Catholic Culture Audiobooks

But bright Cecilia rais'd the wonder high'r;          When to her organ, vocal breath was giv'n, An angel heard, and straight appear'd                 Mistaking earth for Heav'n. "A Song for St. Cecilia's Day" full text: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44185/a-song-for-st-cecilias-day-1687 "Alexander's Feast; or, the Power of Music" full text: https://poets.org/poem/alexanders-feast-or-power-music Happy feast of St. Cecilia! More links: SUBSCRIBE to Catholic Culture Audiobooks https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catholic-culture-audiobooks/id1482214268 SIGN UP for Catholic Culture's newsletter http://www.catholicculture.org/newsletter DONATE at http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio    Theme music: "2 Part Invention", composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

“Matrimony was not instituted or restored by man but by God; not by man were the laws made to strengthen and confirm and elevate it but by God, the Author of nature, and by Christ Our Lord by Whom nature was redeemed...” Casti Connubii, or “of chaste wedlock”, was a papal encyclical promulgated by Pope Pius XI on December 21, 1930, in response to the approval by the Anglican Communion’s seventh Lambeth Conference of birth control for married couples. Over 90 years later, this encyclical has lost none of its relevance. In it, Pope Pius delivers a sweeping defense against the many threats to marriage that are still prevalent today. Priests and catechists involved in marriage preparation, take note! Pope Pius first discusses the nature and the dignity of Christian marriage, as well as its many benefits to family and to society. He then addresses the many errors and vices opposed to marriage before finally describing the principal remedies to the problems afflicting marriage in the present day. Pope Pius XI’s encyclical on marriage contains many truths forgotten even among faithful Catholics. Originally released on this podcast in three parts, Casti Connubii is now available to be listened to in a single continuous episode. Links: DONATE at http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio  Full text: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=3370 Go to http://www.catholicculture.org/getaudio to register for FREE access to the full archive of audiobooks beyond the most recent 15 episodes. Theme music: "2 Part Invention", composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

"If you drop any science out of the circle of knowledge, you cannot keep its place vacant for it; that science is forgotten; the other sciences close up, or, in other words, they exceed their proper bounds, and intrude where they have no right... no science whatever, however comprehensive it may be, but will fall largely into error, if it be constituted the sole exponent of all things in heaven and earth, and that, for the simple reason that it is encroaching on territory not its own, and undertaking problems which it has no instruments to solve." In 1854, Newman was invited to Dublin by the Catholic Bishops of Ireland to serve as rector for the newly established Catholic University of Ireland, now University College, Dublin. Though he retired after only four years, during this time he composed and delivered the lectures that would become The Idea of a University. In this third discourse, Newman examines the unavoidable consequence that Theology, if abandoned, will soon have its place usurped by one or more of the other sciences, with dire consequences both to Theology and the other sciences themselves. Part 1 of this work, "University Teaching", will be released in episodic format over the coming weeks. Be sure to subscribe so as not to miss an installment! Links The Newman Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture reading project on The Idea of a University: https://www.newmansthoughts.com/  Cluny Media edition: https://clunymedia.com/collections/john-henry-newman/products/the-idea-of-a-university The Idea of a University full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/idea/ Go to http://www.catholicculture.org/getaudio to register for FREE access to the full archive of audiobooks beyond the most recent 15 episodes. Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

"Blest powers forbid thy tender life Should bleed upon a barbarous knife; Or some base hand have power to rase Thy breast’s chaste cabinet, and uncase A soul kept there so sweet; oh no, Wise Heav’n will never have it so; Thou art Love’s victim, and must die A death more mystical and high; Into Love’s arms thou shalt let fall A still-surviving funeral." Richard Crashaw was a 17th-century English poet and Anglican priest who later in life converted to Catholicism. He taught at Cambridge and served as curate of the Church of St. Mary the Less, where he became known for his High Church Anglicanism. Puritan detractors cited him for his "Mariolatry", or excessive devotion to the Virgin Mary, and also found fault with his adornment of the church with Christian art and his use of Catholic vestments. Under the rule of Oliver Cromwell, Crashaw was expelled from his parish and forced to flee the country. It was during this exile that Crashaw converted to Catholicism, eventually ending up in Rome under the employment of a Catholic cardinal. This same cardinal would appoint him to be canon of the Shrine of the Holy House of Loreto, where Crashaw died a few short months later. Crashaw is known for his religious poetry with distinct mystical themes. He was inspired by the works of St. Teresa of Avila, despite the fact that she was largely unknown in England because her works had not yet been translated there. Crashaw wrote three poems about St. Teresa, of which "A Hymn to the Name and Honour of Saint Teresa" is the first. In it, Crashaw traces a development from the child Teresa's desire for physical martyrdom to the adult Teresa's mystical conquest of the inner self. St. Teresa of Avila, pray for us! Links "A Hymn to the Name and Honour of the Admirable Saint Teresa" full text: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44057/a-hymn-to-the-name-and-honour-of-the-admirable-saint-teresa Sign up for our newsletter at http://catholicculture.org/getaudio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

"In a word, Religious Truth is not only a portion, but a condition of general knowledge. To blot it out is nothing short, if I may so speak, of unravelling the web of University Teaching." In 1854, Newman was invited to Dublin by the Catholic Bishops of Ireland to serve as rector for the newly established Catholic University of Ireland, now University College, Dublin. Though he retired after only four years, during this time he composed and delivered the lectures that would become The Idea of a University. In this fourth discourse, Newman examines the central importance of Theology—the Science of God—within the broader curriculum of liberal education, and its impact and influence upon every other science taught within a university. Links Cluny Media edition: https://clunymedia.com/collections/john-henry-newman/products/the-idea-of-a-university The Idea of a University full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/idea/ Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

" Religious doctrine is knowledge, in as full a sense as Newton's doctrine is knowledge. University Teaching without Theology is simply unphilosophical." In 1854, Newman was invited to Dublin by the Catholic Bishops of Ireland to serve as rector for the newly established Catholic University of Ireland, now University College, Dublin. Though he retired after only four years, during this time he composed and delivered the lectures that would become The Idea of a University. In this second discourse, Newman argues that religious doctrine is genuine knowledge, and that a university which does not provide for theological instruction is omitting a most necessary science. Links Translations from the Cluny Media edition: https://clunymedia.com/collections/john-henry-newman/products/the-idea-of-a-university The Idea of a University full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/idea/ Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

"The views to which I have referred have grown into my whole system of thought, and are, as it were, part of myself. Many changes has my mind gone through: here it has known no variation or vacillation of opinion..." In 1854, Newman was invited to Dublin by the Catholic Bishops of Ireland to serve as rector for the newly established Catholic University of Ireland, now University College, Dublin. Though he retired after only four years, during this time he composed and delivered the lectures that would become The Idea of a University. We continue our reading series with Newman's first discourse, in which he introduces some foundational considerations before beginning in earnest his detailed explication of the philosophy of education. Links Translations from the Cluny Media edition: https://clunymedia.com/collections/john-henry-newman/products/the-idea-of-a-university The Idea of a University full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/idea/ Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

"The view taken of a University in these Discourses is the following: That it is a place of teaching universal knowledge." In 1854, Newman was invited to Dublin by the Catholic Bishops of Ireland to serve as rector for the newly established Catholic University of Ireland, now University College, Dublin. Though he retired after only four years, during this time he composed and delivered the lectures that would become The Idea of a University. In The Idea of a University, St. John Henry Newman champions a “discipline of mind” that enables its possessor to distinguish essence from accident, means from end, and good from evil. These habits are now all too rare. The reader of The Idea of a University will delight in the melody of Newman’s prose, the sharpness of his insights, and the force of his arguments, but will also rejoice to find something incomparably more valuable, a vast vista of an orderly life of learning with a glimpse of the mind’s last end—God. —description from the Cluny Media edition [https://clunymedia.com/collections/john-henry-newman/products/the-idea-of-a-university] Links The Idea of a University full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/idea/ Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

The U.S. Supreme Court's majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health marks a historic reversal of Roe v. Wade, reshaping abortion laws in America. The ruling underscores the lack of a constitutional right to abortion, emphasizing state authority instead. Historical biases in abortion legislation are examined, uncovering intricate connections to demographic considerations. Legal critiques challenge previous precedents and the rationale behind abortion rights. Overall, the decision opens new pathways for the pro-life movement amidst complex legal and moral discussions.

"There is no disposition so good but it may be made bad by reason of vicious habits, and neither is there any natural disposition so perverse but that it may be conquered and overcome by God's grace primarily, and then by our earnest endeavor." St. Francis de Sales ends this first part of the Introduction with instructions on making a general confession along with a firm resolution at amendment. He concludes with an exhortation that the devout soul be resolved to purge away all tendency to venial sins, all inclination to useless distractions, and all imperfections whatsoever. In Part 2, he will lay out the means for doing so. Links Introduction to the Devout Life full text: https://watch.formed.org/introduction-to-the-devout-life-by-st-francis-de-sales Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.