In the midst of being socially isolated and with Masses being said in our Archdiocese, (but the feel is quite different right now), we can feel pretty separated not only from each other, but from the Eucharist as well. This might just be the time to learn a little more about the Eucharist and Mass. Today I review Presence a study series on FORMED.org. Maybe learning about the Eucharist while being absent from it will be difficult. My hope is that learning about Jesus and Eucharist will bring us closer when we feel far from it.

Title: Presence

https://watch.formed.org/presence/season:1

Presenter:  An ensemble of theologian, catechists, and missionaries Chris Stefanick, Dr. Ed Sri, Deb Holiday, Dr. Time Gray, Jim Beckman, Luis Soto, Dr. Sean Innerst, Dr. Mark Giszczak, Dr. Scott Powell among others.

Length: Three Sessions, each last 35-40 minutes. Plus four bonus videos about the Eucharist including one design for Children to get an up close view of altar during Mass.

Style of Content: • A mix of narrated images, talking-head teaching and explanations of scriptures, works of art, reenactments of historical moments, scriptural scenes, and saint stories.
TBH - One of the best produced and most professional looking things on FORMED. Honestly, the study is fast paced and full of rich and engaging images and content.

Content: Starting with examples of heroic devotion and the power of the Eucharist from the lives of Saints, the Presence study goes on to explain what the Eucharist is, why we believe what we believe, and why it should matter to us. There is a strong connection made between God’s plan for our salvation, Jesus Christ, Holy Scripture and the Church’s practice of the Mass.

Scripture: Exodus 3, Acts 2:42, Psalms, John 6, Last Supper accounts, Multiplication of Loaves, and many books of the New and Old Testament are discussed and explained in light of the Eucharist.

BONUS: Digital Study guide available for download!

Why You Should Listen to These Talks: You should watch this video if you want your faith in and understanding of the Eucharist to deepen and grow. If you want to make your participation at Mass more meaningful, you should watch this study series. If you want to grow in your desire for God, understand better His plan for your Salvation, or Mass to be a powerful moment of faith no matter the distractions, this video is for you.

Why Skip It: If you are looking for an intellectually heavy scripture study or lighthearted romanic comedy with the unlikely coupling of a bumbling hero and uptight heroine, then maybe skip this video series.

The Ratings: I am rating each resource in terms of how informative, transformative, and engaging I find that resource. Information refers to how much information and how well the video presents that faith knowledge. Transformative refers to how well the resource invites participants to conform their life to follow Jesus Christ. Engaging (-ative) refers to how entertaining, gripping, or interesting I find the resource.

If you’ve been back to Mass at St. Joseph recently, you know it is a different experience than it was before COVID-19. We aren’t singing with all our might. We’re spread out strangely. Our voices are muffled by masks. These are all important and good temporary changes for our times. I’ve heard some people say without singing it just doesn’t feel like Mass. I can understand and my heart is with that thought.  At the core of Mass isn’t singing or the homily. At the heart of Mass is Jesus in the Word and the Eucharist. This week I am reviewing at talk given by Fr. Mike Schmitz called “True Worship.”

Title: True Worship

https://watch.formed.org/true-worship-by-fr-mike-schmitz/videos/true-worship-by-frmike-schmitz

Presenter:  Fr. Mike Schmitz is a nationally recognized Catholic speaker and works with Catholic young people in college and high school in the Duluth, MN area.

Length: 1 hour and 15 minutes

Style of Content: • Audio recording of Fr. Mike Schmitz giving a series of homilies at the Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Duluth.  • TBH - The recording is a little rough. With a fair amount of echo and a tinny sound. Also, Fr. Mike is a fast talker. Those could be deterrents for some people. The content is so good you’ll probably be able to listen past the poor recording.

Content:  Fr. Mike Schmitz gives a series of homilies about the Eucharist and the Mass. The first talk centers on the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and how when we believe that, we attend Mass differently. The second homily is about our role in every Mass we attend. The third homily is the challenge of overcoming complacency in our attitude towards the Eucharist and God. The series ends very practically in suggesting four ways we can come to Mass hungry for Jesus in the Eucharist.

Scripture: John 6 - The Bread of Life Discourse

Why You Should Listen to These Talks:  If you are looking to understand why we need to attend Mass and receive the Eucharist, you might find some answers. If you want to be inspired by God’s real presence in the Eucharist, then you should take a listen. If you want to figure out how to come hungry to the Eucharist, then check out this homily series.

Why Skip It: If a tinny, echoey recording will be so annoying that you won’t be able to listen, than you might want to listen to something else. If you struggle with a fast talker, Fr. Mike Schmitz is a fast talk and so you may want to skip it.

The Ratings: I am rating each resource in terms of how Informative, Transformative, and Engaging I find that resource. Information refers to how much information and how well the video presents that faith knowledge. Transformative refers to how well the resource invites participants to conform their life to follow Jesus Christ. Engaging (-ative) refers to how entertaining, gripping, or interesting I find the resource.

I don’t know about you, but I grew up at a time when the role and importance of angels were down played in my Sunday School classes. Most of what I learned about angels I learned from movies (Angels in the Outfield, Wonderful Life, Michael). I thought angels were for grandmas and babies. I was wrong and found out I have a lot to understand about angels. 

In a culture that has devalued spirituality and the supernatural, ignoring the angels makes sense. All the more reason to grow in our understanding of the angels and how they aid God in his mission in the world. You can see if this brief video is the right introduction for you about angels by checking out my review. 

Title

FORMED Now! Archangels

https://watch.formed.org/videos/formed-now-archangels

Presenter

Dr. Ben Akers and Dr. Elizabeth Klein are both professors at the Augustine Institute. 

Length 

About thirty minutes.

Style of Content

Video of an interview filmed on a set at the Augustine studio. The video is well done and the sound is easy to hear most of the time. 

TBH - The lighting on this stage is pretty stark. It makes the speakers easy to see, which is good, but there are deep shadows which can be distracting. Okay, maybe we’re nitpicking the video a bit. 

Content

Wow. What a jam packed, interesting conversation about angles in general, the Archangels in particular. Dr. Klein did her doctoral dissertation on St. Augustine’s references to angels in book ten of his work City of God. Needless to say, Dr. Klein is an angel expert and talks authoritatively about how we think and talk about angels. Particularly Dr. Akers and Dr. Klein talk about the work of angels in scripture and then how the Church understands angels. The talks specifically about the Archangels, as it was their feast day this past week. The video ends with Dr. Klein explaining why there is a hierarchy of angels. 

Scripture

Many pieces of scripture are discussed. Pretty much everywhere angels are talked about in scripture. Here are a couple references, but there are many others. 

Abraham wrestles an angel - Genesis 32.

Angel watching over the Israelites - Exodus 23

Jude talking about Michael - Jude 1:9

At the Incarnation - Luke 2

Michael fighting the Devil - Revelation 12

Why You Should Watch This Video

If you’d ever wanted to learn more about the angels, then this short video is for you. If you only think of angels as chubby, winged babies, then watching this video will help you see a broader understanding of angels. 

Why Skip It

If you don’t enjoy the interview format, then maybe skip this one. If you struggle with fast talkers (both Dr. Klein and Dr. Akers can say a lot in a short amount of time), then maybe this isn’t for you. 

Review date Sep. 25, 2020

In times of great difficulty God raises up saints to meet the challenge and spread the good news of Jesus Christ. In the 1500s the city of Rome and the Church were facing a time of great difficulty. The Protestant Reformation was challenging the Church and Rome had recently been sacked by Charles V. Who did God send? 

Among others, St. Phillip Neri came to Rome and sought to do the will of God in sharing with young homeless and unemployed people the gospel. St. Phillip Neri’s story is an example of a saint using unconventional methods to teach the ageless gospel message. Read my review of this video below. 

Title

True Reformers - Saints of the Catholic Reformation 

Episode 3 - Saint Phillip Neri

https://watch.formed.org/videos/saint-philip-neri-the-apostle-of-joy

Presenter

Christopher Blum is a Professor of Theology and Academic Dean at the Augustine Institute. 

Length 

Episode 3 - Saint Philip Neri is about thirty minutes. 

Six Session, each about 30-40 minutes in length. 

Style of Content

• This video is a recording of Dr. Blue telling the story of each saint on a set at the Augustine Studios. 
• TBH - The video is well produced. Sound and video are clear. It isn’t the most exciting video and has few images or videos to help the story move along or to keep our interest. This video could just as easily be listened to in the car as well as watched. 

Content

In this simple video series, Christopher Blum tells the story of the lives of Saints of the Catholic Reformation. This particular episode focuses on St. Phillip Neri. Dr. Blum tells us about St. Phillip Neri’s journey from young boy in Florence to his ordination and priesthood in Rome. We hear about the order and ministry that St. Phillip Neri founded and his propensity and use of humor to preach the gospel and stay humble. 

Why you should watch this video

If you are looking to be inspired by the life and works of a great saint who lived in times of great troubles, then this video is for you. If you are looking for an example of a man with great faith who lived with great joy, then this video is for you.

Why skip it

If your attention isn’t kept by a simple story told without other content than you may want to watch another video. 


 

I have a 2 1/2-year-old. His favorite word is “Why?” If it wasn’t so cute how he says it, it might be annoying (okay, sometimes it is annoying). But in reality, he is asking the right question. Sometimes at Church we do a good job explaining the what or the who and don’t do as good job explaining the why. 

The talk I reviewed on Formed today answers the simple question, “Why Jesus?” You will get a load of material as to why you, and everyone in your life, can and should believe in Jesus Christ.  

Title 

The Case for Jesus 

https://watch.formed.org/the-case-for-jesus/videos/the-case-for-jesus

Presenter 

Dr. Brant Pitre is the Distinguished Research Professor of Scripture at the Augustine Institute, Graduate School of Theology. He earned his Ph.D. in Theology from the University of Notre Dame, where he specialized in the study of the New Testament and ancient Judaism. 

Length  

About an hour. 

Style of Content 

An hour-long talk given before a live audience.  

TBH - The audio is clear and well done. Some people find the recording of Dr. Pitre’s voice to be difficult to listen to, but I didn’t think it was distracting.  

Content 

Why do you believe in Jesus? Is faith in Jesus rational? Dr. Pitre gets to the very heart of the Christianity which helps the listener really examine and then reaffirm their belief in Jesus. If Jesus really is at the center of all we say and do as Catholics, then we need to be rock-solid in our belief in Jesus. This belief isn’t blind or superstition but rooted in the rational mind that God gave us.  

Honestly, I think most people listening to this talk will be shocked by how rational and real our faith in Jesus really is.  

Scripture 

A number of different New and Old testaments texts are used with a special emphasis on the gospels.  

Why you should listen to this talk 

If you are the kind of person who wants proof and likes rational thought, this talk is for you. If have a family member or friend who thinks faith is a silly fairytale, this talk is for you.  

Why skip it 

If you are looking for storytelling and cleverly crafted talks, this talk might not fit the bill.