Terry Barber: You’re welcome to the Terry and Jesse show. Jesse’s out, but I have Bishop Athanasius Schneider joining us for a special edition to talk about the Fathers of the Church and his latest book. Bishop Schneider, welcome to the Terry and Jesse show.
Bishop Schneider: Thank you. God bless you.
Terry Barber: Well, he’s blessing me every moment, because I’m trying to live in the presence of God moment by moment. So it’s a great blessing. Bishop Schneider, before we get into your book, I mentioned off the air that we lay people need direction. I know that bishops teach, govern, and sanctify, but I want to have something that I know is close to your heart because of the order you belong to, and that is reparation. What can we lay people do to help Holy Mother, the Church, in this kind of rough time, where we see things going on that make us scratch our heads and say, “What’s that? We shouldn’t be doing that,” but we can’t do anything in the sense of management, and we’re just lay people? Can you talk a little bit about the value of reparation and expiation, please?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. Saint Paul teaches this very clearly. He says that I must fulfill with my sufferings what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the benefit of His Church. This is more or less the teaching of Saint Paul, because he explains that the Church is a body, a mystical body, and then he says that in a body, when one member is suffering, the entire body is suffering. Therefore, when specific parts of the body, representatives, let us say, of the Church, the clergy and all others, are doing something wrong in the eyes of God, this has a consequence on the entire body, on its spiritual health.
As Saint Paul says, the other members, even if they are of lesser significance, have to do their part in the body of the Church according to God’s plan. Even the smallest part of the body has its mission in the eyes of God, and every member of the Church must contribute with acts of love. This is basically the meaning of expiation, that an act of supernatural love is united with the sufferings of Jesus Christ.
Of course, Christ’s sufferings are sufficient; there is no need to complement His sufferings because He is divine, but the effect of His sufferings may reach specific souls or situations in our time. Therefore, He invites us to help Him so that these graces could flow more abundantly. This is a mystery of God. We can only open these doors for graces in the Church here on Earth to be more efficacious through our sufferings and acts of love united with the sufferings of Christ and Our Lady.
We can offer any act of love, even the smallest one, as a sign of contribution, in humility, of expiation, of reparation, and atonement for all the acts in the Church that offend the holiness of God, the sacredness of the commandments of God. We must suffer and offer it through the hands of the Immaculate Mother of God. She transmits these small gifts built with love, which can be prayers, acts of good works, or real suffering in our lives, sickness, bodily pains, or spiritual trials. We can use all of these in the spirit of reparation and expiation, always united with the sufferings of Christ, with an act of love, consciously done, and asking Our Lady to offer it to the Lord as a small contribution to repair the Church here on Earth.
We have many examples in these 2000 years from the saints, who gave us examples of a life of expiation and reparation. The most recent example is the children of Fatima, who were canonized, Saint Francisco and Saint Jacinta. At their young age, they were an example for us adults in how they used every occasion to offer some sacrifice, moved by love, with words to console Our Lord, who is so much offended, especially in the Eucharist, and also because of other sins. These children offered their pains, their suffering, and ultimately their death, enduring it with acts of love united with Christ, and God cherishes this, especially the suffering and prayers of the little ones.
God, in His method in the history of salvation, has always chosen the small and humble to triumph over pride and those who consider themselves great. This is the method of God: He became a child, He chose Our Lady, the most humble maiden, and He chose the smallest angel, the humble Archangel Michael, to conquer Lucifer. God did not choose a Seraphim from the highest choir, but the small Archangel Michael. This will always be God’s method.
Lay people in some way belong to the Body of Christ. God loves the contribution of lay people, especially in difficult times in the Church. When the leaders in the Church, popes, bishops, and priests, are committing errors and not exercising their tasks well, God still chooses the small ones. We have examples, for instance, during the Arian crisis in the fourth century, when most of the episcopacy failed or collaborated with heresy. The purity of the Catholic faith in the divinity of Christ remained intact in the simple people, and they, together with a small number of saintly bishops, overcame this heresy.
Another example is during the fifteenth century and the Renaissance, when the papacy and higher clergy were in a deplorable state of immorality, God awakened holiness in the lay people.
Terry Barber: Bishop Schneider, thank you for that teaching. That will go all over the world, because people need to hear it. St. Paul in Colossians chapter one, what a great quote there. When we come back, we want to talk a little bit about the Fathers of the Church and your book Matins with the Fathers. Stay with us. We’ll be right back.
Welcome back to the Terry and Jesse show, Bishop Athanasius Schneider, author of a new book, Matins with the Fathers. Before I get into his book, I want Bishop Schneider to explain who the Fathers of the Church are and why it is important. Sometimes we say to our Protestant friends, “Go study the early Church, and you’ll find out that it was Catholic,” and they usually end up becoming Catholic when they study the Fathers. So could you tell us, Bishop Schneider, who the Fathers of the Church are and why it’s important?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. The Fathers of the Church were saints, bishops, and teachers in antiquity, in the first centuries of the Church. Usually, in the Latin Church, this is up to the seventh century, and in the Eastern Church, up to the eighth century. These holy bishops and teachers are considered the privileged witnesses of the tradition, because the Catholic faith has its foundation on two channels, two ways in which divine revelation is transmitted to us.
The first is written in the Holy Scripture, which is called the written word of God. The second is the oral Word of God, transmitted orally. These are two channels of divine revelation. Together, Scripture and Holy Tradition form the foundation of the Catholic faith.
The Church Fathers are privileged witnesses of the oral tradition of divine revelation. In their preaching, they are closest to the origins. Some of them were disciples of the apostles, like the Apostolic Fathers, Ignatius of Antioch, Clement of Rome, Polycarp, and others, and they transmitted what they received. From the first Fathers, the Apostolic Fathers, until the last Fathers in antiquity, there was never a rupture in teaching. The faith was harmoniously handed on from one generation to the next.
The Church Fathers always stressed that what they wrote and preached was not new. It was not their own invention. They received it from their teachers, who received it from the disciples of the apostles, and the apostles received it from the Lord. This is the Catholic principle of faith and tradition. We have their writings, which are concrete evidence of the truth and validity of the Catholic faith and tradition.
Terry Barber: Thank you. That sets me up to talk about your book. I can’t assume everybody knows who the Fathers are, so I really appreciate your explanation. You’ve written a book with Sophia Press, Matins with the Fathers, a patristic commentary for the office of Matins. I read that the Fathers of the Church are revered as the primary commentators on Sacred Scripture. If that’s true, why aren’t we reading more of the Fathers? I want to ask you this: why did you write the book, and what was the purpose?
Bishop Schneider: The purpose was primarily for priests and those who use the Divine Office. Matins is a part of the Divine Office in older terminology. In Latin, it is called Matutinum, which refers to the hours in the morning in the Divine Office, or in the night. It was the night office or very early morning praise of the Lord by monks and priests in the old breviary. In the new breviary, it is no longer called Matins, but an hour of readings.
Matins, since apostolic times, was a time to read Scripture and meditate. St. Paul and Silas prayed at night in the prison, reading the Psalms. The first monks and the Church continued the so-called Night Office to praise God during the night or early morning. Matins was one of the main liturgical hours, the other being Vespers in the afternoon or early evening. These two moments were the most important.
Because Matins was during the night, there was more time to read and reflect. It was silent and conducive to meditation on Scripture. There were extensive readings of Scripture and often corresponding commentaries from the Holy Fathers on the passages read during the Office. In the old breviary, commentaries were included only on Sundays and major feasts, not daily.
I considered this a lack, so I created a work to offer priests or laypeople who use the older breviary a way to understand better the Scripture they were reading, with the help of the Fathers, who are the most effective commentators. I provided corresponding short commentaries on specific Scripture passages, indicated each day. It is meant for private reading, for priests or laypeople, to meditate on Scripture together with the Fathers.
I kept the commentaries short, so as not to overburden the reader during the Office. They are intended for personal, spiritual reading during the day. In addition, these commentaries do more than explain the biblical passages; they often include dogmatic and moral teachings of the Catholic faith. This allows readers to understand Scripture better and see how the dogmatic and moral truths of the faith are revealed in the Holy Scripture.
Terry Barber: Also, you know, Bishop Schneider, as I’m listening to you, I’m thinking of the Second Vatican Council, which talked about us lay people sanctifying the temporal order and getting familiar with Scripture. It’s almost like you’re doing that. You’re actually encouraging us to know the Bible better. I thought of one of the saints who said, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ,” and that’s what you’re encouraging us to do.
Now, in this book, it follows the liturgical calendar, so you’re thinking with the Church throughout the year, and your book actually goes with the old calendar of the Church. I just want to encourage people to go to Sophia Press to pick up the book. I’ll use it three or four times, and why? Because I want people to know Jesus Christ better. There’s no better way than through Scripture and the Holy Eucharist, the sacraments, to meet the person of Jesus Christ. This is a fantastic book. Go to Sophia Press, or you can go to our website, because we’re one of the promoters of Sophia and TAN, those are two publishing houses that we think are really good. Go to vmpr.org, click on Sophia, and pick up that book.
Bishop Schneider, when I hear you talk about the Fathers of the Church, I want people to understand that this is something you did for your dissertation, right? As a younger man, you spent years studying the Fathers. Is that a fair statement?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. By the providence of God, it was not my choice, but I was assigned by my superiors, and I was happy, of course, to discover the inestimable treasure of the Holy Fathers, their writings, and how they were filled with the Spirit of Jesus Christ and of the Church. They were truly, in a very expressive way, guided by the Holy Spirit. They had docility, yes, docility to the Holy Spirit, in a true spirit of the Church. This is a treasure. I discovered it, of course, as a normal Catholic. But then, studying intensely and specifically, I discovered this inestimable treasure of the Fathers.
Terry Barber: Can you give us an example, like St. Anthony of the Desert? I know I’ve read some things about him in Opus Angelorum newsletters and formation letters, and I think of him as, wow. Can you tell us a little background on him? I know it’s off the top of your head, but to me, he’s an example of the Fathers; you just look, read, and go, wow. What insights. He was a holy man in the desert. Can you share a little bit about who he was and why he’s important to study?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. St. Anthony himself did not write anything, but what we know about him is basically from St. Athanasius, who was his disciple. Athanasius wrote the life of St. Anthony and transmitted the true Christian spirit, especially the militancy against evil spirits. This is one of the main characteristics of St. Anthony’s life and spirituality, the spiritual battle against evil spirits, showing that our life on Earth is militant. We belong to the militant Church to fight for Christ and save souls.
Terry Barber: Nothing’s changed. We have our Spiritual Warfare Conference coming up with Father Chad Ripperger. When we come back, I’ll tell you how to get your tickets for that, and much more about Bishop Schneider’s book Matins with the Fathers. You’re listening to the Terry and Jesse Show. We’re too blessed to be stressed. We’re too anointed to be disappointed. If hope were money, we’d be billionaires, because our hope is in Jesus Christ. We’ll be right back.
Welcome back to the Terry and Jesse Show. Bishop Athanasius Schneider is with us talking about his book Matins with the Fathers, the patristic commentaries for the Office of Matins. Bishop Schneider, you have an office as a bishop, as a successor of the apostles, and you’ve taken that very seriously. I’ve read some of your other books on the Catechism that you’ve done, and others. You’ve told your life story of growing up in Russia, and your parents were phenomenal in hiding priests. You really understand persecution because you’ve lived it. I wanted to ask this question about your other books. How can people get your other books while also getting Matins with the Fathers? What do they need to do to pick up your Catechism and other books you’ve published?
Bishop Schneider: Well, several books are published with Sophia Press, like the Catechism, and also The Springtime That Never Came, also with Sophia Press, and my interview book with Diane Montagne, which is published by Angelico Press. I also published a book for priests, Man of God, with Dr. Scott Hahn at St. Paul Center in Steubenville. These are the main ones, and I also wrote a book about the Catholic Mass.
Terry Barber: Yes, that’s amazing. That’s my favorite book, because you do something with the Mass, the source and summit of the Christian faith. You explain the Mass in such a beautiful way that going to Mass will never be the same after people read that book. Who’s the publisher of that book, Bishop Schneider?
Bishop Schneider: Also, Sophia Press.
Terry Barber: Okay, folks, you’ve got to get that book. I’ve been ouch, I have a bad back, sorry I’m yelling a bit, but that book is so important for Catholics to understand the Mass. Bishop Schneider, I just wanted people to understand maybe they didn’t hear or read your book about coming from Russia, your background. Can you just tell us a little story about what it was like living under persecution? What did you have to do to get to Mass? I mean, it’s not like here in America, where five minutes from here, we can go to any church. In the Diocese of Los Angeles, there are hundreds of churches. But that wasn’t the way it was when you were growing up. Can you share a little about the sacrifices your parents made so you could continue in the faith as a child?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. We lived in the Soviet Union, the so-called dictatorship of communism, of atheism. It was a society with the goal of establishing atheism as state policy, extinguishing any visible signs of the presence of God. Sometimes they kept one church in Moscow for propaganda, but in ordinary life, it was forbidden. In schools and higher education, there was a subject we had to study and take exams in, called scientific atheism.
Terry Barber: Scientific atheism? You actually had to take that class?
Bishop Schneider: Yes. God have mercy on you.
Terry Barber: Go ahead. I mean, we’re blown away by that. That is just unbelievable.
Bishop Schneider: Of course, we had the grace that I received, along with my siblings, the Catholic faith from our mother’s milk, also from my grandparents, and so on. I grew up in this soil, but at the price of the suffering of my grandparents and parents, who were persecuted and repressed. First, they were sent to rural areas or forced labor, but they managed even then to organize the clandestine Catholic Church. Later, they moved to Central Asia, where I was born. There, they continued to organize secret prayers and Masses.
For example, in Central Asia, in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, where I grew up, there were no priests. Priests only came rarely and very secretly. Holy Mass was celebrated at night, very quietly, so the secret police would not discover it. These are my memories of secret Masses and other secret prayers organized by my parents. On Sundays, usually, a priest came only a couple of times per year. Most Sundays, we had no priest at all, so we sanctified Sunday within our family. Our parents led the hour of prayers. We knelt in the living room, took the crucifix or the statue of Our Lady, and prayed together.
Later, we moved to Estonia, where there was an open church, but it was 70 miles away. They had to travel this distance, 70 miles there and back, by train, of course. The authorities did not allow ordinary people to have a car, which was considereda capitalist style. But there, we had a holy priest, who had also suffered in a concentration camp. He gave me my first Holy Communion, first confession, and confirmation. I remember him very much.
When we moved to West Germany, I was about 13 years old. This priest warned us, “Please do not go to churches where Communion is given in the hand.” We were shocked. We could not imagine such a thing. My mother’s reaction was, “What a horror, what a horror to do such a thing, to take Our Lord as you would a cake or candy.” As a boy, I could not understand it at all. This holy confessor priest warned us not to do it. We had to face this reality in Western Germany, and it caused spiritual suffering.
Once, my mother saw the state of the Catholic Church in the West, the progressivism, modernism, and lack of reverence during the liturgy, and she said to me, “I would prefer to go back to the Soviet Union, to be persecuted in the underground Church, rather than be here in West Germany in open churches where Our Lord is desecrated during Communion and through unworthy liturgies and preaching.”
Terry Barber: Amazing story, Bishop Schneider. With all that environment that you were in, by the grace of God, you became a Catholic priest. How did that happen? How did you maneuver from seeing modernism, seeing all this lack of reverence for the Blessed Sacrament? How did that not destroy your faith in Jesus Christ? And how did you connect with your vocation as a priest?
Bishop Schneider: Well, I think I got into the underground church, and through the confessor priests, my parents and I had a kind of immunity against the virus of modernism and irrelevance. All my life, it was not something I chose; it was a gift of God I cherish. By the grace of God, I was never affected by the virus of modernism. I had an instinctive repulsion against it since my boyhood, and when I was growing up, I had the grace to enter the Congregation of the Holy Cross, where there is deep reverence for the Eucharist and devotion to the holy angels, who help us maintain awe before the majesty of God and the Holy Eucharist. I consider this a grace of the Lord.
I think the roots of my vocation lie in the holy priest, the martyr Father Alexis Ritzky, who was beatified by John Paul II. He was the confessor of my parents, and my mother hid him when the police were persecuting him. He came to our house and celebrated a secret Mass when I was a small child and blessed me. I was probably one year old at the time. I believe the suffering and martyrdom of this holy priest, a friend of our family, nourished my vocation.
Terry Barber: Thank you, Jesus. Bishop Schneider, thank you for sharing that witness. When we come back, I want people, first of all, to go to our website, vmpr.org, and pick up Matins with the Fathers, a new book by Bishop Schneider, published by Sophia Press. When we come back, let’s talk a little bit about the angels and how they help us fall deep in love with Jesus Christ. Stay with us. We’ll be right back.
Welcome back. Bishop Athanasius Schneider is here talking about Matins with the Fathers, his new book from Sophia Press. Bishop Schneider, that was very inspirational. Your mom moved back to communism rather than stay in West Germany, where modernism was rampant. We have something similar going on here in America, although there are good Orthodox parishes with traditional liturgies that people can attend. It’s a little easier than it was when you were young. What advice would you give to moms and dads who have large families, trying to center their children on Jesus Christ while living in a culture opposed to that?
Bishop Schneider: First, parents are the first educators in the home. To transform the home with love, they must love their children deeply, because the love of Jesus must shine through the parents to their children. Of course, they must sometimes be strict in education, but this should always be guided by love. Parents should lead by example in prayer. There should be common prayers in the family, not too much to overload the children, but at least some, in the morning and in the evening. Even during the Soviet Communist persecution, we prayed together in the morning before leaving the house and before going to sleep. Prayer must always be present in the family.
It is also very important that parents provide examples of good Christians, including examples from books, the lives of saints, and other inspiring sources. My mother did this for us. This gives children strength and conviction when facing a hostile environment. Parents should also guide children in good formation in the parish, and children should have a community with peers of the same age. Pilgrimages together and participating in Catholic youth activities encourage them and show that they are not alone. Children and young people should be proud to be Catholic, not ashamed, and should learn not to fear the world but to stand firm in Christ.
This spirit must be transmitted to the children. Parents should also help young people grow in chastity before marriage and provide formation for adulthood in this regard.
Terry Barber: If I could just jump in, because what you’re giving is great advice. I think of Archbishop Fulton Sheen, my mentor. I’ve read everything he ever published. I tell families that his book, Three to Get Married, is a classic for families. Another question I have, Bishop Schneider, is the role of the guardian angel for our children and families. How can we instill devotion to the guardian angel in young people? Many are amazed that their angels are always with them. Can you talk about devotion to the guardian angel and why it is important for family life?
Bishop Schneider: Yes, God gave us the guardian angel, and we must recognize and be thankful for this gift and use it effectively in our lives. Otherwise, we will not make use of this great gift of God. God is so generous; He gave each of us a powerful, holy angel, like a brother, who is always on our side, day and night. He sees the holiness of God and is our best helper in prayer, our protector against physical and spiritual harm, and against attacks from evil spirits.
Develop a deep friendship with your heavenly brother, your guardian angel. You can even entrust your life to your guardian angel, but the aim of the angel is to lead you to a deeper love of Jesus Christ and Mary. The more you venerate your angel, the more you will love Jesus and Mary, and the more you live consciously in friendship with your guardian angel, praying with him, the more you will have a kind of instinct for Catholic faith. He can illuminate your conscience and guide you.
Invite your guardian angel to prayer, and when going to sleep, ask your angel to watch over you, to greet Jesus at the tabernacle in your name, and console Him. Ask your guardian angel to warn you and give you signs when you are in danger of offending Jesus. This fosters friendship with Christ and devotion to Our Lady. This is an important aspect of devotion to angels, especially the guardian angel.
Terry Barber: Yes, that is a wonderful catechesis on devotion to the guardian angel. I always like Father Wolfgang’s comment: the unemployment rate for guardian angels is too high; put them to work. Bishop Schneider, you’re telling families to put them to work. Before I ask for your blessing for our radio audience, I want to encourage people to go to vmpr.org and get Bishop Schneider’s book, Matins with the Fathers, from Sophia Press. Bishop Schneider, thank you for your love for Jesus, Our Lady, and the angels. You have been an inspiration, giving us catechesis on reparation, expiation, and living in holiness. Could we have your blessing for our radio audience?
Bishop Schneider: Yes.
Dominus vobiscum, et cum, spiritu tuo. Et benedictio dei omnipotentis, Patris et Filii et spiritus Santi descendant, super vos et maneat semper. Amen
Terry Barber: Remember, if Jesse were here, I’d say, Jesse, what state should we be living in? And Jesse would say, the state of grace, Terry, and I’d say, you’re right, Jess, and then I’d say, remember what Our Lady of Fatima said, that souls are going to hell because no one’s there to pray and make sacrifices. We were just taught by Bishop Schneider the value of reparation and expiation. She said souls are going to hell because no one’s there to pray and make sacrifices. I don’t care if you’re two years old or 102; we can all offer up our suffering in union with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to help redeem the world. I want to thank all of you who support us here at Proclaiming the Deposit of Faith here at Virgin Most Powerful Radio. If you want to get other shows, you can go to vmpr.org. Again, I want to thank Bishop Schneider for his generous time in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and His bride, the Church. Thank you again, Bishop Schneider, and God loves you. We’ll be praying for you.