Catholic Forum

We return to Aquinas College to review with Dr. John Pinheiro some of the difficulties Catholics have faced in practicing their faith throughout the history of the colonization and development of the United States. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Representatives of the Catholic Lawyers Association of West Michigan discuss the mission of their organization and discuss the unique challenges of navigating current legal trends when holding a Catholic world view. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest discusses how survival of a series of life-threatening incidents convinced him that his life had a purpose and how he has since pursued that purpose through service within and and outside of the Catholic Church. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest recounts how he drifted away from the Catholicism of his youth and how his father's concern for him eventually called him back. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

A young couple explains how they came to embrace the principles which the Church applies to birth control and procreation, becoming practitioners and then instructors of the methods of Natural Family Planning and facing reproductive challenges of their own. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

As he was growing up, our guest came to think of God as an "absentee landlord". He describes how after 20 years of addiction, he became aware of God's presence and personal care and forgiveness. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

We're joined by Dr. Daniel Page, who helps us consider the use of song in the Mass throughout the history of the Church. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

While some Catholic universities continue to create scandal and controversy by extending honors and speaking invitations to pro-abortion politicians and such, we visited Aquinas College and spoke with President Dr. Juan Olivarez and professors Dr. John Pinheiro and Dr. Robert Marko about the quiet majority of Catholic colleges finding renewal in their Catholic identity through Pope John Paul II's exhortation, Ex Corde Ecclessiae. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

The founders of Catechetical Foundations discuss their desire to minister to the Church and, through it, to the world, by strengthening the skills and understanding of catechists and the general laity. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

With our guest, theology professor Dr. Dennis Marshall, we explore the characteristic of God known as omnipotence and consider the role of human free will within its context. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Dr. Dennis Marshall reprises his earlier presentation on the conscience (episode #426), this time focusing on the fundamental concepts and understanding of the conscience. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests join us to discuss FORMED, a phenomenal web site assembled by a collective of Catholic media companies and being made available to parishes and individuals as a resource for Catholic education, evangelization, encouragement and entertainment. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

We welcome back Fr. Peter Damian to discuss the importance of the much misunderstood and much underutilized sacrament of Reconciliation, or Confession - call it what you will. If it's been a while, we hope that our conversation will be an invitation for you to seek out the graces of this sacrament in this season of Lent. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Celebrating 20 years as the band director at West Catholic High School, Darren LaPrise reflects on some of the highlights of his teaching career. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests share their experiences at the recent World Meeting of Families, which included workshops fellowship and Mass with the Holy Father. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Dr. Dennis Marshall joins us to to consider the lesson of so many created objects - that they reflect the purpose of their creator. We consider how this reality can lead us toward humility and service. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

This week we talk with Dr. Dennis Marshall about the concept of morality as understood from religious and philosophical perspectives. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Social media and the Internet have introduced us to several talented artists who demonstrate that creating beauty is no mean feat. In the light of this, we invited the Cathedral Square curator for last year's Art Prize exhibit to discuss with us how the beauty of Creation may be speaking to us about its Creator. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest shares about his struggles through scrupulosity to finding peace in the Father's mercy. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest shares information about a relatively new apostolate similar to scouting, called the Troops of St. George, and its mission to nurture faith in young men and to raise fathers as spiritual mentors to their sons. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest, Fr. Peter Damian, joins us to discuss concerns regarding the relatively poor understanding and belief of Catholics in the fundamental doctrine of the Church - the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Members of a local  informal collective of gentlemen, known as The Inquisitors, share about how their meetings challenge and nurture each other with thoughtful presentations regarding various historic, economic, ethical and political propositions,  usually in the light of Catholic tradition. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Mentoring couples discuss Church Canon 1063, which outlines the obligation and responsibility of the local pastor to nuture a sacramental marriage through thorough preparation, liturgical teaching and post-nuptial support. This segment focuses on the preparations for marriage. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Musician, author and speaker Chris Padgett describes how his contact with Catholics animated by their faith, as well as thought-provoking Catholic authors, led him beyond negative preconceptions he harbored as a Protestant to an appreciation of Catholic teachings on sacraments, authority, etc. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Independent pharmacist describes the ethical and professional journey he undertook after learning about the abortifacient properties of some contraceptives. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Gentlemen from a number of men's prayer groups in the Grand Rapids, MI area share their experiences regarding the faith formation and spiritual support that these fellowships have provided them. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

We were fortunate to have the opportunity to continue our conversation with Gaby Schoepflin and dig deeper into a consideration of the woundedness of humanity that is evidenced by the myriad forms of human trafficking that are taking place all around the world. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

This week's guest shares her story of finding her way to an exciting job and comfortable lifestyle, only to realize that there remained an emptiness that has led her to pursue a mission to expose and combat human trafficking. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

The last time we visited the St. Francis Sculpture Garden for Prayer and Meditation, it was early November of last year; it was cold, foggy and headed for the dormancy of winter. We got the chance to take our cameras back out to the site to enjoy the new growth - full foliage and new sculpture sites - and we had Mic Carlson in the climate-controlled studio to tell us about the latest developments at the Garden. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Dr. Dennis Marshall discusses the history of the Enlightenment and its influence on our contemporary culture. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Amongst the responsibilities the Fr. Scott Nolan juggles is that of Chaplain at West Catholic High School. Fr. Nolan discusses that role with us this week. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

In this special Catholic Forum Presents... edition, we offer excerpts from a recent presentation by Susan Brinkmann, best known for her contributions to EWTN's Women of Grace program and blog, as she addresses the influences of New Age spirituality in American culture. In this segment, Susan describes the defining characteristics of New Age Spirituality and the nuances that separate it from Christian practice in the area of prayer. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Three Catholic Forum hosts discuss re-evangelizing lost and lukewarm Catholics.   To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Influence of a father's daily prayerful example & God's love leads youngest of seven children into the priesthood.   To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

A "cradle Catholic" describes his experienced of being estranged from the Church, only to find himself wooed back by the sacraments, the Blessed Mother and the witness of strong Catholics in his life.   To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

A Dominican priest shares with us about the history, structure and charism of the Dominican order.   To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Administrators from Sacred Heart of Jesus Academy return to discuss with us their first year after having converted from a "traditional" educational curriculum to an even more traditional model, the so-called "Classical" educational model.   To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests share about their experiences while on a missionary trip to be of service to a community in Nicaruagua. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest describes his journey from cradle Catholicism to Evangelical Protestantism and  back again. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Influence of a father's daily prayerful example & God's love leads youngest of seven children into the priesthood. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests join us for a discussion of the history, scope and application of the message of Divine Mercy, as revealed to St. Faustina Kowalska. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Catholic blogger TJ Burdick describes how circumstances changed his dreams from playing professional basketball to sharing his faith through his family, his profession (teaching) and his writing. TJ has also contributed to youcatholic.com, freetheology.com, catholicsnacks.com, ignitum.com and, most recently, epicpew.com. His own website is tjburdick.com. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

In her powerful and moving personal story, actress Maria Vargo describes how she came to know God's abundant mercy, which in turn made her uniquely qualified to portray St. Sr. Faustina Kowalska in St. Luke Productions' latest touring production, Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy.  You can visit stlukeproductions.com to learn more about the faith-based dramatic works created by St. Luke Productions, and can learn more about Maria's other endeavors at mariavargo.com. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guest Morgan Anding helps us discuss the stewardship we are entrusted with regarding our skills and abilities - the "talents" we are given to use on behalf of the Master.  Morgan is preparing for a year of voluntary missionary work with NET Ministries. If you are interested in helping to support her during this year of service, you can contribute at www.gofundme.com/morgansnetyear. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Guest Janet Gedris shares how her impending marriage led to a difficult decision to adopt the Catholic faith, and how this decision has led to an ever-deepening relationship with God through Christ and His Church. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

While it is common to think of "church" as a community, one may forget the role that smaller collectives can have in deepening one's spirituality.  As early as the 12th century, the laity have gathered in associations focused on particular devotions or service activities in order to nurture habits of piety, humility and service. Our guests this week describe their involvement in three such organizations. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Guest Dr. John Pinheiro discusses various ways in which he has found opportunities, both professionally and personally, to share the love of his faith with others. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

The campus ministry team of Aquinas College (Grand Rapids, MI) describes their mission in sharing the faith with a diverse student population.  To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Surveying the writings of Matthew, martyrs and mystics, we delve into the importance and spiritual consequences of receiving the Eucharist "worthily". To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests describe their participation in presenting annual Vacation Bible School sessions with a Catholic twist at their local parish. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).

Our guests discuss how their decision to home school their seven children blossomed into their helping to create a local teaching resource for other home-schoolers. To learn more about our work, visit our web site, catholicforuminc.org, or share our page on Facebook (facebook.com/catholicforuminc).