Be My Guest: Do You Know What You Believe? (with Sarah Swafford)
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What do we believe and why do we believe it? This week, Fr. Josh is joined by special guest Sarah Swafford to discuss the new series What We Believe. Sarah shares some of her favorite aspects of the series and why this series is so important for people today.
Snippet from the Show
Let the stirring of your heart be illuminated by your mind.
Glory Stories (3:46)
Interview with Sarah Swafford (9:22)
Fr. Josh is joined by special guest Sarah Swafford to discuss the new series What We Believe. Sarah and her husband Dr. Andrew Swafford along with Dr. Marcellino D’Ambrosio and many other amazing presenters are featured in this new series. This study takes you to the heart of our church, Rome, the Eternal City. You'll come away from this study with a deeper understanding and appreciation for who we are as Catholics, what we believe, as well as why we believe it. And, lastly, we'll show you how to live this all out, fruitfully, joyfully, and victoriously.
Find out more about the What We Believe series HERE.
Saint Stories (29:32)
Bl. Jerzy Popiełuszko
Bl. Jerzy was born in Poland in 1947. From a young age, he showed great love for God and his faith. He chose to enter seminary right after he completed high school. While studying to be a priest, he was drafted into the army and also inducted into a special unit whose goal was abolish any young man’s desire to entire the priesthood. Bl. Jerzy’s health suffered greatly while he was in the army. These effects on his health would remain with him throughout his life.
Bl. Jerzy was ordained to the priesthood in 1972. He served multiple parishes until his health became bad enough that he was moved to a parish where he simply assisted as much as he could.
Bl. Jerzy was not discreet about his desire for the freedom of Poland. On the last Sunday of each month, he celebrated Mass for Poland’s freedom. Many people began to know of Bl. Jerzy and found hope in his leadership. Due to this, the communist leaders did what they could to intimidate him. Eventually in 1983 he was arrested. Over the course of 6 months, Bl. Jerzy was interrogated 13 times. He was eventually released.
However, in October of 1984, Bl. Jerzy was abducted, beaten, and consequently drowned. Hundreds of thousands of people attended his funeral. He was beatified on June 6, 2010.
St. Maria Faustina Kowalska
St. Faustina was born in Poland in 1905. At birth, she was named Helena. St. Faustina first felt the call to religious life at the age of seven. This feeling of being called remained with her throughout her childhood. Finally at the age of nineteen, she had her first vision of Jesus. In this vision, Jesus instructed her to leave for Warsaw and join a convent. She did so the next morning.
Once in Warsaw, it was not simple for St. Faustina to join a convent. She was rejected by many. Finally, the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy accepted her.
Once in the convent, St. Faustina served as a cook for several years until her health no longer allowed it. Around this time, St. Faustina began to have visions of Jesus. He would come to her dressed in white with red and blue rays streaming from his heart. In these visions, Jesus spoke to St. Faustina about a number of things, but primarily about his Divine Mercy. Eventually, by the instruction of her confessor, St. Faustina began to keep a diary of these visions. Through these visions, Jesus instructed her to have an image of Divine Mercy created. He also shared the Chaplet of Divine Mercy with her and encouraged her to spread devotion to his Divine Mercy.
St. Faustina did all of this even amidst her worsening health. In 1938, St. Faustina died. She was beatified on April 18, 1993 and canonized on April 30, 2000.