Bishop Robert Barron

Like a great artist, the Holy Spirit, in the course of twenty-five years, has drawn together a variety of strands, colors, and textures to produce something beautiful in Word on Fire.

Today, join us in celebrating our ministry’s twenty-fifth anniversary!

It has long been my hope that “Heaven in Stone and Glass” would bring the beauty of the faith directly into the public square.

What a thrill, then, to see it lighting up the crossroads of the world—Times Square!

Both the book and the film will be released next week.

Friends, I had the joy of sitting down with Fr. Mike Schmitz to talk about Advent, the season of waiting. But waiting for what?

Jesus says, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete”.

What is that joy, and how do we find it? That’s the central question of the Christian life.

Fr. Mike and I discuss this and more.

Friends, Catholic social teaching holds two things together: a nation has the right, and the duty, to regulate its borders, and every migrant is a person of incomparable dignity who deserves generosity.

In January, amid the tensions in Minnesota, I proposed that enforcement focus on those who have committed serious crimes. Last year, together with my brother bishops of Minnesota, I called on Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform. What the President described Sunday in his 60 Minutes interview about immigration is very much in that spirit.

The President now proposes working with Democrats toward a solution that involves a properly regulated border, the deportation of people who have committed serious crimes, and a generous approach toward those who have been non-violent and have contributed to the economy. He even admitted that the enforcement of his immigration policy has been too tough.

That is the balance the Church’s teaching points toward. We have waited years for a solution to this thorny problem. I would strongly encourage leaders in both parties to take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity.

Friends, in the latest episode of the Word on Fire Show, I sat down with Matthew Petrusek to discuss the meaning of Catholic ordination. We examine why the Church maintains a distinction between clergy and laity, how ordination configures a man to Christ, the offices of deacon, priest, and bishop, common critiques of the practice, and the distinctive contribution of the ordained to the life of the Church and the work of evangelization.