Last Wednesday, September 9, Fr. Robert Barron was ordained an Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles. Known for his ministry, “Word On Fire”, Barron is known for his ability to evangelize and teach via the new media. Even National Catholic Reporter’s, Nicholas Collara, not a huge Barron fan, wrote in July, after the announcement of Barron’s appointment, that we can learn a lot from Barron’s “extraordinary vision:”
He has understood what evangelization means in a technological age and has embraced media that the church in general has been far too slow to explore. Somehow, even miraculously, he has done so — and become popular for it — without sacrificing intellectual seriousness and sophistication. He has connected with innumerable lapsed Christians or agnostics, presenting the faith in a reasonable and attractive way. Finally, he has provided parishes across the country with resources for continuing adult faith education. This is one of the church’s most critically under-addressed needs, and Barron’s user-friendly and well-produced works have been a godsend.
The above video, filmed with Barron right after his ordination last week, is one more demonstration of this. The new bishop is actually able to make the history of ordaining bishops interesting as he talks about some meaningful aspects of his own appointment, his role models, and his thoughts about Pope Francis.
Zoe Romanowsky is Lifestyle Editor and Video Content Producer for Aleteia
And today we celebrate...