We continue celebrating twenty-five years of proclaiming the Gospel; evangelizing the culture; supporting the faithful; and inviting the disaffiliated, the forsaken, and those who have fallen away back to Christ and his church. However, over the years, attacks against Bishop Barron and Word on Fire have come from many sources, including online anti-evangelists who hate religion in general and Christianity in particular and from those who posture themselves as the Church’s greatest defenders. What is the substance of these detractions? What motivates them? Do they pose an actual threat to the ministry? What can they teach us as evangelists about how to respond constructively to public criticism, especially when it’s vicious?   

A listener asks how we should understand the meaning and implications of “turning the other cheek.” 

00:00 | Introduction 01:32 | Standing for life with the DOWR seminarians 02:27 | Do any of your critics surprise you? 03:40 | Early interaction with YouTube comments 05:28 | Criticism #1: You’re too conservative—or too liberal 06:38 | Your critique of “beige Catholicism” is unfair and trivializing 09:45 | Criticism #2: Prioritizing beauty is a luxury 14:00 | Criticism #3: The thinkers you reference are only appropriate in academic settings 17:18 | Criticism #4:You’ve joined Balthasar in promoting universal salvation 20:01 | Criticism #5: You’re too political—or not political enough 25:46 | Criticism #6: Your critiques of wokeism are one-sided and unfair to social justice 31:57 | Criticism #7: You’re too supportive of Vatican II—or not supportive enough 35:50 | Criticism #8: You don’t discern the platforms on which you appear 41:29 | Advice for responding to public criticism 42:33 | Listener question: How do I “turn the other cheek” without enabling the offender? 44:54 | Join the Word on Fire Institute

Links:

• “Dare We Hope” Resource Page: https://www.wordonfire.org/hope/
• Word on Fire Institute: https://institute.wordonfire.org/

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