WOF 486: Celebrating 25 Years of Word on Fire

WOF 486: Celebrating 25 Years of Word on Fire

Author: Bishop Robert Barron April 21, 2025 Duration: 41:09

Word on Fire is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. That's twenty-five years of proclaiming the Gospel, evangelizing the culture, and working hard to bring people to—or back to—Christ and his Church. It's worth pausing to look back to remember where it all began and how the ministry has grown along the way. What is Word on Fire's origin story? When, where, and why did Bishop Barron—then Fr. Barron—first conceive of the idea to found Word on Fire? What were the early years like? What have been some major developments along the way? What obstacles were encountered, what lessons learned? And what does the future look like for the next five, ten, and even fifty years?

A listener asks how he might be able to become a part of the Word on Fire religious order. 

00:00 | Introduction
01:22 | Minnesota bishops visit state capital
02:55 | A brief look at Bishop Barron's early priestly life
06:18 | Bishop Barron's cathedral project
06:58 | Word on Fire's beginning
09:49 | Beginning the Catholicism series
11:24 | Cardinal Francis George
14:30 | Early days with Fr. Steve Grunow
15:41 | Reddit's "Ask Me Anything"
18:48 | Sunday Sermons
23:22 | Bishop Barron Presents
25:45 | The Word on Fire Show
27:07 | Public speaking events
28:32 | Speaking at Google and Facebook
29:57 | Expanding into the United Kingdom
31:17 | Word on Fire's Institute and Publishing
33:58 | The Word on Fire Bible
37:08 | Looking into the future
38:32 | A message to donors
39:17 | Listener question: How can I join Word on Fire's Third Order?
40:35 | Join the Word on Fire Institute


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Each week, The Word on Fire Show-Catholic Faith and Culture offers a thoughtful conversation with Bishop Robert Barron. This podcast explores the rich intersection of belief with contemporary life, examining everything from art and philosophy to current events and personal spirituality through a Catholic lens. Listeners will find deep dives into theological concepts, reflections on scripture, and discussions on how ancient wisdom addresses modern challenges. The tone is engaging and accessible, designed for anyone curious about the deeper questions, whether they are longtime in their faith or simply exploring. Bishop Barron brings his distinctive perspective as a theologian and communicator to these dialogues, making complex ideas relatable. It’s a space for meaningful exploration, where faith is presented as a compelling force for understanding our world and our place within it. New episodes arrive weekly, continuing a long-running series of insightful commentary and analysis.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

The Word on Fire Show - Catholic Faith and Culture
Podcast Episodes
WOF 523: The Grammar of Assent (10 of 12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:03
An Essay in Aid of a Grammar of Assent was Newman's most difficult work. While not a formal epistemology (theory of knowledge), Newman prompted a movement away from modern epistemology, stressing certainty that is best f…
WOF 522: What's It Like to Be a Catholic Bishop? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:15
St. Pope John Paul the II memorably observed that the Catholic Church comes from the eucharist and that the eucharist, in turn, comes from priests. As Bishop Barron noted in a recent letter to his diocese, "by an inescap…
WOF 521: The Philosophical Habit (9 of 12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:19
Newman believed that a liberal arts education would instill a philosophical habit of mind in students, helping students reason to the foundational principles of every discipline and see how everything fits together. The…
WOF 520: Defending Religious Freedom [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:35
Religious freedom, especially for Christians, is under attack across the globe, including in the West–including right here in the United States. Whether insidiously in the form of diversity, equity, and inclusion program…
WOF 519: The Queen of the Sciences (8 of 12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:51
Theology is the queen of the sciences. It is not just one science among many but the principal organizing science. If it is taken out of this central organizing place, something else will take its place. In this lesson,…
WOF 518: What Is the Christian Way of Caring for the Poor? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:22
Poverty is not only a complex problem to address economically–not to mention sociologically, psychologically, and culturally; it is also often caught up in political and ideological currents, both domestically and intern…
WOF 517: The Idea of a University (7 of 12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:40
Newman's articulation of the nature of university education in his ​The Idea of a University ​is crucial today in that a polytechnic model has replaced classical liberal education and theology has been exiled from most i…
WOF 516: How to Have a Civil Debate in a Polarized World [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:31
Charlie Kirk's assassination revealed a disturbing new cultural and political reality for those who share any of Kirk's views: it is possible, in our day and age, to be shot for speaking your mind. How can we recover fro…
WOF 515: Developments Contrasted with Corruptions (6 of 12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:40
In this lesson, Bishop Barron explains how Newman distinguishes between doctrinal development and corruption. A thorough explanation of this crucial issue requires a robust presentation of Newman's seven notes. Bishop Ba…