Robert Barron | – Bishop Barron Presents Sohrab Ahmari: Conversations at the Crossroads


Friends, it is my pleasure to share the latest “Bishop Barron Presents” discussion, featuring editor and author Sohrab Ahmari. In our conversation, we discuss his new book, “The Unbroken Thread.” Sohrab named his son after St. Maximillian Kolbe, and the book originated in his hope to inculcate in his son the virtues and values that shaped this great saint. We also examine:

– The problem of “scientism”
– How Catholic morality can serve as a referee for society
– The paradox of freedom from restraint
– St. Thomas’ teaching on how our longings are satisfied in God
– The loss of Sabbath, leisure, and spiritual rituals
– How to avoid egocentric self-invention and instead accept an invitation to spiritual adventure

Stay tuned for future “Bishop Barron Presents” conversations. These intellectually invigorating discussions feature varying religious and political perspectives to encourage greater understanding and civility.

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About The Author

Bishop Robert Barron These are brief and insightful commentaries on faith and culture by Catholic theologian and author Bishop Robert Barron. The videos complement his weekly sermons posted and podcasted at WordOnFire.org.

Comment (35)

  1. Catholics must rise to the moment during the crises (post)modernity is causing.

    The Church and Faith is haemorrhaging its flock, all the while we actually possess and safeguard the spiritual truth.

    Whether the problem is the council, the interpretation of the council, or the culture is for the time being irrelevant.

    Catholics must do better. We must do better.

    Intellectuals like Barron and Ahmari are providing some of the answers

  2. In his book Radical Sacrifice, Terry Eagleton writes: To will the dissolution of the self is at the same time to rise above it, since only the staunchest of wills is capable of disposing of itself so courageously. He goes onto say: If sacrifice is often violent it is because the depth of change it promises cannot be a matter of smooth evolution or simple continuity. What a great discussion this was by three of God’s messengers. I’m anxious to read this book.

  3. On the subject of sexuality, around 1963 June Carter and another artist wrote for her husband Johnny Cash to perform the song, 'Ring of fire.' Social Distortion does an awesome cover version. The lyrics begin with, 'Love, is a burning thing…' In the fourth chapter of the first letter of the Apostle John, the disciple Jesus loved wrote, '…God is Love…' The author of the letter to the Hebrews wrote, referencing the Torah, '…God is a consuming fire…' 'God is Love.' 'God is a consuming fire.'. Love is a burning thing. June Carter was right. Perhaps she was inspired. I love how people have compared sex within marriage as fire in a fire place. Within, it generates warmth and inspiration and fascination and to a lesser degree light. Fire outside a fire place though (staying with the analogy-fornication, adultery, artificial contraception, IVF, polygamy, polyandry, polyamory, etc.), say on a wooden floor, or furniture, or in a wall-can be very destructive and dangerous.
    In consummating a marriage man and woman potentially participate in one of the most storied attributes of God, that of Creator. I hope people largely abandon the frivolity with which many now approach it.
    Bishop Barron, you are regularly in my prayers. Thank you!

  4. Love this discussion for so many reasons, but perhaps what grieves my heart the most is feeling that my two sons never had the opportunity to be initialized into their manhood, their community, and a life of faith. Whereas, when I attended the bat mitzvah of a friend’s daughter, I was in tears seeing how they followed their traditions, and thus their children have this warm security blanket of belonging somewhere. But I hold on to God’s ultimate Grace and Mercy for my sons, and other boys trying to understand their place in the world of men and women. * BTW, I would love to know how Bishop Barron addresses the men’s rights movement. I recently became more aware of how many men are reacting to feminism in angry ways, to the point of regressing to views of women as less than them.. We are in interesting times. Thank you for providing this forum.
    PS Sohrab, I am married to an Iranian who is nominally Muslim. Where can I read more of your story into Catholicism?

  5. Regarding BENEDICT XVI: "We will succeed (in doing so) only if reason and faith come together in a new way, if we overcome the self-imposed limitation of reason to the empirically falsifiable, and if we once more disclose its vast horizons."- BENEDICT XVI
    9-14 Sept 2006. What this suggests is that the pragmatic though un-falsifiable soft-guidance of the church be mixed with the hard-won and inspired falsifiable sciences. This is completely unacceptable as the one saves the other and visa versa in the present moment, and will continue to do so into the future. They are like oil and water. The sciences, given momentum and real value through the perseverance and consistency of purpose of men and women, must forever remain sterilized of all theology. Anything less is shameful.

  6. Bp. Barron, (letting guard down) "I cannot think of anything more boring than shear freedom, what is proposed as the great goal of everything, to be free (smile and confused distain), ho hum, I am just seeing this aimless, who am I?, what do I do?, I mean I'll decide?!, I mean I'll decide (incredulously) what do I know?…So get past this boring pure freedom stuff and this Nietzschean self-invention, bore me to death with that. But having been introduced to the world of values, now you've got a role to play…it's not this vapid, boring freedom, it's the real freedom that the Tradition opens up." …For all the good and effort Bp. Barron puts into his work, this comes across as a weariness toward "others" who would dare to (while making mistakes) think and grow in a way independent and unfamiliar to him. God bless Bishop Barron and diversification of thought, and thanks for this amazing interview.

  7. The BBC (Britain’s state broadcaster) gleefully and deliberately misinterpreted Pope Benedict’s reference at Regensburg to the words of, I think, Charles V, that the spread of Islam was brought about by the sword. Benedict’s concern was that when reason was divorced from faith, violence followed. I learned from the behaviour of the BBC that there sadly, many people, who will for their own mendacious purposes, lie, distort and mislead. It also made clear that however sincerely and however often Benedict apologised for causing offence it would never be enough.
    The BBC spoke of “anger throughput the Islamic world”. It was to become their mantra whenever they needed to fill endless hours of “news” coverage,

  8. Grateful to you, Your Excellence Bishop Robert Barron, for continuing to shepherd your followers by serving ✨ as a light in the darkness.
    Profoundly stimulating and intricately complex, this discussion will invite listeners to reconsider their views and values as through a novel and dynamically brilliant diamond with arrays of truths simultaneously radiating in various directions with multiple nuances. Love in the Holy Spirit, knows that to be adept in understanding is to forego the comfort of resting in our own assumptions.
    Pursuing great values in the abstract, is of greatest value when these values affect particular actions and decisions, especially as it relates to what we do for the poor, the abandoned, the exiles, and others in need of care. The Word of Our Lord, isn't it there to become the living word, moving in action, inspiring hearts towards care, especially, for those most in need, yet, also for one's enemies, those who disagree with us and who are against us.

  9. I just wish Sohrab Ahmari would take Bishop Barron's advice to "steel-man" the arguments of his opponents. He so far has shown no serious engagement with Atheist or Progressive Philosophy that criticizes his position.

  10. A young student lost his life, swept away by the waves trying to save a drowning classmate.
    I met the man who was most likely instrumental to that act of self sacrifice. He said, "I lost my son. Do the people who call him a hero even know what it's like to grieve. Deep down, I wish he was a cowardly fool. But yet months and years beyond this grief, I will hold him up and know that I had taught him well."

  11. Great conversation. Y’all need a table like Hollywood Reporter round tables so you can look at each other without Bish having to crank his head. You’ve got the camera set up. 😉

  12. It’s God control when I ene raced other sins I’m the one if they remember who’s mocking me but still I love them but if they keep doing again! It’s a bad intentions now they will see to think this time I will respect their decisions .. until my satisfactions .. so now this is a lessons from all of us who I embraced all the way and excited to see our father who Create us …

  13. Proverbial Pharisees and Sadducees are out in full force. Dear Bishop, even though some of your utterances seems to have some sort of godliness, it does crucify Christ again. The organised religion you profess is not Christ centred, it is self centred, Catholic-only centred, built on falsehood. Your ethos is man made and it will not stand the test of time. Colossians 2:8-10 says it all. Many preachers are deceived by placing their own agenda over the authority of the holy spirit. Although I've been nourished by your word on fire podcast, your utterances here is troubling

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