Upfront with the Archbishop

We're talking about our Blessed Mother today! Having just celebrated the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God we get the Archbishop to give a crash course in how to have a relationship with Our Lord's mother. What does that look like? How is it possible? Are their limits? Click here to sign up for Upfront Updates to stay in the loop on upcoming podcast events and new episodes! Visit our Chri...

Join Archbishop Smith for our Christmas episode where we discuss the virtue of joy, the Christmas liturgies and the prophet Isaiah as the “5th Gospel,” Christmas-only Catholics and the ancient promises of God that he keeps to every one of us through the arrival of Jesus. Show notes: Christmas Mass times for the Archdiocese of Edmonton https://sites.google.com/view/liturgies/christmas-masses Donate...

To prep for Advent we're sharing this previous episode on this great liturgical season: What have we forgotten about Advent? Join Archbishop Smith as he shares about Advent as a season of penitence, the purpose of the liturgical year vs. the secular year, Advent as a season of being shook out of our apathy and the irregularity of the fourth Sunday of Advent being the same day as Christmas Eve...

What is the mission of married couples?  Join Archbishop Smith as he discusses the sacrament of marriage in Scripture, divorce and annulment, how marriage is meant to be a witness to communion in an era of division, and his thoughts on what a couple can do when their relationship is struggling.  On September 14, the Archdiocese of Edmonton launched its new pastoral priorities and our third priorit...

Today, Archbishop Smith is talking about Catholic education and the urgent need to proclaim the Gospel in our Catholic schools, especially with the widespread presence of anxiety and depression among young people.  In anticipation of Catholic Education Week (Oct. 19-25), the Archbishop also speaks about what it means for Catholic schools to be “authentic” and “distinct,” the relationship between e...

What kind of missionary am I called to be?  Join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about our second pastoral priority of “Forming Confident Witnesses,” the universal call to share the Gospel, what it means to be a missionary parish or diocese, Archbishop Smith’s favourite experiences in northern Canada and our covenant with the northern Canadian diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith.  Show Notes  Learn...

How do I know if I am in a state of grace? What do Catholics actually believe about receiving the Body of Christ in the Eucharist? Join Archbishop Smith for our first episode back after summer break, for a discussion about Eucharistic theology, reverence in the Mass, being in a state of grace and the launch of our three, brand-new pastoral priorities for the Archdiocese of Edmonton! To learn more...

Is The Chosen worth watching as a Catholic? Does it portray Jesus as he should be? Join Archbishop Smith for his review of Season 4 of The Chosen, as we discuss how Judas is portrayed, the bold soundtrack choices that the director made for the series, the difficultly of portraying Jesus has fully God and fully man, and how depictions of the disciples can inspire us to our pursuit of becoming saint...

Will the Catholic Church change its teaching on marriage? On female priesthood? Join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about how to define, dogma, doctrine and the Magisterium, about whether the Church will change some of its most-discussed moral teachings, the gift of certainty and consistency that the Catholic Church offers, and how all of these matters always come back to the person of Jesus Ch...

Today’s episode is the 100th episode of Upfront with the Archbishop and we’re talking about themes from our most viewed episodes over the past two years: What is appropriate to wear to Mass, how to respond to division over Marian apparitions and the Catholic Church as the one, true religion. We are also speaking about the mysterious theology of the Sacrament of Confirmation, which Archbishop Smith...

What is the mission of men? Join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about his advice for men, the fatherhood of St. Joseph, the suffering of having an absent father and the response of God the Father, and what it takes to be an excellent man.  Watch us on YouTube here ! Subscribe to our email list: Upfront Updates Upfront with the Archbishop is a weekly podcast where our goal is to strengthen the r...

Maria Goretti was just 11 when she forgave her would-be rapist and the man who killed her. How does a person do that? How do we grow in our ability to have mercy and forgive? Join Archbishop Smith to hear his advice on growing in the virtue of radical forgiveness, the story of St. Maria Goretti, Pope Francis’ call for a “revolution of tenderness,” how to respond to the modern “culture of outrage”...

Did you know Archbishop Smith used to lead music (with his guitar!) at Mass as a young adult? Join Archbishop Smith as he tells the story of how he started to pray as a child, the challenges of being a Catholic “nerd” in high school, his experience with liturgy and the implementation of Vatican II as a young adult, the moment he realized he was called to be a priest and his advice for anyone who w...

Join Archbishop Smith for a conversation with Dr. Lauren Girard, a palliative care and family medicine doctor from Edmonton, Alberta as they discuss why palliative care is an answer to the rise in euthanasia and assisted suicide, the sophistication of modern pain management, experiences with accompanying people in the last moments of their life, how to accompany someone who is suffering from demen...

As we near her feast day (April 17), join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about St. Kateri Tekakwitha and lesser-known facts about her life, including her Catholic formation in a Mohawk women’s community, her relationship with radical forms of penance, her vow of perpetual virginity, her love of the Eucharist and how her story can give hope to those who are being persecuted or dismissed for thei...

Are we striving to be “good” people? Or virtuous people? Join Archbishop Smith and host Jenny Connelly for a discussion about virtue ethics, the virtues that Archbishop Smith learned from his parents, the cardinal virtues and what it means to be a “good person.” Watch us on YouTube here ! Subscribe to our email list: Upfront Updates Upfront with the Archbishop is a weekly podcast where our goal is...

Will our bodies rise again? Join Archbishop Smith and host Jenny Connelly for our Easter episode on evidence for Christ’s Resurrection, the theology of the resurrection of our bodies, the relationship between wisdom and doubt, and why Catholics venerate relics. Watch us on YouTube here ! Subscribe to our email list: Upfront Updates Upfront with the Archbishop is a weekly podcast where our goal is...

What is happening in our nation? Join Archbishop Richard Smith, Deacon Larry Worthen and host Jenny Connelly for a discussion about the expansion of Medical Assistance in Dying in Canada, how Christi calls us to respond to this culture of death, practical ways that people of good will can fight the expansion, and legality, of assisted suicide and euthanasia in Canada and stories of both tragedy an...

Join Archbishop Smith for his annual Lent episode! We discuss why we fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, the theology of sacrifice, why young men are committing to the Exodus 90 program, and why asceticism is part of our Catholic tradition. Shownotes  Exodus 90 Watch us on YouTube here ! Subscribe to our email list: Upfront Updates Upfront with the Archbishop is a weekly podcast where our goal is to s...

Join Archbishop Richard Smith for a discussion about what it means to be in crisis as a Church, why we must respond to crisis with obedience and repentance, the call to defend our family, the Church, and what it means that the Church has “lost her visibility.” Watch the trailer for Be Not Afraid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FPBgrrOP10 Benedict XVI Institute of Newman Theological College, co-h...

Join Archbishop Richard Smith for a discussion about private versus public revelation, Marion apparitions, how to discern whether a prophecy is legitimate or not, the origins of the Rosary and how Tradition relates to Revelation.  Show Notes The Church's Current Position on Medjugorje Vatican principles for discerning “resumed apparitions or revelations” Watch us on YouTube here ! Subscribe t...

Join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about why the Catholic Church canonizes saints, the heroic story of St. Josephine Bakhita, how the grace of God can transform trauma and abuse into healing and forgiveness, and how we can bring heroic forgiveness into our own lives.  Show Notes Book: Bakhita, From Slave to Saint https://www.amazon.ca/Bakhita-Slave-Roberto-Italo-Zanini/dp/1586176897 Spe Salvia...

How many priests does Canada need? Join Archbishop Smith and Dr. Ryan Topping (Benedict XVI Institute, Newman Theological College) for a discussion about the priestly “vocations crisis” in the Catholic Church, the brand-new study that Dr. Topping has published after surveying young priests from across Canada that explores the main reasons why young men choose to be priests today, the impact of alt...

As we near the feasts of the Immaculate Conception (December 8) and Our Lady of Guadalupe (December 12), join Archbishop Smith for a discussion about his own Marian devotion, his trips to Mexico in honor of our Lady of Guadalupe, the significance of Guadalupe to Indigenous Truth and Reconciliation and the theology of the Immaculate Conception. Shownotes: Archbishop Smith will be celebrating Mass T...

As November – the Month of Souls – comes to a close, Archbishop Smith speaks about the Church’s teaching on praying for the dead, indulgences, purgatory and the importance of the ministry that our Catholic cemeteries offer. On last week’s episode, Archbishop Smith spoke about Advent as a season of repentance, and this week we discuss how we can offer up our penance for those who have died before u...