Obesity Statistics

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[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']O[/dropcaps]besity Statistics: USA America's Five Fastest Growing Health Concerns 2001 1999 Obesity* 61.0% 56.4% Diabetes 18.3% 12.0% Depression 19.1% 14.8% Impotence 9.2% 7.4% Aging Related Problems 22.5% 19.2% *Obesity rates 27% in 1991. USA Obesity Rates Reach Epidemic Proportions 58 Million Overweight; 40 Million Obese; 3 Million morbidly Obese • Eight out of 10 over 25's Overweight • 78% of American's not...

12 February, 2022 /

[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']B[/dropcaps]eloved brethren, you have heard in the present reading how St Paul says I want you to be happy, always happy in the Lord. For the salvation of our souls God in his goodness calls us to the joys of...

02 February, 2022 /

In this 7 minute podcast, Dr. Italy discusses St. Thomas Aquinas and what he teaches us about the roles of faith and reason.  For his feast day on January 28. St. Thomas Aquinas . . . he is revered by many, but known by few. He is...

26 January, 2022 /

St. Vincent was a deacon of the Church of Saragossa, Spain in the first years of the fourth century. In the course of the brutal persecution of the emperor Diocletian, Vincent was apprehended and ordered to surrender the sacred books. When he refused, he was...

18 January, 2022 /

A 14 minute podcast.   Sonrise Morning show host Anna Mitchell interviews Dr. Italy about the meaning of the Solemnity of Sts Peter & Paul on June 29 .  Why the martyrdom of these two pre-eminent apostles in Rome gave special status to the Roman Church...

18 January, 2022 /

Podcast in which Dr. Italy identifies spiritual warfare as underlying the current malaise in the world and America.  A spiritual battle can only be fought effectively with spiritual weapons, first and foremost being the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. A world-wide pandemic causing...

12 January, 2022 /

[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]he Jews were absolutely unique in the Ancient world. Not only did their religion forbid them to worship gods other than the Lord, but their prophets actually taught that the gods of the nations were mere figments of the imagination. They did...

03 January, 2022 /

The Feast of the Epiphany occurs soon after Christmas.  Epiphany means revelation, appearance, or manifestation of a king.  In this case it refers to the visit of the wise men to the cradle of a baby who was revealed to them as the King of...

02 January, 2022 /

In this excerpt from a popular video Bible study, Dr. Italy and Jeff Cavins discuss the paradox of why the sinless Jesus of Nazareth had to be baptized by John the Baptist. The baptism of John was a baptism of repentance from sin.  Christian baptism is...

27 December, 2021 /

The Book of Blessings contains a short service to bless a Christmas tree which can be led by lay people in their homes. To make your Christmas tree more meaningful, use it this year and every Christmas!...

16 December, 2021 /

A ode to the Blessed Virgin by St. Anselm, read on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, December 8. The doctrine of the sinlessness of Mary from the moment of her conception was believed and taught in the church long before it...

07 December, 2021 /

St. Bernard of Clairvaux says there are three comings: Advent prepares not just for the first coming of Christ to Israel, or even the second at the end of time. There is a third coming between these two in which Jesus comes in spirit...

30 November, 2021 /

Podcast on how to Prepare the way of the Lord in our lives and world during the season of Advent featuring Dr. Italy discussing the issue on national radio. In this 14 minute podcast, Dr. Italy shares some insights into our predicament - we tend to...

27 November, 2021 /

[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]he Jesse Tree is a centuries-old family Advent devotion that has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in recent years.  It has particular value since it helps both kids and adults a like to locate Jesus, the Messiah, within the lineage...

27 November, 2021 /

Augustine contrasts the role of John the Baptist, the voice crying out in the wilderness, with that of his cousin, Jesus, the Word of God made flesh. The humility of John, who prepared the way of the Lord, is highlighted. His joy was complete to...

10 November, 2021 /

Liturgy and Sacraments Video #6. Dr. Italy that explains how the roots of the Church's liturgical year and cycle of feasts are to be found in the celebrations of ancient Israel as shown in the Old Testament Scriptures. To understand the liturgical cycle of the Catholic...

04 November, 2021 /

These words of Cyril of Alexandria on the mission of the 12 apostles are read on October 28, the Feast of Saints Simon and Jude. The name of Saint Simon usually appears 11th in the list of the Twelve. Nothing is known of him...

28 October, 2021 /

Liturgy and Sacraments Video #3. Dr. Italy explains what the term "liturgy" really means, what liturgy includes, and what happens when the Catholic church engages in it. One of the big differences between the Catholic church and many other Christian communities is that the Catholic church...

04 October, 2021 /

Francis of Assisi is one of the most well-known and widely loved Catholic saints of all time. He thought it often necessary to use words to preach the gospel, and what follows is the heart of his simple message based on humility and charity....

04 October, 2021 /

Liturgy and Sacraments Video #2. Dr. Italy explains that ritual and liturgy are required by the very nature of human beings for whom symbols and gestures are indispensable forms of communication. Many Christian believers since the 16th century Protestant Reformation have rejected rituals altogether as religion...

27 September, 2021 /

The first session of the 10-part study of Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life, is available here to view below for free.  It is an introduction to the series, focusing on the world into which Jesus came.  It is actually two very different...

20 September, 2021 /

Liturgy and Sacraments Video #1. Dr. Italy begins his course on Liturgy and Sacraments by pointing out the inseparable unity between Liturgy, Theology and Spirituality. This is the first session in Theology 552, Liturgy & Sacraments for the Catholic Distance University. In this first video of...

20 September, 2021 /

Robert Bellarmine, reflecting on Jesus' statement in Matthew 11:30 that "my yoke is easy, my burden light," explains it in terms of love of God and the joy and happiness that it produces, in this life, and eternally.  For September 17, his feast day....

15 September, 2021 /

John Chrysostom shows how the transformation of twelve weak and fearful disciples into world-conquering apostles is the surest proof that they indeed saw the risen Christ. Customarily read on the feast of St. Bartholomew, apostle, on August 24, this excerpt shows us how the...

24 August, 2021 /

Bernard here treats of one of his favorite themes, the love relationship between God as bridegroom and the individual soul as bride, according the Song of Songs (otherwise known as the Canticle of Canticles or Song of Solomon). This selection is so typical of...

16 August, 2021 /

Christians are called to be intentional disciples who make a conscious decision to follow Jesus and him alone. But discipleship can't be a one-time decision. As in a marriage, the commitment must be renewed daily....

16 August, 2021 /

[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]St. Lawrence (also rendered St. Laurence) was one of the seven deacons of the Church of Rome and was martyred under the Emperor Valerian on the 10th of August 258, four days after Pope Sixtus II and his...

10 August, 2021 /

Here Augustine reflects on hishat famous incident, recorded in Luke 10, when the Lord comes to the home of Martha and Mary.  Martha busies herself with the details of hospitality, anxious and troubled about many things. Martha represents the battle we all face against the...

21 July, 2021 /

Sonrise morning show host Anna Mitchell interviews Dr. Italy on the dramatic life and teaching of one of the most courageous bishops and amazing preachers of all time.  This 8 minute podcast on St. John Chrysostom, the bishop with a backbone, will encourage you and...

21 July, 2021 /

In this 8 minute podcast describing the majestic summit of Mount Tabor, the traditional site of the Transfiguration of Jesus.  Dr. Italy, who has visited Mt. Tabor nearly thirty times, explains the beauty of the place itself and the view of Galilee and Samaria from...

21 July, 2021 /

Podcast discussing the amazing Roman basilica that goes all the way back to the new testament period, San Clemente, dedicated to Clement of Rome, third successor of Peter. Rome has a multitude of Churches.  When people think "basilica," St. Peter's comes to mind.  Some also think...

14 July, 2021 /

Clement of Rome, writing about thirty years after the martyrdom of St. Paul, affirms the Pauline balance - we are justified by faith and yet it is God's will that we perform good works of love, in abundance. He illustrates his point by many...

12 July, 2021 /

In his homily at the canonization of St. Maria Goretti, a paragon of chastity and purity, Pope Pius XII notes how the example of her life and death is a call to all Christians to a persistent, even relentless pursuit of virtue and perfection....

05 July, 2021 /

Peter Kreeft on the topic of eternal life in heaven, the goal of our life's pilgrimage. Every heart longs for it. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']Q[/dropcaps]uo vadis? Where are you going? That's the most important question for a traveler. And we the living are all...

05 July, 2021 /

Video in which Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D. discusses the how and why of Divine Revelation - God's purpose for revealing himself and the way he goes about it. God enters into human history and reveals himself for a purpose - and it not exclusively or even primarily...

05 July, 2021 /

St. Gregory the Great's commentary on the Apostle Thomas and his struggle with doubt. It makes for especially good reading for the Octave of Easter or the Feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle, which since the fourth century has been commemorated on July 3,...

03 July, 2021 /

The seven corporal & seven spiritual works of mercy, where they come from in Old and New Testaments, and why they must always be kept together following the example of Jesus in the gospels....

01 July, 2021 /

 In this 30 minute video, Dr. Italy explains the paramount issue that Christians had to resolve in the second century, the issue of authority -- scripture, tradition and what is now called magisterium.   He shows how the heresy of Marcion and the Gnostics helped such...

21 June, 2021 /

This fourth installment in a five part series on Understanding the Mass explains Christ's real presence in the Word of God and in the sacrament of his body and blood. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']A[/dropcaps]s we have seen, the Lord Jesus is really and truly...

21 June, 2021 /

St. Robert Bellarmine here enumerates 15 marks or characteristics of the one, holy Catholic Church of Jesus Christ which expands upon the four notes of the Church as found in the Nicene Creed: unity, catholicity, holiness and its apostolic foundation. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']D[/dropcaps]...

21 June, 2021 /

John the Baptist (aka the forerunner is the only Saint other than the Virgin Mary whose birthday is marked by a liturgical feast. Here Augustine brings out the similarities and contrasts between the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ and that of his cousin, who...

20 June, 2021 /

Podcast by Dr. Italy on Florence, the Renaissance city, and what the art of Michelangelo teaches us about Catholic Culture and life.  With images of sites and churches of Florence that he will visit on his upcoming Italy pilgrimage. Everyone visits Florence for its rich culture,...

20 June, 2021 /

In this 4th video #4, Dr. Italy explains what the First Letter of Clement of Rome reveals about Christian life and thought in the last years of the first century, especially regarding church order, apostolic succession, and Christian unity....

20 June, 2021 /

The Fatherhood of God has come under fire with the rise of feminism. If we know that God is pure spirit who transcends male and female, masculine and feminine, why preserve what some believe to be the antiquated, patriarchal practice of referring to the divinity...

19 June, 2021 /

[dropcaps type='normal' font_size='65' color='' background_color='' border_color='']W[/dropcaps]ant to learn a foreign language?  Everyone knows the best way is immersion.  Put yourself where that language is spoken, experience the culture of the people, and pick it up by osmosis. The same thing is true about the Catholic Tradition. ...

15 June, 2021 /

Mercy goes beyond justice & who is responsible. Mercy is love’s response to suffering. How the Eucharist, charity, and the works of mercy are related, and practical principles on building a lifestyle of mercy in the Year of Mercy...

14 June, 2021 /

In Part 1 of Understanding the Mass, we examined how the Mass relates to the Sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. In this, part 2 of the series, we ask in what way the Eucharist can be said to be our sacrifice, the sacrifice...

14 June, 2021 /

Dr. Italy in this video makes clear why the history of theology matters, why we should bother to expend time and effort studying the past.  The first video from his course the Catholic Theological Tradition.  Henry Ford said "history is bunk."  Technological advancement for him and...

14 June, 2021 /

The order of the blessing of an event as found in the edition of the Roman Ritual known as the book of blessings. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]hrough this meeting Jesus himself will speak to us. We should now, therefore, give thanks to him who...

12 June, 2021 /

In this 14 minute podcast, Anna Mitchell of the Sonrise Morning Show queries Dr. Italy about a new course he has developed for the Catholic Distance University, Fundamental Theology, Revelation & Faith, and why this topic is important not just for academics, but for every...

10 June, 2021 /

Hippolytus on the proper interpretation of Scripture, and the Incarnation of the Son as the hidden Word of God made manifest and visible. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]here is only one God, brethren, and we learn about him only from sacred Scripture. It is therefore...

04 June, 2021 /

John of the Cross here gives forceful expression to the faith of the Church that in Jesus Christ, God the Father has given us his complete and ultimate revelation of Himself and His plan for our lives. The glimplses of God and partial revelations of...

01 June, 2021 /

The first cause argument is one of the classic proofs for the existence of God.  Here Peter Kreefts lays out the essence of the argument in a way everybody can understand. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]he most famous of all arguments for the existence of...

01 June, 2021 /

Recounted by an eye-witness, the following is the account of the martyrdom of St. Justin Martyr and companions in Rome about 165 AD. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']T[/dropcaps]he saints were seized and brought before the prefect of Rome, whose name was Rusticus. As they stood...

01 June, 2021 /

In this 35 minute video, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D. (Dr. Italy) explains the importance of Justin Martyr, a second century philosopher turned apologist, on the development of Christian Thought. The first pagan intellectual to embrace the Christian faith and use some of the conceptual background of philosophy...

31 May, 2021 /

A tribute to Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., from Marcellino D'Ambrosio, one of his doctoral students.  The author notes Dulles' commitment to holiness and discipleship first as the necessary anchor for his work as a theologian.  Dulles was first of all a witness and only secondarily...

26 May, 2021 /

The mystery of mercy revealed in the sufferings of Christ and our obligation to make that extraordinary mercy known to everyone. Our response must be not only prayer, but evangelization. The connection between the Eucharist in which which receive the blood of Christ...

24 May, 2021 /

Often the Catholic teaching about the Eucharist or the Trinity is described as a mystery.  Is this just a way of avoiding hard questions about things you can't prove?  Some thoughts on what we know and don't know about God and his plan for our...

23 May, 2021 /

This excerpt from 2nd century Church Father, Irenaeus, contains beautiful imagery of the Holy Spirit as the rainfall of God as well as a fascinating allegorical interpretation of parable of the Good Samaritan to illustrate the role of the various persons of the Holy Trinity-...

23 May, 2021 /

An explanation of the movement known as the charismatic movement and the experience called "the baptism of the Holy Spirit" by a theologian who has participated in the movement for over 40 years....

23 May, 2021 /

Hilary of Poitiers, describes how new Christians in 4th Century France typically felt innundated by the gifts of the Holy Spirit upon their baptism, Confirmation, & first Eucharist: a sense of joy and the release of the 7 gifts and charisms....

18 May, 2021 /

This excerpt from Basil the Great's landmark work On the Holy Spirit (AD 360) is a marvelous expression of faith in the Holy Ghost as fully divine, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. It also describes the works of the Holy Spirit in the...

18 May, 2021 /

Cyril of Alexandria on the unity of Christians.  Receiving the same sacrament of the Lord's flesh, the Eucharist, and the same Holy Spirit, in baptism and confirmation/chrismation, bind us together in an intimate relationship with God the Father and each another, one body in Christ. [dropcaps...

18 May, 2021 /

This wonderful meditation on the Holy Spirit as living water, so called by Jesus in his conversation with the Samaritan woman, is taken from a catechetical instruction by St. Cyril of Jerusalem who was bishop of Jerusalem around the year 360 AD....

15 May, 2021 /

This Ascension homily by Pope St. Leo the Great on the glory of the resurrection of Christ is wonderful for personal prayer or catechetical use anytime during the Easter Season, especially during the 40 days between Easter Sunday and the Solemnity of the Ascension of...

12 May, 2021 /

This selection from a sermon of a sixth century African Church Father interprets the gift of tongues on Pentecost as a sign of the unity, catholicity and universality of the Catholic Church which is, from the day of its birth, made up of people from...

11 May, 2021 /

The concluding section from an address on Crisis in the Church given by Henri de Lubac, SJ, at the University of St. Louis on May, 29, 1969.  Here de Lubac emphasizes the indispensable pre-conditions of authentic renewal are personal love of Jesus Christ and commitment...

10 May, 2021 /
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