Catholic Culture Audiobooks

In this episode from the archive, a selection of three of Newman’s poems is read, all of which were composed within a few days of one another and all reflecting on the efficacy of prayer. DONATE at http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio  Full text: http://www.newmanreader.org/works/verses/index.html 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 hate your own corruption in sincerity and truth, if you are really pierced to the heart that you do not do what you know you should do, if you would love God if you could, then the Gospel speaks to you words of peace and hope. It is a very different thing indolently to say, 'I would I were a different man,' and to close with God's offer to make you different, when it is put before you. Here is the test between earnestness and insincerity." This sermon is taken from a collection of sermons given by Newman between 1825 and 1843, before his conversion to Catholicism. In it, he reflects on Christ's counsel to his Apostles, "If you know these things, happy are you if you do them." (John 13:17) Links Knowledge of God's Will without Obedience full text: https://newmanreader.org/works/parochial/volume1/sermon3.html 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.

Explore the impactful insights from Pope Leo XIII on social justice and labor rights in a transformative era. The discussion critiques both socialism and capitalism, emphasizing the right to property as essential for human dignity. Discover the Church's pivotal role in bridging economic divides through moral principles and private charity. The call to action encourages individuals to embrace charitable virtues to foster social responsibility. Delve into how these teachings lay the foundation for contemporary Catholic social doctrine.

"Be solicitous only to pour out tears abundantly, and leave to God the care of drying them up." On the Sanctity and Duties of the Monastic State by the Abbé Armand-Jean de Rancé was originally published in Paris in 1683. Although Abbé de Rancé, the founder of the Trappists, originally wrote for his monks, many laity of 17th c. France enthusiastically adopted much of his spirituality, and to wonderful effect. With asceticism re-appearing now as a corrective to our self-indulgence and softness, his incisive book is a badly needed, bracing corrective for the Christians of our time. -- from the description of Back to Asceticism: the Trappist Option, trans. Lee Gilbert. Links Back to Asceticism: The Trappist Option -- https://www.amazon.com/Back-Asceticism-Translation-Introduction-MONASTIQUE/dp/057855366X 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.

"In the second coming when He will come for rendering repayment, He will not come in humility and poverty, but in such majesty and power that the whole world will tremble." St. Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419) was born in Valencia, Spain, and died in Vannes, Britany. He was a great scholar and theologian, and even served as an advisor to Benedict XIII, the Avignon anti-pope. St. Vincent was also a great preacher, traveling throughout Europe as a parish mission preacher. The favorite topic of his sermons was the final judgment, and he is often called the "Angel of the Judgment." This sermon demonstrates St. Vincent’s ability, in typically Dominican style, to render a close analysis of scripture into an accessible sermon capable of drawing out both the literal and moral significance of the sacred text. Happy feast of St. Vincent Ferrer! Links Sermon on the Last Judgment full text: https://www.svfsermons.org/A398_On%20the%20Last%20Judgment,%20Sheep%20and%20Goats.htm More St. Vincent Ferrer sermons trans. by Fr. Albert G. Judy, OP: http://www.svfsermons.org 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.

"For, truly, she is raised above the condition of sinful beings, though by nature a sinner; she is brought near to God, yet is but a creature, and seems to lack her fitting place in our limited understandings, neither too high nor too low. We cannot combine, in our thought of her, all we should ascribe with all we should withhold." The Reverence Due to the Blessed Virgin Mary is a sermon first given by Newman for the Feast of the Annunciation, before his conversion to Catholicism. In it he considers in what respects the Virgin Mary is "Blessed". Happy Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord! Links The Reverence Due to the Virgin Mary full text: https://www.newmanreader.org/works/parochial/volume2/sermon12.html 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.

St. Patrick shares his incredible journey from captivity to becoming the Apostle of Ireland. He reflects on divine mercy and the blessings that shaped his faith. The transformative power of faith is explored, highlighting challenges in evangelism and the inclusivity of the gospel. His confession reveals the profound change in Ireland as people turn from idol worship to devotion to Christ. Personal struggles of converts, especially women, are discussed, emphasizing resilience in the face of adversity and a steadfast commitment to spreading the teachings of Christ.

“So long as we are sheep, we conquer: though ten thousand wolves prowl around, we overcome and prevail. But if we become wolves, we are worsted, for the help of our Shepherd departs from us: for He feeds not wolves, but sheep.” A towering figure among the Early Church Fathers, St. John Chrysostom (c. 347-407 AD) is one of the greatest preachers the Church has ever produced. Most of Chrysostom’s extant writings, in fact, are sermons. This is the thirty-third of the nearly one hundred exegetical homilies by Chrysostom on the Gospel of Matthew, in which Chrysostom emphasizes Christ’s command that his followers be as “sheep in the midst of wolves... wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Links Homily 33 on the Gospel According to St. Matthew Full Text: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/fathers/view.cfm?recnum=2009 Learn more about St. Chrysostom on Way of the Fathers: Ep. 41—Chrysostom (Part 1) | Golden Mouth & Golden Mysteries: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/42chrysostom-part-1-golden-mouth-golden-mysteries/  Ep. 42—Chrysostom (Part 2) | Triumph, Tragedy & Glory: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/42chrysostom-part-2-triumph-tragedy-glory/  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.

"If the lost word is lost, if the spent word is spent If the unheard, unspoken Word is unspoken, unheard; Still is the unspoken word, the Word unheard, The Word without a word, the Word within The world and for the world; And the light shone in darkness and Against the Word the unstilled world still whirled About the center of the silent Word." Written in 1930, Ash Wednesday is a six-part "conversion poem" written by Eliot after his own conversion to Anglicanism. With references ranging from Dante to Shakespeare to the Bible, Ash Wednesday is a moving poem of theological and philosophical depth that speaks to both the struggles and the consolations of spiritual growth. Links Ash Wednesday full text: https://www.best-poems.net/t_s_eliot/ash_wednesday.html T.S. Eliot's own reading of the poem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEUlzDTGd44 Donate at http://catholicculture.org/donate/audio to support this podcast! 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.

"Holy Church is both one in all its members and complete in each of them." Have you ever wondered why the congregation responds to the priest's greeting, "The Lord be with you," with the response, "And with your spirit," rather than "and also with you"? Have you ever wondered why the Confiteor has us say, "and you, my brothers and sisters," even when we are alone? Doctor of the Church St. Peter Damian (1007-1073) addresses this and other questions in a letter written 1000 years ago—an important work on prayer and ecclesiology, and powerful affirmation that the Church is present in her individual faithful. Links Translation courtesy of Holy Family Hermitage in Bloomingdale, Ohio, as found in their volume Camaldolese Spirituality: https://www.faithandfamily.pub/camaldolese-spirituality/ 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.