Two Catholic Priests from the Archdiocese of Dubuque talking about all things Catholic.
Father Joshua Link and Father Joseph Sevcik
Listeners of Our Fathers Catholic Podcast that love the show mention: great, theresa parish.
Hello listeners! With the upcoming transition for Fr. Joseph to his new assignment, we will be taking a bit of a break from the podcast for a month or two. We look forward to joining you again before too long. Thanks!
A Blast from the Past - This week, we look back at Episode 6 on Confirmation and the Holy Spirit.
Today we sit down with Father Andy Upah from Nativity Parish in Dubuque and discuss the growth of healing ministry in his priesthood.
What is the relationship between humility and concern for a good reputation? Do the two go together? Today, we take a look at some interesting passages from Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales.
What does a Marian Spirituality look like? In this episode, we discuss consecration to Jesus through Mary. Fr. Jake also shares some reflection on praying the rosary more fruitfully.
This week we are again joined by Father Jake Dunne to continue our discussion on the Four Marian Dogmas. In this episode, we focus on the Immaculate Conception and Mary's Bodily Assumption. We hope you find it enlightening!Check out the University of Dayton's Online Encyclopedia about Mary: https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/archive.php?tags=Spirituality%20and%20DevotionQuestions? Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
We are once again joined by Father Jake Dunne. As it is the month of May, we take a look at the Blessed Mother Mary. Today, we discuss the idea of dogma and the first two Marian dogmas. Not sure what that means? Have a listen and find out!Questions? Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The discussion continues! What does it mean to believe in God? Faith is a gift from God. But, is there a human component to it as well? Is faith reasonable, or unreasonable? Does it go beyond reason? How is faith connected to understanding and certainty? How are faith and baptism related? Check out the Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC 153-165, 846-848, 1257-1261, and 2088-2089.https://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catechism/catechism-of-the-catholic-churchQuestions? Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
What does it mean to believe in God? Faith is a gift from God. But, is there a human component to it as well? Is faith reasonable, or unreasonable? Does it go beyond reason? How is faith connected to understanding and certainty? How are faith and baptism related? In our episode today and next week we open up this discussion.Check out the Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC 153-165, 846-848, 1257-1261, and 2088-2089.https://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catechism/catechism-of-the-catholic-churchQuestions? Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Happy Easter! Today, we discuss the last rule from the first set of the Rules for the Discernment of Spirits from Saint Ignatius of Loyola. This rule focuses on understanding how the enemy might attack us. What are your weaknesses? What are your vulnerabilities? How can you be fortified in those areas?Interested in the second set of rules? Check out:Spiritual Consolation: An Ignatian Guide for the Greater Discernment of Spirits by Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V.Also, see:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V.Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
One more episode to go! Today, we deal with another tactic of the enemy. In temptation, we often keep our struggles to ourselves. Ignatius counsels us against this. Authentic spiritual friendships and regular confession are important for helping us to deal well with temptation. We also look at what the Catechism teaches about Christian Holiness (CCC 2012-2016). Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
We are blessed by the presence of Father Jake Dunne for this episode. What do Catholics believe about Mary? How does she fit into the life of a disciple? Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
How does the enemy attack us? How should we effectively respond to temptation? Rules 12, 13, and 14 give us strategies to avoid being unsettled by attacks in the spiritual life. The enemy is strong when faced with weakness, but weak when faced with strength. Therefore, be strong, be bold! 2 Corinthians 5:17- "Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come."Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Jesus, I trust in you! Today we explore Ignatius' Eleventh Rule. In times of consolation, we are called to humble ourselves lest we fall to pride. In times of desolation, we are called to remember how powerful God can be through us with his grace. Rule 11 helps us to have mature stability in our life of faith. Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The last few rules have focused on how to act in times of spiritual desolation. Today, we flip the script and talk about preparing during a time of consolation. How can we not be caught off guard in the future? Plus, Father Josh gets a little worked up today with a tangential question about the love of God. We hope you enjoy!Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Welcome to Lent! Today we take a look at the account of the temptation of Jesus in the desert. What does this mean for temptation in the Christian life? Also, we talk about Saint John Paul II's work Love and Responsibility in helping us grow in the virtue of chastity. Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today we welcome a special guest onto the show, Father Andrew Marr. He has been reading through Jordan Peterson's 12 Rules for Life. We take a look at the first three rules from a Catholic perspective. 12 Rules for Life-https://www.amazon.com/12-Rules-Life-Antidote-Chaos/dp/0345816021Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Why do I experience spiritual desolation? Is it my fault? Ever wondered this? Today, St. Ignatius gives us three different reasons for why we undergo times of spiritual desolation. Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today we cover two rules. Rule 7 deals with the sufficient grace that God gives us in times of desolation. Rule 8 gives us a tool for how we are to think in times of spiritual desolation.Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Mundelein Seminary (where we went) is celebrating 100 years of forming parish priests. As part of this celebration, we look back at our experience. What was it like at seminary? Are good things happening at seminaries today?Check it out: https://100.usml.edu/Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
What does one do when experiencing spiritual desolation? Today, we examine Rule Six from St. Ignatius of Loyola. Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Make sure to listen to last week's episode first. Today, we continue our interview, getting more into their experience as Catholic missionaries on campus. What are some signs of hope? What is working?For more info on FOCUS, click the link:https://www.focus.org/
We love to hear personal testimonies of how God has worked in the lives of his people. Today, we sit down with Joel and Brenna Bittner to do just that. In this interview, we talk about life at college, growing in faith, dating, and their journey to becoming FOCUS missionaries.For more on FOCUS, check out the link:https://www.focus.org/
Our last episode explored the topic of spiritual consolation. St. Ignatius next describes its opposite, spiritual desolation. Being able to identify spiritual consolation and desolation is key in understanding our spiritual experience and knowing what to do next in discerning the will of God.Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
How do we know the will of God? A popular, practical, and fruitful method for discernment comes from the spiritual teaching of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Today, we talk about the third rule for the discernment of spirits which focuses on understanding spiritual consolation. What is spiritual consolation? What's the difference between physical consolation and spiritual consolation?Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Merry Christmas to all! There are four different Masses that are celebrated for Christmas: the Vigil Mass, Mass at Night (Midnight Mass), Mass at Dawn, and Mass during the Day. Each of these Masses has different readings which illuminate the mystery that we are celebrating. Today we take a look at a few of the Christmas readings and see what the Lord is speaking to us. Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
How do we know the will of God? A popular, practical, and fruitful method for discernment comes from the spiritual teaching of St. Ignatius of Loyola. In this new series, we will work through fourteen rules for the discernment of spirits as presented by Fr. Timothy Gallagher in his teaching on St. Ignatius. Today, we cover the first two rules. Check it out:The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. GallagherQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today, Father Josh shares some of the stories of his life. What was influential from his family life in earlier years? How did he hear the call to the priesthood? How has God continued to work on his soul?Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
How can the Church effectively engage today's culture? This episode examines a recent book by Monsignor James P. Shea entitled, From Christendom to Apostolic Mission: Pastoral Strategies for an Apostolic Age. Monsignor Shea offers some helpful observations about contemporary culture and how we might effectively respond as a Church.
This week we were unable to get together to record a new episode. Therefore, we decided to share a previous episode that people seemed to find helpful. Here is a REPOST of our episode on how to become better at going to confession!
What are the new tools that we use to study the bible? These methods try to improve our understanding of the text's literal meaning, which is the first horizon for interpreting scripture. Three popular methods are Source Criticism, Form Criticism, and Redaction Criticism. They are valuable tools but also have limits of which we should be aware. Today we discuss their possible benefits and dangers. Check these sources out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The inspiration of scripture allows for multiple layers of interpretation. One way of describing this is the four senses of scripture: literal, allegorical, moral, and anagogical. The literal sense comes first. Then, the three spiritual senses build upon the initial literal sense. Check these sources out:Scott Hahn, ed., Catholic Bible Dictionary. New York; London; Toronto; Sydney; Auckland: Doubleday, 2009.Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today, we finish out the discussion on purgatory. We hope that you have enjoyed this mini-series. If you find this podcast helpful for your spiritual life, please share it with a friend! For the talk by John Paul II on purgatory:https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/audiences/1999/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_04081999.htmlQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The discussion continues today! If you missed our episode last week, make sure to check that out before starting this one!For the talk by John Paul II on purgatory:https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/audiences/1999/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_04081999.htmlQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
What's the deal with purgatory? What is it? What is it not? Does it make sense? Is it biblical? What do you mean by biblical? Check out the episode for answers to these questions and more!For the talk by John Paul II on purgatory:https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/audiences/1999/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_04081999.htmlQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today, we elaborate on three ways to link the Old and New Testaments by understanding Covenant, Typology, and Recapitulation. Oh my. The one great story of salvation culminates in Jesus. Covenant, typology, and recapitulation help us to appreciate the story in its fullness. For a more thorough treatment, check out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Today we look at the fourth principle for Catholic Biblical Interpretation from Dr. Smith's book. This principle focuses on the unity of the Old and New Testaments with Jesus being the climax of the great narrative of salvation. Further, we see examples from Jesus himself of how to read the scriptures. For a more thorough treatment, check out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Also, check out: The Case for Jesus by Brant PitreQuestions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Does scripture interpret itself by itself? What is the role of the Christian community in regard to interpreting the bible? In today's episode, we explore the relationship between Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, trying to take seriously the Holy Spirit's abiding presence in the Church in all ages.For a more thorough treatment, check out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Is history important to the Bible? Is all of the Bible historical? What's the relationship? In today's episode, we examine these critical questions. We also look at some different tools for interpreting the Bible, looking at both what the methods can offer and their limitations.For a more thorough treatment, check out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The week ended up being busier than we expected so we did not have time to prepare adequately for our biblical series. Therefore, we decided to share some of the story about how Father Joseph ended up becoming a priest. Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
The word of God is living and effective! It continues to speak to the living faith of believers. The weekend homily is a regular avenue for this encounter. Therefore, today's episode shows an example of how we prepare for homilies. How do we process the weekend readings? How do we look for connections? What are some of the questions we wrestle through when prepping a homily? Hopefully, today's discussion helps you process the weekend readings more fruitfully as well as be more primed for the weekend homily. Questions? Ideas for future shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
How do Catholics read the bible? It might sound simple at first, but there is actually quite a bit to keep in mind when reading the Holy Scriptures. For example, what do we actually mean when we say that the bible is inspired by God? What specifically is inspiration? Today, we begin to explore some of these interesting questions. For a more thorough treatment, check out:Smith, Steven C. The Word of the Lord: 7 Essential Principles for Catholic Scripture Study. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, 2012.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Have you ever heard of spiritual reading? Spiritual reading can be very enriching for your life of prayer. Today we discuss some important influences in our lives and some of the fruit we have received from recent spiritual reading.Here is the book we discuss today-Sober Intoxication of the Spirit: Filled With the Fullness of GodBy Raniero Cantalamessa O.F.M. Cap.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows?Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Thanks for joining us again this week! We continue the story by discussing the reaction of Francis' father and mother. We also read through a memorable part of his story (we will leave it as a surprise) and his encounter with lepers. Enjoy and have a read yourself!Here is a link to a version of the text:https://dmdhist.sitehost.iu.edu/francis.htm
The story continues this week. Enjoy!
How much do we know about the real St. Francis? What is legendary versus historical? Two years after St. Francis' death, his friend, Thomas of Celano, compiled the earliest account of his life. It is quite an interesting read! In the next few weeks, we will read snippets from the work and see what we can learn from his life.Here is a link to a version of the text:https://dmdhist.sitehost.iu.edu/francis.htm
Our series on soteriology ends today. What a journey it has been! In this episode, we discuss the implications of what God has accomplished for the rest of creation. There are some important passages from both the Old and New Testaments on the new heavens and the new earth that God is bringing about. What does this mean? Thanks for listening! We hope you are excited for a new series to begin next week!
Salvation is a rich theme. How does Jesus save us? Today we look at a few more themes of soteriology from the Patristic time period. The next episode is our last soteriology episode! For more reading, check out:Jesus Christ, Fundamentals of ChristologyRoch A Kereszty, O. Cist.
Jesus Christ has won the definitive victory. How? Over who? Today we explore the victory of God and our deliverance from captivity.Questions? Ideas for Future Shows? Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
This week we continue our discussion of salvation. The Admirable Commercium (Marvelous Exchange) was one of the major themes of the Fathers of the Early Church. The Incarnation allows for a great exchange between humanity and divinity. What does it mean to partake in God's nature? “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9, RSV2CE) Contact us at:j.link@dbqarch.orgj.sevcik@dbqarch.org
Formation is a really helpful topic when thinking about growth as human beings. How can we be better formed disciples of our Lord Jesus? Lord, do with us as you will.
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