EWTN Women of Grace host Johnnette Benkovic has a five part series of interviews with Abbot Nicholas of Holy Resurrection Monastery.
Scroll down the page to:
Program 10835, Program 10836, Program 10837, Program 10838, Program 10839
The 5th, final, episode is
tonight at 8:30 PM PDT/11:30 PM EDT
This is an excellent series.
Among many other interesting moments, Minute 24, Episode 2, after Abbot Nicholas has spoken about how chrismation/confirmation, and communion became separated from Baptism in the West, host Johnnette comes out in favor of full initiation at all ages, including infants saying, “It makes sense to me that the Sacraments of Initiation, just based on even the delineation of those sacraments by that title, ‘Sacraments of Initiation’, it seems to me if one is being initiated, then one is being initiated. So, if baptism is the first of that, the rest should come as a warp and a woof, because you’re giving them the food for the journey at the same time as you’re initiating them in, and you’re also strengthening them through what they’re receiving through the sacrament of chrismation or confirmation. And there’s so much more to be said about that…”
Johnette visited HRM monastery awhile ago and “…that encounter with you and with the monks of the monastery, being at the monastery itself, it made a tremendous impact on my spiritual life.” Over the course of these episodes it’s clear that Johnnette has grasped the importance of the Eastern Churches.
It will be interesting to see how embracing the East in this way will play out in the future for her, and her voice on EWTN. Benkovic is a prominent Roman Catholic apologist and evangelist on EWTN. Seems like this can only be beneficial for increasing awareness of our patrimony.
10839 - Byzantine Catholicism and the Call to the Mystical Life:
Episode One
In his apostolic letter, Light of the East, St. John Paul II exhorts us to look to the Eastern Church of our Catholic tradition to find there the reference point for the baptized.
United as one body, both the Eastern Catholic Church and the Western have much to impart to the other. But, perhaps it is in the great tradition and history of the Eastern Church that all of Christendom can find a wellspring for a deep, intimate encounter with God.
Here to give us greater insight into the Eastern Church and its rich heritage is Abbot Nicholas Zachariadis, founder of Holy Resurrection Monastery in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, in the Diocese of Green Bay.
Episode Two
Many today are hungering for a deeper experience of the spiritual. But, unfortunately, all too often they have veered away from the one source that can give them true insight, understanding, and guidance - the Catholic Church especially her Eastern tradition.
Here to share with us today about authentic Catholic mysticism is Abbot Nicholas Zachariadis, founder of Holy Resurrection Monastery in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, in the Diocese of Green Bay.
Episode Three
I’m pleased to have back with me today, Abbot Nicholas Zachariadis, founder of Holy Resurrection Monastery in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, in the Diocese of Green Bay.
As a monk of the Byzantine Church, he understands well what the mystical life is and what it is meant to achieve in us. Today, he will continue to give us practical insight and wisdom as we seek to grow ever more deeply in union with God.
Episode Four
For the mystic, relationship with God is a lived experience that imbues every aspect of his life. Such is the gift the monastic tradition teaches us.
But, in our modern world with its demands and distractions, can a lay person aspire to such lofty goal. Is it possible to pray without ceasing and to find God in all things? These are the questions our guest will answer for us today.
Episode Five
Today is our final episode in this Women of Grace series on Byzantine Catholicism and the Call to the Mystical Life. Abbot Nicholas Zachariadis is back with us to give us some final thoughts and words of wisdom for our continued journey in the very heart of God.
