The Catholic Culture Podcast

One of the most creative rock bands around today is Virginia-based indie rock trio The Duskwhales. Drummer/singer Chris Baker joins me to talk about their new EP, Hospital Dreams, a set of melancholic, folky acoustic songs he wrote while battling cancer. In this episode I also discuss the Metropolitan Museum of Art's controversial Heavenly Bodies exhibit, and give a couple of movie recommendations. Links Listen to and purchase Hospital Dreams on Bandcamp https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/album/hospital-dreams My interview with The Duskwhales about their 2017 album Sorrowful Mysteries https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otc.cfm?id=1473 Follow The Duskwhales on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheDuskwhales/ Timestamps 1:32 Heavenly Bodies exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Movie recommendations 12:34 Babette's Feast 15:28 A Quiet Place 19:41 Chris Baker interview (songs used with permission) 20:39 Song: "Hospital Dreams" by The Duskwhales 24:32 The story behind Hospital Dreams: Chris's cancer 27:41 Writing songs as a way of occupying time during chemo 28:42 Song discussion: "Hospital Dreams" 29:57 You can't spell the word "chemotherapy" without "mother": Mary in " All Her Wonder" and "Turn White" 32:20 The band's first time self-recording 33:56 Plans for a trilogy of albums 35:20 Keyboardist Brian Majewski's departure and return 36:10 Hospital Dreams cover art 37:23 Chris's ill-fated but diverting Twitter campaign 38:09 The Duskwhales' future 39:02 Music Chris is currently listening to; influences on Hospital Dreams 44:25 Weekly excerpt: Hans Urs von Balthasar

There is an easy, short, perfect and sure way to save our failing Western civilization that is often overlooked in the endless slew of books and articles penned by Catholic intellectuals: Turn to Mary. Carrie Gress's book The Marian Option: God's Solution to a Civilization in Crisis reminds us that in crisis after overwhelming civilizational crisis, Mary has saved the day when her children had the humility and simplicity to beg her for help. Our age is no different. In this episode, Carrie and I discuss The Marian Option, as well as her latest book, Marian Consecration for Children, the importance of women in the church, and the pernicious attempts by "Catholic feminists" to remake Mary in the image of Beyonce. Come, Holy Spirit! Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us! Links: The Marian Option https://amzn.to/2IIYvSd Marian Consecration for Children https://amzn.to/2KHydju Carrie's blog, My Favorite Catholic Things https://myfavoritecatholicthings.com/ Helena Daily https://www.helenadaily.com/ Books on Marian consecration for adults: St. Louis de Montfort: True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin https://amzn.to/2IEn4zB Preparation for Total Consecration According to St. Louis de Montfort, Fr. Hugh Gillespie, S.M.M. https://amzn.to/2Lgqom1 33 Days to Morning Glory, Fr. Michael E. Gaitley, M.I.C. https://amzn.to/2KKnZ1Q Other books mentioned: The World's First Love, Ven. Fulton J. Sheen https://amzn.to/2IDocU9 Jesus and His Mother, Fr. Andre Feuillet (out of print) https://amzn.to/2s17cQA Ultimate Makeover: The Transforming Power of Motherhood, Carrie Gress https://amzn.to/2KJ7LGh Timestamps: Carrie Gress interview 2:55 Carrie's book panned by wacky individual 4:15 Origin of The Marian Option—nothing wrong with Benedict, but Mary is more powerful, central and directly relevant to contemporary challenges 9:17 The big picture of Mary's influence on world history; Mary's influence on the Battle of New Orleans 10:12 Little-known intercontinental links between Marian events; example: Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Reconquista, the conversation of Mexico and the Battle of Lepanto 15:26 Why the Marian Option is not just an option 17:15 How cultures flourish under Mary 18:41 Why Catholic intellectuals look to their own pet projects to save the West and not to Mary; hang-ups about private revelation; the limits of argumentation 26:01 Carrie's new book, Marian Consecration for Children; giving children a sense of their mission here and now 37:01 The influence of women on culture 40:15 The importance of women, feminine spirituality and the Church as feminine vs. modern "feminization" of the Church 47:10 The attempts by "Catholic feminists" to make their own Mary 53:54 "Equal" is not a useful word 55:09 Women are demonstrably unhappier under today's model of womanhood 57:30 Sts. John Paul II and Edith Stein on feminism 1:00:59 The dangers of trying to create Catholic versions of ideologies 1:02:48 Carrie's new content aggregate site for Catholic women, Helena Daily 1:07:00 Books on Marian consecration for adults 1:10:24 This week's excerpt: Ven. Fulton J. Sheen This podcast is a production of CatholicCulture.org. If you like the show, please consider supporting us! http://catholicculture.org/donate/audio

The history of Catholicism in the native American nations is little known, but is rife with lessons for lay spirituality, inculturation, and the New Evangelization. Today's guest, journalist Peter Jesserer Smith, shares some of the holy treasures of American history, such as Joseph Chiwatenhwa and Marie Aonetta, the Huron "power couple" of evangelization, and the martyrs (numbering over a thousand) of the La Florida missions. Links Homily of Pope St. John Paul II at the Martyrs' Shrine (Huronia) on Saturday, 15 September 1984 https://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/homilies/1984/documents/hf_jp-ii_hom_19840915_santuario-huronia.html Friends of God: The Early Native Huron Church in Canada, by Bruce Henry (tells the story of Joseph Chiwatenhwa and Marie Aonetta) http://www.wyandot.org/friendsofgod.htm Eustace Ahasistari, Catholic Huron warrior, as described by Jesuit missionaries https://books.google.com/books?id=xqRBAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA252&lpg=PA252&dq=Eustace+Ahasistari&source=bl&ots=7ifewQvpp4&sig=1sIn-WpAEKEBgaaEQOhwVvJDkfk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjehPf5ku_aAhWMnOAKHU7dDzYQ6AEIMDAD#v=onepage&q=Eustace%20Ahasistari&f=false Articles by Peter Jesserer Smith America's first paths of holiness: Lives of indigenous saints and martyrs https://angelusnews.com/content/america-s-first-paths-of-holiness-lives-of-indigenous-saints-and-martyrs Hundreds of Martyrs Sow the Seeds of Faith in the United States http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/north-american-martyrs-sow-the-seeds-of-faith-in-the-new-world St. Kateri Tekakwitha: Our Saint for All Seasons http://www.angelusnews.com/articles/st-kateri-tekakwitha-our-saint-for-all-seasons A holy marriage gave the Church a community of native saints, and St. Kateri Tekakwitha http://www.angelusnews.com/articles/a-holy-marriage-gave-the-church-a-community-of-native-saints-and-st-kateri-tekakwitha St. Kateri and the Four Holy Martyrs from Kahnawake http://www.angelusnews.com/articles/st-kateri-and-the-four-holy-martyrs-from-kahnawake A proven path to holiness: Mentoring a saint https://angelusnews.com/content/a-proven-path-to-holiness-mentoring-a-saint Cause Opens for Nicholas Black Elk, Holy Man of the Lakota http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/cause-opens-for-nicholas-black-elk-holy-man-of-the-lakota Timestamps: Peter Jesserer Smith interview 3:25 Why is native American Catholic history and culture important for the New Evangelization? 6:37 St. John Paul II's 1984 address at the Martyr's Shrine in Huronia 7:35 What were the missionaries impressed with in native American cultures? What aspects of native cultures resonated with the Gospel? In the Great Lakes region: family-based societies, devotion to the Creator 11:29 The lay missionary power couple of the Huron: Joseph Chiwatenhwa (a convert of St. Jean de Brebeuf) and his wife Marie Aonetta 13:51 Native American societies were set up almost more like the United States than like Europe, so the old European model of "convert the king and the people will follow" was and is obsolete 16:16 More on Joseph and Marie. Women have a lot of authority in Native societies in this region, so Marie's active involvement in evangelization is essential 20:35 Hostility from some natives because Jesuits inadvertently brought disease, leading to Chiwatenhwa's martyrdom 32:02 Joseph Chiwatenhwa was the first lay parish administrator in Canada; Native converts' devotion to the Eucharist, the Liturgy of the Hours, and the Rosary 34:18 Not everything in Huron culture was compatible with the Catholic faith. What would it have meant to be a Huron warrior who was also a Christian? Example: Eustace Ahasistari 40:00 Funny—well, it's interesting—it's not hilarious—story about Eustace Ahasistari's and St. Isaac Jogue's very different responses to torture 44:35 Reasons why these native Catholics have not been canonized; their continuing relevance 47:30 Ritual adoption and how it helped transmit the Gospel between tribes and nations—all the way to St. Kateri Tekakwitha; the importance of preserving the languages which spread the faith 52:38 The hundreds of martyrs of the La Florida missions 59:04 The lead martyr, Antonio Cuipa 1:11:18 The lessons of inculturation in native American nations are increasingly relevant at a time when more and more American Catholic thinkers are questioning the foundations of our country and proposing various alternatives 1:12:14 This week's excerpt: Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

Operation Rescue is the largest civil disobedience movement in American history. It even dwarfs the civil rights movement, with over fifty thousand people having been arrested between 1988 and 1992 for nonviolently blockading abortion clinics. Yet most people, even most Catholics, don't know the story. On the rare occasions when it has been covered by the media, it has been falsely and laughably portrayed as violent and extremist. Today's episode is something of an oral history of Operation Rescue, told by Bill Cotter, head of OR Boston, who spent 19 months in prison for his involvement with the protests. You'll also hear from CatholicCulture.org's own Phil Lawler, who provided the public face of OR Boston while Bill was in jail, and also wrote a book about the movement in 1992. Links Phil Lawler's book, Operation Rescue: A Challenge to the Nation's Conscience https://www.amazon.com/Operation-Rescue-Challenge-Nations-Conscience/dp/0879735066 Operation Rescue Boston http://orboston.org/ Operation Rescue national website http://www.operationrescue.org/ Footage of police brutality against Rescuers during the "Summer of Mercy", in which tens of thousands of pro-lifers flocked to Wichita and thousands were arrested https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSPto_gQ5CU Footage of L.A. police breaking a Rescuer's arm with nunchucks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6H-8_VE6Oc Timestamps: Bill Cotter interview 3:00 Description of a rescue 6:49 Tactics to delay police from dragging people away 10:13 Factors that kept Operation Rescue from continuing to operate as a mass movement blockading abortion clinics after its heyday in the late 80s and early 90s: court injunctions, most people unwilling to go to jail for longer than a weekend 12:07 Most of the people involved were not activist types and the rescues were not demonstrations. They had a specific concrete goal: on that day, at that time, in that place, to prevent babies from being killed 14:31 According to Phil Lawler's book Operation Rescue, in between 1988 and 1992 over 50,000 Rescuers had been arrested—about six times as many arrests as during the entire civil rights movement! So why don't more people know about OR? (Need I have asked?) 17:00 Lack of support and even hostility from some Catholic clergy today towards pro-life movement 18:19 Police brutality against Rescuers in West Hartford, CT and elsewhere 22:22 Bill spent 19 months in jail 27:15 Mixed response to OR in Boston 29:19 The genesis of OR; the early days; getting more and more attention 34:06 Bill's participation in Rescues outside Boston; Rescues accompanying St. JPII's visit to the US in 1987; the Summer of Mercy in Wichita 37:39 What is OR doing today? 39:54 Is it true that the young people are becoming more pro-life? 42:05 Learning about Operation Rescue is a challenge to our complacency and desensitization to the continued toleration of abortion. Why shouldn't I be in jail right now? 47:51 Importance of prayer 49:28 How people can learn more and get involved with OR 50:31 Current signs of hope for the pro-life movement; eschatological hope Phil Lawler interview 55:12 How Phil got involved with Operation Rescue 56:35 His first impression of OR people 57:52 Phil was the public face of OR Boston while Bill Cotter was in jail 58:47 Being arrested 59:55 Phil's interactions with the media on behalf of OR, personal experience of media bias 1:02:00 How the archdiocese of Boston treated OR 1:04:07 The media and others routinely accused OR of violence; Ted Kennedy made a speech saying OR had "a policy of firebombing and even murder"(!!!) 1:04:59 The optimism of the pro-life movement at this time 1:07:52 The draconian penalties judges imposed on the protesters 1:10:24 Why do so few Catholics know about OR? 1:11:02 Couldn't the Rescuers have called the bluff on these long prison sentences and brought the whole thing to a standstill? Phil gives his own personal answer 1:13:27 Joan Andrews, the Dorothy Day of the modern pro-life movement; today's Red Rose Rescues 1:15:20 This week's excerpt: Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est

Tony Mockus, Sr. has been Catholic his entire life, and an actor for almost as long. He has worked with countless great performers including Henry Fonda, Elizabeth Montgomery, Robert De Niro and Kevin Costner. In this interview he discusses his seven decades on the stage and screen, the life-changing experience of being wounded in Korea, the role of the Holy Spirit in artistic performance, and his love of St. Anthony. Tony Mockus, Sr. on IMDB https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0595166/ (note that some of Tony's roles have been mistakenly logged on his son's page https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0595165/) Timestamps: Tony Mockus, Sr. interview 4:54 How Tony prepared to play St. Paul in the Truth & Life Dramatized Audio Bible 7:24 Spiritual wake-up call: wounded by a mine in Korea 13:30 The Holy Spirit at work in an actor's performance 23:14 Life with St. Anthony 26:39 Tony's early years in Cicero, Illinois; digression into the decline of the variety show and the nature of Northern Virginia culture 31:25 A Jesuit priest at Tony's high school forces him to try acting, with great success 36:44 Tony and Thomas both played the lead role in The Man Who Came to Dinner as high school seniors, several decades apart, but Tony's production also included a teenaged Bob Newhart 39:00 Tony's first professional acting jobs as a teen 43:22 The spiritual influence of Tony's mother and grandmother 46:12 Traveling in the show Mr. Roberts, with castmates like Henry Fonda; Tony's formation from his Jesuit education and mother and grandmother allowed him to discern what to embrace and what to avoid in the traveling show business lifestyle 48:50 A brief move to New York, then back to Chicago where he starts to work as a leading man and gets married 53:19 Evangelical work for radio with the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago 56:52 Keeping one's moral integrity in choosing roles 59:17 Tony starts working in film and television 62:17 The fun of playing the bad guy 63:07 The Untouchables (1987): Working for director Brian De Palma; funny story about Robert De Niro 1:11:29 Two great actresses Tony worked with; generosity and professionalism on set 1:15:15 A funny David Mamet story; politics in theatre 1:20:12 Retirement 1:21:32 Acting with his son, Tony Mockus, Jr.; advice to young Catholics who want to be actors 1:25:08 This week's excerpts: J. R. R. Tolkien, Jacques Maritain