All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

Where do Catholics get the idea that Mary was assumed into heaven? Is there any Scriptural basis for this doctrine? Or is this just a Catholic exaggeration of Mary’s role in the Christian life?Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

When it comes to romantic relationships, people often question whether they should follow the head or the heart.  But what about our friendship with God?  Is the head or the heart more important in the spiritual life?   The two, of course, go together. If you want to love Jesus more, it's absolutely crucial that you form your mind with his truth. For every new thing you learn about God is another reason for loving him.  Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

How do you respond when you feel stretched: overwhelmed, in-over-your-head, drowning, not sure you’re up for the task?  Jesus reminds us to turn to him. He can make up for our deficiencies, just as he did that day when he fed 5,000 with only five loaves of bread.  Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

Do you know the one verse that gives the framework to the entire Gospel of Mark?  Edward Sri unpacks the opening of this Gospel, which the Church is focusing on this liturgical year.   Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

God wants to meet the real you - as you are - with all your weaknesses, wounds and faults.  As St. Therese of Lisieux once told her sister Celine, "You want to scale the mountain of sanctity. But God wants to meet you down low, in the fertile valley of humility." Only when we allow God to encounter us as we really are, can we be fully lifted up by his grace and transformed.Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

How do I experience the transformation God wants to work in my life? How do get my spiritual life from where it is now to where God wants it to be? It’s not enough to go through the motions of the faith and believe the right things. We must learn to follow Jesus each day as a disciple. Only then will we be "changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another" (2 Cor. 3:18). This presentation is based on Edward Sri's newest book, Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple of Christ.Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

You become a Tabernacle when you receive Holy Communion—a holy dwelling place for the presence of God.  You also become like Mary: Just as Mary carried Jesus in her womb for nine months, you carry the Body and Blood of Jesus sacramentally within your soul in those moments after receiving the Eucharist. So when we sit down after Communion, this is not the time to look around and see who is at Mass or to develop your "parking lot exit strategy." This is the most intimate time we have with God. Edward Sri reflects on this mystery and offers three things we can do to make the most of this sacred time with Our Lord.Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

Love wants to be near the one it loves. That’s why Jesus remains close to us in the Eucharist. He gives us his very Presence in all the Tabernacles throughout the world - And He longs for us to draw near to him.  Do you make it a priority to meet him? To visit him in the chapel? To spend time resting in the presence of the One who loves us so much? Encounter the blessing and power of Christ's presence in the Eucharist for your daily life.  Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

Catholics talk about "The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass." But how was the Mass like those Biblical sacrifices of old - violent rituals with animals being cut up, set on fire and their blood being poured out on altars? The Mass I attended each week didn't look like that! But if we can understand Jesus' words at the Last Supper the way a first century Jew would, we'll come to see that Jesus didn't just give us his Body and Blood when he instituted the Eucharist. He gave us a way to encounter and enter into his sacrificial offering of himself on Calvary. Indeed, his sacrifice on the Cross is made present in every Mass. If we want to grow in sacrificial love, we want to participate more fully in the sacrifice of the Mass where we encounter sacrificial love Himself transforming our hard hearts a with his perfect love.Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

"He's a great guy, BUT...."   Many Christians have fallen into the sin of gossip with statements like this - statements that begin with a compliment but end with criticism.  Yet, sins of speech fall under the 5th Commandment, "Thou shall not kill." For when we gossip, we kill a person's reputation, which lives on long after they have died.  In this week's episode, Edward Sri shows how our speech can be used to build others up or tear them down.  Do we talk about others in an edifying way that gives life? Or do we tend to fall into complaining, negative humor and gossip?   Support All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri