Cecile Smith was looking for signs of God’s presence in so many places before she realized, to her great surprise, that he was exceedingly near—in her very garden! This season, in which we in the northern hemisphere, especially, are spending more time in our gardens or just enjoying the nature around us, can help put us in touch with the divine in a very palpable way.

Today, Cecile Smith will help us discover, or rediscover, God’s love through his creation, including in our own backyards or wherever we find natural beauty.

SHOW NOTES:

• Cecile Smith’s website: https://www.cecilesmith.com/

• Cecile’s email address to sign up for weekly inspirations: [email protected]

• Cecile on Facebook (search “Cecile Smith”): https://www.facebook.com/cecile.smith.77736

• Etty Hillesum’s book, “Interrupted Life,” detailing her thoughts before and during her days at Auschwitz: https://www.amazon.com/Etty-Hillesum-Interrupted-1941-1943-Westerbork/dp/0805050876

In 2018, Dottie Borowski traveled a road that most married people—nearly half—will face eventually when she became a widow. But rather than being met with only silence in the months and years following, Dottie experienced a series of spiritual events that convinced her of the reality of life after death.

In today’s episode, this faithful woman, whose vocation is prayer and service work, will step out into the deep, sharing of the experiences that convinced her that the idea of life beyond this one is not just myth, but reality.

SHOW NOTES:

• Fr. Joel Sember’s website with a link for Oriens Advent adventure, through which Dottie and I met: https://pilgrimpriest.us/

• Information on the Rosary here: https://www.rosary.com/blogs/blog/mysteries-of-the-rosary

• Catholic Answers article on the Church’s teaching about private revelation: https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/twelve-things-to-know-about-private-revelations

Rev. Dr. Patrick Lovejoy, a Lutheran pastor, husband and father, tends his flock through preaching, spiritual direction and counseling. In recent years, he’s also been called to address whether our genders are fixed or malleable, and has come away with a determined answer on the topic based in both science and theology. With a doctorate in marriage and family counseling, Lovejoy will lead us through the facts and fiction of this modern dilemma in a way that should inspire people of faith and goodwill to meet the critical needs of those who struggle with gender identity with compassion and truth.

SHOW NOTES: 

• Rev. Dr. Patrick Lovejoy’s full presentation, “Unapologetically Female: Reclaiming what it means to be a woman”

• Debra Soh’s book, The End of Gender: Debunking the Myths about Sex and Identity in Our Society 

• John Colapinto’s book detailing the tragic story of David Reimer: As Nature Made Him: The Boy Who Was Raised as a Girl

• Roxane’s “Living Faith” article, “Has trans ideology silenced our intuitions? 

• New York Post article on detransitioner Prish Mosley, who was mentioned but not by name within the episode: “Detransitioner describes agony of pregnancy after changing gender as a teen: ‘Makes me feel like a monster’”

• Video (11 mins.): “Prisha Mosley: A Detransitioner’s Pregnancy” Journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY6s_wIDUaU

• Post on X mentioned within podcast: https://x.com/ppc4liberty/status/1929720809402388938?s=46

What is fidelity? Going with the simplest dictionary definition, it is “faithfulness to obligations, duties, or observances.” Dr. Robert P. George, a professor at Princeton University, will add depth to that definition while sharing why he initiated a movement a couple years ago designating the month of June as Fidelity Month.

Among his qualifications, Dr. George holds Princeton’s celebrated McCormick Professorship of Jurisprudence, is the founder and director of the university’s James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, and serves on several boards related to civil rights and religious freedom. 

SHOW NOTES: 

• Fidelity Month website: https://fidelitymonth.com/

• Dr. Robert P. George’s website: https://robertpgeorge.com/

• Dr. George’s latest co-authored book, “Truth Matters: A Dialogue on Fruitful Disagreement in an Age of Division,” with Cornel West: https://www.amazon.com/Truth-Matters-Dialogue-Fruitful-Disagreement/dp/B0DBR1PYWL

• More of Dr. George’s work: https://contemporarythinkers.org/robert-george/

Patrick Lehe, a cradle Catholic and screenwriter from rural Indiana, currently living in Los Angeles, will share his struggles with same-sex attraction as a man of faith, focusing on living counter-culturally with a zeal for reviving God's truth in American society.

SHOW NOTES: 

• Patrick’s article in Busted Halo, “How I found my vocation to the single life as a gay man”: https://bustedhalo.com/life-culture/how-i-found-my-vocation-to-the-single-life-as-a-gay-man

• “Desire of the Everlasting Hills” documentary: https://everlastinghills.org/

• “The Third Way” documentary: https://everlastinghills.org/ 

• “Catechism of the Catholic Church” on homosexuality and chastity: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/catechism/index.cfm?recnum=6181

• Michael Gasparro, a marriage and family therapist and friend of Patrick’s, discusses, “The Cause Of Same-Sex Attraction” with Live Action’s Lila Rose: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C103HB8jfdY

• Journalists Patrick mentioned who helped normalize the words “homosexual” and “heterosexual”: Karl Ulrichs and Karl-Marie Kertbeny 

• Patrick's "Witness" blog post: https://www.patrickjlehe.com/witness

Description (written): Bishop John Folda of the Fargo Diocese was the first U.S. bishop appointed by Pope Francis. With the pope’s recent death, it seemed fitting to hear from his first appointee from our country about that honor, as well as their crossings since. Along with that, Bishop Folda will offer some insight on the papacy itself and his hopes for the future of the Christian church. 

SHOW NOTES: 

• News story from May 1, 2025, on Bishop Folda as first U.S.-appointed bishop by Pope Francis: https://www.valleynewslive.com/2025/05/01/fargo-bishop-was-first-appointed-us-bishop-under-pope-francis-back-2013/

• Bishop John Folda marks 10 years as Bishop of Fargo (Article in New Earth, publication of the Diocese of Fargo): https://fargodiocese.net/news/bishop-john-folda-marks-10-years-as-bishop-of-fargo

• Roxane’s column for The Forum newspaper: “Pope Francis’ life and death impact us all”: https://www.inforum.com/opinion/columns/salonen-pope-francis-life-and-death-impact-us-all

• Comments to: [email protected]

Allison Gingras’ book, "Encountering Signs of Faith,” shares the remarkable adoption of her profoundly deaf daughter and how she taught her the faith through the Church's sacramentals and devotions. Along with being a mother, Allison is the Director of Digital Evangelization for Family Rosary and Catholic Mom; she co-hosts the Family Rosary presents Through the Mysteries podcast.

SHOW NOTES:

• Allison’s book about mothering her adopted daughter, “Encountering Signs of Faith”: https://a.co/d/55USpMQ

• Allison’s newest book, “Jesus Heals”: https://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Heals-Wholeness-Connected-Journals/dp/1639662030

• Allison’s website: https://reconciledtoyou.com/. 

• Information on a saint Allison mentions, St. Gemma Galgani: https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=225

Monsignor Thomas Richter was named a Missionary of Mercy by Pope Francis in 2015. During that year, he traveled to various places throughout the United States to share the Good News of God’s mercy for his people. Now, in 2025, a Jubilee Year dedicated to hope, it seems all the more necessary for people of faith to grasp mercy. In this episode, Monsignor Richter, currently serving the Bismarck Diocese as a pastor in Dickinson, North Dakota, will share what he's learned of mercy during his life, and how it connects with the Easter season in which we find ourselves. 

SHOW NOTES:

• Missionaries of Mercy website: https://missionariesofmercyusa.org/

• “It is mercy I desire” talk from 2016: https://archive.org/details/It_Is_Mercy_That_I_Desire_-_Monsignor_Thomas_Richter_at_OLP_in_Marshfield_WI

• Presentation on how to receive the mercy of God in five steps, for 2016 Thirst conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luo5qeJkKfI

• Prime Matters publication featuring some of Monsignor Richter’s speaking: https://primematters.com/contributors/msgr-thomas-j-richter

• Explanation of the Year of Mercy: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/33084/the-year-of-mercy-whats-it-all-about

• Sherry A. Weddell’s, “Forming Intentional Disciples,” as mentioned by Monsignor Richter: https://a.co/d/7l6AlA9

• “Do you pray like a pagan?” (Roxane’s “Living Faith” column based on a talk by Monsignor Richter): https://roxanesalonen.com/2021/11/12/do-you-pray-like-a-pagan/

Brayden Drevlow has been all over the world to bring music to faraway places. A concert pianist and adventure traveler from Thief River Falls, Minnesota, he’s known for “putting the X in extreme,” through “chasing adventure, pushing the comfort zone, and never allowing dreams to go unpursued,” as conveyed on his website. What drives his adventurous spirit? What has he learned along the way? And as one who has played before audiences all over the world in all kinds of conditions, what can he reveal about our question of the day: “Is music necessary for survival?” 

SHOW NOTES:

• SPECIAL EVENT: Brayden will perform at 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 5, at the AAHS Performing Arts Center in Alexandria, Minnesota. Tickets available through Cherry Street Books, CentralLakesSymphony.org (adults, $20; students, $5).

• Brayden’s website: https://www.braydendrevlow.com/

• Brayden’s welcome: https://youtu.be/SDxoytJaNFg

• Update from Turkey: https://youtu.be/UuZZ1bwJBiY

• Update from Ukraine: https://youtu.be/n16D42ZW7tM

Tim Mosser works for the Diocese of Fargo in education and formation, serving also as the Respect Life Officer director. He’s a husband and father, composer and musician, speaker and radio host, and currently in formation to become a deacon. Above all, this multi-faceted man is a child of God.

Today, Tim will expound on a discussion we started a couple of weeks ago, using Pope John Paul II’s teaching on human life, Theology of the Body, as a building block to discuss whether reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization and surrogacy are moral.

SHOW NOTES: 

• First episode with Tim Mosser: https://www.inforum.com/lifestyle/does-the-church-hate-sex

• St. John Paul VI Institute for NaPro Technology, founded by Dr. Thomas W. Hilgers: https://saintpaulvi.com/

• “Our babies have barcodes” (see video within the article): https://dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com/our-babies-have-barcodes-the-moral-problems-with-ivf-and-surrogacy/

• Another “Our babies have barcodes” video reference (begins at 7:38): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfoHOhlV70M

• https://timmosser.com/