The Discerning Hearts Blog Archives - Discerning Hearts Catholic Podcasts
A Christmas Novena Day 9 – Mp3 audio and Text – Discerning Hearts Podcast
Day 9 – Life Eternal
O Lord, infant Jesus, bring us to live eternal with You! Jesus, your nativity was not without purpose. Your purpose was to bring us to You. We pray that you will bring us to Life Eternal with you this Christmas.
Divine Infant,
after the wonders of Your birth in Bethlehem,
You wished to extend Your infinite mercy to the whole world
by calling the Wise Men by heavenly inspiration to Your crib,
which was in this way changed into a royal throne.
You graciously re...
Day 24: A Gentle Love Born in Our Hearts – From the writings of Caryll Houselander – Discerning Hearts Podcasts
Caryll Houselander image used with permission from TRINITY ICONS
Day 24: Â A Gentle Love Born in Our Hearts
How small and gentle his coming was. He came as an infant. The night in which He came was noisy and crowded; it is unlikely that in the traffic of the travelers to Bethlehem the tiny wail of the newly-born could be heard.
God approaches gently, often secretly, always in love, never through violence and fear. He comes to us, as he Himself has told us, in those whom we know in our own lives. Very often we d...
A Christmas Novena – Day 9 – Discerning Hearts Podcast
A Christmas Novena – Day 9 – Life Eternal
O Lord, infant Jesus, bring us to live eternal with You! Jesus, your nativity was not without purpose. Your purpose was to bring us to You. We pray that you will bring us to Life Eternal with you this Christmas.
Divine Infant,
after the wonders of Your birth in Bethlehem,
You wished to extend Your infinite mercy to the whole world
by calling the Wise Men by heavenly inspiration to Your crib,
which was in this way changed into a royal thro...
Day 25 – Adoration – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart:
Prepare your heart for Christ through Scripture, the saints, and the gentle practice of daily listening.
Part Four: Welcoming Christ with a Heart Fully Awake
DAY 25 – Adoration
“O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker.”
Psalm 95.6 RSV
Adoration is the stillness of a heart that has recognized the nearness of God. It is not an emotion or a technique. It is the quiet interior posture that rises when the soul realizes:Â He is here.<...
VEC9 – Diocletian – Villains of the Early Church with Mike Aquilina – Discerning Hearts Podcast
Episode 9 – Diocletian – Villains of the Early Church with Mike Aquilina
Mike Aquilina discusses the Roman emperor Diocletian, whose name became permanently linked to one of the most prolonged and systematic persecutions in Christian history. Unlike earlier rulers driven by instability or rage, Diocletian was a capable administrator who sought to stabilize an overextended empire through careful political restructuring. His hostility toward Christians emerged gradually, shaped by the belief that refusal to participate in state religion threatened divine favor and imperial unity. The persecution unfolded methodically—through loss of property, status, and life itself—and endured for many years, p...
O Emmanuel – The O Antiphons Reflections with Sharon Doran – Discerning Hearts Podcast
O Emmanuel
O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver,
the hope of the nations and their Saviour:
Come and save us, O Lord our God
Sharon Doran serves as the teaching director of “Seeking Truth.” An experienced Bible Study teacher, Sharon has a passion for scripture that will motivate and challenge you to immerse yourself in God’s Word and apply His message to your everyday life.
“Seeking Truth” is an in-depth Catholic Bible Study, commissioned by the Archdiocese of Omaha in response to John Pa...
O Emmanuel – The O Antiphon Reflections from Fr. Giles Dimock, O.P. – Discerning Hearts Podcast

Seventh Antiphon – December 23nd: O Emmanuel
O Emmanuel,[1] king and lawgiver,[2] desire of the nations,[3] Savior of all people, come and set us free, Lord our God.
We have here a variation on the theme that Jesus, who is Emmanuel – God with us – is present in the Church and in the world as king and lawmaker; yet we need him to come again, we desire him to come and set us free from ourselves through Christ, through his saving birth, life and teaching, death and resurrection and his return in glory, all of which...
Day 23: Resting in Christ, Living His Love – From the writings of Caryll Houselander – Discerning Hearts Podcasts
Caryll Houselander image used with permission from TRINITY ICONS
Day 23: Resting in Christ, Living His Love
In Advent, Christ rested in Mary—still, silent, helpless, utterly dependent. The Creator trusted Himself to His creature.
He trusted the expression of His love to her, the expression of God’s love for the world, and of His love of His Father. Just as the work of His love would be trusted to us, in His life in us.
He was dumb, her voice was His voice. He was still, her footsteps were His journeys. He was...
A Christmas Novena – Day 8 – Discerning Hearts Podcast
A Christmas Novena – Day 8 – Holiness
O Lord, infant Jesus, inspire us to be repulsed by sin! You, Lord, are holy but we are not. We pray that you will make us holy and keep us from temptation this Christmas.
Divine Infant,
after the wonders of Your birth in Bethlehem,
You wished to extend Your infinite mercy to the whole world
by calling the Wise Men by heavenly inspiration to Your crib,
which was in this way changed into a royal throne.
You graciously received those holy men<...
Day 24 – Joy – An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart – Discerning Hearts Podcasts
An Advent Journey for the Discerning Heart:
Prepare your heart for Christ through Scripture, the saints, and the gentle practice of daily listening.
Part Four: Welcoming Christ with a Heart Fully Awake
DAY 24 – Joy
“Behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will come to all the people; for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
Luke 2:10–11 RSV
Joy is the fruit of love recognized. It is not the same as happiness or emotional excitement. Happines...
DWG9 – Second Mode of Discernment – The Discernment of God’s Will in Everyday Decisions with Fr. Timothy Gallagher – Discerning Hearts Podcast
Second Mode of Discernment – “What am I to do?” The Discernment of God’s Will in Everyday Decisions with Fr. Timothy Gallagher
Fr. Timothy Gallagher and Kris McGregor discuss the second mode of discernment according to St. Ignatius of Loyola. This mode involves a consistent attraction of the heart toward one option over a period of time, particularly during spiritual consolation.
They examine an experience from St. Ignatius’s life where he discerned whether the Jesuits should continue living in radical poverty. Ignatius sought God’s guidance through Mass for 40 consecutive days, experiencing spiritual consolation and a consis...
O Rex Gentium – The O Antiphons Reflections with Sharon Doran Podcast
O Rex Gentium
O King of the nations, and their desire, the cornerstone making both one: Come and save the human race, which you fashioned from clay.Sharon Doran serves as the teaching director of “Seeking Truth.” An experienced Bible Study teacher, Sharon has a passion for scripture that will motivate and challenge you to immerse yourself in God’s Word and apply His message to your everyday life.
“Seeking Truth” is an in-depth Catholic Bible Study, commissioned by the Archdiocese of Omaha in response to John Paul II’s call to th...
O Rex Gentium – The O Antiphon Reflections from Fr. Giles Dimock, O.P. – Discerning Hearts Podcast

Sixth Antiphon – December 22nd: O Rex Gentium
O King of all the nations, the only joy of every human heart,[1] O Keystone[2] of the mighty arch of man;[3] come and save the creature you fashioned from the dust.[4]
This antiphon rejoices that the Lord is king not just of the Jews but us Gentiles as well, who makes them one people, one temple, in which he is the keystone, the crowning glory that holds all in place.[5] We beg the Lord to return again to save weak humanity made in Gods’ image but dis...
