The Mystery of Holy Thursday – a special conversation with Deacon James Keating Ph.D. and Kris McGregor Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 24:49 — 17.1MB) | Embed

During this podcast, Deacon Keating will offer his insights on the mystery of this Holy Thursday.

Here a few of his comments:

Deacon James Keating:

So the fullness of Holy orders is there and we celebrate that because obviously without Holy orders, there’s no power of salvation that’s unleashed in the sacramental economy and we would just be void or it would be devoid of his presence and his power through the things of the earth. And that’s the beauty of the sacraments. We get both the presence and the power of Jesus through the things of the earth. That’s what makes the sacrament so accessible. The human body of the priest. Oil, water, wine, bread. So simple, so humble, so accessible. Again, the meditation of God’s great love for us that he is generously available through the things of the earth.

And that’s what makes our sacramental system so mindbogglingly joyful is that when we really are in a sacramental imagination as Catholics, our joy deepens because we realize, Oh my gosh, we are so loved. It’s not like he said, “You have to go up this mountain and find me. I’ll come to you as bread and I’ll come to you in oil and I’ll come to you. My power will come to you through the waving of a hand in a blessing. I will do all that for you and you just have to show up at the corner of Maple and 50th street. Your parish church and I’ll be there through these things of the earth.” It’s very, very humbling and powerfully beautiful to think about how close he wants to be with us and how accessible he is to us through the sacraments. And that’s why so many more people are mourning these days in the midst of the Coronavirus because even that is unattainable. The most ordinary accessible elements of the earth where Jesus wants to give us his power and his presence is unaccessible. Inaccessible these days because of the sorrow that we’re in.

Further in the conversation:

We always say, try to live in the present moment. But that’s a real grace to live in the present moment and to live in the present moment as grace is something we need to be asking for now. It may not be easily attained or easily appropriated, but we will miss something very vital if we’re not going deep and we’re just going towards fantasy to the future and daydream about when this will be over. And even emotionally anticipating it. Thinking that I’m happy now because I’m thinking this won’t last forever. And meanwhile, a lot of goods are present where you should be going deep into the relationships of the home. Even into the relationship somewhat of suffering. But not to utilize suffering, but to just realize that even in suffering there is a presence emerging from him because obviously he’s dwelling within us. And so we never utilize suffering, but within suffering itself, if we can pay attention to it, we may linger there long enough to allow his presence to come.

Whether it’s a suffering of the end of our daily routine, which we’re all suffering now, or the horrific suffering of sickness itself, which is so sacred that only the sick should really talk about it. But we have testimony from the saints that in the midst of sickness sometimes they sense his presence emerging as they pay attention to their own limit and finitude and weakness and he comes from within to minister to them. So the whole theme of are you living in the present moment is truly a contemplative gift that perhaps God is giving all of us now, and we don’t want to miss the hour of our visitation.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha.

Check out the many series from Deacon James Keating Ph.D. by this Discerning Hearts podcast page

Heart of the World – Conference 1 – Meditations on the Paschal Mystery with Dr. Anthony Lilles and Kris McGregor

Heart of the World – Meditations on the Paschal Mystery with Dr. Anthony Lilles

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 57:46 — 39.7MB) | Embed

Join Dr. Anthony Lilles and Kris McGregor as they offer a type of “online retreat” based on the spiritual work Heart of the World written by Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar.

In this first “conference” talk, Dr. Lilles discusses, as a primer for the retreat, the teachings of Fr. von Balthasar found in Christian Mediation.

Dr. Lilles will talk about the disposition for entering into prayer during this particular time. He will discuss the nature of “spiritual exercises” as expressed by St. Ignatius of Loyola

Dr. Lilles will offer solid direction about entering into mental prayer during this “retreat” time and how to experience the encounter with the Word.

He will also offer suggestions for further reading for this grace-filled time and how to create a space for prayer given the circumstances you mind find yourself.

He would especially encourage the listener to read The Gospel of John 13 – 19 during this time.

Though having the books mentioned in this “retreat” are not necessary, we would encourage you at some to purchase these outstanding spiritual classics.

You find the paperback book and ebook discussed in this first conference here

From the book description:

When it comes to meditation the decisive question, according to Hans Urs von Balthasar, is whether God has spoken or “whether the Absolute remains the Silence beyond all words”. Christianity claims God has spoken, and spoken fully, in his Son, the Word made flesh. While God remains mysterious, he is not utterly unknown or unknowable.

Von Balthasar insists through Christian meditation we enter with mind and heart into God’s self-disclosure. In Jesus, God reveals his own inner depths to us. At the same time, because Jesus is God-made-man, he also reveals our inner depths to ourselves.

Christian Meditation is at once a book about what meditation is, in light of God’s revelation, and a book that assists believers to meditate. In a treatment that is both fresh and profound, von Balthasar describes the central elements of all Christian meditation, provides a guide for meditation and then points the way to the union that prayer achieves in the footsteps of Mary, within the Church and in and for the world.

You find the book here

From the book description:

A great Catholic theologian speaks from the heart about the Heart of Christ, in a profound and lyrical meditation on Our Lord’s love for his Bride the Church.

Avid readers of Hans Urs von Balthasar often describe Heart of the World as a “surprise”. The “pure serenity of a volcano under snow” readers usually find in Balthasar, as translator Erasmo Leiva puts it, gives way to “the poet-theologian” who dares to “bare his own heart”. The sult is what can only be described as lyrical, even intimate spiritual reflections.

“Heart of the World”, the translator continues, “deserves a place next to
the Imitation of Christ. Especially in the passages where Christ speaks to the soul, Father von Balthasar shows himself a worthy successor of
Thomas a Kempis. Both works combine an intense personal piety with
a precise awareness of the believer’s position as child and servant of Christ’s Church…. For Balthasar, as for Kempis and all genuine Chris tians, the saint is first and foremost the one who renders constant thanks for having been loved.”

Heart of the World is a profound and theologically rich reflection on the
Heart of God.

Anthony Lilles, S.T.D. is the St. Patrick’s Seminary & University in Menlo Park, CA. He has served the Church and assisted in the formation of clergy since 1994, and now previously served in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles as Academic Dean of St. John’s Seminary, associate professor of theology and Academic Advisor of Juan Diego House. The son of a California farmer, married with young adult children, he holds a BA in theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville with both the ecclesiastical licentiate and doctorate in spiritual theology from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome (the Angelicum). He was a founding faculty member of Saint John Vianney Seminary in Denver where he also served as academic dean, department chair, director of liturgy and coordinator of spiritual formation for the permanent deacon program. He has recently published Hidden Mountain Secret Garden, Omaha: Discerning Hearts (2012)

The Mystery of This Present Moment – a special conversation with Deacon James Keating Ph.D. and Kris McGregor Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:19 — 19.5MB) | Embed

During this podcast, Deacon Keating will offer his insights on “the mystery of this present moment.”

Here a few of his comments:

Deacon Keating:

So, the wisdom of the Saints comes back to us again and again. Of course, in good times we never listened to the saints because we got this. And in bad times, we’re suffering so much, that a lot of times they can’t get their wisdom through to us because of our pain. So, it’s quite paradoxical. But the wisdom of the Saints is this, that throughout our life, no matter what we’re experiencing in suffering or enjoying, we should always be sloughing off the excess of our days, any idols that we are drawing artificial consolation from. We should be seeking Holy communion, no matter whether we’re in good times or bad times.

So, when bad times come or when good times come, everything is calculated toward reality and peace because we have been suffering the coming of Holy communion throughout our entire life. So, when people don’t have this Holy communion during bad times like we’re in right now, we can panic and we can start grasping at straws, and thinking that everything is over and ending. Anxiety then becomes our normal state. So, again, the saints would counsel us when this horrible virus passes, if we could just remember not to go back to being normal Americans, but to go back to Him and get our equilibrium set, and the substance of our interior life set. So that when the next reminder that everything on this planet is not forever, when that next reminder comes, we’ll have less panic and more peace because we will have been living for a while then in Holy communion.

Further in the conversation:

The reason there’s so much fear is that we are acknowledging that death is real. Again, most of our popular culture is a mask keeping us from ever thinking about death. Now there are all these masks that have dropped, death comes to the fore and it’s not something we want to rebel in or say, “Let’s look at this and some type of McCobb way.” But we’ve known as believers, that death has always been the enemy. Now we see it. We see the enemy, we’ve been afraid of the enemy.

Again, we’ve been afraid of the enemy because our Holy communion isn’t stronger enough, with our Holy friend, Jesus Christ. The deeper that friendship grows with him, the more we can confront death in peace. Without panic, without fear. Of course, there’ll be sadness, it will be mourning. But the sadness in the mourning is over the good things of life, the panic and the fear is over that which we have created in ourselves. Which is a habitual stance of isolation from God. That’s what he’s gently trying to say to us. This death has always been here. Your limit and your finitude have always been part of your life. Stop masking it and let’s look at real life. It’s okay to look at it, with me. That’s why I came so that you would not be alone when you look at it, that’s what we call salvation.

You’re looking at it from the stance of communion with him. That’s how the Saints die in joy and in peace. So push against the fear and choose a career. That would be the theme of this imposed retreat, I would say.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha.

Check out the many series from Deacon James Keating Ph.D. by this Discerning Hearts podcast page

Feeding us in the desert – Holy Week 2020 with Archbishop George Lucas podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 37:02 — 25.5MB) | Embed

Discerning Hearts special with Archbishop George Lucas of the Archdiocese of Omaha.

In this episode, Archbishop Lucas discusses the challenges we all are facing in the light of the global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus. He reminds us that God is not mad with us, but loves us all more deeply than we could ever know and is pouring out extraordinary grace to individuals as well as to the world. We want to be sure to open our hearts in order to receive that grace and mercy. He would also ask to us remember that the mass continues to be celebrated by parish priests on behalf of their people and to be open to that grace particularly during this extraordinary Holy Week. We need to trust in God and to show us the way forward. We should also meet the challenge to notice our neighbors in need. He would encourage all of us to enter into the mystery of Holy Week by reading the scriptures of the mass for the day, to seek out live streams of the liturgy, and to take to be with the Lord during this sacred time.

For more episodes in this series visit the

Why it Matters: An Exploration of Faith with Archbishop George Lucas Podcast page

For more teachings and information about Archbishop George J. Lucas of the Archdiocese of Omaha, visit: archomaha.org

The Invitation to Radical Love – Deacon Omar Gutierrez and Kris McGregor Discerning Hearts Special Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 42:35 — 29.3MB) | Embed

Join Deacon Omar F. A. Gutierrez and Kris McGregor as they discuss the events of the global Coronavirus pandemic of 2020. They discuss how this affects the family, the value of life, and the lessons it brings. We discuss the liturgical life of the Church during Holy Week and how we might be able to enter into this sacred period in these challenging days.
Deacon Omar Gutiérrez is the President and co-Founder of the Evangelium Institute as well as the Director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith in the Archdiocese of Omaha. An alumnus of Franciscan University, the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and the University of Dallas, he has an MA in Theology and has been published in a number of print and online magazines and newspapers including the National Catholic Register and The Catholic Voice. His book, The Urging of Christ’s Love: The Saints and the Social Teaching of the Catholic Church was published in 2013, and he has a program on Catholic Social Teaching through DiscerningHearts.com which is aired on the Spirit Catholic Radio Network.

WOM7 – The Liturgy of the Word pt. 1 – The Way of Mystery with Deacon James Keating – Discerning Hearts Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:55 — 19.9MB) | Embed

Episode 7 -The Way of Mystery: The Eucharist and Moral Living– The Liturgy of the Word part 1 Christ entering us through language. The difference in our attitude of being an “audience” and being in an attitude of prayer. How the Word sets us free.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha.

The Vatican II documents remind us that the spiritual journey is not made in a vacuum, that God has chosen to save us, not individually, but as The People of God. The Eucharist must help Christians to make their choices by discerning out of Christ’s paschal mystery. For this process to take place, however, Christians must first understand how the Eucharist puts them in touch with Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, and what concrete implications being in touch with this mystery has for their daily lives.

Check out more episodes at “The Way of Mystery” Discerning Heart podcast page

Entering Into Mental Prayer During Troubling Times /w Dr. Anthony Lilles and Kris McGregor Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:04 — 26.8MB) | Embed

Join Dr. Anthony Lilles S.T.D. and Kris McGregor as they discuss our new reality given the Global Corona Virus Pandemic of 2020. Dr. Lilles offers wise counsel on how to enter prayer during this time. He also reflects on the importance of entering more deeply into our relationship with God through detachment and abandonment to the will of the Father. While not easy at first, such a disposition allows God’s grace to take root in our hearts and trust to flourish within us during troubling times.

For more from Dr. Anthony Lilles visit: Dr. Anthony Lilles – Beginning to Pray Discerning Hearts Podcasts

Episode 2 – The Day Is Now Far Spent – Fr. Joseph Fessio S.J., Vivian Dudro, and Joseph Pearce FBC Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:57 — 25.4MB) | Embed

We begin our exploration of Robert Cardinal Sarah’s “The Day Is Now Far Spent”—a tour de force response to the present darkness in the Church.

From the New York City skyline to the meaning of the word “Modernism”. We continue our discussion of Robert Cardinal Sarah’s “The Day Is Now Far Spent”.

You can find the book here

Robert Cardinal Sarah calls The Day Is Now Far Spent his most important book. He analyzes the spiritual, moral, and political collapse of the Western world and concludes that “the decadence of our time has all the faces of mortal peril.”

A cultural identity crisis, he writes, is at the root of the problems facing Western societies. “The West no longer knows who it is, because it no longer knows and does not want to know who made it, who established it, as it was and as it is. Many countries today ignore their own history. This self-suffocation naturally leads to a decadence that opens the path to new, barbaric civilizations.”

While making clear the gravity of the present situation, the cardinal demonstrates that it is possible to avoid the hell of a world without God, a world without hope. He calls for a renewal of devotion to Christ through prayer and the practice of virtue.

IP#281 Vivian Dudro - Meriol Trevor's "Shadows and Images" on Inside the Pages 1 — Vivian Dudro

WOM6 – The Penitential Rite of the Mass pt 2 – The Way of Mystery with Deacon James Keating – Discerning Hearts Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:37 — 22.4MB) | Embed

Episode 6 -The Way of Mystery: The Eucharist and Moral Living– The Penitential Rite part 2
Are we afraid of silence, of being alone with God? We also discuss posture and the domestic church.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., the director of Theological Formation for the Institute for Priestly Formation, located at Creighton University, in Omaha.

The Vatican II documents remind us that the spiritual journey is not made in a vacuum. God has chosen to save us, not individually, but as The People of God. The Eucharist must help Christians to make their choices by discerning out of Christ’s paschal mystery. For this process to take place, however, Christians must first understand how the Eucharist puts them in touch with Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, and what concrete implications being in touch with this mystery has for their daily lives.

Check out more episodes at “The Way of Mystery” Discerning Heart podcast page

The Global Pandemic: Christ Conquers Sin and Death – Building a Kingdom of Love with Msgr. John Esseff Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:33 — 19.6MB) | Embed

Msgr. Esseff addresses the global pandemic of the coronavirus and COVID-19. He reflects that there is something greater than death…sin. Now is the time to examine ourselves and recognize areas in our lives where sin has a grip on us. It is time to give it all to Christ and to be free.

Reading 2 ROM 8:8-11

Brothers and sisters:
Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh;
on the contrary, you are in the spirit,
if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.
Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
But if Christ is in you,
although the body is dead because of sin,
the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,
the one who raised Christ from the dead
will give life to your mortal bodies also,
through his Spirit dwelling in you.

Msgr. John A. Esseff is a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Scranton. He was ordained on May 30, 1953, by the late Bishop William J. Hafey, D.D. at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Scranton, PA. Msgr. Esseff served a retreat director and confessor to St. Mother Teresa. He continues to offer direction and retreats for the sisters of the missionaries of charity around the world. Msgr. Esseff encountered St. Padre Pio, who would become a spiritual father to him. He has lived in areas around the world, serving in the Pontifical missions, a Catholic organization established by St. Pope John Paul II. Msgr. Esseff assisted the founders of the Institute for Priestly Formation and continues to serve as a spiritual director for the Institute. He continues to serve as a retreat leader and director to bishops, priests and sisters and seminarians and other religious leaders around the world.