"We are travellers…not yet in our native land" – St. Augustine
So today I got to have a lovely chat with one of the manliest men out there, the star of The Long Ride Home, Mr. Bear Woznick. Bear invited me onto his radio show for a chat about all things Catholic, during which we discussed Judo, St. Edmund Campion, Byzantine Christianity and Atheism.
Please brace yourself for the manliest of conversations…
A friend of my posted the following text on her Facebook wall today. I thought it was so good I asked her if I could publish it here on the blog. One year since what she calls “the best day of my life”, here is her reflection on the seven things she learned as a Neophyte…
To put it in simple terms, a Neophyte is a new convert to a religion. New Advent describes Neophyte as originating from the word neophytoi meaning the newly planted and incorporated with the mystic Body of Christ. I converted to the Catholic Church from Protestantism last Easter, and have decided to do a bit of reflection on my last year. It has been filled with revelation after revelation but here are the top seven that have had the most impact on me.
1. Hungering for the Eucharist
To put it simply, hungering for the Eucharist is a real thing. To some that may sound crazy or impossible and to others, you may know exactly what I mean. For those reading this who aren’t Catholic, the Eucharist is what we call the transformation of the communion bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ. Early Church Father, St. Justin Martyr, writes in A.D. 151:
“For not as common bread nor common drink do we receive these; but since Jesus Christ our Savior was made incarnate by the word of God and has both flesh and blood for our salvation, so too, as we have been taught, the food that has been made into the Eucharist by the Eucharistic prayer set down by him, and by the change of which our blood and flesh is nurtured, is both the flesh and the blood of that incarnated Jesus.” [First Apology 66]
For further reference, read John 6 and watch “The Hour That Will Change Your Life.”
After partaking in my First Holy Communion at the Easter Vigil and the weeks following, I was somewhat stunned to find that I hungered for more of the Eucharist. I yearned for His Body and Blood, the peace that it brought, my human weaknesses obliterated by His strength, His divine life inside of me. This surreal and transcendent feeling is one I could never fully describe but pray all will come to experience.
Today we come to the deadliest of the Seven Deadly Sins, pride, as well as its counterpart, my favourite virtue, humility.
If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Podbean, Stitcher and TuneIn).
Please send any objections, comments or questions, either via email through my website or tweet us @pintswithjack. Be sure to follow our new Instagram account!
Episode 21: “The Great Sin” (Download)
Last week I was in San Antonio giving my “Entrepreneurial Faith” talk to the YCP chapter there.
“Entrepreneurial Faith” (Download)
Q&A (Download)
— Questions —
• You’re an British Catholic. How is that possible?!
• What did you read which led you back into the Catholic Faith?
• How can I put the gift of writing to the service of the Church?
(Just as I was about the answer this question, there was a thunderclap outside!)
Today I gave a talk on a retreat entitled “Jesus In Disguise”, where I look at the different ways in which we can encounter God behind the veil of the ordinary. The audio is available below:
Jesus in Disguise (Download)
We will spend the remaining episodes of Book III, we will be looking at the theological virtues. Today we begin with Christian love, also known as “charity”…
If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Podbean, Stitcher and TuneIn).
Please send any objections, comments or questions, either via email through my website or tweet us @pintswithjack. Be sure to follow our new Instagram account!
Episode 22: “Charity” (Download)
During Lent, I gave two talks at St. Ignatius Catholic parish in Los Angeles. Here is the first talk I gave on reading Sacred Scripture:
“How to read the Bible like a Catholic” (Download)
Q&A (Download)
— Questions —
• What does Jesus mean when he says that, to be his disciple, we must “hate mother and father”?
• What is apologetics?
• What kind of Bible would you recommend?
• If I want to read a book of the Bible, where should I start?
• Why do some people leave the Catholic Faith?