Religious orders wear a wide variety of habits, from brown robes reminiscent of Jedi attire to white robes with black capes similar to Gandalf’s. With so many distinct styles, it’s hard for anyone to keep track of them all.

Beyond their attire, religious communities are diverse, unique, and an enriching part of the Church—though they may seem a bit unusual at first. Fr. Patrick Mary Briscoe, a Dominican of the Eastern Province in the United States, shares insights into the vows, rituals, and histories of these orders, highlighting their profound and beautiful impact on the Church.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Follow Ave Maria Press on Instagram

Catholic author and speaker Sonja Corbitt embraced Catholicism after a lifetime of being a Southern Baptist, and she did so because of the Bible. Her entrance into the Church, which included a deep study of some of the stranger teachings of the Faith, became a source of both inspiration and consternation in her own family, and her love of her faith today is even deeper as a result. Sacred scripture can sometimes seem odd or contradictory, but it reinforces all our weird Catholic beliefs. Sonja explains how in today’s episode.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

Why do we bake cakes for Shrove Tuesday or use chalk to mark our doors on the Epiphany? Why do we crown statues of Mary with flowers or sing hymns to the biggest candle of them all, the Paschal Candle, on Easter Vigil?

Steffani Aquila, author of Festive Faith, walks us through the liturgical year and explains some of the most cherished, and oddest, liturgical living traditions and practices to help us embrace living a festive faith in our somewhat odd Church.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Order Festive Faith Today!

When we declare that Catholicism is two thousand years old, we must do so knowing that this means the earliest days of the Church were, at times, peculiar and challenging. The liturgy had to be developed, sacramental practices clarified, disputes settled, and the life of the Church established as we now know it.

Mike Aquilina, Catholic scholar and prolific author, discusses the unusual practices of the Church's first few hundred years and how they led to some of today's most cherished traditions.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

Sean Pilcher, from Sacra, an apostolate focused on the restoration and recovery of relics, shares the meaning and importance of relics for all Catholics. Sean discusses how relics are verified, what it looks like to restore relics that have been damaged, and offers insight into how relics impact our spiritual lives.

Then, in a special bonus Ave Explores exclusive, Katie sits down with Jonathan Roumie, award winning actor from The Chosen and executive producer of the new film Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Story to discuss how the joy of his Catholic faith guides him in his career and helps him discern good projects to work on, and he tells the story of meeting Pope Francis, who called him “Jesus.”

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

Join Meg Hunter-Kilmer, author and storyteller of saints, and Deacon David Keene, an archeologist and canon lawyer, as they delve into the fascinating process of uncovering the lives of saints. From researching their stories to studying their relics, they explore the challenges and discoveries that bring these holy figures to life.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

Matt Maher wouldn’t describe himself as a “peculiar” or “weird” Catholic, but he wouldn’t mind if you described him like that, because he knows that’s just sort of part of being Catholic. World renowned, Grammy nominated singer, songwriter, and producer, Matt Maher sits down with Katie McGrady to talk about what he loves about his Catholic faith, how he shares it in lots of non-Catholic spaces, and what it means to be your most authentic self in living and loving your Catholicism.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

In this bonus episode of Ave Explores, Katie Prejean McGrady sits down with Oscar Rivera, new host of Ave Spotlight. Together, they discuss the origins of their collaboration, dive into their experience at the National Eucharistic Congress, and share thoughts on the Olympics.

Follow along at avemariapress.com or subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Follow Ave Maria Press on Instagram

Catholicism is incarnational and tactile. We exist in reality, and so does our faith. Remembering that is essential to growing in our Catholicism, and Timothy P. O’Malley explains how “matter matters” in the places and spaces we worship. This summer, Catholics in the United States will have the chance to experience that incarnational reality on the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, spanning four routes from coast to coast, converging in Indianapolis in July for the National Eucharistic Congress. Chenele Shaw, former host of Ave Spotlight, shares the story of the pilgrimage and what we can expect along the way.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores

The Church in the U.S. has made a lasting impact on education and social services. From universities and lay apostolates that educate and form young adults to networks of Catholic Charities offices that provide essential help to those in need, Catholicism in the U.S. is not naval-gazing or self-centered. The Church in the U.S. seeks to serve. Fr. Tim Anastos, chaplain at the University of Illinois, and Kerry Robinson, CEO of Catholic Charities USA, share how the missions of formation and charity are a significant part of the story of Catholicism in this country.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores