In this episode of The Great Works in Western Literature, Kris McGregor and Joseph Pearce explore Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, a profound story of personal conversion, moral awakening, and the search for true happiness. Dickens, writing during a time of rapid industrial and social change, presents Pip’s journey, a young boy whose desire for wealth and social status leads him away from the love and humility that once grounded him. Through Pip’s rise and fall, Dickens reveals the illusion of worldly success and the deeper truth that fulfillment is found not in possessions, but in sacrificial love and moral integrity.

Pearce highlights how Great Expectations reflects a deeply Christian vision of life, rooted in repentance, grace, and transformation. Pip’s painful recognition of his own pride and misplaced desires becomes the turning point that leads him back to what truly matters. Dickens’ work not only critiques the social and economic upheavals of Victorian England but also speaks powerfully to modern readers who face similar temptations toward materialism and ambition. Ultimately, the novel reminds us that true “great expectations” are not found in worldly gain, but in the conversion of the heart and the rediscovery of love.

1. Pip’s desire for wealth and status leads him away from those who truly love him. How can the pursuit of success or recognition distort our relationships?

2. Dickens shows that worldly gain does not bring lasting happiness. Where do we see this illusion at work in our own culture or personal lives?

3. Pip gradually becomes aware of his pride and ingratitude. What role does self-examination play in the process of conversion?

4. Joe remains a constant example of faithful, sacrificial love. How does his character challenge our understanding of what it means to love others well?

5. The collapse of Pip’s expectations becomes the moment of grace in his life. How can moments of disappointment or loss become opportunities for spiritual growth?

6. Dickens presents a vision of true wealth rooted in love, humility, and reconciliation. What does it mean for you to live with “enough” rather than always seeking more?

A native of England, Joseph Pearce is the internationally acclaimed author of many books, which include bestsellers such as The Quest for Shakespeare, Tolkien: Man and Myth, The Unmasking of Oscar Wilde, C. S. Lewis and The Catholic Church, Literary Converts, Wisdom and Innocence: A Life of G.K. Chesterton, Solzhenitsyn: A Soul in Exile and Old Thunder: A Life of Hilaire Belloc. His books have been published and translated into Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Croatian, and Polish.

He has hosted two 13-part television series about Shakespeare on EWTN, and has also written and presented documentaries on EWTN on the Catholicism of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. His verse drama, Death Comes for the War Poets, was performed off-Broadway to critical acclaim. He has participated and lectured at a wide variety of international and literary events at major colleges and universities in the U.S., Canada, Britain, Europe, Africa, and South America.

He is a Visiting Professor of Literature at Ave Maria University and a Visiting Chair of Catholic Studies at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts (Merrimack, New Hampshire). He is editor of the St. Austin Review, series editor of the Ignatius Critical Editions, senior instructor with Homeschool Connections, and senior contributor at the Imaginative Conservative and Crisis Magazine. His personal website is www.jpearce.co.

Episode 5 -Stations of the Cross: Reflections with Deacon James Keating – Deacon Keating guides us through the 12th station (Jesus dies on the Cross), the 13th station (Jesus is taken down from the Cross and laid in the arms of His mother), and the 14th station (Jesus is placed in the tomb) along the Way of the Cross.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., is a professor of Spiritual Theology and serves as a spiritual director at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

Deacon Keating is also the author of:

You can find the book here.

From the book description:

Deacon James Keating’s book Abiding in Christ: Staying with God in a Busy World is a how-to-pray resource. This book helps readers to find a quiet space wherein they can be present to God and offers suggestions of how they can be more open to God s movement within them.

Day 5: Mary, Mother of Justice

You shall conceive and bear a son and you shall call him Jesus. He will be great and shall rightly be called Son of the Most High. (Luke I:31-32)

Let us pray:

Almighty Father You gave us Mary, the mother of our Savior to be our model. She inspires us to constantly reach out to one another. We are called to anticipate the needs of those around us, perceive the cry of their heart, share their fears and their brokenness and give hope to the hopeless and forsaken. Teach us Lord how, when and where we must reach out to those in want and in pain. May our hearts be filled with Your love, ever yearning to serve You through others – without counting the cost. This we ask in Jesus name through the intercession of the Our Lady of the Annunciation.

Jesus, for our salvation You willingly humbled Yourself, becoming Man in the womb of the Virgin Mother, grant me through the mystery of Your holy Incarnation the virtue of humility that I may ever please God as Your Mother did, by meekness and lowliness in this world, and be exalted by You in eternity.

Mary, dear Mother of my Savior, I greet you and I thank you for having received the message of the Archangel Gabriel: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee” (Luke I:28) and for having answered with your assent, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to thy word.” (Luke 1:38) Intercede for me that God the Father, who accepted you as His Daughter and the Mother of His Son because of your humility at the Annunciation, may accept me as humble child. Amen

Steps to Take as You Follow Christ

Ask—From whom did I learn what I know about Jesus now?

Seek—Read the Gospels daily to come to a deeper understanding of Jesus. Always begin your reading with a prayer asking God to enlighten you in your endeavor.

Knock—Meditate on Acts 16:30–31.

‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They told him, ‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, and your household too’.

The jailor experiences the power of God’s protection over the apostles and wishes to be saved. They tell him what is necessary is to believe. What does it mean to believe? How is belief different than knowledge?

Transform Your Life—Jesus often tells his disciples to watch, to be vigilant. Seek the Lord at all times, in all places. Invite him to be a part of every area of your life. Hold nothing back.

Michael Dubruiel’s book The Power of the Cross: Applying the Passion of Christ to Your Life is currently available in Kindle format.

You can find the book here:
https://amzn.to/4rTMBK9

To explore more of Amy Welborn’s books and writing, visit:
https://amywelborn.wordpress.com/books-by-amy-welborn/

Check out more at the Discerning Hearts’ Michael Dubruiel page

Excerpt from THE JERUSALEM BIBLE, copyright (c) 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House, Inc. Reprinted by Permission.

In this episode of The Holy Rule of St. Benedict: A Spiritual Path for Today’s World, Kris McGregor and Fr. Mauritius Wilde, OSB reflect on how the Rule offers a remedy for the confusing life patterns of the modern world. Fr. Mauritius points to the way contemporary life has drifted from the natural rhythms God built into creation: day and night, work and rest, weekdays and Sunday, even the changing of the seasons. While many modern conveniences are real accomplishments, they can also distance us from the healthy balance human beings need. St. Benedict’s Rule responds by grounding life once again in a sacred rhythm, one that respects the body, the soul, and the created order.

At the heart of this Benedictine wisdom is the steady alternation of prayer and work. Fr. Mauritius explains that ora et labora is not merely a motto, but a deeply human and healing pattern that restores order and perspective. Prayer interrupts work, sanctifies it and reminds us that labor is not our highest good. Work, in turn, is carried back into prayer, where it is offered to God and transformed. In a culture of constant motion, St. Benedict teaches that balance is not found by doing more efficiently, but by living more faithfully within the rhythms that help the heart remain rooted in God.

From holy Easter till Pentecost, let the brethren dine at the sixth hour and take supper in the evening. From Pentecost on, however, during the whole summer, if the monks have no work in the fields and the excess of the heat doth not interfere, let them fast on Wednesday and Friday until the ninth hour; but on the other days let them dine at the sixth hour. This sixth hour for dinner is to be continued, if they have work in the fields or the heat of the summer is great. Let the Abbot provide for this; and so let him manage and adapt everything that souls may be saved, and that what the brethren do, they may do without having a reasonable cause to murmur. From the ides of September until the beginning of Lent let them always dine at the ninth hour. During Lent, however, until Easter, let them dine in the evening. But let this evening hour be so arranged that they will not need lamp-light during their meal; but let everything be finished whilst it is still day. But at all times let the hour of meals, whether for dinner or for supper, be so arranged that everything is done by daylight.

1. How has the pace or structure of my daily life drifted away from the natural rhythms God built into creation?

2. In what ways do work, schedules or constant activity interfere with prayer and rest?

3. St. Benedict prioritizes prayer within the pattern of prayer and work. What place does prayer actually hold in my daily life?

4. How might small, faithful pauses for prayer during the day help restore balance and peace in my heart?

5. Am I allowing Sunday, rest, and the changing seasons to shape my life, or am I trying to control every rhythm myself?

6. Where is God inviting me to live with greater simplicity, stability and trust in His order for my life?

Father Mauritius Wilde, OSB, Ph.D., did his philosophical, theological, and doctoral studies in Europe. He is the author of several books and regularly directs retreats. He serves as Prior at Sant’Anselmo in Rome.

In Episode 30 of our Week 4 Lenten journey with St. Bernard of Clairvaux’s On Loving God, we reflect on the humble beginning of love. St. Bernard speaks with striking honesty: the human person does not begin by loving God perfectly; rather, it often turns to Him first out of need, weakness, and dependence. This is not a failure of love, but its beginning.

In harmony with the wisdom of The Holy Rule of St. Benedict, this episode reminds us that grace does not build on illusion, but on truth. We do not come to God already purified or spiritually mature. We come as we are—limited, burdened, and learning. Bernard shows that when the soul recognizes it cannot sustain itself, it begins to seek God by faith and love Him as necessary.

The episode explores how this early love, though tinged with self-interest, remains real and precious. Over time, through prayer, humility, obedience, stability, and daily fidelity, grace purifies the heart. Slowly, love matures from loving God for what He gives to loving Him for who He is. This is a gentle, hopeful teaching about spiritual growth, reminding us that God does not despise the needy heart, but draws it forward into deeper love.

St. Bernard of Clairvaux, On Loving God, Chapter 8 §§23-24

“At first man loves himself for himself,
for he is flesh and cannot love otherwise.
But when he sees that he cannot subsist by himself,
he begins to seek God by faith and to love Him as necessary.
Thus in the second degree, man loves God,
but for his own advantage, not yet for God’s sake.”

“Primo homo se ipsum diligit propter se ipsum, quia caro est et aliter diligere non novit. Sed ubi se ipsum non posse subsistere advertit, incipit Deum per fidem quaerere et diligere, tanquam sibi necessarium. Sic in secundo gradu diligit homo Deum, sed propter se, non propter ipsum.”

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”

1. When I turn to God in prayer, am I honest about the needs, fears or burdens that bring me to Him?

2. Do I ever become discouraged because my love for God feels imperfect or mixed?

3. How does St. Bernard’s teaching help me see that grace works through real beginnings, not imagined perfection?

4. In what ways is God inviting my love to grow beyond need alone into deeper trust and surrender?

5. How are humility, obedience, prayer and daily fidelity shaping my heart during this Lenten season?

6. Where do I see the Lord patiently drawing me forward rather than condemning me for where I begin?

7. What would it look like for me to remain with God long enough for love to be purified?

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