Catholic Enquiry Centre / National Office For Evangelisation

Welcome to Session 1 of this 30-session program of recordings, Hearing God’s Call: An Audio Introduction to the Catholic Faith. The series is produced by the Catholic Enquiry Centre, an agency of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. The title of this session is Welcome and Introduction. As you listen to this series of audio recordings you are invited to enter into a deep, rich and fulfilling relationship with God through the Catholic faith. These recordings are designed to be listened to from beginning to end, at your own pace with each 10-minute session building on the sessions that have come before. There are a broad range of topics explored in this program, which begins with stories of saints and heroes from the Bible and the history of the Church, moves then to examine some of the core beliefs of the Catholic Church before exploring the topic of prayer. The program concludes with a session on the topic of Catholic social thought and offers some suggestions as to what resources you might want get to

Each of us is called by God to fulfil a particular mission or vocation. Our task is to respond to the call. In this session we explore stories of call as recorded in the Old Testament, the first part of the Bible. We begin with the call of Abram, later named by God, Abraham.

In this session we explore stories of call and response as proclaimed by the prophets in the Old Testament. The prophets provide us with powerful examples of call and response in prayer and action. Each prophet writes of his experience in his own way. From the many great prophets we briefly examine four: Amos, Hosea, Jeremiah, and Micah.

This session explores stories of call as recorded in Gospels which are found in the second part of the Bible; the New Testament. The specific stories examined are the call from God to Mary through an angel, the call to Joseph in a dream and the call from Jesus to the first disciples.

The Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ. The apostles Peter and Paul provided the foundation and vision for the Church to consolidate and grow through the exercise of pastoral care and authority and the clear articulation of teaching. The Church celebrates a combined feast day for Saints Peter and Paul on the 29th June each year.

In sessions 2, 3 and 4 we explored the idea of call and response by looking at figures in the Bible. In this session we examine Saint Mary MacKillop and Saint Francis of Assisi.

In this session we look at two different heroes of the Catholic Church: Dorothy Day and Saint Vincent de Paul.

In this session we look at two different stories of call or vocation. The first story tells of a young woman Thérèse of Lisieux who found God in the midst of the small joys and sufferings of life. The second story tells of a bishop, Saint Francis de Sales who, in the midst of violence and division, wrote about the rich diversity of the Christian world.

The Bible is the most printed book in history. The Bible is also referred to as Sacred Scripture or simply, the Scriptures.

The Holy Spirit is the source of life for the Church. This one source has two aspects: The Bible and the living tradition of trustworthy teaching. This living tradition has been handed down in an unbroken line from the apostles who knew Jesus to the present time.

Lectio divina or holy reading is a slow reflective method of praying the Bible. Through contemplating on a passage from the Bible and allowing it to enter into our daily life, this way of reading the Bible invites us to discover an underlying spiritual rhythm. Attuned to this rhythm we have the opportunity to discover a little more about ourselves and our relationship with God. This session is informed by a booklet called “Lectio Divina; Praying the Scriptures in Lent and Holy Week, 2011”, prepared by Bishop David Walker, the Emeritus Bishop of Broken Bay Diocese, north of Sydney.

There are many stories told in the Christian community and we have already heard some stories of bible figures, heroes and saints. The most important story for Christians is the story of Jesus Christ, who lived, died and was raised from the dead about 2000 years ago in the region now known as Israel and the Palestinian territories.

In the Bible there are four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Each gospel tells the story of Jesus Christ in its own way. In this session we explore the reason why there are four gospels and examine the similarities and differences between them. This will help us come to a deeper understanding of the message and meaning of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In this session we explore the story of the Prodigal Son. The full story can be found in the Gospel of Luke chapter 15, verses 11‐32.

If it has been sometime since you have been to Mass, when you return you might feel that yes, Mass is the same but there have been many changes. Just like the changes in the Mass that have occurred in the past and will occur in the future there have been many changes in the long history of the Church. The changes reflect movements in culture and in the ways we express our faith. However God’s revelation of himself to us and our faith in God remain the same.

This is the first of two sessions in which we explore an early Christian statement of belief.

In this session we explore the meaning of the last nine points that make up this ancient prayer.

In the Book of Exodus in the Old Testament, God gives Moses many laws related to a whole range of matters, from taxation and slavery to instructions on building an altar and furnishing a sacred space. Out of all of those laws and instructions ten are set aside as having special significance. These ten are described in Exodus chapter 31, verse 18 as being written with the “finger of God”, that is they are special amongst the large list of commandments and instructions.

In the last session we explored the Ten Commandments as God’s gift to his people and as a sure guide for action. In session 13 of this program we heard about the reason why there are four gospels with each of the gospel writers or evangelists shaping their gospel to tell the story of Jesus to a particular audience. In this session we explore the relationship between the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Ten Commandments as portrayed in the collection of sayings that have come to be known as the Sermon on the Mount.

The tragedy of Jesus crucified, the mystery of the Church, the Scriptures, and the Sacraments only make sense when they are viewed in the light of Jesus risen from the dead. Without the Resurrection, the stories of Jesus are reduced to the reported sayings and actions of a holy and wise, wandering preacher. In this session we explore the notion of life after death as understood by the Catholic Church.