Transcript:
James Caldwell: Hello, all. Welcome to another episode of The Manly Catholic. This is James, your host, and I am extremely excited to share this amazing interview that Father Domini did with Bishop Athanasius Schneider.
Bishop Schneider is, I’m sure many of you have heard of him, very prominent. He’s a bishop in Kazakhstan and is truly a warrior in the time we are living in. He is not afraid to speak the truth, stand up for the truth, and defend the true teachings of the Catholic Church. He is a man I greatly admire, and I cannot say enough good things about him.
We talked about heresy, which is the topic of his latest book that will be released by Sophia Press in July. Such a great, holy, and humble man. Father Dom actually texted me right after and said he felt like we were in the presence of a very holy man and perhaps a saint in the making.
Before we get into the episode, I want to say a quick thank you to all of our supporters and listeners. Thank you so much for the prayers you constantly send us. To those of you who support us on Patreon, we are truly humbled and so encouraged by all the feedback we receive, whether it’s by email, social media, or however you found out about the podcast. We cannot say thank you enough.
If you are able, I kindly ask you to consider financially supporting our podcast on Patreon. You’ll get bonus episodes, free coffee if you subscribe at a certain level, and hopefully some merchandise in the future. All proceeds go directly back into the podcast and to help support our priests. Our priests need us now more than ever, and anytime we can help them, we will.
Finally, please hit the subscribe button on YouTube if you’re watching there or wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Spotify. Check out our website as well to let the algorithm know this podcast is worth listening to.
All right, that’s enough from me. Without further ado, here is our conversation that Father Dominic had with Bishop Athanasius Schneider. God bless, and I hope you enjoy.
James Caldwell: Hello, all. Welcome to another episode of The Manly Catholic. This is James, your host, and I have with me my co-host, Father Dom. Father Dom, how are you doing, sir?
Father Dominic: Fantastic.
James Caldwell: Wonderful. And today we have a very special interview. I’m very excited to be speaking with Your Excellency, Bishop Athanasius Schneider. Your Excellency, welcome to The Manly Catholic podcast.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Thank you all for your invitation. God bless you.
James Caldwell: Thank you, Your Excellency. I must say, it’s such an honor to speak with you. I’ve been following your work for quite some time, and it’s always refreshing to speak with someone, especially bishops such as yourself, who are right in the line of fire, always speaking the truth, not afraid to stand up for it.
Especially in this day and age, and especially as men, it’s enlightening to hear someone like you, as Father Domini said, put up your shield and say, “I’m going to speak the truth, no matter what comes my way.” So thank you so much for your work. We truly appreciate it.
Father Dominic: Yeah, and I’d just like to echo what James said as well. At least coming from many priests who follow you, Bishop, your dedication and zeal for the episcopacy, for me, at least, feels like it goes all the way back to the apostles, the apostolic fathers, and the early Church Fathers. So, on behalf of myself and many other priests I know who follow you, I just want to say thank you. God bless you. We’re praying for you, and thank you for your witness of being a true shepherd.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Thank you, dear Father Dominic, for your words and your prayers. God bless you also.
James Caldwell: Well, before we dive in, Bishop Schneider wrote an excellent book that I think is going to stir some souls, so to speak. He wrote a book on heresy, and I think, especially in this day and age with everything going on, it’s very appropriate for what we’re dealing with.
But before we get into that, Your Excellency, would you mind leading us in a word of prayer, please?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Yes.
In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum, benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.
Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.
Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
James Caldwell: Thank you, Bishop, so much. Now, before we dive into the book, I always like to ask our guests, if you could be the patron saint of anything, what would it be, and why?
Bishop Schneider: I would choose Eucharistic Adoration, the Holy Hour.
James Caldwell: Beautiful. We need that so much in this day and age. So, Bishop, like I mentioned in the intro, you wrote a book on heresy. I just love reading the description of it, especially knowing that you have experienced quite a bit of persecution and heresy, especially under the Soviet Union, as well as all the things you’ve dealt with and spoken about throughout your time.
Now, before we dive into the details, do you mind explaining to our audience what exactly heresy is, so we have a working definition to go on?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Heresy is a Greek word, and the literal meaning is “to choose,” choosing something. It is a subjective act, like choosing from a menu à la carte. So, heresy is personal and subjective. It’s not objective.
It stands in contrast to something objective, something given, something we receive. And that’s the greatest gift we as human beings can receive from God. It’s not just that we are created. It’s not only that God revealed Himself, this divine revelation, but what matters is our acceptance of it, which is faith. Heresy, then, is an offense, an outrage against divine revelation itself, and that makes it so serious.
Of course, heresy is seductive. The devil always presents half-truths. This idea of “I will do what I want, I will choose what I want” was the same attitude of Adam and Eve when they chose to disobey.
In some way, original sin, the first sin, was already a kind of wrong choice, subjective, against the word of God. God gave Adam and Eve a clear word. He revealed Himself, but they misused it in their own way, not remaining faithful to His revealed command. So, basically, this is the essence of heresy.
James Caldwell: Well, thank you, Bishop, for explaining that. The way you describe it makes me think of our current age, where I often refer to them as “cafeteria Catholics.” It’s like picking and choosing the teachings you want to follow.
For example, someone might say, “Well, I agree with the Church’s teaching on the Eucharist, but I disagree with the Church’s teaching on abortion or LGBTQ issues.” As you said, it’s a choice. And when you don’t embrace the whole truth, that united truth revealed through divine revelation, then you’re essentially worshipping your own version of God, because you’re not actually following what the Church teaches. Now, I believe in your book, correct me if I’m wrong, you go through names and categories of more than 130 doctrinal errors. Is that correct?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Yes, it is. It’s an overview, chronological, from the first centuries up to our time, with concrete names. We have to know the diseases. Heresy is basically a spiritual disease, and it’s dangerous because it’s contagious. It spreads like a virus.
And just as with physical illness, to cure a disease, we have to first identify it. So the Magisterium, the bishops, the episcopacy, have the task of being like physicians, to cure these diseases. To do that, they need good medicine. And medicine must come with a clear description of the disease; otherwise, we cannot help people.
The same applies spiritually. We have to know the spiritual diseases, which are heresies or errors. So it is both fitting and helpful to have an overview of these major known errors that have spread over time.
Father Dominic: Yeah, Bishop, that reminds me of the power of our baptism, and even this conversation between the three of us. James is a layperson, I’m a priest, and you’re a bishop. We all share in this long, never-ending thread of defending the truth against heresy. You mentioned Adam and Eve and how it started from the beginning.
Then in the New Testament, we hear from Jesus, who is the Word and the Truth, and from Saint Paul, who is always talking about the truth. And then even Timothy, who refers to the Church as the bulwark, the pillar, and the foundation of truth. There’s an intellectual component to all this. To know God, love God, and serve Him, so that we may be happy in this world and in the next.
We all share in that mission, especially you, Your Excellency, in the episcopacy. It makes me think of Saint Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, or Polycarp, or Clement, or Saint Justin Martyr, or even Irenaeus, who defended against heresy. And just recently, coming off the celebration of the Most Holy Trinity, I was reminded of Saint Athanasius and his defense against the Arian heresy.
So we’re always battling against this. And I always tell my parishioners, I’m a diocesan priest, I’ve been a pastor for about three years at a large parish with a school, and I’ve only been ordained for four years, and what I’ve seen is an immense ignorance when it comes to the truth. It’s so important that we hear about heresy and realize how much we need the truth. Because it’s the truth that sets us free.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Yes, you are right, Father, and your experience reflects a reality that no one can deny. For decades now, we have been living in the Church within an atmosphere of generalized doctrinal and moral confusion. This confusion continues to grow.
Therefore, we have to identify and specify the main errors, the spiritual diseases, in order to protect people and, of course, to give them the truth. The truth is truly beautiful. It brings peace and happiness. Heresy, on the other hand, is only a fragment or a distortion, a deformation, of something that is true and beautiful.
So, we must do both: present the truth of God in a positive and clear way, and protect people from falsehood. We need to teach the Catechism in a clear manner, avoiding any ambiguity. If you look at the catechisms of the past, you can breathe in the clarity, the simplicity, and the beauty of God’s truth, without complicated constructions or excessive intellectualism. Unfortunately, many of today’s texts and so-called pastoral programs are filled with an overload of words, a kind of abstraction, that does not truly help people. People want to know the beauty of the faith in concrete terms.
So that’s one part, positively presenting the truth. The other part is protecting people from these spiritual diseases, especially as clergy. The task of a priest is, I repeat, a kind of spiritual physician. You must tell people, “Please, do not accept this teaching. It will harm your soul.” And then you must explain why, why this error, this heresy, is harmful. What are the consequences?
But the most serious problem with heresy is that it is an offense, an outrage, against God Himself, against the God who spoke, who revealed Himself. The Church merely transmits the Word of God. That is her essential role, especially through the Magisterium. It’s not so much that the Church creates teachings; rather, she faithfully preserves and communicates what has already been revealed. The Church must not propose her own doctrines. As Jesus Himself said, “My doctrine is not mine, but of the Father who sent me.” And it is the same with the Holy Spirit. Jesus referred to Him as the Spirit of Truth and said, “He will not speak on His own. He will take from what is mine and give it to you.” That’s a beautiful example of how even the divine persons respect this order. And so must the Church.
With God’s help, through 2,000 years, the Church has always instinctively, like a good mother, rejected heresies. A good mother would never give her child contaminated food. She first examines it. And if she knows something is harmful, she won’t give it. She will tell her child, “Please don’t eat this. Don’t drink this.” The Church has done the same. She has always said, “This is bad. This is heresy. Don’t accept it.”
But in recent decades, especially since the Second Vatican Council, we have unfortunately seen a change in attitude. I believe it was a prudential error when Pope John XXIII said that, in our modern times, we no longer need to focus so much on condemning errors or heresies, but rather emphasize only what is positive and optimistic. That is an illusion.
The 20th century was, in fact, marked by some of the most destructive heresies and ideologies in history. We know them well, communism, Nazism, atheism, and now, what we are facing today… And therefore, I believe the perception of John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council was an error of prudence, simply a misstatement of reality. The actual situation was quite different.
Both are necessary: to present the truth positively and clearly, and also to boldly and without compromise denounce errors.
Like a good physician, can you imagine a good doctor speaking about illness in an ambiguous way? That would be irresponsible. A physician must be clear and indicate all the dangers. He cannot say, “We have to be nice with the sickness,” or avoid describing its horrors. That would be completely irresponsible and unprofessional.
Now, how much more important is the soul and eternal salvation? Therefore, the Church, always, and starting with the apostles and with Jesus Christ Himself, gave us this principle.
Jesus said that when your brother sins, you must admonish him. If he does not repent, bring a witness. If he still does not listen, then bring it to the Church. And if he does not listen to the Church, Jesus said, “Let him be to you like a pagan.”
What does that mean? The Greek word for this is anathema. Even Saint Paul used this word, anathema. And Saint John, the Beloved Disciple, said that if someone comes and brings another doctrine, denying the divinity of Jesus Christ, you should not even greet that person.
This is very strong, but it was written by a disciple of love. You see, love and truth go together. We must protect the body of the Church. To temporarily or even permanently remove a heretic, an unrepentant heretic, is an act of protection. It also gives him a clear signal to repent. Because if we keep him, he may think, “Everything is okay. I can continue,” and then he harms not only the Church but also his own soul. We must always keep the eternal perspective in mind, eternal salvation, and the role of good shepherds, of good spiritual physicians.
James Caldwell: Bishop, I love that description you gave, especially the way you tied it to the role of a physician. I’m in the healthcare field as well, so I can easily understand that analogy. You’re exactly right. When someone has a disease, you don’t play nice with it. You try to root it out, and you try to eliminate it as much as possible, even at great cost.
What you said about correcting someone multiple times also really resonated. If someone refuses correction, then the most loving thing to do is actually to remove them, for the sake of both the Church and the individual. As you said, we are one body. And if you allow the disease to remain, it will infect the rest of the body. That’s exactly what has happened throughout history. Excommunication, which many people misunderstand today, is actually a loving action. It shows the person, “What you’re doing is serious. It’s grave. You need to change your ways.” It’s a form of spiritual medicine.
But it’s also to protect the body. And in our age of radical individualism, people lose sight of that. They say, “It’s just me, my life, my sin. I’m not hurting anyone.” But they don’t realize how their actions affect the whole body of Christ. You really drive that home, and I appreciate it. As you’ve studied heresies throughout the centuries, I’m sure you’ve noticed patterns. As the saying goes, “There’s nothing new under the sun.” So, I want to ask you, Your Excellency, what would you say is the most concerning or the most prominent heresy we’re dealing with in our modern culture? I know you mentioned communism and modernism, but I’d like to hear from you directly: what is the biggest concern you see today?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: For me, without a doubt, it is modernism. The heresy of modernism was very accurately described by Pope Pius X as the “synthesis of all heresies.” And this is true. We are now living in the culmination, the height, of modernism. Why? Because the essence of modernism is the denial of constant, stable truth. That idea destroys all foundations and convictions. Once that happens, everything becomes arbitrary and subjective. Modernism is a rejection of divine revelation at its root. The core philosophical error behind it is the belief that there is no objective, stable truth. This goes back to Kant, Kantian philosophy, which teaches that we have no direct perception of truth, only subjective impressions.
This all goes back to the philosophy of nominalism in the Middle Ages, which taught that our concepts, such as “God,” “person,” “substance,” “real presence,” and so on, do not correspond to reality. According to nominalism, the concepts we use are simply empty, void, meaningless sounds. In Latin, they called it flatus vocis, just puffs of air. So, you see, all of this was already being prepared.
The religious and theological modernism that later appeared in the Catholic Church toward the end of the 19th century, and especially during the early 20th century under Pope Pius X, has now reached its culmination, particularly after the Second Vatican Council. In its religious aspect, modernism says that there is, essentially, no divine revelation. It claims that the Holy Scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, are simply pious products of religious individuals, not the actual Word of God.
They claim Scripture is merely the result of emotional or intellectual religious experiences, not objective truth revealed by God. According to this view, these texts are not the voice of God but merely human expressions. This is extremely dangerous. Because if Scripture is merely the product of human authors shaped by their historical context, then as history and philosophy evolve, our religious understanding must also change. Therefore, the entire system of religion is constantly shifting. You can see how destructive this is. It is a mortal blow to the faith. It dismantles religion itself, especially Catholicism.
Philosophically, this view is very close to deism, which is essentially the philosophy of Freemasonry. Deism says that yes, there is a Creator, that much is acceptable, but that God, after creating the world, no longer has any relationship with human beings. According to deism, God created us, gave us full autonomy and freedom, and then stepped back completely. He does not speak to us, and He certainly does not reveal Himself. So, all so-called “religious truth” is simply man-made, and therefore, it can be redefined, changed, or discarded. This is what we are witnessing now in recent decades since the Council.
We see the modernist method at work in the Church today. For example, on the issue of homosexuality, we have cardinals, bishops, priests, and religious promoting the idea that the Church must change its doctrine. They are saying, “Yes, the Church used to teach that homosexual acts are intrinsically evil,” which is clearly stated in the Catechism. But now they argue that historical and cultural circumstances have changed, that humanity and philosophy have evolved, and that society today perceives these acts more positively.
Therefore, they conclude that the Catechism must change, and that homosexual acts can now be seen in a positive light. This is pure modernism, exactly the method I have described. One recent example of this is the Vatican document Fiducia Supplicans, which permits blessings for same-sex couples. This is already a kind of preparation, an implicit recognition of homosexual unions. And this is not limited to homosexuality. The same method is being applied to other issues like adultery and even female ordination.
They are using a step-by-step strategy. They say, “Let’s not start with priestly ordination of women, but first allow women deacons. And before that, allow them to be instituted as acolytes.” You see, it’s a very strategic logic, a calculated implementation of modernist principles, applied to the liturgy, to doctrine, to dogma, and to moral teaching. And where does that lead us? To the creation of a purely human organization, wearing some external Catholic decorations, but in essence, it becomes a human-made religion.
A religion that humans invent and therefore believe they can change. This is the death of any true faith. We must unmask modernism at its roots. And we must defend the greatest treasure we have, the Holy Catholic Faith, which the Lord Jesus Christ revealed to us in its fullness. Only this faith can make us truly happy and give us eternal salvation.
Father Dominic: Amen, amen.
And when I attack modernism in my preaching, when I touch on these subjects you’ve brought up, Bishop, I can feel Satan’s attack, very directly. Either through my own individual vices that I have to wrestle with, or even through parishioners who approach me after Mass if I’ve preached on, for example, the authentic nature of marriage as a sacrament between a man and a woman.
I’ll preach that a man who is born a man remains a man, and a woman born a woman remains a woman. And yes, I’ll get pushback for that. But it’s so important to keep preaching the truth, the truth of the Catechism, the Sacred Tradition of our Faith, and staying true to the beautiful and deeply reverent liturgy, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Here in Michigan, where James and I are from, specifically in the Diocese of Grand Rapids, we’re actually seeing a hunger. There’s a growing desire for the deep traditions of our Church. Whether it’s the Church’s teaching, the sacraments, or the liturgy, people are hungry for it. I celebrate the Novus Ordo, of course, but I also offer Mass according to the 1962 Missal. And that’s something rich and steeped in the Church’s liturgical heritage. People are yearning for that. Yes, there is a lot of ignorance, but at the same time, I see people craving the truth and craving the depth that the Catholic Church has offered for 2,000 years. And it seems to me, many of the newly ordained priests entering ministry today, especially those from faithful religious communities, are bringing that tradition back. They’re not afraid of it. They love it. They live it. But wow… sometimes we encounter stiff opposition. Even so, I have to say: I’m excited to be a Catholic during these times. I truly am.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Thank you, Father Dominic, for your witness and your fidelity. Continue this holy battle for the Lord. This is for Him, not for us. And even when we are wounded, we offer that for love of Him and for the souls He’s entrusted to us. Like a good soldier… like a good father, when he defends his children, yes, he may be wounded, but he fights for those he loves. He fights for the Lord.
Let us remember, as priests, and I speak also as a bishop, that one of the greatest temptations and dangers for clergy, even high-ranking clergy, is the fear of man. The fear of being criticized. The fear of being rejected. The desire to please people and be accepted by the world. But Saint Paul says very clearly in his Letter to the Galatians: “If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” This must be our law. It’s apostolic. Otherwise, we’re not truly Catholic priests or shepherds; we become hirelings, the kind of false shepherd our Lord warned us about. Now of course, we should always try, as Saint Paul said, to “speak the truth in love.” (Veritatem facientes in caritate.)
But that’s not always easy. People tend to choose one extreme or the other. It’s easy to proclaim the truth without charity, or to act “charitably” without truth. But the real path, the Catholic path, is to hold both: truth and charity, united. That is more difficult. So we must pray always that the Lord will give us the grace to speak the truth with clarity, but also with love, respectfully, and without compromise. We can never compromise the truth. It is better to be criticized, even persecuted, during this short time we have on earth. Because behind our backs is eternity, waiting for us. And in that eternal perspective, we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
James Caldwell: I love that. Now, Bishop, I want to be respectful of your time. May I ask, do you have a time restraint?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: I still have a little time. Maybe 15 more minutes.
James Caldwell: Fifteen minutes, perfect. Father Dom, is that good for you?
Father Dominic: Yes, that’s perfect.
James Caldwell: Excellent. I just wanted to confirm that.
Now, Bishop, I wanted to ask you this: It seems like we’re living in a time of almost intellectual arrogance, where people believe that we, today, are somehow smarter or morally superior to the people of the past. There’s this idea that “we know better now.” So when it comes to the Bible, for instance, people will say, “Well, it’s not really inspired. It’s just the product of a specific time and culture.”
And that ties into what you said earlier, modernists reducing divine revelation to mere human experience. But what I see now is almost a curse of over-intellectualism. We take something that’s clear, like Church teaching, and we twist it into some kind of “nuanced” or “pastoral” exception. We over-complicate things. And what happens? We end up blowing up the whole teaching.
For example, when someone says, “We’re not asking for women to be ordained priests, we just want them to be deacons,” that’s clearly just the first step in a larger agenda. So my question to you, Bishop, is: What is the ultimate goal here? Is this part of a diabolical and subtle attack meant to lead us to destruction?
So Bishop, just to clarify what you’re saying, is this purely a diabolical force at work? Or is it also just human nature, our fallen tendency toward sin, pride, and ego? You know, this belief that we know better than our ancestors, that Church teachings are “outdated” and need to be upgraded, what do you see as the true driving force behind modernism and the particular heresies you’ve been discussing?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Without a doubt, it’s the devil himself. He led and influenced Adam and Eve in what you could call the first heresy in a broader sense. They chose their own interpretation of God’s command, instead of humbly submitting to it.
And our Lord called Satan the father of lies. That’s how Christ described him. All of Satan’s strategies throughout history involve lies, and often half-truths, which are even more dangerous. Half-truth is still a lie. This is the devil’s work.
Saint Peter, the first pope, warned us very clearly: “Be sober and vigilant, because your adversary the devil goes about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
This is real. He goes around us, constantly. And he tempts us, sometimes subtly, sometimes more intensely. But all of us, in our personal lives, have experienced these demonic suggestions. So yes, the primary force behind heresy is Satan, the father of lies. But then, as you correctly said, there is also human pride. That’s often the deepest root of heresy. Heretics rarely admit it, but if they were honest, they’d have to say: “Yes, the root of my error is pride”, intellectual and spiritual pride.
Just as you said, James, this mindset of: “I know better than what God said. I’ll decide how to interpret His word.” You see this in every heretic. They place themselves above the entire Tradition of the Church. Luther said, “Everything before me was wrong. They were all deceived. But now I will interpret the Word of God correctly.” This is pride. And it repeats itself over and over again throughout Church history, and especially today. It’s a lack of humility. And without humility, there is no true faith. Faith is fundamentally an act of humble submission to God’s revelation. As Jesus said: “Unless you become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” This applies especially to faith. Because without faith, as Saint Paul says, we don’t even know where we are going. Faith is the foundation. And then upon that, we build love. But faith must come first. So yes, two great dangers: The continuous influence of the devil, the father of lies. And the pride of man, especially spiritual and intellectual pride.
James Caldwell: Yes, absolutely. Now, Bishop, we’ve talked about the disease of heresy, how it’s rooted in pride, in modernism, and ultimately, in satanic deception. But what’s the prescription, so to speak? You mentioned earlier that a good physician diagnoses clearly and treats directly. So what would be your advice, especially for the men listening to this podcast? How can men today start “going to the doctor,” so to speak, how can they begin to root out sin in their lives and actively combat the errors of modernism, individualism, and even scientism?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: That’s a beautiful question. God gave man the male a specific mission from the moment of creation: to protect. This is written in the very genetic code of man. He is called to be a father. And a true father has an instinct to protect his children, his home, and his wife, even to the point of battle. But not for his own sake, he fights for others, for those he loves.
So yes, man is made for militancy, but a good, holy militancy. Not one corrupted by sin, not one rooted in ego. But a noble willingness to fight for what is true, for what is beautiful, and for what is sacred. That is your calling as men. Now, most men are not theologians or priests. But that’s not necessary. I would encourage all men to simply go back to the old catechisms, the good, short, traditional catechisms.
Learn your faith. Memorize the basics. Know who God is, what the Trinity is, and what the Church teaches. And once you know it, stand by it. Be firm in it. Know, for example, that Jesus Christ is true God and true man. That the Eucharist is truly the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ. That marriage is only between one man and one woman, as God created it.
Protect these truths. Defend them. Be ready, if necessary, to die for them. That is your mission as a man. You don’t need hundreds of pages of theology. You need clarity and conviction. As Saint Paul said: “I know whom I have believed.” So I encourage all Catholic men: Be men. Have a fatherly mentality, even if you’re not yet a biological father. And most importantly, be fully Catholic. Not 90%, not half. Don’t pick and choose. Be 100% Catholic in your mind, heart, and life. And defend the Faith calmly, but with deep conviction.
Father Dominic: Amen. I love that. And at the heart of it is obedience, trusting in God’s revelation and in His Church. Even when we don’t fully understand something, we say: “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.” There are doctrines I struggle with, too, but I trust the Church. I trust God.
And like you said, Bishop, obedience means saying, “I don’t fully get this right now, but I know this came from God and His Church, and I know the Church will never lead me into error.” So I surrender. I lean into faith. And I love what you said about the old catechisms. I have the Baltimore Catechism, and it’s so simple. It’s direct, it’s accessible. It’s not overwhelming. And sometimes that’s what people need: clarity.
James Caldwell: Bishop, I’ll just quickly add another good one is the Catechism of the Council of Trent. We talk about old catechisms, and that one’s rich in tradition and very helpful.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Yes, and if I may add another recommendation: There’s a wonderful collection being published in the U.S. by Sophia Institute Press called Tradivox. It’s a multi-volume series of historical catechisms, translated into English. I believe they’ve already published over 12 volumes. Each one includes beautiful, concise catechisms approved by Church authority throughout the ages. You can find them online. I highly recommend it.
Father Dominic: And Bishop, your own catechism, Credo, is excellent. I have a priest friend up north who’s a pastor of three parishes. He texted me a picture of your book and said, “I just ordered 300 copies for all my parishioners.” I jumped online as soon as I saw that and ordered 50 myself. I gave them to all the staff and teachers in our school. It’s such a treasure. It’s clear, it’s orthodox, and it’s steeped in tradition.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Thank you, Father Dominic, and please send my greetings to your friend as well. As I mentioned earlier, in putting together Credo, I made it a point to avoid even the slightest shadow of ambiguity. Because our faith is too precious. And as I’ve said, a doctor cannot be ambiguous when dealing with a serious illness. The same is true of a priest or a bishop. Of course, in dealing with individual souls, we must be pastoral and compassionate, but when teaching the truth, we must be clear. And we must remember: The Catholic Faith is not the invention of men. It is God’s revelation. It is His truth.
The truths in these catechisms are simply the teaching of the Apostles, handed down faithfully, generation after generation. And I believe with all my heart that this is from God. Even the simplest truths of the faith, when you meditate on them, can move you to tears. That God is Trinity. That Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist. That the Holy Mass is the re-presentation of Calvary. You don’t need to write 100-page theological dissertations. Just take these truths, reflect on them in prayer, and let the Lord speak to your heart. Because the truth of our faith is bottomless, you can never exhaust it. So I urge you: love the Catholic Faith.
James Caldwell: Amen. Bishop, thank you so much. You’ve been incredibly generous with your time. Again, for those listening, the Bishop’s upcoming book is called: Flee from Heresy: A Catholic Guide to Ancient and Modern Errors, coming soon from Sophia Institute Press, scheduled for release July 16, 2024.
And Bishop, before we close, would you be willing to give us and our audience a final blessing?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Yes. Dominus vobiscum.
Father & James: Et cum spiritu tuo.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Et benedictio Dei omnipotentis, Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti, descendat super vos et maneat semper. Amen.
Father Dominic: Thank you, Bishop. It was an honor.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: Thank you. God bless you.