You're listening to a podcast on Catholic Saints.

This podcast is produced by the Augustine Institute,

an Apostolate helping Catholics understand, live,

and share their faith.

I'm Tim Gray, president of the Augustine Institute,

and joining me today is a good friend of mine,

Dr. Christopher Bloom, who is the dean of the Graduate School here at the Augustine Institute and we are very

excited to share with you this topic of St. Philip Neri on his feast day and

St. Philip Neri was an extraordinary saint in fact when his funeral came in

Rome all of Rome came out crowded the church where he was at. There was a line for two days

to see his body and give respects, which reminds me of the funeral of St. John Paul II in Rome,

Chris. I mean, that was, all of Rome came, and the crowds were, you know, 10 hours wait in line

to see St. John Paul II.

And really, you haven't had that kind of a wait since St. Philip Neri.

I mean, those two great men who were great apostles and amazing saints.

Yeah, that's very interesting, Tim.

You know, Philip Neri and John Paul II do have something in common.

You know, it's an interesting thing. John Paul II, of course, as a young man was an actor.

He was full of life and spirit and he wrote plays and he liked to gather people together to

act out these wonderful moral dramas

that were so meaningful for them in a time of great trial when the first the Nazis and then the

Soviets were occupying Poland. And John Paul II used that medium as a way to draw people closer to Christ.

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