Respect Life Radio

Rachel Hoover Canto: How to Find, Date, and Marry Someone who Shares Your Faith

“There are countless different obstacles, all layered on top of each other,” says Rachel Hoover Canto of the journey to finding one’s spouse in today’s world. “It’s a very complicated situation, and I tried to address all the different obstacles I was hearing about and then provide at least a starting point, some tips for starting to overcome each one.”

Rachel shares these tips and more in her new book Pretty Good Catholic: How to Find, Date, and Marry Someone who Shares Your Faith. First taking her own advice, she found and is happily married to the love of her life and now lives in Nashville with her husband.

A graduate of Christendom College and new author blossoming onto the scene, Rachel also works as a freelance journalist and tech writer for Catholic news outlets.

Whether you are single, dating, engaged or waiting, be sure to grab Pretty Good Catholic and give ear to this week’s episode, as Rachel delves deeper into the modern-day landscape of relationship and marriage in the Catholic faith.

Jason Jones: Against the Great Reset

“To be honest, I was in a very dark place,” says Jason Jones, author of the new book The Great Campaign: Against the Great Reset. "I wanted to give people hope--I wanted to give myself hope, and I looked to the church."

Jason is also an activist, film producer, podcast host and the president of the Human Rights Education Organization (H.E.R.O.). He has been everywhere from the sets of great movies to the frontlines of war doing this amazing, selfless work.

In this episode and his newest book, Jason deals with the array of evil ideologies that comprise the Great Reset. He further explains how an elite class of individuals are attempting to take total control and tell people what to do and how to do it.

Join this compelling conversation this week, and go grab his new book soon to find out more about Jason and his work.

Charles Fraune: The Pull to the Occult

"We are constantly being tempted by demons throughout the day. It's not a big deal if you ignore it. That's just normal temptation. But there are billions, trillions of demons who are working to destroy everyone on the planet, whoever is on the planet at the time," said Charles D. Fraune, author of the new book "The Occult Among Us. "One of them is the occult and the corruption of culture and the suppression of Christianity and fear and addiction."   Charles is an author, teacher, and speaker with a Master of Arts in Theology and an Advanced Apostolic Catechetical Diploma. He is the author of the best-selling spiritual warfare books – Slaying Dragons: What Exorcists See & What We Should Know and The Rise of the Occult: What Exorcists & Former Occultists Want You To Know, both of which have been endorsed by Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Bishop Joseph Strickland and exorcist Msgr. Stephen Rossetti.

Find him and his other publications at www.SlayingDragonsPress.com.
https://www.theslayingdragonsbook.com

Mary Jane Zuzolo: Unveiling the Sixth Station of the Cross

“Christ indicated in the revelations that it’s the greatest devotion to make reparation for the greatest crime,” says Mary Jane Zuzolo, author of the new book Unveiling the Sixth Station of the Cross.

The crime she speaks of is blasphemy, which she defines as any affront to God’s rights as outlined in the first three commandments. The devotion is penned by her renown great-great-great aunt Sr. Marie de Saint Pierre, the French Carmelite who received revelations from Christ Himself to create the Holy Face Devotion.

A summa cum laude Philosophy graduate from the University of Illinois and the keynote speaker for the first Conference on the Holy Face, Mary Jane’s work is discussed on several wide-reaching media outlets and even featured in publications such as Latin Mass Magazine and The Remnant.

Tune in to this week’s episode as she reveals more about her fascinating family tree and impactful work, and visit Mary Jane’s website at holyfacedevotion.org to access the book and learn more.

Dr. Christopher Reed: Sacred Conversations

"We know that 93% of what is communicated in a conversation is non-verbal. That's a combination of our body language - Are we leaning in? Have we established eye contact? Have we put down our phone to signal to the other person that we're attentive? - so we have to be mindful of that as we prepare for sacred conversation," says Dr. Christopher Reed, author of the new book "Sacred Conversations: How God Wants Us to Communicate."

Dr. Reed is a Christian, a husband and a human communication teacher, consultant and coach. Christopher says that the Holy Spirit led him to the work of Sacred Conversations. He began studying human communication in 1998 at Western Michigan University and completed his doctorate degree and gained postdoctoral experience as a consultant in the University of Michigan's Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. Today, his interest in human communication, relationships, organizational engagement and helping people discover and use their God-given talents is stronger than ever. His Sacred Conversations ministry is not just helping leaders, but everyone struggling to connect on a deeper level.

This captivating new book reveals how everyday interactions can lead to spiritual growth, deeper connections and meaningful impact. Learn more about Dr. Reed's work and new book at https://oursacredconversations.com

Michael Toscano: The False Idol of Technology

"It's a beautiful life that we could be living in each moment, but what many of us decide to do is to drown ourselves in false electronic contentment," said Michael Toscano, executive director of the Institute for Family Studies. In his new First Things article "Recovering our Memory" Michael writes, "It became quickly apparent to me that smartphones and social media were beginning to subject the people around me—smart, disciplined, hard-working people—to a profound change. They were more hunched over, prone to glancing at the device during conversations, and scrolling. Always scrolling." 

Michael is a leader in efforts nationwide to adopt laws to make technology safer for kids. He has written on family policy, tech policy, the uses of technology to reshape work, and the effect of technological change on America's republican form of government. His writing has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The New York Post, First Things, Compact, The American Conservative, National Review, and elsewhere. Under his leadership, IFS has more than doubled its annual budget and quadrupled its research output. He is co-author with Peter Wood of "What Does Bowdoin Teach? How a Liberal Arts College Shapes Students" (2013).

Follow Michael and his work at the Institute for Family Studies at https://ifstudies.org

Anthony DeStefano: The First Easter Bunny

"You have to tune your antenna for what God wants you to do," said Anthony DeStefano, author of the new book "The Story of the First Easter Bunny," on how he decides what topics to write. Anthony is an American author, television host and activist. He has written five bestselling Christian books for adults, including: A Travel Guide to Heaven and Ten Prayers God Always Says Yes To. He has also written eight bestselling books for children, including: The Donkey That No One Could Ride and Little Star.

In his most recent book, "The Story of the First Easter Bunny," Anthony delves into the story of the Easter Bunny. At a time when the profound significance of Easter is often overshadowed by commercialism, The Story of the First Easter Bunny is a refreshing and heartwarming reminder of the true meaning of this most holy of Christian holidays. The story focuses on a pint-size bunny with enormous ears who seeks healing for his sick mother by searching for Jesus and listening to His words. The bunny shows courage and compassion on his selfless journey. When all seems dark and he is afraid, the bunny remembers Christ’s words and takes refuge in God’s promise by calmly waiting for the light.

To learn more about Anthony, visit www.anthonydesefano.com and find his new book at https://sophiainstitute.com/product/the-story-of-the-first-easter-bunny/

Dr. Peter Howard: the wisdom of Fulton Sheen helping through the turmoil of our time

"His audience was 60% non-Catholic and so he prepared his message in such a way that people didn't know he was referring to St. Thomas Aquinas or (other Catholic documents.) He simply wanted to start with something that was common to everybody and, from there, lead them to divine truths," said Dr. Peter Howard of the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen. Dr. Howard holds a Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Angelicum in Rome and his passion IS Venerable Fulton J. Sheen -- the man and the mission. "For today, we have a world that is so wounded and psychologically twisted because of all the confusion and lies, here's a man who dedicated every moment of his life to understand what the world was thinking, what the errors are and how to provide the solution."

Dr. Howard is a leading expert on the teachings of Venerable Fulton J. Sheen. He is the author of The Woman: Mary as Mediatrix in the Teaching of Fulton J. Sheen -- the authoritative book on Sheen's Mariology -- and has traveled internationally, helping others discover this future saint. Peter has been featured on Catholic television and radio programs such as EWTN, Catholic Answers Live, the Patrick Madrid Show, CatholicTV, Shalom World, Radio Maria, and Relevant Radio. Peter is married to Catholic life and leaership coach, Chantal Howard, and they have six children. Dr. Howard and his wife Chantal are also the founders of Heroic Families.

Learn more about the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen Institute at https://www.fultonsheen.institute

James Valois: Our Lady of Good Success of the Purification

When Servant of God Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres received her famous apparitions from Our Lady — known as the Quito apparitions — she was so appalled that she died. A doctor confirmed her shocking death. But thankfully, when her sisters prayed, she was raised to life again. This remarkable story is part of James Valois' new book "Our Lady's Prophecies." In it, James masterfully recounts the stunning prophecies of Our Lady of Good Success of the Purification. The relevance of many of these prophecies to today’s events, spoken, as they were, about what would begin in the twentieth century and spill over to today. Their gripping messages foretell the radical changes in customs and the disturbing state of our modern world that we are facing today. 

Find more about James Valois and his new book at https://sophiainstitute.com/product/our-ladys-prophecies/

Matthew Plese: Recapturing the Lost Tradition of the Church

"Lent is an ideal time to make resolutions and go further. As scripture says - now is the beginning, now is the day of salvation," said Matthew Plese, author of Restoring Lost Customs of Christendom. In this informative book, Matthew Plese, who has devoted himself to studying and living the traditional calendar, takes us step by step through some of the most important ‘lost customs of Christendom.’ Restoring them, here and there, one by one, we restore ourselves and our families to all that Catholic life can be. "We want to be part of the heavenly liturgy." 

Matthew is a Third Order Dominican who lives in Chicago. He's a practicing Certified Public Accountant and Catechist. He is the President of CatechismClass.com, an online based organization whose mission is to make the best in Catholic religious education and Sacramental preparation available for those who need it. Matthew writes a monthly piece on apologetics and catechesis for Catholic Family News and a weekly column for the Fatima Center.  He is also the author of a number of books including Catholic Book Summaries: 54 Traditional and Contemporary Classics; Eschatology: The Catholic Study of the Four Last Things; Understanding the Precepts of the Church, and The Roman Catechism Explained for the Modern World as well as The Definitive Guide to Catholic Fasting & Abstinence. He also blogs at A Catholic Life.