Episode 24 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 11 Part 2Luke 11:  “Lord Teach Us To Pray” In this lecture on Luke 11, we focus especially on the Lord’s Prayer.  Seeing Jesus praying in a certain place, his disciples asked, “Lord, teach us to pray.”  They saw the Lord praying by himself, and they desired to have a similar union with the Father.  As faithful Jews, the disciples knew how to pray, but they wanted to pray as Jesus prayed.  From the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we learn that the first communities prayed the Lord’s Prayer three times a day, in place of ..read more

Episode 23 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 11 Part 1Luke 11:  “Lord Teach Us To Pray” In this lecture on Luke 11, we focus especially on the Lord’s Prayer.  Seeing Jesus praying in a certain place, his disciples asked, “Lord, teach us to pray.”  They saw the Lord praying by himself, and they desired to have a similar union with the Father.  As faithful Jews, the disciples knew how to pray, but they wanted to pray as Jesus prayed.  From the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we learn that the first communities prayed the Lord’s Prayer three times a day, in place of ..read more

Episode 22 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 10 Part 2Luke 10:  “The Good Samaritan” This week’s lecture begins with encouragement to pray the rosary.  Many popes over the years have exhorted the faithful to depend on this powerful spiritual weapon in the battle against evil.  In Luke 10, Jesus referenced the battle between darkness and light, vividly describing how Satan fell like lightning from the sky.    Satan was “murderer from the beginning…and the father of lies” (John 8:44).  He disguised himself as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14).  Satan deceived ..read more

Episode 21 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 10 Part 1Luke 10:  “The Good Samaritan” This week’s lecture begins with encouragement to pray the rosary.  Many popes over the years have exhorted the faithful to depend on this powerful spiritual weapon in the battle against evil.  In Luke 10, Jesus referenced the battle between darkness and light, vividly describing how Satan fell like lightning from the sky.    Satan was “murderer from the beginning…and the father of lies” (John 8:44).  He disguised himself as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14).  Satan deceived A ..read more

Episode 20 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 9 Part 2Luke 9:  “Son of God Transfigured” Luke chapter 9 begins with the mission of the twelve Apostles, whom Jesus gave power to cure disease and authority over all demons. They were instructed to take nothing for their journey and to “shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against” anyone who did not welcome them. To “shake off the dust” was a Hebrew idiom for Jews to separate themselves from the Gentiles. So in this context, Jesus was telling the Apostles to separate themselves from the Jews who rejected the Gospel. In a similar pas ..read more

Episode 15 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 7 Part 1“Resurrection at Nain” In Luke 7, we read that John the Baptist sent word to Jesus, asking if Jesus was the one “who is to come”. We know from Matthew 14 that John was imprisoned for chastising Herod about his unlawful marriage to Herodias. In his desolation, John wanted to know if Jesus was indeed the Messiah. Having just performed many miracles, Jesus responded by saying “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them” thus fulfilling the Messi ..read more

Episode 10 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 4 Part 2 Temptations & Ministry This lecture begins by recalling the baptism of Jesus by John.  John, the New Elijah, was well aware of his role.  He always pointed towards Jesus.  The baptism was a theophany, with all members of the Trinity present:  the voice of the Father from above, the Holy Spirit in the bodily form of a dove, and Jesus himself.  Not since the Garden of Eden has the Trinity so clearly been seen, and the baptism gives us hope for what we lost with Adam and Eve’s fall from grace.  According to Cyril ..read more

Episode 18 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 8 Part 2Luke 8:  “Daughters of Israel” This chapter begins with a list of women who accompanied Jesus and his apostles and provided for their needs:  Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna.   Mary Magdalene, who had 7 demons driven out of her, is often erroneously thought to be a prostitute.  The Church Fathers saw these demons as a metaphor for the 7 deadly sins.   Scripture never calls her by this title, but beginning with Pope Gregory the Great, some have assumed this was the case.  However, much like the Easter ..read more

Episode 7 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 3 Part 1 A Voice Cries Out “Nothing is impossible with God.” Our lecture this week opens with this reassuring statement, taken from Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary. We recall from last week that Mary was the singular blessed woman of the New Testament who, through Jesus, fulfills the prophecy of Genesis 3:15, and crushes the head of Satan. Mary’s power against Satan is also present in the Rosary, whose mysteries are meditations on the life of Christ. Many popes and saints have attested to the power of the Rosary: as described by Archbishop Fulton Shee ..read more

Episode 17 – The Gospel of Luke – Chapter 8 Part 1Luke 8:  “Daughters of Israel” This chapter begins with a list of women who accompanied Jesus and his apostles and provided for their needs:  Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna.   Mary Magdalene, who had 7 demons driven out of her, is often erroneously thought to be a prostitute.  The Church Fathers saw these demons as a metaphor for the 7 deadly sins.   Scripture never calls her by this title, but beginning with Pope Gregory the Great, some have assumed this was the case.  However, much like the Eastern ..read more