Bishop Barron on Bishop Fulton Sheen

About this sermon

Friends, by common consensus, Archbishop Fulton Sheen opened the door to the evangelization of the world through the new media. For this reason, I consider him one of the pivotal players in the modern history of the Catholic Church. In this week’s episode of the Word on Fire Show, Matthew Petrusek and I discuss Sheen’s theology, legacy, upcoming beatification, and more. In addition, a listener asks: How do I best use social media to evangelize? Editor Correction: James Fulton was delivered in cardiac arrest at home and immediately transferred to the hospital. His father, Travis, invoked Sheen’s name while performing an emergency baptism; his mother called out to Sheen in silent prayer; and a friend who was present saw a vision of Sheen on his ordination day. For 61 minutes, James had no pulse. In the ER, just as the time of death was about to be called, the newborn’s heart began to beat—marking the moment when, through Sheen’s intercession, the life of James Fulton was miraculously saved. 00:00 | Introduction 01:22 | Winona-Rochester’s confirmation season 02:19 | What is beatification? 04:44 | Who was Fulton Sheen? 07:15 | Sheen’s theology of the Church as mystical body of Christ 11:38 | Sheen’s theology of grace 15:10 | The quiet influence of Fulton Sheen in Bishop Barron’s life 20:44 | The Pivotal Players: Fulton Sheen 21:59 | Examining Sheen’s universal appeal 26:22 | Fulton Sheen and social media 29:49 | Word on Fire and Fulton Sheen 30:20 | Listener question: How do I best use social media to evangelize? 32:23 | Join the Word on Fire Institute