Oro Valley Catholic

They Flew: Be Skeptical about Skepticism

Jesus comes home to Nazareth in Mark 6. He is met with skepticism and rejection despite all of his signs and teaching. Dr. Carlos Eire of Yale University has written a book challenging the ubiquity of modern skepticism. In They Flew: A History of the Impossible, Dr. Eire discusses levitation and other preternatural phenomenon amongst three Catholics, St. Theresa of Avila, St. Joseph Cupertino and Ven. Maria Agreda. Multiple witnesses and many fantastic experiences open up a discussion of what is possible in reality. Eire challenges the comfortable skepticism and its foundations with a discussion of the history of the impossible.
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070724.cfm
Art: Saint Teresa of Avila Interceding for Souls in Purgatory
Workshop of Peter Paul Rubens Flemish (public domain)
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

God, Love And Loneliness

What is love? Is it based on the qualities another has, or the length of a relationship, or just something inside me? St. Thomas Aquinas maintains that all love is love of God according to our deepest desires. Learn more about love in this week's OVC.
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062324.cfm
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

The Tree Of Life and the Cross

The Tree of Life is an old, universal mythological symbol. It appears in Genesis 3 and Revelation 22. It is the center of the mystery of the Cross of Christ. Hear the story that contains all other stories - the tree of live this week on OVC.
Readings for 11th Sunday: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061624.cfm
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

Beelzebul And The Weight Of Glory

Jesus is accused of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul. Blasphemy is attacking the work of the Holy Spirit and consists in a lack of a sense of sin or 'hardness of heart' in the words of scripture. Mark 3, this week on OVC.
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/060924.cfm
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

Mother And Daughter Vocations

This week on OVC Sr. Therese Wong's mom, Sharon, gives her perspective on supporting the vocations of children. You are right! It involves prayer and some great stories.
Art: Mother and Daughter in Prayer, Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld German; Ludwig Ferdinand Schnorr von Carolsfeld Austrian, ca. 1811–17
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

The Most Holy Trinity- The Central Mystery Of Reality

Feast of the Most Holy Trinity
The Trinity is the central mystery of Christianity. The nature of God, one what and three divine persons or who's is the most important revelation of Christ. Go out, he told his apostles before he Ascended, to the whole world and baptize in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Most Holy Trinity, this week on OVC.
Art: Allegory of the Catholic Faith Johannes Vermeer Dutch, ca. 1670–72
Music: Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052624.cfm

Pentecost and the Fathers of the Church

The Feast of Pentecost and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit this week on OVC.
Readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/051924.cfm
Art: Plaque with the Pentecost -South Netherlandish - ca. 1150–75
The Acts of the Apostles recounts how they were infused with the Holy Spirit fifty days after Easter, an event celebrated by the feast of Pentecost. In this plaque, the use of gilding and of enamel over metal foil creates a shimmery effect appropriate to this mystical scene. Along with others of the same dimensions— including three in the main building of the Metropolitan Museum—it once decorated an imposing church furnishing, such as an altar, candlestick, or large cross.
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

The Ascension - A Door Out Of This World

This is a reboot of a pocast from the past about the Ascension. Miracles, like the Resurrection and the Ascension, are doors out of this world. Dr. Peter Kreeft, Ph.D, professor of Philosophy at Boston College and a prolific writed wrote. "When you think about it logically, there are two and only two philosophies of life. For either there are or there are not doors in the walls of the world. Either there is Nothing or Something outside Plato’s Cave. That sounds very abstract and philosophical. Let me make it very concrete. Two people are walking down a street together. There is an old stone wall on their left, too high to see over. As they approach an intersection, the sidewalk and the wall curve around to their left. As they approach the curve, the first walker is absolutely certain that when they turn the corner they will not see an angel walking through the wall. The second walker is not. Which walker are you? Which would you like to be? Kreeft, Peter. Doors in the Walls of the World: Signs of Transcendence in the Human Story (p. 8). Ignatius Press. Kindle Edition.
Met, public domain - ist: Related to Ascension tapestry, Vatican Scuola nuova set by Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi) (Italian, Urbino 1483–1520 Rome)
Well, who do you want to be? The readings for the Ascension are found here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052123-Ascension.cfm
Music: Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581 (Mozart) by Musicians from Marlboro is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License.

Sr. Therese Wong - The Love Of Christ Is The Source Of All True Vocations

Sr. Therese Wong, CFR is my special guest on OVC. Sr. Therese is a professed member of the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal. " The aim of the Community is to live the Gospel in simplicity according to the ideals of Saint Francis, as handed on by the Capuchin tradition. The values uniting the sisters include a strong Eucharistic prayer life, an emphasis on a common life marked by a warm family spirit, joyful imitation of Saint Francis and Saint Clare, faithfulness to the Magisterium of the Church and loyalty to the Holy Father." Her family are parishioners at St. Mark. here is her story.
Here is more about the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal:
https://www.franciscansisterscfr.com/
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294

Dignitatis Infinita- Part 2 - The Shepherd And The Vine

The Vatican's document "Dignitatis Infinita" is a statement on the nature of and the threats to human dignity. It is well worth meditating on during the Easter Season.
The Fifth Sunday of Easter
Jesus, at the Last Supper, said that he is the vine and we are the branches. We are rooted in him or we die. The body of Christ is Jesus' historic body, it is also the Church and it is also the Eucharist. Each roots the Catholic in the dignity that grace and God give. The Vatican's recent article on human dignity, Dignitatis Infinita, identifies the various modern challenges to the dignity. I explain further in the podcast at OVC.
Music by St. Mark Choir pursuant to One License Annual License w/Podcasting # A-726294
Art: Public domain: The Man of Sorrows
Italian
last quarter 14th century
Not on view
A monk and a hooded figure, his back bared so that he can whip himself in penitence, kneel before a dreamlike vision of Jesus rising from his tomb. This plaque, with an inscription naming the society of Saint Dominic, was probably intended for private prayer by a member of a Dominican brotherhood.
Focus on the crucified Christ and his suffering was widespread in the 1300s. Pope John XXII (reigned 1316–34) declared that the Imago pietatis should be evoked during the celebration of the Mass. Pope Innocent VI (reigned 1352–62) affirmed that devotion to the Instruments of the Passion would reduce punishment for sin after death; seen here are the vinegar-soaked sponge that was offered to Jesus on the cross and the lance that pierced his side.