Dr. Italy
In this brief video by Sherwood Fellows the key themes of Lent are explored - th...
In this 8 minute video, Marcellino D’Ambrosio, Ph.D. (Dr. Italy) shares so...
Saint Andrew of Crete on the nativity of Mary as a turning point between old and new covenant, the frontier where types and symbols give way to realit...
The parable of the merciless servant illustrates the meaning of "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us," a petition i...
September 11th is the anniversary of one of most brutal acts of terrorism of all time. Three days later, on September 14, the Catholic and Eastern Or...
The Sermon on the Mount in Matthew's gospel includes such tough such as love your enemies, turn the other cheek, and judge not. How are we to understand such things and put them into practice? The examples of Jesus & St. Thomas More...
Gregory the Great here reccounts a famous story of a very special encounter between Scholastica and her brother, the great abbot Benedict. St. Scholastica was born at Norcia (Nursia) Italy about the year 480. She vowed herself to seek God in religious life and...
On February 11, 1858, a 14 year old girl named Bernadette Soubirous had an encounter with a "beautiful lady" when she was gathering firewood on the French side of the Pyrenees, near a town called Lourdes. Here she tells the story of that encounter with...
The Beatitudes appear in the gospels of Matthew and Luke as part of the Sermon on the Mount. But what actually is the nature of true happiness? Must we be miserable in this world to be happy in the next? Faith and hope...
St. Methodius of Sicily reflects on the witness of St. Agatha, virgin, martyr and bride of Christ....
Eye-witness of the 16th century martyrdom of Japanese Martyrs, the Jesuit Paul Miki and companions. For their feast day on February 6....
Discipleship is about a call to embark upon an epic adventure, not about preserving the safe, comfortable and predictable mediocrity of business as usual. The disciples left behind everything to follow Jesus and journey down a road that would lead them through danger to...
A collection of quotes from St. Thomas Aquinas on the eucharist, the sacrament of sacraments....
Here Don John Bosco provides some guiding principles for youth ministry based on his legendary success at evangelizing and teaching young boys on the streets of Turin Italy during the days of the Industrial Revolution. In a day when harsh corporal punishment was the...
Francis de Sales, one of the great masters of the spiritual life, here makes clear that devotion, his term for the pursuit of holiness, is not something tied to a specific state of life. All people, in a way appropriate to their own calling...
John Chrysostom here gives eloquent praise to the passionate love of Christ that drove St. Paul to face persecution and hardship with joy and leave behind the honors and benefits of the world. It is read each year on January 25, the Feast of the...
Bible study and prayer with Scripture is absolutely necessary for Catholics. As St. Jerome said, ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ...
Sonrise Morning show hostess Anna Mitchell and Dr. Italy discuss a saint whose story caused a sensation in the Roman world of the fourth century - This 14 minute podcast focuses on the first St. Anthony, a hermit and abbot, who was renown for his...
Hilary, commenting on Psalm 133, points out the central importance of Christian unity and fraternal love. He even says that the chief instruction of the apostles is that believers be of one heart and one mind....
Everyone knows the story of the first of the Lord's "signs" -- how Jesus changed water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana at the request of Mary, his mother. But there is more to the story than at first meets the eye....
This excerpt from an Epiphany homily by St. Proclus is a great resource for a better understanding of the sacrament of baptism. It also helps us meditate on the rosary since the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan is the first 1st...
podcast describing the Jordan River by Dr. Italy who has visited numerous times the site where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist....
The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan closes the Christmas Season. This reflection on the scripture readings for the feast also provide us insight into the sacraments of baptism and Confirmation and give us food for meditation as we...
January 1 is a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics not because it is New Years, but because it is the octave (8th day) of Christmas, the feast of Mary the Mother of God. This feast helps bring home the reality of the incarnation, that...
This commentary on the Feast of the Epiphany uncovers the meaning of the term epiphany and explains why the Magi -- Caspar, Balthasar, Melchior, the three kings of Orient riding camels and carrying gold, frankincense, and myrrh -- are found, complete with crowns and camels,...
The Solemn feast of the Epiphany of the Lord traditionally occurs on January 6 following the twelve days of Christmas. Epiphany commemorates three scriptural events: the visit of the Magi to the stable of Bethlehem following the nativity of Jesus, Christ's Baptism in the Jordan,...
We all know the elements of the Christmas story: Caesar's census and Herod, shepherds and Magi, ox, swaddling clothes & manger, a stable and not room in the inn, Emmanuel and the Prince of Peace. But underneath each of these people, places, and things,...
December 26, The Second Day of Christmas, has been observed as the Feast Day of Saint Stephen, Protomartyr, since at least the fifth century. Fulgentius of Ruspe, a North African bishop, here notes how fitting it is that the birthday of love should be followed...
The Feast of the Holy Family challenges us to grow in the virtues of piety, honor, patience, and forbearance, and to learn to laugh together....
The custom of Giving gifts on Christmas & Birthdays is a meaningful tradition that can easily lose touch with its original meaning. Some tips to restore meaning & purpose to presents and gift-giving....
[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]raditions in art and literature and popular fable have quite sufficiently attested, as has been said, this particular paradox of the divine being in the cradle. Perhaps they have not so clearly emphasised the significance of the divine being in...
In this 13 minute podcast, Sonrise Morning Show host Anna Mitchell Interviews Dr. Italy on Advent as a season of Hope. What precisely is Scripture talking about when it tells us that hope is one of the most important things a Christian needs? And what...
This is an excerpt that recounts the famous apparition of the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, to the Indian, Juan Diego, on Tepeyac hill outside of Mexico City in the year 1531. The annual Feast commemorating this marvelous event is celebrated on December 12. [dropcaps...
John the Baptist is often thought of as a stern, grim figure. But as a matter of fact, he could be the patron saint of joy! Maybe that's why is is the focal point of the gospel for Gaudete or Rejoice Sunday, the...
This excerpt from St. Augustine's Treatise on John's Gospel (Tract. 123, 5: CCL 36, 678-680) is read on the feast day of St. Nicholas, December 6. It focuses on the real meaning of the gift-giving for which St. Nicholas is famous--the self-giving love of a...
In this 15 minute podcast, Anna Mitchell, host of the Sonrise Morning Show, discusses with Dr. Italy, the significance of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary and why this Marian doctrine serves as a bridge rather than an obstacle to unity between Catholics and...
Advent is a season of joy & hope. Paul says to rejoice in hope. But what is hope, anyway? How does this theological virtue differ from faith and what does it have to do with rejoicing?...
This beautiful prayer is traditionally said 15 times a day, from the feast of St. Andrew through Christmas Eve. While novenas are usually prayed for 9 days, this one lasts for 25, overlapping most if not all of the season of Advent. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color=''...
Before thanksgiving was an American holiday, it was a way of life for Jews and Christians alike, indeed a hallmark of the Judeo-Christian tradition. All ancient peoples gave thanks for creation; only Jews and Christians believe that God acted decisively in history to secure...
Prayer & table blessing for Thanksgiving Day. In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is a holiday with special religious significance. Originally it was celebrated by the Pilgrims and the Native Americans to give thanks to God after the harvest of 1621. In 1863 President...
The Advent season is more about preparing for the second coming of Christ than for Christmas. To prepare for his final coming is more about action than end-times speculation....
Here Faustinus shows how our Savior Jesus Christ was anointed with the Holy Spirit, the oil of gladness, as both priest and king. In this he is unlike all Old Testament figures except Melchizedek. It is used in the Roman Catholic Office of Readings for...
Augustine on the famous words of Jesus "anyone who does the will of my Father who sent me is my brother and sister and my mother." This indicates Mary's true greatness as a disciple, one who conceived not only in body, but in faith; Augustine...
The feast of Jesus Christ the Universal King was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 and is observed on the last Sunday of the Roman Catholic Liturgical Year. It causes us to meditate on the Second and Final Coming of Christ, the last Judgment,...
The story of St. Martin of Tours, the fourth century soldier turned bishop turned saint, as told by his contemporary, Sulpicius Severus....
Pope Pius XI on St. Josaphat, martyr and apostle of unity. Born in the Ukraine to Orthodox parents in 1580, St. Josaphat embraced the Catholic faith and became a Basilian monk. Ordained to the priesthood and chosen bishop of Polock, he worked for the unity...
The Apocalypse -- What does the Bible really teach about the End of the World, Armageddon, the second coming of Jesus Christ and the final battle against the Antichrist? The gospels and the book of Revelation raise many apocalyptic questions for Christians. For the 33rd...
Charles Borromeo, the bishop apostle of Northern Italy during the Catholic Reformation, on the primacy of prayer, read on his feast day, November 4. Though he is here addressing priests, his advice on meditation, distractions and recollection is valuable for all Christians....
The gospel story of the Widow's Mite and the Old Testament visit of the prophet Elijah to the Widow of Zarephath are well known bible tales. Two simple but heroic women -- who call us to heroic virtue in a hidden way, in the midst...
Can a Christian celebrate Halloween? In this article, Church historian Fr. Augustine Thompson sifts through the evidence to see if it supports the common belief that All Hallows Eve and its various customs had their origin in a pagan feast dating back to the Druids...
A podcast in which host Sonrise Morning show host Anna Mitchell asks Dr. Italy some interesting questions raised by the Church's Solemn feast of All Saints on November 1 - what does All Saints Day teach us about who we are and who we are...
Hear O Israel! Most have heard of the Great Commandment - to love God with your whole heart and your neighbor as yourself. But if God is just and salvation depends upon perfect obedience to this command, who can be saved?...
[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']S[/dropcaps]tatistics of the First 20 Years of Pope John Paul II's Pontificate John Paul II, Pope from 1978 to 2005, had the second longest reign of any of the Successors of St. Peter. Pope Pius IX had the longest tenure:...
Ioannes Paulus PP. II Veritatis splendor Splendor of Truth Pope John Paul II 1993.08.06 [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']B[/dropcaps]lessing Venerable Brothers in the Episcopate, Health and the Apostolic Blessing! The splendour of truth shines forth in all the works of the Creator and, in a special way, in man, created in the...
The story of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who met Jesus on the road to Jericho, is a dramatic event from the Gospel of Mark that illustrates something very important about the true nature of Christian faith....
Between the years 1642 and 1649 eight members of the Society of Jesus were killed in North America after brutal torture. These Jesuits had worked diligently to bring the native Americans of the region of what is now Upper New York and Canada to the...
In this podcast Dr. Italy describes the great Carmelite mystic, Teresa of Avila, pointing out how she combined practical wisdom, mysticism and a sense of humor in an extraordinary way. St. Teresa of Avila is rightly known as a towering figure in the history of the...
Brothers John and James, the sons of Zebedee, had ambition. When they make their famous request for places of honor In Mark's gospel, Jesus takes the opportunity to give them a lesson on the nature of true greatness as loving and serving, even to the...
[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']A[/dropcaps]nnunciation of the Angel to Mary This is the brightest point which links Heaven and earth; the greatest event of the centuries. The Son of God, the Word of the Father, by Whom all was made that was made in the...
A 16 minute podcast in which Sonrise Morning show host Ryan Lopez asks Dr. Italy some insightful questions about the rosary as a contemplative and Christ-centered prayer, Mary as the first contemplative, fruitful meditation on the mysteries, and practical tips on unlocking the power of...
Both the Rich Young Man in Mark's Gospel and King Solomon had a very difficult choice to make. In a similar moment of decision, what would be the desire of your heart? Wisdom and adventure, or comfort and convenience? Where do true riches...
14 minute podcast in which Sonrise Morning show guest host Ryan Lopez quizzes Dr. Italy about the life and impact of Jerome, bible scholar, father and Doctor of the Church and warrior for Christ. On the occasion of his feast day, September 30....
This brief description the little way of love of St. Therese of Lisieux, commonly known as the Little Flower, so perfectly captures the saint's personality that they are read every year on her feast day, October 1....
A podcast in which host Sonrise Morning show host Anna Mitchell asks Dr. Italy some interesting questions about the "real" St. Francis as opposed to urban legends that have grown around him....
Is annulment just a Catholic Divorce? This article explains the controversial Roman Catholic position on love as self-giving, marital intimacy, divorce, remarriage & celibacy....
St. Gregory the Great teaches us about the Archangels and why they are distinct from angels. For the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael on September 29....
Timeline and biographical highlights of the great 20th century Capuchin Franciscan Saint, Padre Pio of Pietralcina whose feast day is September 23. Comments and bio by Dr. Italy....
Dr. Italy discusses the Capuchin friar Padre Pio who in his lifetime was first famous in Italy and then the whole world for his stigmata and miracles worked through his intercession. How Christ's power is made perfect in weakness. The first thing people think about when...
These words of St. Vincent de Paul so clearly capture the essence of his vocation and ministry that they are read every year on the occasion of his feast day on September 27. The poor, when viewed with eyes of faith, give us the...
We so often condemn the Pharisees that we totally miss a sneaky way that we are often like them. The hard saying of Jesus "if you hand causes you to sin, cut it off" is a kind of shock therapy to wake us up...
An excerpt written to Cornelius, bishop of Rome condemned to exile and death for his faith, from his brother bishop Cyprian of Carthage, who was to be martyred a few years later. Read on the feasts of Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian on September 16....
St. Bede the Venerable on the call of Matthew, Tax Collector turned disciple, apostle & evangelist. Matthew, originally called Levi, was, as a publican, excommunicated from the life of the synagogue and shunned in Jewish society....
In this 14 minute podcast, Dr. Italy discusses the inspiring life of the great friend of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Claire. Her name means light or clarity, and the way she lived up to her name shows us the way to illumine our corner...
Envy, one of the seven deadly sins, is different from mere jealousy - it is darker and much more dangerous. Yet its cunning can be - and has been - defeated....
St. Andrew of Crete (8th Century) proclaims the victory, glory, and triumph of Christ crucified forr the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, the day that the stolen relics of the true cross were returned to Jerusalem in the early...
[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Dr.Italy, in this 14 minute podcast with Anna Mitchell, remembers the tragedy of 9/11 and shows the connection between the horror of terrorism, illustrated by the destruction of the twin towers, and the victory of the cross. 9/11 and...
The word amen is familiar to all. But few know its origins and its true meaning, which actually strikes at the very essence of what it means to believe and have faith....
Mother Teresa was a legend even in her lifetime. Quotes attributed to her and stories about her circulate constantly, some of them inaccurate and mistakenly attributed to her. We've tried to vet these quotes and stories to assure their authenticity....
Saint Andrew of Crete on the nativity of Mary as a turning point between old and new covenant, the frontier where types and symbols give way to reality. This reading shows that September 8th was celebrated as the birthday of Mary, daughter of Joachim and...
"Ephphatha!" The miracles of Jesus, particularly the story of Jesus' healing of the deaf - mute in the Gospel of Mark, raise a big questions -- did Jesus Christ truly work miracles and if so, was his motivation compassion or glory? For the 23rd Sunday...
In this video, Dr. Italy discusses Augustine's fight against both Manicheans and Pelagians defending free will on the one hand and the utter necessity of grace on the other in light of original sin....
The Beheading and Martyrdom of John the Baptist is remembered on August 29. Saint Bede here emphasizes that John died for Christ since he was killed for speaking the truth and Christ is the truth. He who baptized Christ was baptized in his own blood,...
What does the term Tradition really mean? Is it opposed to the Bible? The sola scriptura principle of the Protestant Reformation assumed it was -- here we examine this assumption in the light of a few key scriptures....
Bernard of Clairvaux extols wisdom as a hidden treasure and prudence as honey which delights the heart. Bernard himself came to be known as the “Mellifluous Doctor,” meaning the one from whose lips the wisdom of God flowed like honey....
St. Pope Pius X on the psalms which play a central role in the continual sacrifice of praise which is the divine liturgy of the Church. Singing the psalms is the best way to praise and bless God due to their inspiration by the Holy...
Belief that God exists is not quite what Scripture means by faith. The faith spoken of by Jesus, Paul, and John is a gift that is like a spiritual muscle - to be strong, it must be exercised. To LISTEN to this post read by Dr....