The Friar Podcasts - preaching prayer and spiritual reflections

For worship to be authentic, the way we live our life, especially concerning the poor and the vulnerable must be authentic. We need to recognize in all things that if we cannot treat those made in the image and likeness of God with appropriate respect affording them the dignity that is theirs, then indeed our worship is empty.

The readings for today.

Why should we care at all about the Church Fathers? Put simply, almost universally during the first half of Christianity, and by many still today, they are seen as the authorities on the Christian Faith. Understanding what they said and how they thought about the faith can provide us with an important insight into the faith.

There is certainly value when we look to the past. There is a tendency in modern society to dismiss anything that is old, and it is even more the case when we consider the faith life of the Church. But knowing where we came from, and how the major doctrines and dogmas of the faith developed, can help us to apply this wisdom to situations we face today.

Before we dive into something written by a Church Father, perhaps a little overview of the Church Fathers would be helpful. Generally, the Church Fathers are divided into three historical time periods. There are the apostolic fathers, those who lived contemporaneously with the apostles or shortly thereafter and were likely taught by them. There are the ante-Nicene Fathers, who lived before the Nicene Council (hence ante before, not anti, against). And the post-Nicene Fathers, those who lived after the Nicene Council.

In terms of the Apostolic Fathers, St. Clement of Rome, St. Ignatius of Antioch and St. Polycarp would be examples. For the Ante-Nicene Fathers (the period between the Apostolic Fathers and 325 A.D., the time of the Nicene Council) examples would be St. Irenaeus and St. Justin Martyr. The post-Nicene Fathers would include St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, St. John Damascene and others. Most consider St. John Damascene as the end of the Church Fathers. While most of the Church Fathers are bishops, there are priests and deacons on this list as well.

The topics they wrote about represent a broad understanding which up to the Protestant Reformation were widely accepted as the teachings of Christianity. They covered ideas such as how we are saved, morality and how we should live, the bible and Tradition, the sacraments, and the Church and the papacy. Many non-Catholics and even many Catholics do not realize how much of what is today considered “Catholic” has its roots and origins in the writings of the Church Fathers.

The Apostolic Fathers will be the starting point, since they provide a way of understanding how the early Church came to understand itself, how the books of the New Testament (and Old Testament) came to be put together in the bible as we know it today, and what Christians believe about Jesus and the Trinity.

We have become so used to certain teachings that we may not be aware how much debate and discernment went into their formulation. We cannot forget that the Incarnation changed everything. And more than that, we cannot forget that for those who initially followed Jesus, the depths and roots of their Jewish faith played a significant role. I do not think it is a stretch to say that Jesus did not seem himself as a “Christian”, but a Jew who revealed to his followers that he was the fulfillment of all the promises of the Old Testament.

Also, while the original call of God was to the Chosen People, with the Incarnation of Jesus this call is not limited now to a single people but is universal for the entire world. Moreover, the

The readings for today.

In both readings today the life of faith is not seen as only something we do on Sundays, but rather forms a way of seeing the world and informing all of our decisions, whether they are large or small. From deciding to marry to setting priorities about how we should live, the Law of God helps us to come closer and closer to the Kingdom of God.

“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them.” We have gifts. Have you ever prayed on the gifts God has given you? Have you asked God to help you to discern the gifts you have been given? While I have heard such practice in certain Christian circles, it does not seem as common for Catholics. I do not hear many in the Catholic faith claim the gifts God has given them. And yet, Saint Paul, in the quote from his letter to the Romans, mentions that we have gifts. There are many instances where Saint Paul mentions specific gifts, though the names and lists do not always match.

For the purpose of clarity, it seemed helpful to provide some definitions and explanations for some of the things mentioned in this introduction. Note that understanding these ideas is not essential to understand Augustine's confessions. You can read about these by going to https://thefriar.org/2021/05/25/augustine-confessions----introduction/.

This is the start of our new feature, The Friar Book Club. We start with the reading of the Confessions by Saint Augustine. It is both a story of his conversion and his summary of Christian belief. This first introduction comes from the book in the public domain we are using translated by ALBERT C. OUTLER, Ph.D., D.D. Professor of Theology Perkins School of Theology Southern Methodist University Dallas, Texas.

In the post for this podcast, there is also a written pdf version for those who prefer to read it. There will be questions at the end of the post on the website, and in an additional podcast.

It is a fool's errand to try to explain the Trinity, since it simply cannot be done. In fact, I think the deeper we go in our prayer life, in our spiritual life, the more we realize that we know less and less about God. God is a mystery, so rather than trying to "solve" God, what if we simply entered into the mystery and enjoyed it.

The readings for today.

A document for the entire list of daily intentions.

The Liturgical Guide for the Celebrations.

To pray the rosary live (11am central, 17h00 GMT). Look for the Upcoming Events Column on the right side of the page.  You can also pray an audio version using one of the audio versions at the end of this post.

For a guide on how to pray the rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Dominican Rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Lasallian Rosary, click here.

Today's Reflection:

All over the world when people are in their most difficult situations and circumstances, they turn to the Church. While some think of the Church merely as a human institution, for people of faith, the Church is the spiritual instrument used by Christ to bring salvation to the world through the sacraments and the love of neighbor.

But as the past few years have shown, while Christ will never abandon the Church, it is also an institution with flawed human beings who sin and fall short. This has been quite a difficulty for people of faith. Jesus warned against causing scandal, but sadly we did not heed. We fell short and sinned. But God’s grace is stronger than our sin. Time and again in the bible we see how God works with and through flawed and sinful human beings.

So too today, God continues to work through the Church, through you and me. Despite our sins and our flaws, God offers us mercy and forgiveness. God offers YOU mercy and forgiveness. While Jesus is always with the Church, and the Holy Spirit continues to guide the Church, we need to pray for each of us, members of the Body of Christ which is the Church, that all of us may remain faithful to the loving vocation God has given to each of us. As we continue this Rosary Marathon, let us pray for the Church.

A document for the entire list of daily intentions.

The Liturgical Guide for the Celebrations.

To pray the rosary live (11am central, 17h00 GMT). Look for the Upcoming Events Column on the right side of the page. You can also pray an audio version using one of the audio versions at the end of this post.

For a guide on how to pray the rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Dominican Rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Lasallian Rosary, click here.

Today's Reflection:

Consecrated women and men are often those who engage in ministries that we could rightly call “essential services.” They are the teachers who help children to learn. They are doctors, nurses and health care professionals who help people to heal. They are those who work to provide basic needs in shelters, food pantries and agencies. They are the real heroes who help people to survive.

But in the midst of all of this service, it can be easy for us to forget them. Have we found ourselves praying for consecrated women and men who are so generous in following the call of Christ? Have we ourselves, if possible, reached out to see if we, in answer to our own baptismal call, could assist them in the ministry they do?

Also, we could ask ourselves if we have been attentive enough to check on these communities. Many consecrated men and women suffered greatly because of the pandemic. Sadly, many died. Those that did not often were made to stay in their room locked away from others. There level of suffering was deep. As we continue this Rosary Marathon, let us pray for all consecrated men and women.

Today's Intention: For all consecrated men and women.

A document for the entire list of daily intentions.

The Liturgical Guide for the Celebrations.

To pray the rosary live (11am central, 17h00 GMT). Look for the Upcoming Events Column on the right side of the page. You can also pray an audio version using one of the audio versions at the end of this post.

For a guide on how to pray the rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Dominican Rosary, click here.

For a guide on how to pray the Lasallian Rosary, click here.

Today's Reflection:

There is no religious training that prepares a religious leader for a pandemic. This is most especially true when the pandemic is caused by a disease that we have never faced before. Often the religious leader is one who has to channel their own fears into helping others address their fears. And, fear also brings out very strong feelings which of themselves do not help people to act their best.

The primary role of the leaders of the Church is to help us to see more clearly the ways in which God seeks to save us. In the case of the Holy Father, his leadership was very evident during Holy Week when he blessed the world with the monstrance containing the Blessed Sacrament. How powerful it was to see the stark dependence upon God that leads to holiness. Bishops are called to find the balance between the availability of the sacraments to foster the faith of people in the direct encounter with Jesus these sacraments bring with legitimate concerns about safety. Often this came with the challenges of navigating a system of government that was not always respectful of the human need to worship.

Priests and deacons can be those who find themselves closest to those who suffer. Often at great risk, there were priests and deacons who courageously ministered to those who were sick and dying. As we continue this Rosary Marathon, let us pray for the Holy Father, bishops, presbyters, and deacons.

Today's Intention: For the Holy Father, bishops, presbyters, and deacons.