Catholic News Agency featured Fr. Barron's article entitled "'Gay marriage' and the breakdown of moral argument."

Read the article here.

The Campus Ministry Lounge is hosting viewings of the ten-part television series, “Catholicism” to celebrate internalization month at Seton Hall.

The Rev. Robert Barron, both face and founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, is the mastermind behind this series, which received rave reviews from publications such as Canada’s Salt and Light television network, America, the National Catholic Weekly and the Catholic News Service.

Inspired by Kenneth Clark’s 1969 hit BBC series “Civilisation,” “Catholicism” takes viewers on a virtual trip to fifty locations in sixteen countries, exploring the history and origins of Catholic art, literature, architecture, and music in churches, basilicas, and more.

“When you’re talking about a 10-hour program, it would become tiresome to listen to a talking head for hours,” Barron said.

Viewings of this series will take place every Wednesday and Thursday from 12:45-2 p.m. in the Campus Ministry Lounge. The last showing will be held Thursday, November 1 at 1:45 p.m...

Father Barron received a master’s degree in philosophy from The Catholic University of America in 1982 and a doctorate in sacred theology from the Institut Catholique in Paris in 1992.  He was ordained to the priesthood in 1986 and had been a professor of systematic theology at the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary since 1992. Father Barron was visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame in 2002 and at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in 2007.  He was also twice scholar in residence at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.

The Francis Cardinal George Professor of Faith and Culture at Mundelein, Father Barron will assume his new role on July 1. He spoke with Register senior writer Tim Drake about the appointment...

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/father-robert-barron-named-rector-of-mundelein-seminary/#ixzz1uxbOXcOR

“There is something dangerously prophetic about 'The Hunger Games,'” said Fr. Barron, founder of the media group “Word on Fire” and host of the PBS-aired “Catholicism” series.

The movie, which has already brought in $214 million worldwide since its March 23 release, is based on the young adult book of the same title by Suzanne Collins'...

Read the rest of the CNA article here.

The really interesting question is this: Why has this motif of the sacrificial victim played such a large role in the human imagination for so long? Why do we keep acting out this scenario, both in reality and in our literature? The contemporary literary theorist Rene Girard has speculated that practically every human community is grounded in what he calls “the scapegoating mechanism.” [. . .]

He found that Christianity was the one religion, philosophy, or ideology that both unmasked this scapegoat mechanism and showed a way out. For at the heart of Christian revelation is God’s utter identification, not with the perpetrators of violence, but with the scapegoated victim. The crucified Jesus is hence the undermining of the dynamic that has undergirded most civilizations and that continues to beguile the human imagination to this day. [. . .]"

Read the rest of the article here.

"When I was a junior in high school, I read Shirley Jackson’s great short story “The Lottery,” and I will confess that her narrative still haunts me. You might remember the plot. The townspeople of a village in the American heartland are gathering on a beautiful summer day in late June for a festival. There is good food, lively conversation, and upbeat music. It becomes clear that the focus for this celebration is the annual lottery, and the reader naturally assumes that the winner of the lottery will receive a prize of some kind. But when the choice is made, the “winner” shrinks away in fear, protesting the injustice of it all, while her fellow citizens close in on her, rocks and stones in hand. As the story ends, they are upon her.

In medieval Mexico, the Aztecs would choose a particularly handsome and brave warrior from a rival tribe. For a year, they would wine and dine him, provide entertainment for him, and treat him like a celebrity. Then, at the close of the year, they would lead him to the top of a tall pyramid and rip his still-beating heart from his chest, and offer it to the gods..."

The texts that Christians typically read on Palm Sunday have become so familiar to them that they probably don't sense their properly revolutionary power.  But no first-century Jew would have missed the excitement and danger implicit in the coded language of the accounts describing Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem just a few days before his death. 

The program can be used by a variety of audiences, Mrs. Filippi said, pointing out that it would be ideal for a parish RCIA group, returning Catholics who have been away from the Church or another adult formation program.

“People get to watch it, hear it, see the images and then you reflect on it with other people on what it means to you and how it affects your life,” she explained, adding that the DVDs have “wonderful cinematography” of various places around the world and the people who live there.

“You’re always hearing music and seeing images while Father Barron is speaking,” she added.

“The beauty of it is you just need a facilitator,” Mrs. Filippi asserted. “You don’t have to have a sophisticated adult faith formation program in your parish already formed. This is a good way to start”...

Read the rest of the story here.

This portrayal follows from a classical division of the commandments in which there are two specific categories—those that order humanity’s relationship with God and those that order human relationships with one another. If we consider the Bible as a totality, it becomes apparent that the Scriptures give priority to the first table, those commands dealing with God.

The Ten Commandments begin with an insistence that the Lord alone is God and there are to be no other gods besides him. This is not just a principle meant to order humanity’s expressions of ritualized worship, but a statement about the ethos of the entire moral and spiritual order. Whatever it is that humanity worships, be it the gods of the ancients or the allures of wealth, power, pleasure and honors, will by necessity give rise to our perceptions and practices concerning the moral life. The God or gods in whom we place our ultimate concern will direct our lives and determine our choices...

Fr Barron, a priest from Chicago and creator of the recently launched Catholicism documentary series, spoke on the topic "The Priority of Christ in the New Evangelisation".  Fr Barron's talk will be available for downloand from our website very soon...

Read the article here.

By Kenneth J. Souza, Anchor Staff

FALL RIVER, Mass. — One of the key concepts Father Robert Barron had when he first set out to create his acclaimed 10-part documentary series “Catholicism” was to find a way to bring together the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith.

“That was a big motivating factor for me,” Father Barron told The Anchor. “I wanted to show the texture of Catholicism. We have all this great, visible wealth in the Church and I didn’t want to reduce it to just words and ideas. Whenever we had an idea to present, we asked ourselves: ‘How can we show that idea?’ And that’s really what inspired the whole series”...

Read the article here.

American theologian, author and film-maker Fr Robert Barron was given a warm welcome by Melbourne’s Catholics—young and old—yesterday as he commenced his inaugural Australian tour.

Fr Barron, from Chicago, is in Australia for two weeks with his film crew, to continue his documentary work and to promote his 10-part series called Catholicism, which was first aired on America’s public broadcasting network last September.

Hosted by Australian Catholic University (ACU) and Parousia Media, Fr Barron will speak with students and staff at ACU’s Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney, Brisbane and Ballarat campuses, as well as members of the broader community in a series of public talks...

Read the article here.

Chicago priest Fr Robert Barron, often described as "one of the Church's best messengers" and director of the very popular new evangelisation ministry Word on Fire arrives in Australia this weekend for a series of  speaking engagements.

Accompanied by his film crew Fr Barron will also be interviewing a number of our leading clergy including the Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell...

Read the press release here.

Irondale, AL (EWTN) – You asked to see it again! Watch the original six episodes of “Catholicism” that previously aired on EWTN – now in a new 30-minute format. (For a complete schedule, please go to www.ewtn.com/series/shows/catholicism.)

“Viewers have also asked about the four episodes to which PBS has exclusive rights,” said EWTN Executive Vice President & COO Doug Keck. “Those rights will soon expire. EWTN is looking forward to airing those episodes when they become available in September.”

If you somehow missed it the first time, Fr. Robert Barron and his film crew visited more than 50 locations in 16 different countries during the four years it took to produce this multimillion-dollar documentary of faith and history. Catholic Commentator George Weigel calls it “the most important media project in the history of the Catholic Church in America.” (See the “Catholicism” trailer at www.CatholicismSeries.com.)

View the press release and schedule here.

January 24, 2012: "Servant of the Word banquet, workshop to honor Father Robert Barron"

Father Robert Barron will be in Denver next month to receive this year’s Servant of the Word Award from the Catholic Biblical School.

He considers it a great honor to serve the word of God.

“I’m not here to preach a word of mine, my own philosophical musings, or my own perspective,” he said by telephone from his office at the Mundelein Seminary near Chicago. “When you’re a servant of the word, it’s the word of God that’s given to you—and you have the privilege of searching out its meaning, then searching out its relevance for our time.”

On Feb. 17-18, the Biblical School will host the Servant of the Word banquet Friday night, followed by a workshop on Saturday with presentations from Father Barron; Jonathan Reyes, president and CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Denver; and Father John Riley, faculty member at Denver’s Augustine Institute and St. John Vianney Theological Seminary....

Read the article in the Denver Catholic Registry.

Fr. Robert Barron’s new CATHOLICISM series is currently continuing its world premiere on stations throughout the United States.  The Cardinal Newman Society (CNS) recommends the series as a tool unsurpassable in quality for promoting Catholic identity and spurring on the New Evangelization.

“We eagerly recommend Fr. Barron’s CATHOLICISM series,” said Patrick J. Reilly, president of CNS.

“Father Barron lets the Catholic faith be itself,” continued Reilly, “and the result is a beautiful and irresistible account of our Catholic identity.  Never before has there been such an effective vehicle for spreading the light of Christ through the media.”...

See the full blog post here. 

I posted this over at the National Catholic Register and thought that you might be interested as well…

Finding Father Robert Barron these days is an easy task. This is good news for those who love the Church, and good news for those on the outside wondering if they should step in, or even back in as the case may be. Whether it be books, radio, DVDs, or television, Father Barron’s seemingly ubiquitous voice has been called “one of the Church’s best messengers” by Cardinal Francis George. With a nimble intellect and loving heart, Father Barron has given the faithful an arsenal of catechetical material. However, now he presents the Catholic faithful and a searching world a landmark production on a scale and quality rivaled only by Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. Father Barron’s 10-part miniseries Catholicism has been hailed by George Weigel as “the most important media project in the history of the Catholic Church in America.”...

Read the entire blog post here. 

It is with a particular fascination that I’ve been following the speeches that Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger) has been delivering in his native Germany. We can certainly hear Herr Doktor Professor Ratzinger in the distinctively academic rhetoric of the addresses, but we also hear the voice of a pastor, uttering a cri de coeur to his wandering flock. In his first speech on the tarmac in Berlin, upon being welcomed by the officials of the German government, Benedict XVI specified that his main purpose was not to foster diplomatic relations between the German nation and the Vatican City State—as welcome as that would be—but rather to speak of God...

Read the rest of Father Barron's column here.

First, and to the point: this is an excellent book, the new standard to give to the seeker, the RCIA participant, the college student, the non-Catholic spouse, the skeptical friend. It is slender and readable, accessible, creative, and thorough. It is artful. It is the fruit of both an accomplished scholar and a popular writer. I highly recommend it.

As I was reading it an image came to mind. In 1895 the French artist Paul Cézanne produced a still life painting entitled The Basket of Apples. Like any still life, it appears to the viewer first as a picture of something: apples spilled out of a basket onto a table. One is immediately drawn to what the painting is about, its subject. At face value, Barron’s book does something that any number of other books do: present the subject of Catholicism by walking the reader through many of its key elements. There are ten chapters (a good Biblical number) on revelation; the person and teachings of Jesus; God; Mary; Peter and Paul; the Church; the liturgy; saints; prayer; and last things. So at this face value, Barron gives us a very pithy presentation of the Catholic Church’s major doctrines.

But there is something remarkable about Cézanne’s painting, and something remarkable about Barron’s book. Just about any new art student can paint apples on a table, and any blogger can write some ideas he gained by flipping through the Catechism. Cézanne’s painting demands a careful look: the table seems oddly disjointed, as if it were painted from different perspectives. The flashes of light that are the apples resist the structure of photographic realism. Cézanne started with a blank canvas and made very specific choices to paint the way he did; why did he do things this way? Analogously, I asked myself, why did Barron do things this way, rather than (say) just expounding on the Catechism of the Catholic Church? What were these men trying to say, and what were they trying to elicit from us?...

Visit patheos.com for the rest of Mr. Muldoon's comments on the book.

[PBS'] “Civilization” was the perfect way to finish a serious undergraduate liberal arts education; it brought together ideas, art, architecture and history in a visually compelling synthesis of the history of western culture that respected Catholicism’s role in shaping the West.

Over the next four decades, I wondered whether someone, somewhere, at some point, would do a “Civilization”-like series on Catholicism itself: a Grand Tour of the Catholic world that explored the Church as a culture through its teaching, its art, its music, its architecture—and above all, through the lives it shaped. That has now happened. The result is the most important media initiative in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States.

WTTW, Chicago’s premier public television station, announced that it will premiere and distribute four episodes of Catholicism – a multi-part documentary series for public television – in October 2011 to public television stations nationwide. This epic television production illustrates the history and treasures of a global religion shared by more than one billion people around the world. The series is filmed in stunning high-definition and spans more than 50 locations in 15 countries. 

Read the entire Press Release here. 

On May 1, Pope Benedict XVI will celebrate the Solemn Mass and Beatification before hundreds of thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square and for millions of television viewers around the world. This is the first time a pope has beatified his immediate predecessor.

Read the Press Release here. 

"Father Bob Barron, my good friend, reminds me of Archbishop Sheen." says Archbishop Dolan. "We were so proud of Fulton Sheen because he embodied the truth, the beauty, the light, the warmth of Catholicism. He was able to present the timeless truths of our beloved Catholic faith in a very timely manner and able to tie in art, architecture, news, humor, sports and you name it - to bring that to bear in the Gospel, and the teaching of Jesus and his Church. He did it in a dynamite way. I think we've got a winner in Fr. Bob Barron, he speaks with that same eloquence and that same pizazz and same conviction."

Barron is a professor at University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary and is one of the world's most innovative teachers of Catholicism. His global media ministry called "Word on Fire" has a simple but revolutionary mission - to educate and engage the culture.

“The faith of the Church is our strength,” says Barron. “Our program will strive to show viewers the richness of the Catholic faith and how it is a treasure to be shared now and with future generations. The faith imbues our life with meaning and imparts to all a renewed sense of purpose.”

Father Robert Barron is a sought-after speaker on the spiritual life. He has published numerous books, essays and DVDs. Word on Fire, a non-profit organization, has attracted millions of viewers and listeners to its web site www.WordOnFire.org and its programs on other media outlets.

Please tune in to WGN America nationally Sunday mornings at 9:30 am Eastern/8:30 am Central for “Word on Fire with Father Robert Barron“(the WGN Chicago broadcast airs at 9:30 am central). Funds for the program have been raised through private donations.

Media inquiries, contact Nanette Noffsinger at nanetten(at)aol(dot)com or 615-776-4230.