By Roxane Salonen
5
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The podcast currently has 27 episodes available.
Dr. John Sottosanti was successful in the world’s eyes. He had a lovely wife, two children, a beautiful home in California with an ocean view, and a career that had catapulted him to the top of his industry, and into spheres that only a top percentage of people penetrate. But was he happy?
In his memoir, “Mortal Adhesions: A Surgeon Battles the Deadly Sins to Find Faith, Happiness and Inner Peace,” Sottosanti recounts his motivations and missteps through a life of focusing on self, and how it nearly led him down a path of eternal destruction. Can religion make us happier? For years, he didn’t believe it could, but in this conversation, he’ll share what happened to cause a change in his heart and life.
SHOW NOTES:
Michelle Duppong, a woman from western North Dakota, died on Christmas 2015 at age 31 after a harrowing journey with cancer.
As Michelle suffered, her devoted family began to notice the extraordinary ways she carried that cross, evidenced in part by the medical personnel who were drawn to her while in the hospital. The Duppong family soon came to know that the wider Church had been noticing her extraordinary qualities, too, and in June of 2022, they received word that Michelle, a woman of humble countenance and beginnings, was being investigated for one of the Church’s greatest anointings: canonization.
On November 2022, at a special Mass, Bishop Kagan of the Bismarck Diocese declared Michelle a Servant of God, prompting the first step in the canonization process, involving extensive investigation surrounding the person’s life to prove the depth of their demonstration of heroic virtue. There’s a lot to unpack here about the Church’s understanding of what makes a saint, praying to the dead, and other matters of life and death.
Lisa Gray, one of Michelle’s sisters, has been pulled into this conversation in a personal way, but is her sister Michelle a saint? Lisa will weigh in on her sister’s virtues as we celebrate All Saints Day.
SHOW NOTES:
Roxane’s article for The Forum on Michelle from her siblings’ perspectives: https://roxanesalonen.com/2022/09/04/faith-conversations-north-dakota-siblings-reflect-on-saintly-sister-michelle/
Roxane’s article for The Forum on the Mass initiating canonization process: https://roxanesalonen.com/2022/11/27/faith-conversations-servant-of-god-title-bestowed-on-michelle-duppong-at-cathedral-mass-initiating-the-canonization-process/
In Michelle’s own words: “Abide in Christ”: https://www.mixcloud.com/BismarckDiocese/talk-1-abide-in-christ/
Opening cause for canonization Mass for Michelle, Nov. 1, 2022: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyajoROYd2o
Article on the process of becoming a saint: https://www.ncregister.com/blog/how-does-a-person-become-a-canonized-saint
Article on praying to the “dead”: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252694/why-do-catholics-pray-for-the-dead-and-other-questions-about-purgatory-answered
What is FOCUS? (Fellowship of Catholic University Students): https://focus.org/
Fr. Vincent Druding, a priest in the Archdiocese of New York, is well-versed in the realities of the spiritual world. As a trained exorcist who leads a deliverance and liberation ministry, Fr. Druding is especially equipped to answer the questions we pose today, just ahead of Halloween.
With the growing prevalence of the minimization of sin and its effects, disregard of the devil’s existence, and skepticism over whether hell is real or just a scare tactic of Christians, our need to understand the spiritual world in reality is great. Along with sharing a few stories of his participation in freeing souls weighed down by demonic possession and oppression, Father also reveals an action we can all take that is more powerful than exorcism, bringing balance and hope to an otherwise frightening subject. His story of conversion and finding his life’s purpose will undoubtedly inspire even the doubters.
SHOW NOTES:
Article on Fr. Druding’s draw to the priesthood: https://www.cny.org/stories/911-experiences-pointed-three-men-to-priestly-vocation-,6040
Baccalaureate speech on Fr. Druding’s conversion: https://blog.wabash.edu/magazine/2016/09/28/a-light-that-cannot-be-hidden-by-fr-vince-druding/
Demonic Abortion: A Sobering Commentary on the Satanic Nature of the Modern Abortion Industry: https://www.amazon.com/Demonic-Abortion-Sobering-Commentary-Industry/dp/1559220627
Sisters of Life order and ministry: https://sistersoflife.org/
Article, “A Witness to Love,” by Fr. Druding’s sister Colleen: https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2012/01/19/a-witness-to-love
Fr. Druding on Integrity Restored podcast: https://integrityrestored.com/ep165/
Articles on Fr. Druding’s newly developing Franciscan order, Sisters of the Pure Heart: https://thetablet.org/new-religious-community-aims-to-be-spiritual-mothers-to-spiritual-orphans/ and https://holycrossbronx.com/franciscan-sisters-of-the-pure-heart
When Ramona Trevino accepted a job to manage a Planned Parenthood clinic, she thought she would be helping girls and women live lives of abundant freedom through the promise of choice. But in time, the truth became evident, and she experienced a dramatic conversion of both faith and life, leading her out of the abortion industry and eventually to speaking out on life issues nationally.
Ramona’s message challenges us to consider how contraception has become a gateway to abortion, insisting that we can’t have an honest discussion about abortion without recognizing contraception’s contributing role; a role that has often been unacknowledged or ignored, to the great detriment of society. Ramona brings the experience of her own unplanned pregnancy and surviving abuse, as well as the joys of following God’s plan for an openness to life, into her work spreading a message of hope.
● The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe: https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/seasons-and-feast-days/our-lady-of- guadalupe-21357 ● Pope Paul VI's encyclical on human life, Humanae Vitae: https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p- vi_enc_25071968_humanae-vitae.html ● Ramona’s memoir, “Redeemed by Grace: A Catholic Woman’s Journey to Planned Parenthood and Back”: https://a.co/d/e1hZz9q ● 40 Days for Life website: https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/ ● “What is Natural Family Planning?” article (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops): https://www.usccb.org/topics/natural-family- planning/what-natural-family-planning
Bree Solstad, or, as she refers to herself on X, “Miss B Converted,” describes herself as a former porn actress and producer whose life was transformed dramatically after a trip to Europe. While overseas, Bree was unexpectantly wooed away from the porn industry by a woman of whom Bree had little knowledge before the encounter.
How did Bree, who grew up in a Christian home, find herself on a wayward path in the first place, and who was the mysterious woman who convinced her of a better life; one not devoid of a moral compass and haunted by past sins, but into a future that has been redeemed by grace? She’ll discuss this and more in today’s interview.
More:
In this episode, Dr. Stacy Trasancos will discuss the difference between science and what some have dubbed “scientism,” and why it even matters.
Dr. Trasancos brings with her discussions advanced degrees in chemistry, dogmatic theology, and systematic philosophy, as well as her work as an educator, speaker, author and mother committed to the intellectual tradition of the Catholic Church.
Dr. Trasancos hasn’t always been Catholic. She grew up evangelical, and eventually left her faith for a time, fully dedicating her energies to the pursuit of science. But when that pursuit left her empty, Dr. Trasancos eventually found her way back into a life of grace.
Now, she’s able to bring both her intellectual curiosity and training and her experiences with a vibrant faith life into discussions, merging these disciplines in a way that is rarely found in one place in our times.
SHOW NOTES:
Particles of Faith book: https://a.co/d/8G3lts5
Dr. Trasancos’ website: https://stacytrasancos.com/
God & Elements (Dr. Trasancos’ Substack): https://stacytrasancos.substack.com/
Max and Micah Fischer, a Christian couple in their mid-20s, are a contrasting witness to these times in which studies show young people falling away from the Christian faith at lightning speed. Even as pews that previously were occupied by younger families are emptying, more young couples are also forgoing having children, not to mention marriage.
Despite this marked shift in society, however, not all young people have determined God to be dead. Some, like the Fischers, have discovered a life-giving raft in the midst of a tumultuous cultural storm. But it hasn’t always been easy.
In this episode, Max and Micah converse about everything from abortion to the culture’s current obsession with the devil. As they discuss some of the pitfalls of their generation, and the freedoms they’ve discovered through cultivating a life steeped in Christian truths, they offer hopeful insight on whether this ship can be turned around before hitting the iceberg ahead.
SHOW NOTES:
Northview website: https://www.northview.life/
Cameron Bolton news stories:
https://www.inforum.com/changing-lives-one-rock-at-a-time-family-honors-cameron-boltons-life-with-rock-campaign
https://www.inforum.com/newsmd/video-family-friends-remember-cameron-bolton-during-flag-raising-ceremony-at-fargos-sanford-hospital
https://www.thedickinsonpress.com/news/crash-that-killed-22-year-old-fargo-man-prompts-criminal-charge
Katie Bruckbauer grew up in a large, faith-filled family on a farm outside of Casselton, North Dakota. As a child, she loved to dance, and later, sought ways to bring her athletic and musical abilities together. She studied modern dance and creative movement, eventually working for a studio, and then owning it with two others in the Fargo-Moorhead area under the name 8th Street Studio of Dance.
In all, she contributed her talents to that work for three decades. Katie has recently rediscovered how vital dancing is to her physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing, along with realizing how writing poetry can be a healing avenue to many of life’s challenges.
Show notes:
Bette Grande considers herself a “recovering politician.” That tells you a bit about her approach to politics.
And yet she’s been involved in helping form policy for decades. For an even longer period, she’s been immersed in trying to follow the Lord. Can these two, politics and religion, coincide, or are they more like water and oil?
Bette has been outspoken in her thoughts about such topics as a regular contributor to The Forum, including in the realm of social issues through promoting a Culture of Life. In this episode, we’ll hear some of the reasons for her dedication to some of the topics that affect us all and ignite universal passion.
Show notes:
First of all, what is Fort Peck? It is a reservation in northeast Montana, the home of several federally recognized bands of Native American peoples: Assiniboine, Lakota and Dakota. It is also the place where I grew up, in the city of Poplar, where my parents, who’d been living and working in Wyoming, landed as teachers looking for jobs near their home state of North Dakota in the early 1970s.
Rich Peterson, a fellow journalist, was the oldest of the Peterson kids who attended my home parish of Our Lady of Lourdes, just off Highway 2. His perspective on faith encompasses both the world of Christianity and the spirituality of the Native people. It’s a perspective of mystery, story and a deep connection to family. Join us for this fascinating glimpse of the melding of two spiritual worldviews that might just not be so different after all.
More:
Some of Rich Peterson’s Great Falls Tribune articles:
RezKast radio station: https://www.rezkastradio.com/
History of Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes, 1800-2000: https://a.co/d/44HB9zI
One explanation of heyoka: https://www.historynet.com/lakota-heyokas-lightning-rods-got-backward/
A few related pieces of Roxane’s:
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