For Christmas my husband bought me Fr. Robert Barron's video series Catholicism. Portions of the series have been shown on PBS and EWTN but the discs have much more that was not shown on television. I can't say enough about the quality of this series.
Two of my favorite episodes were the ones on the Blessed Mother and the one on the saints. I used the episode on the Blessed Mother with our RCIA class two weeks ago since I bought the series for work. They said it really assisted them in understanding who Our Lady is as well as the Church's teaching on her. Even our team members said they learned a lot by viewing it.
The episode on the saints impressed me since he chose only women to focus on, and these women were ones who all gave up a very privileged life to dedicate themselves to God. He chose Katherine Drexel, Therese of Lisieux, Edith Stein, and Mother Teresa. He begins the episode with the story of Jesus getting into Peter's boat, without permission, and ordering him to "put out into the deep" (Lk.5:4). After catching multitudes of fish, Peter leaves his livelihood to follow Jesus. Fr. Barron says that "Saints are those who allow Jesus to get into their boats." I found that a very powerful statement which also challenges me. Do I allow Jesus into my boat? Am I willing to leave everything to follow Him?
I am hoping to use the series at work in ways other than RCIA. It's great for Adult Faith Formation and for Small Christian Communities. I was thinking of even inviting a few friends over to my house perhaps one evening once or twice a month to view the videos and discuss what we got out of them. My husband and I have already had some discussions after viewing the DVDs. The cost is a bit high but it is a bit less expensive on Amazon. I decided to purchase it from Fr. Barron's ministry Word on Fire to help support the great work he does. Why not ask your pastor to purchase it for the parish?
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