Sharing the Faith with Dr. Tom Neal

Dr. Tom Neal speaks with Chris Vander Woude about the life and heroic death of his father, Tom Vander Woude, Sr., a humble husband, father, farmer, and pilot whose daily faith prepared him for the ultimate sacrifice of giving his life to save his son with Down syndrome. They discuss Tom’s impact on his family and community, the emerging cause for his canonization, and the alleged miracles and devotions that have followed his witness.

Learn more about Tom Vander Woude, Sr. and the canonization process:
https://tvwguild.org/

In this solo episode, Dr. Tom Neal reflects on the people who have most shaped his life, especially a formative middle school tutor, exploring how genuine listening, compassion, and willing “the good of the other” shaped his Catholic faith and his approach to listening and supporting others.

Dr. Tom Neal welcomes back Mandie DeVries to explore mystagogy and the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. They dive into how children—and adults—are gently led into the mysteries of the faith through signs: baptismal light, candles, the gestures of the Mass, the stories of scripture, and the very structure of the liturgy itself.

Dr. Tom Neal welcomes Mandie DeVries back to the podcast to explore how the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd introduces children to the mystery of divinization—sharing in God’s own life—through wonder, liturgical signs like the preparation of the chalice, and the parable of the prodigal son.

Dr. Tom Neal talks with Orthodox theologian Dr. Paul Gavrilyuk about the Christian doctrine of deification (theosis) — our participation in God’s life by grace — and how this vision reshapes salvation beyond mere moralism, bridges Eastern and Western traditions, and speaks powerfully to ecumenism, suffering, ecology, and the work of IOTA and The Oxford Handbook on Deification.
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