Catholic History Trek

Mar 28 2025 193 ep. 19 mins 23
Catholic History Trek Podcast artwork

A podcast exploring the history of the Catholic Church, especially the historical background of contemporary Catholic practices and issues. Hosted by Kevin Schmiesing and Scott Schulze. To help Catholic History Trek, please consider donating via PayPal to [email protected] Thank you for your support!

  Religion & Spirituality
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193. Catholic India: St Devasahayam Pillai

Mar 28 2025 12 mins  
From the land of Mother Teresa, a world class cricket team, and 4-hour long Bollywood movies, comes St Devasahayam Pillai. This episode treks thru his life and martyrdom, with a historical look at Catholicism in India. ("Martyrs" series no. 5, St Devasahayam Pillai)

192. Universities

Mar 21 2025 31 mins  
Universitas magistrorum et scholarium. The modern university's very name derives from its medieval Catholic antecedent. Scott and Kevin tour the long, fruitful, and sometimes contentious relationship between the Church and universities.

191. Stealing Heaven

Mar 13 2025 8 mins  
Arthur Simon Flegenheimer, a.k.a. Dutch Schultz, was an infamous prohibition era mobster known for bootlegging, running breweries, speakeasies, and illegal gambling rings, and engaging in gang wars. After the National Crime Syndicate put a hit on him, this Jewish-born criminal sought redemption thru the Catholic Church while on his deathbed. Find out about his conversion, and lost

190. The Magnificent Madeleine

Mar 04 2025 10 mins  
Salt Lake City's splendid Cathedral of the Madeleine reflects the history of Catholicism in the land of the Latter-Day Saints. ("Cradles of Catholicism" series, no. 35, Utah)

189. De Profundis

Feb 26 2025 12 mins  
From out of the depths Scott explores the history of the De Profundis prayer, which is also Psalm 129. (“Catholic Prayers” series, no. 14, De Profundis)

188. An Imperishable Wreath: Catholicism and Sports

Feb 19 2025 30 mins  
Scott and Kevin outline the historical connections between the Church and athletic games, highlighting a few of the many remarkable Catholic athletes and teams that have excelled in the field of competitive sports. Support CHT by donating through PayPal to Kevin Schmiesing@CatholicHistoryTrek

187. The Catholic Church and Galileo

Feb 11 2025 24 mins  
Is the Catholic Church an enemy of scientific progress? For those who answer "yes", the often point to the trial of Galileo. But what is the real history between the Church and Galileo? Find out in this episode as Scott treks thru geocentrism, epicycles, heliocentrism, Nicolaus Copernicus, and Galileo.

186. The Archangel of Dubuque

Feb 04 2025 12 mins  
Ven. Samuel Mazzuchelli and Bishop Matthias Loras are among the figures who played major roles in the story of the Cathedral of St. Raphael in Dubuque. ("Cradles of Catholicism" series, no. 34, Iowa)

185. St Blaise and the Blessing of Throats

Jan 27 2025 11 mins  
Next week the blessing of throats for the feast day of St Blaise will take place in many Catholic churches. But who was St Blaise, and why do we commemorate his feast day by blessing throats? Scott treks thru the answers to those questions in this episode. ("Martyrs" series no. 4, Martyrdom of St Blaise)

184. The End of Catholic Mexico, with David Gilbert

Jan 20 2025 31 mins  
Kevin interviews Clayton State University history professor David Gilbert about his new book, The End of Catholic Mexico: Causes and Consequences of the Mexican Reforma (1855-1861).