Episodi
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These days, when Catholics talk about someone being a saint, this usually has nothing to do with signs or wonders, but with a life of heroic virtue. Further back in church history, however, stories of the saints are often filled with anecdotes about the miraculous. Some stories tell of miraculous healings or rescues; others tell of saints levitating or flying through the air.
“Yes, but those were just legends,” people may say—but the Catholic Church does teach that miracles are real, and it still requires evidence of the miraculous as part of the process of canonization. So what are we to make of these older stories of saints levitating or performing miraculous or supernatural feats? Are the faithful required to believe these things happened?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Carlos Eire talks about the motif of levitation in Catholic hagiography. Eire is the T. Lawrason Riggs Professor of History and Religious Studies at Yale University, and a historian of late medieval and early modern Europe. His most recent book, They Flew: A History of the Impossible from Yale University Press, explores miraculous events such as levitation in the era of transition to modernity. He has also written a highly acclaimed memoir about his experience as a child escapee from the Castro regime in Cuba.
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Eire’s writing, in these links:
“Making sense of levitating saints,” by Carlos Eire
https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/saints-levitation-bilocation-eire-miracles-history“Historian sets his eyes on levitating saints in book ‘They Flew’,” by Patrick J. Hayes
https://www.ncronline.org/culture/book-reviews/historian-sets-his-eyes-levitating-saints-book-they-flew“Your field guide to flying saints,” by Kathleen M. Carroll
https://www.franciscanmedia.org/franciscan-spirit-blog/your-field-guide-to-flying-saints/“Why does the church require miracles for sainthood?” by Heidi Schlumpf
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201112/why-does-the-church-require-miracles-for-sainthood/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
As co-founder of both the Catholic Worker newspaper and the movement of the same name, Dorothy Day is probably the most widely-known social justice Catholic in the modern American church. Even if you haven’t read Day’s writing, you’ve probably seen some of her more popular quotes reminding Catholics that living the gospel has a socio-political component. You may have read something from the newspaper she helped found, or even visited a Catholic Worker farm.
But what does it mean to be a Catholic Worker? What’s the nature and structure of the movement, and what does a person have to do, if they want to join up? And does the institutional Catholic Church have any jurisdiction over the movement, the newspaper, or the Catholic Worker communities?
On this episode of the podcast, Renée Roden talks about the history of the movement, and what it means to be a Catholic Worker today. Roden is a journalist and Catholic Worker based in Pennsylvania, and a frequent contributor to U.S. Catholic.
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Roden’s writing, in these links.
“How the Catholic Worker movement stays grassroots online,” by Renée Roden
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202402/how-the-catholic-worker-movement-stays-grassroots-online/“House work: Catholic Worker houses of today,” by Karen Kirkwood
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201109/house-work-catholic-worker-houses-of-today/“A Catholic worker devotes energy to environmental activism,” by Jeannine M. Pitas
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201909/a-catholic-worker-devotes-her-energy-to-environmental-activism/“Dorothy Day inspires a new meaning of ‘saint,’” by Brian Terrell
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202311/dorothy-day-inspires-a-new-meaning-of-saint/“All in a Day’s work: The legacy of Dorothy Day,” by Robert Ellsberg
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201003/all-in-a-days-work/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
Episodi mancanti?
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When Catholics argue about the more controversial teachings of the church, it's not unusual for someone to try to shut the conversation down by reminding everyone that debate is pointless since the church never changes. If you don’t like a specific doctrine, well, too bad, since it’s not going anywhere. The Catholic Church is the living repository of revealed truth so it’s always been right and isn’t going to change—or so the argument goes. So, for instance, when it comes to something gravely evil like slavery, the church must have always opposed this practice—right?
But what to do about those passages in scripture, from doctors of the church like Thomas Aquinas, or even from earlier official documents, that seem to support slavery? Did the church actually condone slavery at some earlier point, then change its teaching later?
Our guest on today’s episode is going to talk about the history of the Catholic Church’s stance on slavery. Alessandra Harris is a novelist, essayist, and racial justice advocate. Her fiction books include Blaming the Wind, Everything She Lost, and Last Place Seen (all from Red Adept Publishing). In 2023, she published her first nonfiction book, In the Shadow of Freedom: The Enduring Call for Racial Justice (Orbis Books). Harris has contributed extensively to U.S. Catholic, as well as to Black Catholic Messenger, America Magazine, The Revealer, Grotto Network, Critical Theology Journal, Catholic Worker, and National Catholic Reporter.
Learn more about this topic and read some of Harris’ writing in these links:
“When did the church condemn slavery?” by Jacob Kohlhaas
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202311/when-did-the-church-condemn-slavery/“How the U.S. Catholic Church profited from slavery,” a U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202308/how-the-u-s-catholic-church-profited-from-slavery/“The Role of Forgiveness When Confronting Racism,” by Alessandra Harris
https://www.grottonetwork.com/stories/reflective-narrative-about-racial-reconciliation“The death penalty in the US is modern-day lynching,” by Alessandra Harris
https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/guest-voices/death-penalty-us-modern-day-lynchingGlad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
The apostle Paul was a busy man. As well as traveling, preaching, arguing, getting imprisoned, and surviving shipwreck, he also wrote a lot of letters. Over half the books in the Christian scriptures are commonly attributed to him, and anyone involved in an argument over matters of Catholic teaching is likely, at some point, to quote Paul.
This can make things complicated, since some statements attributed to Paul appear to contradict each other. For instance, one passage from 1 Timothy says that women should not exercise authority over men. But elsewhere Paul commends women deacons and leaders, such as Phoebe and Prisca. This raises all kinds of questions, including questions about the origins of these books. Did Paul really write all the letters in the Bible that have been attributed to him—the letters to the Romans, to the Hebrews, to the people of Corinth, and so on?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Ferdinand Okorie, C.M.F. talks about the authorship of the Pauline epistles. Okorie is editor-in-chief of U.S. Catholic, a member of the Claretian Missionaries, and vice president and academic dean at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, where he is also an assistant professor of New Testament studies. He is the author of Favor and Gratitude. Reading Galatians in Its Greco-Roman Context (Fortress Press, 2020), as well as numerous scholarly articles.
You can learn more about Paul, and read some of Okorie’s writing, in these links.
“What church leaders can learn from St. Paul about race and diversity,” by Ferdinand Okorie, C.M.F.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202006/what-church-leaders-can-learn-from-st-paul-about-race-and-diversity/“Paul through the eyes of a classicist,” a U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201204/putting-paul-in-his-place-examining-the-apostle-through-the-eyes-of-a-classicist/“What future did Paul see for his letters?” by Joel Schorn
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200908/what-future-did-paul-see-for-his-letters/“Getting to know Paul,” a U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200807/getting-to-know-paul/“Who decided what books are in the Bible?” by Alice Camille
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201809/who-decided-what-books-are-in-the-bible/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
A thousand or so years ago, there lived an Irish archbishop named Malachy. And this archbishop supposedly had a series of visions about popes—past, present and future. According to the revelations in these visions, recorded in a document that was supposedly discovered around 1590, there would be only 112 popes between Malachy’s time and the day of the final judgment. Today, some people think that the prophecy refers to our times, and that Pope Francis is that 112th pope, cryptically designated in the prophecy as “Peter the Roman.”
But who was St. Malachy? Did he really have these visions and really record these prophecies? And why are some so fixated on the idea that Malachy’s prophecy, also known as the “Prophecy of the Popes,” refers to Pope Francis?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Joëlle Rollo-Koster talks about the origins and historical context of this prophecy, and whether it’s something that Catholics should take seriously. Rollo-Koster is professor of Medieval history at the University of Rhode Island, College of Arts and Sciences. She received her undergraduate degree and master’s degree in history from the University of Nice, in France, and later earned her PhD at SUNY Binghamton. She has done extensive scholarly research on the papal city of Avignon.
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Rollo-Koster’s writing, in these links.
“What is the prophecy of St. Malachy?” by Joseph McHugh
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201309/what-is-the-prophecy-of-st-malachy/“What lies beneath all the criticism of Pope Francis?” by Kevin Clarke
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201912/what-lies-beneath-all-the-criticism-of-pope-francis/“10 years after Pope Francis’ election, a look back at his papacy,” by J. Peter Nixon
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202303/10-years-after-pope-francis-election-a-look-back-at-his-papacy/“Medieval Europe was far from democratic, but that didn’t mean tyrants got a free pass,” by Joëlle Rollo-Koster
https://theconversation.com/medieval-europe-was-far-from-democratic-but-that-didnt-mean-tyrants-got-a-free-pass-227214Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
The rosary is probably the most well-known of all Catholic prayer practices. Many Catholics grew up praying it as part of their family or community devotions. And the physical rosary itself, a string of beads or knots with a crucifix attached and sometimes a medal, is immediately recognizable as a Catholic object. Catholics might carry rosaries, wear them, drape them over statues, or dangle them on their rearview mirrors. In films and television, a rosary immediately signals “Catholic,” and popular artists such as Madonna and Lady Gaga have used rosaries in their music videos, to the consternation of some of the pious.
But where did the tradition of the rosary, and those prayers associated with it, come from? On this episode of the podcast, guest Damian Costello talks about the origins of the rosary, both the physical item and the prayers Catholics use.
Costello is the director of postgraduate studies at NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community and the author of Black Elk: Colonialism and Lakota Catholicism. He has written extensively about Catholic devotional practices and the intersection of Catholic theology with indigenous spiritual traditions.
You can learn more about this topic and read some of Costello’s work in these links.
“Lakota Catholic tradition gives new meaning to the rosary,” by Damian Costello
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202104/lakota-catholic-tradition-gives-new-meaning-to-the-rosary/“Can praying a weekly rosary salvage fraying family ties?” by Molly Jo Rose
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202109/can-praying-a-weekly-rosary-salvage-fraying-family-ties/“The blue rosary,” by Brian Doyle
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201805/the-blue-rosary-by-brian-doyle/“Bring back the rosary,” by Father Daniel Berrigan
https://uscatholic.org/articles/197810/35-years-ago-in-u-s-catholic-bring-back-the-rosary/“Rosary origins,” by Father Johann Roten, S.M.
https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/r/rosary-origins.phpGlad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
There are certain core beliefs that every Christian denomination shares: the Trinity. The divinity of Jesus. Jesus’ death and resurrection. Some Protestants have little in common with Catholics beyond these and a few other core beliefs, but other denominations seem closely related to Catholicism. The Episcopal Church, for instance, has a lot in common with the Catholic Church, in terms of belief and liturgical practice. Both denominations have priests and bishops, and both recognize the sacraments. So what distinguishes the Catholic faith from Episcopal faith? What are the significant differences between these two Christian faith traditions?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Bryan Cones discusses the origins of the Episcopal Church, how Episcopal practices differ from Catholic ones, what the two denominations have in common, and how to understand the different traditions within the Episcopal Church.
Cones is an Episcopal priest and the pastor at Trinity Episcopal Church in Highland Park, Illinois. He has a doctorate in liturgy and practical theology from Pilgrim Theological College-University of Divinity in Melbourne, Australia and has published seven books and more than a hundred articles on Christian spirituality. He is also a former managing editor at U.S. Catholic.
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Cones’ writings, in these links.
“How similar are Catholics and Anglicans?” by Bryan Cones
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200912/how-similar-are-catholics-and-anglicans/“A Catholic picks up the Anglican Book of Common Prayer,” by Jeffrey Essmann
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201602/a-catholic-picks-up-the-anglican-book-of-common-prayer/“How I met your Father: Married Episcopalians becoming Catholic priests,” by Katharine Saunders
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201207/how-i-met-your-father-married-episcopalians-becoming-catholic-priests/“A more perfect communion,” by Bryan Cones
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200901/a-more-perfect-communion/ -
Some of the most popular and well-known Catholic pilgrimage sites are places where Mary the Mother of Jesus is believed to have appeared to people. Every year, millions travel to Fatima in Portugal and Lourdes in France. The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe near Mexico City sees around 20 million pilgrims a year. And the site of the claimed apparitions at Medjugorje, though controversial, still attracts huge numbers of visitors.
These, however, are only a few out of hundreds of cases of claimed apparitions. Of these hundreds, some are approved by the church and others aren’t. But what does that mean? Are Catholics obliged to believe an approved apparition actually happened, if the church approved it? If there is a message associated with an approved apparition, do Catholics have to assent to it? And, if an apparition is not approved, does that mean Catholics aren’t allowed to believe in it?
These questions invoke another, larger question: What’s the point of Marian apparitions anyway? Why do people flock to these pilgrimage sites? And on the level of popular devotion, what do Marian apparitions have to offer to those seeking meaning or comfort in an uncertain world?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Jeanette Rodriguez talks about whether Catholics are obliged to believe in Marian apparitions, the role of these devotions in Catholics’ faith lives, and why they continue to be so popular over the ages. Rodriguez is a professor at Seattle University and teaches in both the department of theology and religious studies, and the couples and family therapy program. She serves as director of the Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture and has written on U.S. Hispanic theology, women’s spirituality, liberation theology, and Our Lady of Guadalupe.
You can read more about this topic in these links.
“Why do Catholics venerate Mary?” by Kevin Considine
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201405/why-do-catholics-venerate-mary/“The gift of Guadalupe,” a U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201112/the-gift-of-guadalupe/“Our Lady of Guadalupe is a missionary of mercy,” by Timothy Matovina
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201612/our-lady-of-guadalupe-is-a-missionary-of-mercy/“A 7-year-old’s pilgrimage to Fatima,” by Molly Jo Rose
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201705/a-7-year-olds-pilgrimage-to-fatima/“Keeping up appearances,” by Mary Catt
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200807/keeping-up-appearances/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
Most people who are even a little familiar with church history will recognize the image of Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses to a church door in Wittenberg. While there’s no conclusive evidence that he actually did this, we do know that the Augustinian friar succeeded in kicking off the Protestant Reformation by promulgating his then-controversial treatise and that his primary objection was to the practice of selling indulgences. Basically, Luther thought the institutional church was in the business of “selling salvation.”
But what is an indulgence, really? Is it a “get out of hell free pass,” as some seem to think? Did the church really take money in exchange for the promise of forgiveness of sins? How did this practice originate, and how did it deteriorate into something associated with widespread abuse? , Does the Vatican currently have a stance on indulgences, or is this one of those practices that the church changed or discarded over time?
On this episode of the Glad You Asked podcast, hosts talk to guest Kathleen Manning about the concept of indulgences, how the practice developed, the controversies around it, and what Catholics believe today.
Manning teaches history at Loyola University Chicago and is a frequent contributor to U.S. Catholic’s Glad You Asked column.
You can read more about this topic in these links.
“The Catholic view on indulgences and how they work today,” by Myriam Renaud
https://theconversation.com/the-catholic-view-on-indulgences-and-how-they-work-today-193066“For Catholics, a Door to Absolution Is Reopened,” by Paul Vitello
https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/nyregion/10indulgence.html#:~:text=You%20cannot%20buy%20one%20%E2%80%94%20the,indulgence%20per%20sinner%20per%20day.“Can Catholics celebrate the Reformation?” by Jacob Kohlhaas
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201702/can-catholics-celebrate-the-reformation/“The surprisingly Catholic Martin Luther,” a U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/200409/the-surprisingly-catholic-martin-luther/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
What do we know about the life of the early Christians in the first few generations after the death of Jesus? While there’s a lot of debate about such topics as leadership roles and gender equality, Acts is pretty explicit about a few details: The very first Christians held all things in common. When people joined the community of believers, they would sell their possessions and distribute the proceeds. They made sure everyone’s needs were met.
Some people reading these passages have concluded that the first Christians practiced an early form of communism. While this notion aligns with other ideas in the Bible, especially Jesus’ teachings about giving up one’s possessions, it’s still a controversial claim—especially since many conservative Christians view communism and socialism as completely antithetical to Christian values. So which is it? Is communism an evil, atheistic ideology? Or is it the best possible way to live out the gospel?
On this episode of Glad You Asked, the hosts talk to guest Angela Zautcke about the communal life and values of the early church, how to interpret those Bible passages, and whether we can call the practices of the early church a variety of communism. Zautcke is an advanced doctoral student at the University of Notre Dame. Her fields of scholarship include the gospels, narratology, Second Temple Judaism, and apocalyptic literature.
Read more about this topic in these links:
“Is social justice the same as socialism?” by Kathy McGourty
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201008/is-social-justice-the-same-as-socialism/“Catholics should learn from Marx, not fear him,” by Sam Rocha
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202305/catholics-should-learn-from-marx-not-fear-him/“Do we need more liberation theology?” by Abby Rampone
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202401/do-we-need-more-liberation-theology/“Can Catholics and socialists build a better future together?” by Fran Quigley
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202010/can-catholics-and-socialists-build-a-better-future-together/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
From Hebrew scriptures to contemporary television, from Medieval manuscripts to Victorian greeting cards, angels loom large in the collective imagination of Western culture, and not only for Christians. But the word angel seems to cover a multitude of possible beings. To judge from their many and varied representations, a vision of an angel might involve a giant three-headed winged monster, a chubby winged baby, or maybe an elegant androgynous figure.
Given the diverse ways angels have been represented across different eras and traditions, it is difficult to get a sense of what Christians actually believe about angels. Where did the idea of angels originate? Are there really different ranks of angels? What about guardian angels? Or fallen angels? And why are they so frequently depicted with wings?
On this episode of the Glad You Asked podcast, hosts Emily Sanna and Rebecca Bratten Weiss speak with guest Matthew Arnold about angels in the Bible and why our ideas about them are so varied.
Arnold has written extensively on the paranormal in the Bible and spent over 10 years investigating the paranormal from a Christian perspective, drawing on his background in both theology and science. He is author of The Invisible Dimension: Spirit-Beings, Ghosts, and the Afterlife (Anamchara Books), and the editor of The Christian Parapsychologist, a publication of The Churches’ Fellowship for Psychical and Spiritual Studies.
Learn more about angels and read some of Arnold’s writings in the links below.
“Messengers of comfort and courage: The truth about angels,”
By Lisa Raatikainen.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202006/messengers-of-comfort-and-courage-the-truth-about-angels/“Fallen Angels and Satan,”
By Matt Arnold.
https://ghostsghoulsandgod.co.uk/2020/06/fallen-angels/“Did Angels Marry Human Women?”
By Matt Arnold.
https://ghostsghoulsandgod.co.uk/2020/09/did-angels-marry-human-women/“Guardian angels are life's traveling companions, pope says,”
By Junno Arocho Esteves.
https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/francis-comic-strip/francis-chronicles/guardian-angels-are-lifes-traveling-companions-pope“The Angels,”
From The Catechism of the Catholic Church.
https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/86/The Invisible Dimension: Spirit-Beings, the Afterlife, and Ghosts,
By Matt Arnold.
https://a.co/d/70V0iOiGlad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://claretiansusa.org
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Mary Magdalene is probably one of the most recognized saints in the Catholic Church. She’s also one of those saints whose true history is obscured behind various stories and legends, from the early church to the modern era. Who was Mary Magdalene? Was she the woman who washed Jesus’ feet? Was she the same person as Mary of Bethany?
According to multiple popular accounts, Mary Magdalene was a sex worker who converted and followed Jesus. According to a few arcane theories, she even married Jesus. The sex worker theory has been a popular one for centuries. People seem to enjoy stories about women who go from lives of transgression to lives of austere holiness. But is the story true? Where did it come from? And what are its roots—if any—in scripture and tradition?
On this episode of Glad You Asked, the hosts talk to guest Heidi Schlumpf about the origins, development, and accuracy of this tradition. Schlumpf is a senior correspondent and former executive editor of the National Catholic Reporter. She previously served as the managing editor of U.S. Catholic. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications, including CNN Opinion, Sojourners, and Huffington Post. She is the author of Elizabeth A. Johnson: Questing for God (Liturgical Press), and While We Wait: Spiritual & Practical Advice for Those Trying to Adopt (ACTA).
You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Schlumpf’s writing, in these links.
“Who framed Mary Magdalene?” by Heidi Schlumpf.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201603/who-framed-mary-magdalene/“Nevertheless, Mary Magdalene persisted,” by Megan J. Clark.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201806/nevertheless-mary-magdalene-persisted/“Mary Magdalene knew she was an apostle. Why don’t we?” by Alice Camille.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202304/mary-magdalene-knew-she-was-an-apostle-why-dont-we/“Pope’s recent appointment of women is too little, too late,” by Heidi Schlumpf.
https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/ncr-connections/popes-recent-appointment-women-too-little-too-late“Women’s ordination, synodality and hope for the future,” by Heidi Schlumpf.
https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/ncr-connections/womens-ordination-synodality-and-hope-futureGlad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretians.org/ -
Some Catholic apologists talk about the church as though it were a kind of data repository, filled with answers to any possible question a person might have. But in reality, Catholic thought is filled with gray areas and open-ended questions. Even when it comes to questions pertaining to faith and morals, the jury—or the magisterium—is still out, on many of them.
So what does it mean to understand a topic from a Catholic perspective, if there’s no official teaching on it, or if the teaching has developed and even changed extensively over time? The Glad You Asked podcast digs into the questions about Catholicism that don’t have easy, obvious answers—or don’t have “official” answers at all.
In the past three seasons of Glad You Asked, the hosts and their guests tackled such topics as why God chose Mary, whether Catholics should celebrate Passover, and what the Bible says about LGBTQ people. Now the podcast is back for a fourth season, with a new lineup of exciting guests ready to discuss the questions about Catholicism that are easy to ask but not so easy to answer.
Season four will launch on April 5. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
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When Mary gave birth to Jesus, what was it like? Did she experience the same anxiety, fear, mess, and pain that any woman can expect when preparing for childbirth? Many people might find this question strange. Of course Mary, being fully human, and not God, would share in all the usual feelings and emotions—both pleasant and unpleasant—associated with bringing a baby into the world. Wouldn’t she?
For centuries of church history, many Catholics would have answered this question with a resounding “no,” or at least with a “probably not.” This is because of a complex intertwining of beliefs and theories, some associated with theologies of sin, others associated with ideas about women’s bodies. Even today, there are many Catholics who are appalled at the idea that Mary experienced pain when she gave birth to baby Jesus.
On this final episode of this season of the Glad You Asked podcast, the hosts talk to theologian Julia Feder about the background of this tradition, why it has been so popular among some Catholics, what the church actually teaches, and what’s at stake for people trying to assess what they should believe. Feder is the assistant director of the Center for the Study of Spirituality, as well as an associate professor of religious studies and theology at Saint Mary’s College, and is the author of Incarnating Grace: A Theology of Healing from Sexual Trauma (Fordham University Press).
Learn more about this topic and read some of Feder’s writing in the links below.
“The Pregnancy of Mary,” by Nathan Schneider
https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/pregnancy-mary“There would have been a midwife at the stable,” by Christine Schenk
https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/simply-spirit/there-would-have-been-midwife-stable“What are we missing in our depictions of the nativity?” by Kelley Nikondeha
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202212/what-are-we-missing-in-our-depictions-of-the-nativity/“Mary, Mary, quite contrary,” by Elizabeth Johnson
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201101/mary-mary-quite-contrary/“Reclaiming the virgin martyrs from purity culture,” by Julia Feder
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202302/reclaiming-the-virgin-martyrs-from-purity-culture/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://claretiansusa.org
https://myclaret.org -
Different Christian denominations hold varying views on multiple topics. Over the past two thousand years, these doctrinal differences have often generated conflict, even to the point of religious wars. Despite huge variations in belief on some topics, however, one thing all Christian denominations agree on is that Jesus is the Son of God and the third person of the Trinity. They also believe that Jesus is the Christ—from the Greek chrīstós, a translation from the Hebrew Mašíaḥ, (messiah), meaning “anointed one.”
But what do the Jewish people think about this? How does Judaism regard the Christian claim that Jesus is also the Hebrew Messiah? And how do practitioners of the Jewish religion, today, regard the historical figure of Jesus in general?
On this episode of the podcast, the hosts welcome back guest Joshua Stein, to discuss how Jews regard Jesus. Stein currently holds a postdoctoral fellowship at the Georgetown Institute for the Study of Markets and Ethics. His work focuses on intersections between moral, economic, and political theories and their practical application to social interactions between people and social institutions.
You can read more about this topic, and read some of Stein’s writing, in these links:
“What Do Jews Believe About Jesus?” by My Jewish Learning
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/what-do-jews-believe-about-jesus/“Six Reasons Why Jews Don’t Believe in Jesus,” by Julius Ciss
https://jewsforjudaism.org/knowledge/videos/six-reasons-why-jews-don-t-believe-in-jesus“Behold! The Jewish Jesus,” by Howard Jacobson
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/09/christianity-judaism“Why do we call Jesus the Messiah?” A U.S. Catholic interview
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201712/why-do-we-call-jesus-the-messiah/“Should Catholics celebrate Passover?” by Joshua Stein
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202304/should-catholics-celebrate-passover/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
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Christian history is full of stories about relics, from the quest of the holy grail to tales about unscrupulous medieval merchants hawking fake relics. Today, the practice of collecting and venerating relics of dead saints or artifacts from the life of Jesus might seem backwards and superstitious to some, disturbing or macabre to others. But the tradition of venerating relics is not simply an oddity on the margins of Catholic faith practice. For centuries, many have derived spiritual enrichment from this practice. And others enjoy it precisely because of its strangeness.
But what’s the theological and spiritual significance of this tradition? Why do Catholics venerate relics anyway? On this episode of the podcast, guest Jessica Mesman joins the hosts to discuss this ancient practice, some of the controversial history around it, and why Catholics today still collect and revere bits of bone and body parts of deceased holy people.
Mesman is an associate editor at the Christian Century and formerly a culture columnist for U.S. Catholic. Her articles have appeared in LitHub, Elle, Vox, America, and Christianity Today, among others. Her first book, Love and Salt: A Spiritual Friendship in Letters (Loyola Press), coauthored with Amy Andrews Alznauer, won the Christopher Award in 2014.
Learn more about this topic and read some of Mesman’s writing in these links:
“Are relics a thing of the past?” by James P. Cahill
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201512/are-relics-a-thing-of-the-past/“To pray with the dead, find God’s grace in a family heirloom,” by James Breig
https://uscatholic.org/articles/199607/to-pray-with-the-dead-find-gods-grace-in-a-family-heirloom/“8 prayer practices to honor the dead on All Saints and All Souls Days,” by the U.S. Catholic editors
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202010/8-prayer-practices-to-honor-the-dead-on-all-saints-and-all-souls-days/“Remembering our mortality is a practice worth reviving,” by Jessica Mesman
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201904/remembering-our-mortality-is-a-practice-worth-reviving/“How to time travel at Mass,” by Jessica Mesman
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201806/how-to-time-travel-at-mass/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretiansusa.org/ -
Do Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25 because that was the day when the Romans celebrated the feast of Sol Invictus, the “unconquered sun,” as the winter days began to get longer again? Or perhaps because that date aligns with the festival of Yule in Scandinavian cultures? Are Christmas trees a part of seasonal festivities because some pre-Christian cultures worshiped trees as deities?
Every December, it seems, people commemorate the holiday season with heated debates on these and other topics pertaining to the origins of Christmas. Some like to argue that Christmas is almost exclusively rooted in non-Christian or pre-Christian customs. Others are appalled at the notion that any of our beloved holiday rituals were once also beloved by people of other religions. So what’s the truth of the matter?
Our guest on this episode discusses about the origins of the Christmas celebration, some of our most popular holiday rituals, and whether it really matters where these customs originated. Pastor and educator Kenneth McIntosh has degrees in English and theology, and has written extensively on Celtic spiritualities. He is the coauthor, along with Lilly Weichberger, of Brigid’s Mantle: A Celtic Dialogue Between Christian & Pagan (Anamchara Books) and the author of Water from an Ancient Well: Celtic Spirituality for Modern Life and Oak and Lotus: Celtic Christian Spirituality in the Light of Eastern Wisdom (both from Anamchara Books).
Read more about this topic in these links:
“Do Christmas trees have pagan roots?” by Don Beaulieu
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202011/do-christmas-trees-have-pagan-roots/“Who invented Advent?” by Victoria M. Tufano
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201212/who-invented-advent/“Happy New Year, it’s Advent,” by Thomas Reese
https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/happy-new-year-its-advent“Christmas: December 25 or January 6?” by Michael Peppard
https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/christmas-december-25-or-january-6“What Is Yule? What Is a Yule Log?” by Catherine Boeckmann
https://www.almanac.com/content/what-yule-log-christmas-traditions“Sol Invictus and Christmas”
https://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/calendar/invictus.html#anchor5371Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretiansusa.org/ -
Catholics have a veritable treasury of beliefs and traditions about Jesus’ family life, but some of these are only tenuously connected with the information we have from the Bible. While the gospels are full of stories about Jesus’ ministry, death, and resurrection, we are left to piece together details about his early life and his familial connections on the basis of a few tantalizing passages.
One tenet of Catholic belief is that Jesus was Mary’s only child. Since this is connected with the dogmatic teaching about Mary’s perpetual virginity, it’s a pretty serious tradition for Catholics. What, then, should be made of the scripture passages that reference Jesus’ siblings? Do these references undercut Catholic tradition and dogma?
The guest on this episode of the podcast is going to help clarify this issue. Alice Camille is a nationally known and award-winning writer, religious educator, and retreat leader. She has worked in parishes and campus ministry, and published extensively on scripture, including for U.S. Catholic, in our monthly Testaments column. She has been a guest on Glad You Asked before, discussing other topics pertaining to the Bible.
Read more about this topic, and read some of Camille’s work, in these links:
“Did Jesus have brothers and sisters?” by Megan Murphy-Gill.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201312/did-jesus-have-brothers-and-sisters/“Why was Mary a virgin?” by Alice Camille.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201612/why-was-mary-a-virgin/“Would Jesus recognize the ‘nuclear family’?” by Jeannine Pitas.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202212/would-jesus-recognize-the-nuclear-family/“Scripture interpretations are never set in stone,” by Alice Camille.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202306/scripture-interpretations-are-never-set-in-stone/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
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Any Christian who has ever loved a family pet or worked closely with animals has probably, at some point, asked whether non-human animals go to heaven. For parents of small children who have lost an animal friend to age, accident, or illness, this question becomes especially fraught with worries about how to help a child through their grieving processes without inculcating inaccurate beliefs about the soul or the afterlife. Some religious leaders seem to think that answering the question “Do dogs go to heaven?” in the affirmative will somehow dilute the specialness of God’s love for humanity or compromise the uniqueness of the human soul. But is this accurate? Does the Catholic Church teach that heaven is reserved exclusively for human beings?
On this episode of the podcast, guest Laura Hobgood discusses the topic of non-human animals, the nature of their souls, and whether Christians can look forward to being reunited with their non-human friends in the afterlife.
Hobgood is professor of religion and environmental studies at Southwestern University, where she teaches courses on animals, nature, and religion. She is the author of Holy Dogs and Asses: Animals in the Christian Tradition (University of Illinois Press), The Friends We Keep: Unleashing Christianity's Compassion for Animals (Baylor University Press), and A Dog's History of the World: Canines and the Domestication of Humans (Baylor University Press). She also works as a rescue coordinator and volunteers at an animal shelter.
Read more in these links:
“Do dogs go to heaven?” by Megan Murphy-Gill and Shanna Johnson
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201605/do-dogs-go-to-heaven/“St. Rocco, a dog’s best friend,” by Angelo Stagnaro
https://uscatholic.org/articles/201210/st-rocco-a-dogs-best-friend/“Meet St. Gertrude, cat lady of the Catholic Church,” by René Ostberg
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202003/how-st-gertrude-of-nivelles-became-the-cat-lady-of-the-catholic-church/“In the Bible, it’s the animals that steal the show,” by Alice Camille
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202001/in-the-bible-its-the-animals-that-steal-the-show/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
https://www.claretiansusa.org/ -
Suppose a person were able to time-travel back 800 years and visit Catholic Europe. Despite the common notion that Catholicism remained fixed and unchanging prior to the Second Vatican Council, a theoretical time traveler would find many Catholic beliefs and practices that would seem strange. Some traditions Catholics imagine were deeply rooted in history are relatively recent and weren’t around during the golden age of Christendom. Whereas other traditions that once were common have been repudiated by the institutional church or faded into disuse.
One tradition that a time-traveler would likely encounter among educated medieval Catholics is belief in limbo—that is, a kind of in-between afterlife zone for unbaptized babies and virtuous non-Christians. Belief in limbo was so common that Dante depicted it in his theological afterlife epic The Divine Comedy.
But do Catholics still believe in limbo? Where did the idea come from? Was it an official magisterial teaching and, if so, why do we rarely hear about it today?
On this episode of the podcast, Claretian Father Paul Keller talks to the hosts about the concept of limbo, how it is different from purgatory, where the idea originated, and what the church actually teaches about the unbaptized and the afterlife today. Keller is the provincial superior of the Claretian Missionaries of the United States-Canada Province, and a frequent contributor to U.S. Catholic on issues relating to pastoral ministry, public policy, theology, and ethics.
You can learn more about this topic in the links below.
The Hope of Salvation for Infants Who Die Without Being Baptised
https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20070419_un-baptised-infants_en.html“Pope Benedict 'closed' Limbo and no one complained” by Thomas Reese.
https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/guest-voices/pope-benedict-closed-limbo-and-no-one-complained“Catholic Church buries limbo after centuries” by Philip Pullella.
https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-pope-limbo/catholic-church-buries-limbo-after-centuries-idUKL2038306520070420“Ask an Apostle: My priest says limbo is real” by Teresa Coda.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202106/ask-an-apostle-my-priest-says-limbo-is-real/“Can the church change?” by Don Clemmer.
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202308/can-the-church-change/Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.
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