Joan of Arc Faith and Fortitude SRMS 11 6 19
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
Release Date: 05/29/2026
St. Maximilian Kolbe, Chaplain of Auschwitz
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
In this podcast, other aspects of Kolbe’s life are also discussed which are little known. Kolbe founded a new monastery near Warsaw that grew into a veritable city, with over 1,000 Franciscan Friars living a live of prayer and apostolic activity. This monastery was so large that, in the early days of World War II, before it was shut down by the Nazis, it harbored close to 2,000 Jewish refugees, hiding them from the Germans. Before the war, St. Maximilian saw the importance of using modern media for evangelization, and so began publishing a weekly magazine, and then a daily...
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Saint Clare of Assisi
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
But St. Clare deserves more than a footnote appearing in a life of another saint. Unlike Francis, she was a noblewoman, being groomed to marry a wealthy knight or even duke, but she forsook a life of privilege to live in the same abject poverty as St. Francis and his earliest disciples, founding a woman’s branch of the Franciscan Order. Despite her austerities and constant poor health, she nursed Francis in his final days of suffering and blindness and outlived him, going on to become an adviser to bishops and Popes
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Walking on the Water - Fear, Faith, and Trials
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
The gospel story of Jesus walking on the water and Peter sinking has much to teach us about the difference between fear, little faith, and the kind of trust that endures waves and storms, trials and crisis. One of the most famous stories of the New Testament is the one about Jesus walking on the water. If there is any gospel story we never tire of hearing, this is it.
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Transfiguration on Mount Tabor
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
Podcast discussing the beauty of Mount Tabor and the glory and meaning of the Transfiguration, a pivotal event in the life of Jesus that Catholics celebrate every August 6. 14 minute interview of Dr. Italy by Sonrise Morning Show radio host Anna Mitchell. The Transfiguration was indeed a pivotal event in the life of Jesus and his three closest disciples, Peter, James and John. Right after Peter confesses him to be the Messiah and Jesus makes clear that he would be a suffering messiah, they ascend a mountain to pray (luke 9). Neither Luke nor the other evangelists who tell the...
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The Principles Behind the Loaves and the Fish 18th_A
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
The famous miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes calls us to trust that when we offer the Lord our ordinary and scanty resources, he will work a wonder of transformation, just like he transforms the bread and wine of the Eucharist. One of the most famous miracles of Jesus is the only one recorded in all four gospels–the multiplication of the loaves and fishes.
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Martha, Mary, Prayer & Service
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
The story of the visit of Jesus to the home of Martha and Mary in Bethany raises questions about hospitality, service, prayer, action and contemplation. First of all, does Jesus love some people, like Mary, Mary, and Lazarus, more than others? If so, how is this fair? Secondly, why would Jesus apparently praise Mary sitting on her behind while Martha slaves in the kitchen? In this 20 minute podcast, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, aka Dr. Italy, discusses these issues with Anna Mitchell of the Sonrise Morning show. When you listen, you'll be surprised at what they come up with!
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Is the Kingdom of God Liberal or Conservative, Old or New?
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
How does the Kingdom of God relate to conservative versus liberal values? Should those seeking the pearl of great price look for it in realms that are more traditionalist and old or more progressive and new?
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Joachim, Anne, and the Role of Grandparents
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
On July 26, the Latin rite of the Catholic Church honors the Grandparents of Jesus, parents of the Virgin Mary, Saints Joachim and Anne. Matt Swaim asks Dr. Italy (Marcellino D'Ambrosio) just how we know about them, given that their names are not mentioned in the New Testament. After discussing the second century document, the Protoevangelium of St. James which is our source for Joachim and Anne, Dr. Italy talks about how Joachim and Ann were the ones to form Mary in the faith of the people of Israel and most probably had a role in the life of the messiah as well. He also...
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Mary Magdalene and the Women Disciples
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
In this 14 minute podcast, Dr. Italy discusses with Anna Mitchell the various misconceptions people have about Mary Magdalene, and corrects them based on the gospels. He also looks at her in the wider context of Jesus’ remarkable ministry to women, and especially the women disciples who Luke and John most especially brings to our attention
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Parable of the Wheat and the Tares - the Church as a Hospital for Sinners
Catholic Heritage with Dr. Italy
The parable of the wheat and the tares or weeds is Jesus’ response to those who want to cleanse the Christian community of the impure and imperfect. The Church, in this world, is more a hospital for sinners than a club for saints. At one time or another, we’ve all dreamed of a perfect world. Imagine a company where everyone is productive, a government full of honest politicians, a church where all are saints.
info_outlineThe famous American author and humorist, Mark Twain, is best known for his best-selling, classic novels Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. But of all his books, Twain most loved the historical novel he wrote on St. Joan of Arc. Though he was himself not a Catholic, he saw Joan to be one of the most amazing and inspiring figures of human history. From her fifteenth year to her death at age 19, she was a living, walking miracle, and her remarkable deeds are not a matter of pious legend, knowable by faith, but are a matter of indisputable public record, meticulously documented by testimony given under oath at three separate inquiries, two during her lifetime and one after her death. An illiterate country girl, with no military experience, demanded and was given complete control of the French army and turned around a hundred years of military losses if not overnight, in the space of about a week. She demonstrated a supernatural ability to lead, inspire, and strategize that left everyone, French and English, shaking their heads. It all began when, at age 13, she heard the “voices” of St. Michael, St. Catherine (of Alexandria) and St. Margaret bringing messages from God that were almost as unbelievable as the message brought by Gabriel to the Virgin Mary. She responded with a similar faith and said, echoing her Blessed Mother’s words, “let it be.” She acted on the revelation she had received with confidence and determination, giving us a model of what faith is and what God can do when we respond to him with faith.