I just got finished watching the ten part series Catholicism, written and hosted by Fr. Robert Barron of Word of Fire fame. I'm a big admirer of Fr. Barron, as evidenced by the fact that I link to his YouTube videos so often. While it's hard for me to stay completely objective, I must say this is a solid program, suitable for everyone from cradle Catholics wanting to grow in their faith to spiritual searchers who want to know about the Catholic tradition. Fr. Barron is a legitimate scholar, but this is no stale classroom lecture. He travels the world, presenting Catholic culture and practice in living color and HD clarity. We go to Rome and the Holy Land, as you might imagine, but also to Uganda, Mexico, Spain and Time Square, to name a few destinations, to see how the faith is alive, vibrant, diverse and truly universal.
Catholicism doesn't just want to inform, but persuade as well. Fr. Barron is an evangelizer, first and foremost. He wants to help people have a personal encounter with the Lord, not simply an intellectual one. One of my favorite moments, where this comes through, is when he quotes Tertulian's famous saying "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church." He is in Uganda, at the place where Charles Lwanga and his companions were martyred for not giving sexual favors to the king. He asks rhetorically if the statement is true and points to the vibrant celebration, where thousands of Ugandan Catholics have gathered in joyful celebration as the answer.
The series is made up of ten parts, about an hour each, so it's hard for me to pick it apart too finely (my fault, I should have taken notes as I was watching it, like a good critic would). But like I said before, this is suitable for a wide variety of audiences, and a must for any RCIA program. His vocabulary and argumentation may be too elevated at times for high schoolers, but it wouldn't hurt to give it a try with 12th and maybe 11th graders.
There was only one episode I was disappointed in; the ninth installment on prayer. Fr. Barron focused almost exclusively on Carmelite spirituality, and also spent a great deal of time on Thomas Merton. I have nothing against the Carmelites, and have a great admiration for their "Big Three": Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross and Therese of Lisieux (all three are on my iPad). I just wish a wider representation of Catholic spirituality had been presented. As for Merton, I simply don't believe he belongs in the conversation with those other giants. It's not that his writings have no value, but this was a highly flawed man who I'm not sure ever really found peace in his life. I plan on writing a separate reflection on this, but for now all I'll say is from what I know of his spiritual journey I doubt Merton ever got past the Purgative Way that John of the Cross wrote of. The truth is that the vast majority of us haven't, and probably won't in this life, so I'm not trying to condemn the man. He walked that spiritual road farther than most, and as I said his insights are valuable. But if I'm going to imitate someone I'd rather look to one I know "made it all the way," if you will. When talking about the saints Fr. Barron compared them to Hall of Fame ball players who we can strive to imitate, even if we never reach their heights of perfection. If I can stretch the analogy a bit, I compare Merton to Billy Martin, a solid Major Leaguer, for sure, who may have hung out with Micky Mantle and Whitey Ford, but who's a long way from Cooperstown.
The two episodes I found the most moving were the ones on the Blessed Mother and on the Eucharist. It's tough to use that phrase "moving' because it can mean sweet and sentimental, and this is far from that. Fr. Barron gives clear explanations of the role of Mary in the Church and the centrality of the Eucharist to our faith. In this way he doesn't take his audience for granted; he understands that there may be non-believers watching, or simply people who believe but need to be helped in their "unbelief," as the Gospel puts it. But he also knows that we are not converted, in the end, through our intellects but through our hearts. As I was watching it I got the sense that he was using the right balance of head and heart to make his points, with an eye to bringing souls to Christ.
All in all I count whatever criticisms I may have as minor. On the whole, this is a well produced and presented work. Fr. Barron is an enthusiastic, informed, Happy Spiritual Warrior, if you will; a perfect face for the New Evangelization. Catholicism is a gift for the Church that I pray will continue to bear fruit for generations.
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