how to pray and spending time each day in dialogue with him.
“Jesus is your friend. The Friend. With a human heart, like yours. With loving eyes that wept for Lazarus. As much as He loved Lazarus, He loves you” (St. Josemaria Escriva; The Way, no. 422).
Every prayer of ours should be true contemplation; it should mean something to us and come from the heart.
Jesus is the Word of God spoken by God the Father to us from all eternity, and there is a personal message for each one of us in the Gospel.
The Gospel is a compilation of conversations Jesus had with his friends. And there is an element of each Gospel character in everyone.
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Second Week of Lent | Jesus, My Closest Friend
3 maart 2023 · 24 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio explains how knowing about Jesus Christ differs from knowing him. And, in order to know Christ, Fr. Peter encourages us to foster a personal relationship with him, with “the knowledge of the heart, the knowledge of a relationship, the knowledge a man and a woman have of each other when they’re courting…” Lees meer
Getting to know him requires intimate conversation, which begins with the “desire to seek Christ.” As St. Josemaria would say, we must seek him “hungrily” and determinedly: “If you act with determination, I am ready to guarantee that you’ve already found him, and have begun to get to know him and to love him, and to hold your conversation in Heaven” (Friends of God, no. 300).
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
An atheist Jewish writer embraced the Catholic faith after a profound encounter with Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.
Conversion never begins with a guilt trip, or even an examination of conscience, but with an encounter with Christ.
Getting to know a person doesn’t mean knowing more facts about the person, it means loving that person and having a relationship with that person.
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First Week of Lent | Love Repays Love
23 februari 2023 · 29 min
In this podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo invites us to reflect on how love makes God visible in the world because God gives himself entirely to us. “God is loving us with his 100%. He actually has nothing else to give us, except himself… Think of the Eucharist. There’s nothing else for Him to give.” And so, how can we pay back such great love? With love. Lees meer
Recalling the Gospel passage of the Widow’s Mite, Fr. Javier reflects on Jesus’ comment to the Apostles: “She has put in from her want, not from her surplus.” This is an example of a worthy response to God’s love to hold nothing back. The only way to love God is to never be satisfied with what we have given up to this point. As St. Josemaria Escriva would say, “love is with love repaid.”
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
• If it is 100% of our love, then it is worthy of God.
• When we are united to God through the state of grace, we are able to love in and through the fulfillment of our ordinary duties.
• It’s a false assumption to think that in any vocation God does not ask us to give him 100%.
• Love is never satisfied with what it has done before because love is not about the logic of the least or the minimums.
• We cannot pay 100% of what we have been given, but we could do little details or pay attention to details of love and affection for others.View Transcript
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Lent: A Time for Conversion (Rebroadcast)
20 februari 2023 · 33 min
“Now is the day of salvation, now is an acceptable time… For what?” Lees meer
As we begin the holy season of Lent, Fr. Javier del Castillo reflects on the readings for Ash Wednesday which remind us once again that now is the time for conversion — Lent is a time for conversion. Our Lord gives us an entire season of the liturgical year to turn back to Him, to be reconciled to God, to purify ourselves, and to identify ourselves with God’s suffering.
Our conversion does not have to be big and showy. In fact, Fr. Javier explains how simple acts of penance— like offering up our food and drink, setting a time for prayer, and participating in works of mercy— allow us to identify ourselves with Jesus Christ on the Cross and to bring about deeper conversions. He also explains how the Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are ultimately participation in the life and mission of Jesus Christ that help us in our earthly life toward the goal of eternal salvation.
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80th Anniversary of the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross
14 februari 2023 · 19 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio shares a historical reflection on the 80th anniversary of St. Josemaria Escriva’s founding of the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross on February 14, 1943. Lees meer
Fifteen years after founding Opus Dei (October 2, 1928), St. Josemaria finally saw “a way, a canonical solution to have priests in Opus Dei.” St. Josemaria had realized early on that Opus Dei needed priests “who have that heightened awareness that Christ wants to be in the workplace. He wants to be in the family, he wants to be in social relations… The layperson can’t just receive the sacraments in a perfunctory way. Those sacraments need to be administered by holy priests who completely understand that the layperson is called to a first-class sanctity.”
As Fr. Peter explains, “the priest and the layperson are an organic unity.” Both “have their own role that is indispensable for the New Evangelization, to bring Christ to the middle of the world, and they complement each other and they’re profoundly united to each other.” This is why the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross is so important to Opus Dei and the Church: to meet the “burning need for holiness among the priests” so that they meet the “burning need for holiness among laypersons.”
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Mary, Mother of Fairest Love
11 februari 2023 · 24 min
In this special podcast, Fr. Javier del Castillo reflects on the feast of Mary, Mother of Fairest Love (February 14th), and the significance of this Marian title in the life of the Church and the history of Opus Dei. Lees meer
Rooted in the Old Testament, Fr. Javier explains how “fair” in this title of Our Lady refers to “beauty” and “fairest love” means “the most beautiful love.” He also explains how St. Josemaria Escriva helped to revive the devotion to this title applying it to Mary as “the guardian of the beauty of chastity” and “as a way of praying for holy purity, for the sanctity of marriage, for the sanctity of the family, and for vocations to celibacy."
The virtue of holy purity is not just about control, as Fr. Javier explains, but it is primarily about love. Holy purity is a gift from God that helps us safeguard the image of God we have in our soul and in our heart, which is “where we are able to love God and make a covenant with God. The heart is the place of truth… So many things happen in the heart. And this interior world has to be protected.”
Mary brings us the hope we need to struggle, to tell the truth in our hearts, to repent, and to have the holy purity “to make room in our hearts for God, for true love, for the fairest and most beautiful love… which is her Son.”
_____St. Josemaria’s desire to build a shrine to Mary, Mother of Fairest Love in the United States is underway! The shrine will be “a place where people come and ask Mary for many favors for their marriage, for their families, for their vocation, and also for holy purity.” Learn about the “Mary, Mother of Fairest Love Family Shrine” at: https://fairestloveshrine.org/.
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Love for the Church
6 februari 2023 · 19 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on the meaning of the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ and why “to be a follower of Christ, we have to love the Church.” Lees meer
In the Letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul writes about the Church being “without stain or wrinkle.” Fr. Peter points out that, in today’s media, we often read about and see things that make this seem impossible. Yet the Church is lovable because it was founded by “God himself, God made man,” and Christ defines the Church as “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.
We don’t judge the Church by the misbehavior but by the “salt and light of the world”—men and women who accept and live by the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Church, and who make good use of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. The Church, as Fr. Peter explains, “brings the very best out of the human person. The more that human person embraces the teachings of Christ, the greater that person is.”
In this podcast you will also hear how:
The Church is a sacrament, a sign, and not just a symbol.
The Church is a sign of unity, life, conversion, and salvation.
Wherever we are—among our family, in our workplace, in all social relations—we are members of the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ.
Scripture, the Sacraments, and the teachings of the Church are an extension of Christ.
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Encountering Christ Through Humility (Rebroadcast)
30 januari 2023 · 28 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio reflects on how Jesus’ example and teachings on humility are key to knowing ourselves and to knowing God. Reflecting on Scripture, specifically the parable of the Pharisee and the publican, Fr. Peter highlights how we can only know God, and give ourselves to Him, when we own ourselves and are not held back by our pride, resentments, self-absorption, or sinfulness. Lees meer
St. Josemaria Escriva said that Jesus’ greatest act of humility is to be a “prisoner behind the appearance of bread” in order to have an intimate relationship with each one of us and to serve us. Jesus remains in the Blessed Sacrament so that we may have him “all to ourselves; no lines, no tickets, no waiting rooms.” Fr. Peter reminds us to learn from Jesus’ example of self-emptying humility and self-giving love. “Though he was in the form of God, [he] did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Philippians 2:6-7).
So, the more we empty ourselves, the more we experience Christ and allow him to live in us and take over our lives. And the more we allow this happen, the more all those around us will be able to see the compassionate and merciful face of Our Lord.
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
The Pharisee’s prayer “doesn’t work” but the prayer of the Publican is effective because he humbled himself.
We can’t be self-satisfied with what we have and try not to give it away - that’s pride.
Holiness is more about being a good repenter than being a good performer.
Humility is enhanced when we’re honest with ourselves, and making a good confession is a great antidote to pride.
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Becoming a Light of the World
23 januari 2023 · 24 min
In this podcast, Fr. Peter Armenio guides us to reflect upon the importance of loving God, being united to Him, and being a light in the world that extends and radiates His love to others. But how does God expect us to do this in our lives? Lees meer
Drawing upon the Gospel story of the Rich Young Man, Fr. Peter points out the “three steps” that Jesus shares with the young man to be happy and attain eternal life: 1) make God the center of your life because only God is good and can satisfy you; 2) live the commandments to gain the freedom to own yourself; 3) make a self-gift of yourself to Christ who is number one in your life.
To be totally centered on Christ, like all of the saints, is to begin to experience the joy of eternal life here on earth. But, it's not going to work and we will always go away sad if we don't make the decision to give ourselves completely to Christ and become light and joy in the world.
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
A talented college girl who left the Church found her way back to the Eucharist through the joyful witness of her Catholic friends.
Why a modern-day “rich young man” was not happy even though he had everything a boy his age would want.
Jesus expects us to interact with the world in order to be its salt and light and preach to every creature (and it’s what being Catholic is all about).
The decision to be totally centered on Christ will ultimately make us join the ranks of the saints.
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The School of Happiness
17 januari 2023 · 15 min
In this podcast, Msgr. Dolan reflects on how “our spiritual life is a school of happiness where we learn how to be happy, no matter what.” The Christian way of life involves great difficulty and sacrifice, yet as the Apostles understood, “nothing could compare with the joy of a life with Jesus.” Jesus teaches us what it means to be really and truly happy. Lees meer
Msgr. Dolan also explains that our life of prayer sharpens our vision of the things that really matter and helps us protect that happiness that the Lord wants for us. Therefore, the more clearly we set our sights on goals that move our heart, the better our chances of forging ahead without minding the difficulties.
As St. Josemaria said, “To be happy, what you need is not an easy life but a heart in love.” (Furrow, no. 795). A strong heart always fixed on the goal can struggle for Love until the end.
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
▪The more clearly we set our sights on goals that move our heart, the better our chances of forging ahead without paying attention to the difficulties.
▪Ensuring our joy and peace depends more on what we truly want and less on the petty tyrannies of the moment.
▪Patience is neither naïve optimism nor resignation. It is the attitude of the free person whose love is unfailing and whose sight is always set on the goal.View Transcript
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The Visitors at the Nativity
3 januari 2023 · 26 min
In this podcast, Fr. Leo Agustina helps us realize that no matter how much we prepare, spiritually or materially, Christmas comes, and we never feel ready. There is always a contrast “between the purity and the beauty” of Christ’s coming and the “inadequacy” of our hearts to receive Him. Lees meer
Therefore, Fr. Leo invites us to adopt the humility and openness of the “broken figures” (or characters) who we find and imagine at the first nativity scene. They show us how all that is needed to welcome Christ is the willingness to receive the Good News. And, regardless of our brokenness and imperfections, Our Lord is always happy to welcome us when we approach him.
"As you kneel at the feet of the child Jesus on the day of his Epiphany and see him a king bearing none of the outward signs of royalty, you can tell him: 'Lord, take away my pride; crush my self-love, my desire to affirm myself and impose myself on others. Make the foundation of my personality my identification with you'" (Christ is Passing By, no. 32).
In this podcast, you will also hear how:
• Our Lord uses “broken figures” to deliver the most revolutionary message in human history, a message of hope and joy, a message that will change our history forever.
• With our imperfections, wounds, and scars, we are gracious before God, and He comes to us whether we’re ready or not. He takes the lead and anticipates when we need His love.
• Dorothy Day wrote that: “I believe that if Jesus can be born in stable, he can also be born in me…”
• Wherever you are, God is knocking on your heart. He is not interested in external things and that gives us a lot of peace.
• We need to learn from Christmas that God is always happy to come to us and to welcome us—that is the Epiphany.
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