Catholic Heritage Show W/ Dr. Estrada

Should Catholics support ecumenical dialogue? In this episode we take a quick second to make some important points about ecumenism. First, we ask the question: what is ecumenism? After dispelling false understandings of this key term, we talk about the true nature of ecumenical dialogue. We note that ecumenical dialogue is first and foremost an honest investigation into the claims of other Christian groups. Ecumenical dialogue first seeks to determine what other Christians believe about their faith, morals and spiritual practices. With these key pieces in place, we then ask what should be the main reason why Catholic support ecumenical dialogue? The answer may come as a surprise to some. Join us for today’s episode as we probe the central reason why Catholics should support ecumenical dialogue.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode103   The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings a

Nearly 500 years ago, Pope Paul III called for the the Council of Trent (1545-1563) to address the challenges issued by the Protestant Reformation. This nearly two-decades long ecumenical council met to discuss numerous challenges posed to the Catholic Church not only by the Protestant Reformers but also by the internal dysfunction within the Catholic Church. Join us this week as we discuss the main reasons why the Council of Trent convened.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode102 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighbors. Dr. Erik Estrada is a Catholic scholar who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and specializes in the history of Christianity and historical theology. He also completed a licentiate (S.T.L) in theology and patristic science at the Augus

Since the early 1500s, Paul has often been presented as someone who defended salvation by faith alone. Many Catholic Christians living in the United States have often been told that Paul presents a decidedly favorable perspective of the idea that salvation comes solely through faith. In this episode, we examine this claim by considering Paul’s statements about a certain dissolute Christian brother who was living in Corinth. Among other things, Paul required the church to excommunicate this man so that as a result of this penitential process, this nefarious person’s soul could one day be saved. Join us this week as we begin our series of studies on the forgotten statements of Paul which illustrate his Catholic commitments.     To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode101 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve

In this our 100th episode, we talk about the life of Roger Flores, my next-door neighbor and my best friend. I talk about the critical life lessons which Roger taught me by word and example. Join us this week as we talk about the short but potent life of this young man, Roger Flores.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode100 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighbors. Dr. Erik Estrada is a Catholic scholar who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and specializes in the history of Christianity and historical theology. He also completed a licentiate (S.T.L) in theology and patristic science at the Augustinianum Patristic Institute in Rome and a S.T.B. at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas. If you would like to invite Dr. Estrada to speak at your ne

What is the Catholic approach to interpreting the Bible? This is a difficult question because it demands a series of shows to treat it adequately. In this episode, we talk about the importance of considering the intention of the author. In other words, what did the author intend to communicate to the original audience when the author composed those words? Since the earliest days of the Church, the intention of the author has played an important role in the considerations which Catholics have brought to interpreting the various books of the Bible. When Origen, Irenaeus and others attempted to explain the biblical text, they often first considered the author’s intention. They would look at the author’s word choice, consider the literary and historical context and evaluate the overall message presented in the text. After having done that careful reading of the text, they then sought to identify the central objectives of the author. For the Church Fathers and for the Scholastics, especially those who commented on

One of the recent characteristics of Catholic critics of Pope Francis is their disregard for literary context. By literary context, I am referring to the immediate sentences preceding and following a given text of consideration. Time and again, I have seen the critics of Pope Francis excerpt a particular statement without any attention to the literary context. In this episode, I show how this lack of attention to literary context characterized much of the exegesis offered by Gnostic Christian commentators and theologians. Instead, Gnostic Christian thinkers like Ptolemy, Heracleon and other selected key motifs from the New Testament and built out their various theological systems. Their interpretation of New Testament texts was characterized by a focus on motifs and ideas rather than on the literary context which supplied the backdrop for those particular statements on which they directed the focus of their comments. I show how there is a strong similarity in this approach with the criticisms leveled by Engli

The Anabaptists were groups of non-Catholic Western Christians who were opposed to the Catholic Church on the one hand, and the Protestant Reformation on the other. All Anabaptists groups agreed on the principle of believer’s baptism, which they believed, excluded infants. Most Anabaptist group accepted the central claims to authority offered by the Protestant Reformation, namely, the doctrine of sola scriptura (scriptura alone). They agreed in principle with the Protestant Reformers that the Scripture alone ought to decide what Christians ought to believe with regard to faith and morals. However, they interpreted those same Scriptures to very different ends, especially in the area of the administration of the sacraments. They repudiated the doctrine of infant baptism, which some Anabaptists regarded as the first and fundamental error of the Roman Catholic Church, even though it was openly advocated and practiced by the Protestant Reformers. The Lutheran and the Swiss Reformations, headed respectively by Mart

What is the value of dialogue? Dialogue is the exchange of ideas between two people in efforts to attain the truth. In this episode we talk about the use of dialogue by the two great doctors of the church Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. We argue that dialogue was an integral means in their process of discerning the truth. Some of Augustine’s earliest treatises were dialogues. Shortly after his conversion, Augustine spent some time engaging in dialogue with family and friends over the Life Questions. We also note that much of Aquinas’ exegesis was framed in dialogue with his sources from the early Church Fathers to the Scholastics. Join us this week as we talk about the value of dialogue in discerning the truth.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode96 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Chur

How much did it cost to publish a book in the sixteenth century? In this episode, we briefly discuss the costs involved in the production of a manuscript during the sixteenth-century. The exorbitant costs reflect the intensity of the convictions of many, if not all, involved in the production of a book from the author to the bookseller. Join us this week as we talk about the literary culture of the Catholic heritage during the early modern era.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode95 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighbors. Dr. Erik Estrada is a Catholic scholar who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and specializes in the history of Christianity and historical theology. He also completed a licentiate (S.T.L) in theology and patristic science at the Aug

Why should someone take the time to look into the sources themselves? In this episode we talk about the importance of reading or viewing the original sources for oneself. Numerous online media outlets attempt to present a certain picture of a given individual, movement or group based on a specific agenda. For anyone who is interested in learning more about about the history of the Catholic faith or any other significant topic for that matter, it is imperative that they take the time to look into the sources for themselves. In this episode, I briefly talk about the importance of reading any author, regardless of their particular religious or political view, for oneself. In order to get closer to the truth about an individual, political view or religious movement, readers must to the best of their ability trying to come engaged the various media (i.e., literary materials, videos and audio files) produced by those aforementioned groups. The labor of actually reading through a primary source text must be done bef

What did Martin Luther and the early Lutherans believe about the Sacrament of Confession? In this episode, we talk about Luther’s acceptance of the Sacrament of Confession and the practice of the private absolution of sins. We maintain that this is an important historical fact to note for Catholic Christians because many Catholics in the United States are often told that despite their various differences all Protestants agree on the central and distinctive teachings of the Protestant faith, namely, the doctrine of justification by faith alone in the doctrine of scripture alone (sola scriptura). In this episode, we not only begin a new series titled Protestant Agreements and Differences but we also begin to probe this claim about Protestant unity in the two chief articles of Protestantism, namely, justification by faith alone and Scripture alone. Join us as we discuss some of the most important statements ever left by Luther and the early Lutherans concerning the Sacrament of Confession.   To comment on this s

What role do parallel passages play in the study of the Catholic heritage? In this episode we talk about the importance of looking at parallel source documents for getting a better sense of the Catholic heritage. In other words, if one wishes to understand the contents of the letters written by Augustine of Hippo, Catherine of Siena or any other major figure in Church history, for example, it would be very helpful to understand what other letters of that same era convey. Understanding their argument, purpose, character etc. is critical to interpreting letters within their own culture framework. Join us this week as we talk about the role that other parallel source documents play in the proper interpretation of the various records of the Catholic heritage.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode92 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that

Where should one look for English translations of the various statements left by the Bishops of Rome on faith and morals? In this episode, we talk about the Enchiridion Symbolorum: Compendium of Creeds, Definitions, and Declarations on Matters of Faith and Morals, which was compiled by Heinrich Denzinger. This book provides the numerous statements about Christian doctrine and morals made by the popes from the early centuries to the present. We provide a brief history of this book’s first compilation in the early nineteenth century and its numerous subsequent editions and translations since. Join us this week as we talk about yet another excellent tool for the study of the Catholic heritage.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode91 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighb

What considerations did Thomas Aquinas bring to the study of the Bible? In this episode, we briefly discuss some of the key underlying principles in Aquinas’ approach to the biblical text. We discuss, among other things, his commitment to the church’s fundamental reliability. Before ever reading a single passage from the Bible, Aquinas accepted specific ideas about the church and its reliability as a transmitter of information about Jesus, his mission and his continued work in the world. We note that first and foremost, Aquinas was committed to the authority of the Catholic Church. Like Augustine, Aquinas believed that faith in the Scriptures demanded faith in the church which canonized those Scriptures. Join us this week as we discuss the at times unstated ecclesial dimensions of Aquinas’ interpretation of the Bible.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode90 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the

The Catechism of the Catholic Church is often a neglected source for the study of the Catholic heritage. In one affordable volume, Catholic Christians of nearly country have access to an incredible resource containing the teachings of the Catholic faith. In this brief episode, we explain why we think the Catechism of the Catholic Church is an excellent place to begin when attempting to figure out what exactly the Catholic Church teaches on a given subject.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode89 The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighbors. Dr. Erik Estrada is a Catholic scholar who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and specializes in the history of Christianity and historical theology. He also completed a licentiate (S.T.L) in theology and patristic scienc

https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode87

Of all the ecumenical councils in the history of the Catholic Church, the Council of Trent (1545-1563) produced by far some of the most extensive documentation for its proceedings. To date, nearly 20 volumes have been produced documenting the various speeches, letters and decrees issued by the Council of Trent. Every speech and nearly every major letter in connection to the work of the council has been preserved. In this episode, we talk about the enormity of the Council of Trent’s output and the scant attention given to the actual records produced by the council fathers on the part of its critics. Join us this week as we talk about the extensive literary output produced by the Council of Trent and the critical considerations one should bear in mind whenever attempting to engage the decisions of this council.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode86   The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the histor

How important are dates for the study of the Catholic heritage? In this episode, we talk about the importance of dates for understanding the conclusions reached by famous figures in Catholic history. We talk about the commentarial work by Origen and Marius Victorinus, who provided the first commentaries on the Pauline Epistles in the Eastern and Western Churches. Join us this episode, as we talk about the importance of dates for understanding the history of the Catholic heritage.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode85   The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighbors. Dr. Erik Estrada is a Catholic scholar who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and specializes in the history of Christianity and historical theology. He also completed a licentiate (S.T.L) in the

In general introductions to the history of the Bible or in books critical of Catholic Christianity, the claim is often made that the Council of Trent was the first ecumenical Council to canonize the Deuterocanonical books. This claim is made in order to give the impression to the reader that the Council of Trent’s decision to canonize the Deuterocanonical books was novel and unprecedented in the history of Christianity. In this episode, we evaluate the veracity of this claim by looking at the records of other medieval councils that spoke about the canonicity of the Deuterocanonical books. Join us this week as we discuss the status of the Deuterocanonical books in the late medieval church.   To comment on this show or provide feedback, please navigate to https://catholicheritageshow.com/episode84   The Catholic Heritage is devoted to helping Catholic Christians better understand the history, teachings and culture of their Catholic faith so that they can better love and serve Christ, the Church and their neighb