Mike Aquilina

Last updated
Mike Aquilina
Mike Aquilina, author.tif
Aquilina, 2019
Born
Kingston, Pennsylvania, United States
Alma mater Pennsylvania State University
Occupation(s)Author, editor, poet, songwriter, speaker
Organizations Angelus
SpouseTerri
Website www.mikeaquilina.com

Mike Aquilina is an American Catholic author and journalist working in the area of Church history, especially patristics. [1] He is co-founder of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, a Catholic research center based in Steubenville, Ohio. [2] [3]

Contents

Aquilina is also a contributing editor of Angelus , and general editor of the Reclaiming Catholic History series from Ave Maria Press. He hosts Way of the Fathers, a podcast produced by CatholicCulture.org. [4]

Early life and education

Aquilina was born in Kingston, Pennsylvania in 1963. He received his elementary and secondary education in Catholic schools in Pittston, Pennsylvania. He is a 1985 graduate of Pennsylvania State University, and he received that university's Oswald Award for Achievement in Journalism and Mass Media.

Professional career

Aquilina is the author or editor of more than seventy books, including: What Catholics Believe (1999), Living the Mysteries (2003), The Fathers of the Church (2006), The Mass of the Early Christians (2007) and The Resilient Church (2007). His books have been translated into many languages, from Croatian and Portuguese to German and Braille. The Grail Code has appeared in ten languages since its publication in 2006.[ citation needed ]

Critics have praised Aquilina's work for making the Fathers accessible to non-academic readers: "Most scholars … study the paper trail — homilies, letters, teaching manuals, works of theological disputation … Aquilina loves the words, too. But he also finds the sermon in the stuff, the theology expressed in the little things that the first Christians left behind — fading murals on catacomb walls, pottery and dishware, pieces of coinage, ancient hymns and mass prayers, common household items … The point is that for Aquilina, the little things matter — because they tell us big things about what Catholics believe and how they look at the world". [5] Dr. John Grondelski said in the National Catholic Register : "Aquilina has made a vocation and career out of, in many ways, single-handedly popularizing patristics." [6]

Aquilina's book Ministers and Martyrs (2015), was an official companion volume to the NBC series A.D. The Bible Continues . A year later, he published The World of Ben-Hur, as a guide to MGM's remake of the Lew Wallace classic Ben-Hur . [7] [8]

Aquilina is also a poet and songwriter. [9] His poems, collected in the volumes Terms and Conditions (2014) and The Invention of Zero (2020), have appeared in U.S. literary journals and in Polish and Spanish translations. [10] His collaborations with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame artist Dion include the book Dion: The Wanderer Talks Truth and four albums: Tank Full of Blues (2012), New York Is My Home (2016), Blues with Friends (2020) and Stomping Ground (2021). [11] [12] The title song of New York Is My Home was recorded as a duet by Dion and Paul Simon, launched by Rolling Stone magazine, and released as a single in 2015. [13] It was used in episode 5 of season 1, in the drama series Horace and Pete . It was also chosen by clothing designer Ralph Lauren, as the catwalk theme for his 50th-anniversary show in 2018. [14] [15] The song also appears in the Deluxe Edition of Simon's album Stranger to Stranger .

Dion's album Blues with Friends (2020), which included twelve songs co-written with Aquilina, debuted at number one on Billboard and U.K. charts. [16] [17] It was also the number one Billboard Blues Album for 2020. [18] American Songwriter magazine honored "Song for Sam Cooke (Here in America)", a single from Blues with Friends, as the "Greatest of the Great 2020 Songs". [19] DiMucci-Aquilina songs have also been recorded with or performed by Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen, Jeff Beck, Amy Grant, Mark Knopfler, Joe Bonamassa, Brian Setzer, Joe Louis Walker, Billy F. Gibbons, Peter Frampton, Rickie Lee Jones, and many others. [20] Bob Dylan praised these songs for their craft. [21]

In recent years, Aquilina has hosted eleven television series on EWTN and hosted two independently produced feature documentaries, one on St. Perpetua and another on St. Augustine. He is a frequent guest commentator on Catholic radio, especially Relevant Radio and EWTN. His journalistic work has appeared in many periodicals.[ citation needed ]

Aquilina is the past editor of New Covenant magazine (1996–2002) and Pittsburgh Catholic newspaper (1993–1996). [22]

Personal life

He and his wife, Terri, have been married since 1985. They live in the suburbs of Pittsburgh with their children, who are the subject of his book Love in the Little Things (2007).[ citation needed ]

Bibliography

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References

  1. "Spiritual Son of the Fathers". NCR. 28 October 2008. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  2. See "Mike Aquilina"
  3. "Spiritual Son of the Fathers". NCR. 28 October 2008. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  4. "About : Authors : Mike Aquilina". www.catholicculture.org. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  5. David Scott, "Review of 'A Year with the Church Fathers: Patristic Wisdom for Daily Living,'" Catholic News Agency, Dec. 3, 2010, http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/column.php?n=1417.
  6. John Grondelski, "Invisible Helpers," National Catholic Register, Feb. 11, 2012, http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/lenten-reads-for-40-days1/.
  7. "The World of Ben Hur". 23 November 2022.
  8. "The World of Ben Hur by Mike Aquilina".
  9. Arsenio Orteza, "Notable CDs," World Magazine, March 19, 2016, https://world.wng.org/2016/03/notable_cds_0.
  10. Mills, David (2014-08-13). "Mike Aquilina's *Terms & Conditions*". David Mills. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  11. Nelson |, Marcia Z. "Runaround Catholic: Dion Writes Spiritual Memoir". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  12. "Mike Aquilina Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic .
  13. Kory Grow, "Hear Dion, Paul Simon Duet on Heartfelt 'New York Is My Home'," RollingStone.com, November 12, 2015, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/hear-dion-paul-simon-duet-on-heartfelt-new-york-is-my-home-20151112.
  14. Friedman, Vanessa (2018-09-08). "Ralph Lauren's 50th Anniversary Show Was Eye-Popping. Then Came the Clothes". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  15. Ralph Lauren, "RL50: The 50th Anniversary Show," YouTube, September 7, 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93SrJDZrQmc.
  16. devops (2013-01-02). "Blues Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  17. "Independent Blues Broadcasters". www.bluesbroadcasters.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  18. Year-End Charts: Blues Albums, December 4, 2020, https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2020/blues-albums, retrieved December 4, 2020.
  19. Paul Zollo, "Greatest of the Great 2020 Songs: Dion with Paul Simon, 'Song for Sam Cooke (Here In America).'" November 22, 2020, https://americansongwriter.com/greatest-of-the-great-2020-songs-dion-with-paul-simon-song-for-sam-cooke-here-in-america.
  20. Staff, Best Classic Bands (2020-05-30). "Dion's 'Blues With Friends' Album, With Legends: Listen". Best Classic Bands. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  21. Kreps, Daniel (2020-04-24). "Dion Enlists Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, Jeff Beck for New Blues LP". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  22. Karl Keating, "Mike Aquilina Explains Schmoozing," This Rock, October 1996, http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1996/9610int.asp Archived 2010-02-06 at the Wayback Machine .