49: What Is Catholicism? -- Father Thomas Joseph White, OP

The last couple of shows have been on the intellectual-nerd side. Here’s another one! Father Thomas J. White, OP, of the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, has distilled the essential of Catholicism into a single volume, The Light of Christ: An Introduction to Catholicism. I devoured the book (insofar as you can devour a work that relies on Thomas Aquinas’s methods and language) in a few days despite being a slow reader. His style is accessible and his prose elegant with a whiff of humor here and there.

All of that comes through in this interview, as Father White gets down to basics of foundations of Catholicism.

After listening, you will know:

• What the gospel really is
• The philosophical and biblical basis for the Catholic Church’s main claim to be founded by Christ
• What Scripture is and why we can trust the New Testament as an historical document
• A simple way to explain the Trinity

 

Question of the week: How would you finish the sentence, “I”m Catholic because…..” Or, “I’m not Catholic because….”

 

Resources recommended in this episode:

The Light of Christ: An Introduction to Catholicism by Father White, OP

Theology and Sanity by Frank Sheed

Ignatius Study Bible, RSV Second Catholic Edition by the Holy Spirit and the sacred authors.

 

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