If you’re not one of the millions of people who are already listening to podcasts, get excited! Podcasts are a hidden gem of the internet media world, where you can hear neat stories and get cool content from incredible people around the world. If you’re looking for a list (not comprehensive, but a good starter) of some great Catholic podcasts, then you’ve come to the right place!
There are a ton of podcasts out there, and this list highlights four of them as my favorite ways to stay engaged with my faith outside of Sunday Mass. Each podcast addresses a different part of my life and a different need in my spiritual growth. As Catholics, it’s important that we are always striving to grow our faith, and this means more than Sunday Mass. We need to pray daily, study scripture, and share the Gospel with others. If you’re not moving forward, you’re falling behind.
Another way to think about this is: “Garbage in, garbage out.” When our media intake consists of nothing but digital junk food — inappropriate or violent TV shows, impure music, or mindless web surfing — our interior lives suffer the same effects our bodies would if we ate nothing but Cheetos. Our hearts and our conversations start to focus on worldly things rather than things of heaven. Listening to great Catholic podcasts on your commute, your daily walk or while working out is a great way to stay connected to your Catholic faith throughout your week.
So without further ado, check out a few of my favorite Catholic podcasts. You can check out their webpages with the links below and find them by searching your podcast app on your phone!
Wish you could spend more time reflecting on Scripture? This podcast sends you a daily Lectio Divina meditation on one of the daily readings. Each 12-minute episode is designed to help you to pray wherever you are, whether that’s on a bus, in a car or with your dog in the park (hence the “go” part of “pray as you go”). Every episode includes music, the reading for the day, a few questions for reflection and a closing prayer. They also have an app! Pray-As-You-Go is a great way to incorporate prayer into your life when you’re not in the chapel.
Catholic Stuff You Should Know
CSYSK is hosted by four priests from the Archdiocese of Denver: Fr. Nathan Goebel, Fr. John Nepil, Fr. Mike Rapp and Fr. Michael O’Loughlin. They cover a huge variety of topics, including papal infallibility, bikinis and the Apostolic Pardon, to name a few. They also share their experiences as parish priests with a great mix of banter, hilarious unedited commentary and solid factoids about Catholic stuff you should know.
The Word on the Hill with the Lanky Guys
The Word on the Hill is hosted by Fr. Peter Mussett and Dr. Scott Powell of the Aquinas Institute for Catholic Thought in Boulder, Colorado. You might learn some new fun facts about Sour Brite Crawlers, Jeeping and Catholic life in the People’s Republic of Boulder. You’ll definitely learn everything you need to know about how the weekly readings fit into salvation history; they’ll also show you the threads that link the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament and Gospel readings to current events. Dr. Powell tells the stories of the Old Testament in a way that makes them come alive. When you go to Mass on Sunday after listening to the Word on the Hill, you’ll be more engaged because you know the story and the context.
Did you love Father Mike’s talks at SEEK or SLS? Then you’ll love his weekly homily podcast! He’s funny, witty, always relevant — and he’ll help you become a better human. This is a little different than your average homily series. Father Mike also writes Bible studies to go with the weekly readings and focuses on a theme, usually for a few Sundays in a row. It’s like you get to do a Bible study with Father Mike every week! It’s a great way to connect the weekly readings to specific attitudes and behaviors you might see in your daily life.