Lenten Listening: Podcasts

Here are some of my favorite faith podcasts which can prove helpful at Lent. To be fair, I tend to listen to most of them year-round.

Every Knee Shall Bow

This is a podcast about how to evangelize, which always brings up memories of Hyde Park. No thank you. Then my daughter Rose, who listens to such things to help with RCIA conversations, recommended it. And she was right! The hosts have good chemistry and are fun to listen to. They understand the things that make most of us cringe away from evangelizing and have a lot of helpful tips — some of which I've actually used. Also, it is inspiring about how to live our faith to the fullest — which counts extra during Lent! Definitely give this one a try. (website link)

 

 

Catholic Classics

 Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P. and Fr. Jacob Bertrand Janczyk read a classic text, followed up with  insightful commentary and practical guidance. Because they do it in bite-sized installments, it's easy to digest. The first book was Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales, a personal favorite of mine. (website link)

 

The Catechism in a Year

From Ascension Press and Father Mike Schmitz, who took us through the Bible in a year — also comes The Catechism in a Year.

As before, Father reads the daily selection aloud while supplementing them afterward with context, inspiration, and insights. I actually enjoyed this even more than The Bible in a Year, and that's saying something! (website link)

 The Bible in a Year is also perfect Lenten listening. (website link)

Father Mike's weekly homilies homilies may be found here.  He also does short explanations about the Catholic faith for Ascension Press. Get them here.

Word on Fire — show

Half an hour with Bishop Robert Barron discussing everything from current movies to evangelization to pilgrimage, iPhones, and much more. They'll also feature audio from some of his talks, including those given at Facebook, Amazon, etc. Always interesting. (iTunes link, website link)

For Bishop Barron's homilies go here: iTunes link, website link

Old Books with Grace 

Grace is a medievalist, scholar and teacher. She has a very accessible style. She has done a Lenten series which I greatly benefited from — Virtues and Vices. She's also done Advent and Christmas series which I've enjoyed. Try her out to see what she's got for this Lent. (website link)

The Symbolic World

Jonathan Pageau looks at symbolism in our culture (ancient and current) and shows us meanings that we had long forgotten but that make real sense. Any reader of Scripture will recognize the way he dives through layers of meaning and pulls out the essence for us to consider. He's Orthodox and loves to show us the places faith shines through in regular symbolism. He'll also do interviews ranging from Jonathan Peterson, Bishop Barron and many more. Simply fascinating. He does both videos and podcasts.

A Good Story is Hard to Find

Two Catholic friends talk about the books and movies they love and the traces of the One Reality that lie below the surface.

Yes, this is the podcast that Scott Danielson and I do every couple of weeks. Looking for God in the stories that entertain us might be just the Lenten inspiration you need to see God interacting in your life in a whole new way. (iTunes link, website link)

Pray-as-you-go

Daily prayer. This podcast is usually about 10 minutes. It begins with music (they use quite a variety from Lady Blacksmith Mogambo to French monks to contemporary worship style), then read from the scripture for the day. They give time for contemplation of this scripture with a series of gently asked questions that invite us to think about it in ways we might not otherwise. (iTunes link, website link)