The Word on Fire Show - Catholic Faith and Culture

How did Bishop Barron get drawn into the life of the mind? What are his reading and writing habits like? In this episode, he discusses the intellectual life and gives advice to aspiring intellectuals. A listener asks which literature books Bishop would recommend for a Catholic high school English class. NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some great perks for helping, like f...

In today's episode, Bishop Barron fields questions from people all over the world, including: How do I evangelize in remote areas where people are simple, and can't even read the Bible, without dumbing down the message? What's the Catholic response to worry and anxiety? Was Purgatory divinely revealed or just a human invention? How to evangelize young people about hot-button issues without soundin...

The hit movie  1917  vividly depicts the horrors of World War I, including its great spiritual peril. In this episode, Bishop Barron reflects on the Great War, discussing its impact on twentieth-century theology and philosophy, the Pope, and the Catholic Church's relationship to the world. A listener asks why Jesus chose to live a quiet, mostly obscure life. NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Becom...

Today, we share a sample lesson from a course inside our Word on Fire Institute on "Reaching the Different." The course is taught by Dr. Matt Nelson and teaches how to evangelize friends and family who are apathetic about God and don't care about religion. To get the rest of the course, along with 10 other full courses and all sorts of bonuses, join the Institute at https://wordonfire.institute .

In this third and final part of our series on the Church Fathers (listen to  Part 1  and  Part 2 ), Bishop Barron examines four influential Fathers from the post-Nicene period: John Chrysostom  (349 – 407) Jerome  (347 – 420) Augustine  (354 – 430) Gregory the Great  (540 – 604) A listener asks whether to pray for people who are sick or simply accept pain and suffering as part of God's plan. Links...

In this second part of our series on the Church Fathers (listen to  Part 1 ), Bishop Barron takes a look at some important Church Fathers from the pre-Nicene and Nicene periods, including: Justin Martyr  (100 – 165) Irenaeus  (130 – 202) Origen  (184 – 253) Athanasius  (292 – 373) Gregory of Nyssa  (335 – 395) A listener asks how we can understand Purgatory and Heaven in relation to time. Links +...

With the new year coming up, many of us will make resolutions. Some of us will pledge to exercise more, lose weight, or pick up new habits. But what spiritual resolutions should we make for 2020? In this short episode, Bishop Barron offers three suggestions. NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some great perks for helping, like free books, bonus content, and more. Word on Fi...

How many Christmas cards and nativity scenes have you seen presenting the baby Jesus as soft and saccharine? Well, that's not how the Bible describes him. There, Jesus is presented as a warrior king, who came with a heavenly army to battle against the dark powers of the world. In this episode, excerpted from Bishop Barron's  CATHOLICISM  film series , discover the real meaning of Christmas, and th...

Who were the Church Fathers, and why do they still matter today? Bishop Barron introduces these spiritual masters and shares their key contributions. In the first episode of our three-part series, he also discusses the three main Apostolic Fathers: Clement  (35 – 99) Ignatius  (35 – 108) Polycarp  (69 – 155) A listener asks about the difference between faith and hope. Links + Book Recommendations...

At the recent USCCB meeting, Bishop Barron gave a presentation to all the American bishops in which he offered five ways to draw young people back to God. Today, we discuss each way. A listener asks which books Bishop Barron would recommend to counter his biology teacher who tells him to read Bertrand Russell and Christopher Hitchens. Links + Book Recommendations Bishop Barron's USCCB presentation...

Should theology be a core subject studied in universities? John Henry Newman certainly thought so. Today, we share a sample lesson from Bishop Barron's  Word on Fire Institute  course on Newman, titled "The Queen of the Sciences." It focuses on Newman's book,  Idea of a University , and his comments on the role of religion in the circle of university disciplines. Join the Word on Fire Institute to...

The first words out of Jesus' mouth—and the central theme of his preaching—concerned the Kingdom of God. As we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King, Bishop Barron explores three dimensions of his unique kingship. A listener asks if God is love, and love is an act of the will, is God reducible to will? NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some great perks for helping, li...

This week, Bishop Barron answers questions from listeners all over the world. These include: If animals have distinct personalities, then why does the Church teach they don't have souls? What is being conveyed by identifying Jesus as the New Adam and Mary as the New Eve? Do you believe we have a predestined "purpose"? What can we say about the love of God to someone who has lost an infant to disea...

What did St. Ignatius mean when he counseled followers to "discern the spirits"? How do we do this? Bishop Barron unpacks the  Spiritual Exercises  of St. Ignatius and offers practical tips on how to discern God's will in your life. A listener asks how to discern whether God is calling him to marriage or the priesthood. NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some great perks fo...

oday we discuss the second half of  Joe Rogan's interview with atheist Richard Dawkins  about Dawkins' new book,  Outgrowing God: A Beginner's Guide . (If you missed the first half, check out  last week's episode !) A listener asks whether Bishop Barron has considered making Word on Fire into a religious order. Links Joe Rogan interviews Richard Dawkins  (full video) Outgrowing God: A Beginner's G...

Joe Rogan, host of the one of the world's most popular podcasts,  recently interviewed Richard Dawkins  about Dawkins' new book,  Outgrowing God: A Beginner's Guide . It's a follow-up book to Dawkins' bestselling  The God Delusion , although this one is aimed at younger readers. The Rogan/Dawkins interview went immediately viral, drawing over a million views within 48 hours. Today, Bishop Barron a...

Surveys show 61% of people sleep with their phones and 75% grab their phones as soon as they wake up. We're addicted to our smartphones. In this episode, Bishop Barron reflects on this problem (including his own smartphone use), offering guidance from some of the greatest saints and spiritual masters in the Catholic tradition. A listener asks whether saints feel emotions in heaven, such as feeling...

Last month, Bishop Barron visited Reddit for another #AMA (ask me anything). Over 15,000 comments poured in from young skeptics around the world, making it the third most-commented on #AMA of the year, and the ninth most popular in Reddit history. Today, Bishop Barron reflects on the experience and four main patterns of questions he noticed. A listener asks for a concrete example of mercy mocking...

How do we make sense of all the names, groups, and movements surrounding the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965)? What are the key things to know, and how have they shaped today's Catholic Church? Bishop Barron explains. A listener asks why secular philosophy departments tend to discount Scholasticism in favor of modern philosophy. NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some gre...

A recent article in The Atlantic claimed "A Famous Argument Against Free Will Has Been Debunked" . It focused on a famous experiment during the 1980s that seems to show our brain "decides" on our behavior before we actually make particular choices. Many believed this confirmed we don't have free will, that all our thoughts and behaviors are determined. But is this the case? Is free will just an il...

This week, we share the second half of a talk from Bishop Barron on John Henry Newman's book,  The Grammar of Assent . We shared the first half last week, so be sure to listen to that first. The Grammar of Assent  concerns question about how we come to believe in God, and is widely considered Newman's most important text. Also, it's a timely topic, since John Henry Newman will be canonized in just...

This week, we share the first half of a talk from Bishop Barron on John Henry Newman's book,  The Grammar of Assent . The book concerns the question of belief–how we come to believe in God–and is widely considered his most important text. Also, it's a timely topic, since John Henry Newman will be canonized in just a couple weeks, on October 13. Bishop Barron will be attending the canonization, the...

Bishop Barron takes questions from kids, including: Why did Jesus pick Judas to be one of his disciples when he knew Judas would betray him? Does Heaven have night time? How is St. Michael an angel  and  a saint? How does a family with young kids perform the corporal/spiritual works of mercy? NOTE:  Do you like this podcast?  Become a patron  and get some great perks for helping, like free books,...

The annual United Nations World Happiness Report, which measures the happiness of different countries, is always dominated by Scandinavian nations. Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Finland have always been in the top ten. But what's striking is that these happiest countries are also those which rank among the  least religious . On the flip side, most African countries, which tend to be the ve...

Today, Bishop Barron answers questions from all over the world about God, the Church, and the culture. Will it be possible to upload one's consciousness to a computer and attain immortality? Why was Christianity started in the West? If humans are born with original sin, then why does the Bible encourage us to have children and increase the amount of sin in the world? Listen for Bishop Barron's ans...