Respect Life Radio

Dr. Randall Smith: Holiness and Prudence

"Holy men and women will often have a clearer vision than the rest of us about our ultimate goal and of the fundamental moral principles that should guide our lives," writes Randall B. Smith, a Professor of Theology at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas in his recent article called "Holiness and Prudence" in The Catholic Thing. "These gifts will not, however, always result in prudent decisions about particular matters. Such prudence is usually the result of long experience, trial and error, and good training by someone who already possesses good judgment."

Dr. Smith’s areas of research are moral theology, historical theology, sexual ethics, faith and culture, sacred architecture, and architecture and urbanism. He can speak on sin as a part of the human condition. 

Learn more about his latest book is From Here to Eternity: Reflections on Death, Immortality, and the Resurrection of the Body.

Maria Palma Smith: Powerful Surrender Novena

"We want quick fixes and The Surrender Novena encourages us to let Jesus take care of it,"said Maria Palma Smith, a certified Catholic life coach and Italian translator who recently finished the transition of Father Don Dolindo, the author of the Surrender Novena, which will be published next year. "We need to surrender our will to God and that's the hardest thing. Father Dolindo did that and shows us how to surrender because he lived out struggles, poor health and rejection from the Church he loved."

Follow Maria on her YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSk-n4ZvXzmXDuXwIAjwTsg and learn more about Father Dolindo on Catholic Exchange. 

Constance T. Hull: Loving to Heaven

"The whole point of love is to lead people to heaven," says Constance T. Hull, wife, mother, homeschooler, and a graduate with an M.A. in Theology with an emphasis in philosophy. "The way I look at it is that love is expressed most perfectly on the cross. Love is crucified so that means we draw people into that reality and we love them enough to love them towards heaven." Hull's desire is to live the wonder so passionately preached in the works of G.K. Chesterton and to share that with her daughter and others. While you can frequently find her head inside of a great work of theology or philosophy, she considers her husband and daughter to be her greatest teachers. She is passionate about beauty, working towards holiness, the Sacraments and all things Catholic. She is also published at The Federalist, Public Discourse and blogs frequently at Swimming the Depths.

Find more about Constance and read her weekly story at Catholic Exchange. 

Anna Reynolds: Our Family Crisis

"Much of American culture, especially that in the coastal regions, is no longer set up to accommodate families. In areas with such a high cost of living, there is even greater emphasis on the assumed need to have two incomes," writes Anna Kaladish Reynolds in her recent article in Crisis Magazine, Why Are Americans Having Fewer Children Than They Want. Anna attended the University of Dallas and received an MA in Theology from Ave Maria University. She is a wife and mother, who lives in the great state of Texas, and she writes at InspireVirtue.com. "The inflexibility of a dual-career household means that having many children is often unattainable."

Follow Anna and her writings at https://inspirevirtue.com/about/

Father Ed Broom: Seek His Grace

"We're going through a tough time in the church, in academics and the entire world right now," said Father Ed Broom, OMV, is Associate Pastor of St. Peter Chanel Church in Hawaiian Gardens, California. He is a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary and was ordained by Blessed John Paul II on May 25, 1986. Fr Ed's teaches Catholic Ignatian Marian Spirituality through articles, podcasts, a radio show, retreats and spiritual direction. "Like Peter, we have to make sure we don't lift our gaze from Christ. We focus more on the problems than the problem-solver, who is Jesus Christ who is the way, the truth and the life." 

In his article, Five Ways to Seek Grace in your Life, Father Broom reminds us that "off all of the gifts that we can receive on earth, as pilgrims traveling towards our eternal home, the grace of God is by far the greatest treasure. It is the pearl of infinite price!"

Follow Fr. Broom at http://fatherbroom.com

Stephen White: Behold the sin

"It's one thing to be lost and know you're lost," said Stephen P. White the Executive Director of The Catholic Project in his newest article about faith and public life called Behold the Sin. "But many people today don't even recognize they are lost and need to heal." 

Since 2019, Stephen  has led The Catholic University of America's response to the clergy abuse crisis, focusing on the collaboration of clergy and the laity. He served as executive producer for the award-winning podcast, Crisis: Clergy Abuse in the Catholic Church.

For over a decade, Mr. White has been a fellow in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, DC. His work focuses on the intersections of faith, politics, and culture, frequently applying Catholic social teaching to contemporary issues. Mr. White is the author of Red, White, Blue, and Catholic (Liguori Publications, 2016) and writes a bi-monthly column for The Catholic Thing. 

Learn more about the Ethics & Public Policy Center at https://eppc.org

Kristen Van Uden: Catholic fight against communism

"For over half of the twentieth century, across nearly half the globe, the Catholic Faith was repressed, restricted, or outright illegal," reports Kristen Van Uden in her upcoming book When the Sickle Swings. "From secret Masses in the prisons of Cuba, to clandestine clergy in the catacombs of Bratislava, to showdowns with Soviet tanks on the streets of Brno, Catholics resisted communist persecution in every way they could. Like their ancestors before them, they risked it all for their Faith. Kristen is the editor of Catholic Exchange and author spokesperson at Sophia Institute Press. Her first book, When the Sickle Swings: Stories of Catholics Who Survived Communist Oppression, will be available from Sophia Institute Press on November 21, 2023. She has been featured on a wide range of media platforms including Coast to Coast AM, First Things, and Sensus Fidelium. Book information, original articles, and links to interviews can be found at her Substack, On the Wheel.

Pre-order Kristen's new book at https://sophiainstitute.com/product/when-the-sickle-swings/

Carrie Gress: The feminism fallacy

"It is time for honest women to recognize that feminism has not been the boon for women that it has been presented as. To be sure, there have been many advances under feminism, such as laws against sex and pregnancy discrimination, custody laws for mothers and many social and economic opportunities, says Carrie Gress, mother, author, philosopher and teacher. "But to focus on these genuine improvements is to overlook the irreparable harm feminism has done to legions of women." 

Carrie is a Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and a Scholar at the Institute for Human Ecology at Catholic University of America. She has a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America and is the editor at the online women’s magazine Theology of Home, and she is a frequent radio and podcast guest and has appeared on Fox, BBC, CBC, EWTN, OAN, and Russia Times television. She is the author of Nudging Conversions , Ultimate Makeover, The Marian Option, and Marian Consecration for Children, The Anti-Mary Exposed and Theology of Home. Her most recent book, The End of Woman: How Smashing the Patriarchy Destroyed Us, is the focus of this podcast. 

Follow her at http://www.carriegress.com

David Bonagura: The beauty of St. Jerome

“St. Jerome is best known for compiling the Latin edition of the Bible, called the Vulgate, and rightly so,” said David G. Bonagura, Jr., an adjunct professor of classical languages at St. Joseph's Seminary, New York, and adjunct professor of theology at Catholic Distance University. He serves as Religion Editor of The University Bookman, the flagship publication of the Russell Kirk Center. He is the 2023-2024 Cardinal Newman Society Fellow for Eucharistic Education.  “He is also known for a famous quotation: ‘Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.’ But there is more to St. Jerome than this. We have 123 of his letters, written in a style equivalent to the modern essay, on a variety of topics. His letters of consolation stand out as some of the greatest examples of Latin prose and of pastoral care." The book contains seven letters written by St. Jerome from the years 389–412. In addition to translating the letters, Mr. Bonagura wrote an extended introduction to St. Jerome’s life, work, and thought. He also wrote a brief paragraph before each letter identifying the deceased, the bereaved, and the context.

Learn more about Mr. Bonagura's new book from Sophia Institute Press at Jerome’s Tears: Letters to Friends in Mourning and find out more about Mr. Bonagura at https://www.davidgbonagurajr.com

Dom Cingoranelli: Focusing on God’s Will

"In this day and age, there is a great deal of focus on affirmation, which can be great. But we're not called to provide affirmation to the error in someone's ways," says Dom Cingoranelli, who recently wrote an article for the Catholic Stand called "The Advantage of An Outward Focus." Dom is a Benedictine-educated cradle Catholic—a revert to the faith—and an Oblate of St. Benedict. Recently retired from consulting to management in the CPA profession and elsewhere, he and his wife of 45+ years attempt to live according to the three pillars of Church authority--Scripture, Tradition and the Magisterium. Dom encourages everyone to live with an outward focus, making God’s will and others’ needs the targets of your attention. God wants to use each of us for His greater glory where we’re at, now, in the moment. This requires us to look up and out- up to God, and out, for our neighbor.

Read the full article and others at: https://catholicstand.com/the-advantage-of-an-outward-focus/