Our guest on this episode is Joey Pontarelli who is the founder and president of Restored, a ministry that helps teens and young adults who come from divorced or dysfunctional families heal and build virtue so they can avoid repeating that cycle and build a better life. Joey holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Franciscan University of Steubenville and an MBA from Benedictine College. Joey recalls growing up in a large Italian family with five boys and one girl. His early life was permeated with sports, whether he was goofing around with his siblings or playing an organized sport. He played club volleyball in college.

Around age 11, Joey’s life drastically changed when his parents separated and eventually divorced. He recounts the feelings, problems, and struggles he encountered during this time in his life.

Joey explains what changed in his life and how his return to God and the Church helped him. Joey felt there was a lack of resources for him when his parents divorced. After much prayer and spiritual direction, he felt called to start Restored. Joey is passionate about helping teens and young adults with resources which he highlights on the Restored website. The most popular resource on the Restored website is the podcast.

Other popular resources are a book entitled “It’s Not Your Fault” and a guide “7 Tips on Building a Thriving and Divorce-Proof Marriage”. These are only a few of many resources on the Restored website. Joey also talks about how sports is a great tool to help the healing process while building virtues necessary for healthy relationships.

Joey ends the podcast with practical advice for people who are, or were, in broken families and for people who are in intact families who want to help a friend who might be going through a difficult time in their family. If you find yourself anywhere on this continuum (that’s practically everybody), this podcast and Restored just might be for you.

Link: Restored - About — Restored

Resources discussed by Joey:

Jason Evert – author/speaker: Purified; Books by Jason Evert (Author of Saint John Paul the Great); Jason Evert - Wikipedia

Retreat: Lifegiving Wounds (Catholic), focus on adults whose parents were divorced: Life-Giving Wounds

Dr. Greg Bottaro – Catholic Psych Institute: Faith-Aligned Online Therapy at CatholicPsych Institute

Bob Schutts, PhD. – John Paul II Healing Center – Transformation in the Heart of the Church; Catholic Sportsman Show: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-h779y-16b68c3   

Sr. Miriam: Sr. Miriam James Heidland, SOLT - The GIVEN Institute

Fr. John Burns: Fr. John Burns - The GIVEN Institute

Leila Miller- author: Primal Loss: The Now-Adult Children of Divorce Speak - https://a.co/d/4jRcz3C

Leila Miller: Impossible - Marriages Redeemed, They Didn’t End the Story in the Middle - https://a.co/d/fCXLIfu

Fr. Mike Schmitz: Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen - https://youtu.be/0NOTU1g0Z8w

Greg and Julie Alexander: authors - Marriage 911: How God Saved Our Marriage and Can Save Yours Too - https://a.co/d/clwhJxH 

Alexander House: Hope & Healing for Marriage

#catholicsports, #childrenofdivorcedfamilies, #childrenhealingfromdivorce, #dontletdivorcewin 

Josh Brooks is a seminarian in the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia and is our guest on this episode. Throughout his life, Josh has had a huge passion for basketball. He tried out for his high school team but didn’t make it, God had other plans for Josh. He was raised in the Baptist faith, and his parents sent him to Catholic school. While in a relationship with his girlfriend, Josh felt a call to the priesthood. He explains that being a priest is being set apart, and he feels called to that life.

Josh became Catholic and is now going into his fourth year of the seminary’s college program, then he will have four more years of theological studies prior to being ordained a priest. Along the way, Josh will continually be discerning his vocation… is God really calling him to the priesthood? Josh is blessed to have the support of his parents. Josh talks about what he likes most about being in the seminary and what he likes least. He explains the difference between the Ordinary Form of the Mass and the Extraordinary Form.

Josh hopes to use sports, especially basketball, as a tool in his ministry if God wills that he be ordained a priest. Josh ends the podcast with wonderful encouragement for both young men and women as they discern their vocations… married, priesthood, religious life, or a single consecrated life. As you listen to Josh humbly present his story, please offer a prayer for his vocation and all vocations, that we will all follow our Lord wherever He leads. Pray also that we follow the admonition of Jesus’s mother Mary to “do whatever He tells you” (John 2:5).

Scott Carter is our guest on this episode. He is the coordinator of the office for the Beatification of Venerable Fr. Emil Kapaun. Fr. Kapaun is one of the newest deceased persons to be declared Venerable by the late Pope Francis in February 2025, which is a step closer to being declared a saint in the Catholic Church. Fr. Kapaun is best known for his faith-filled and heroic participation in the Korean war. Scott tells us about the young Emil’s penchant for being an outdoorsman at a young age and his love for sports while he was in the seminary. Fr. Kapaun was ordained on June 9, 1949, and was assigned to a parish in Kansas.

Fr. Kapaun’s real calling was to minister to and serve soldiers in the war. He served as a chaplain in World War II and returned to the States when the war ended. In 1949 the Army put out a letter requesting chaplains for the Korean War and Fr. Kapaun told his bishop that he wanted to go. Scott says that Fr. Kapaun had a missionary spirit. There is an iconic picture of Fr. Kapaun celebrating Mass on the hood of a jeep. While in the Korean War, Fr. Kapaun was awarded the Bronze Star for Valor and the Medal of Honor for saving a soldier about to be shot. Eventually Fr. Kapaun was captured and sent to a prison camp.

While in the prison camp, Fr. Kapaun did everything he could to help his fellow prisoners maintain their dignity while encouraging those that wanted to give up. While his captors took Fr. Kapaun to his death, he asked forgiveness for any wrong he might have done to any one of them. Throughout his life and at the hour of his death, Fr. Kapaun put his faith into action. Miraculously, Fr. Kapaun’s remains were found many years after his death in Korea and were returned to Kansas where he is buried at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita. Scott ends the podcast by recalling a reflection given by Fr. Kapaun on the radio in Tokyo in April of 1950 on the Beatitude found in Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers…”

Scott asks anyone who is praying for the intercession of Fr. Kapaun to contact him at the website listed below.

For more information about Fr. Kapaun and/or to contact Scott: Venerable Emil J. Kapaun | Official Home Page

For information about the process of sainthood in the Catholic Church: Saints | USCCB

#catholicsports, #frkaupaun, #frkapaunkoreanwar

Rich Gannon is our guest on this episode. He is a devoted husband and father. Rich’s career includes playing for the NFL as a quarterback for 17 seasons, most notably for the Oakland Raiders. He led the Raiders to the Superbowl for the 2002 season. Rich went to the Pro-Bowl four times and was the Most Valuable Player in 2002. Following his playing days, Rich moved to the booth and excelled as a broadcaster for “NFL on CBS” for 17 seasons. He is happily still around football, broadcasting on SiriusXM NFL Radio. Since football and broadcasting has dominated Rich’s life, he was asked how he finds time for God and family. Rich quickly replied, “If something is important to you, you’ll find time for it.”

Rich attributes his success to his Catholic upbringing in a large, devoted family. Rich talks about how his faith had a positive impact in his personal and professional life. In the NFL, Rich was happy to find faith throughout the organization. With his success and accolades, Rich’s faith keeps him grounded. He is excited about the recent election of Pope Leo XIV and hopes this event invigorates the Church, especially young people. Rich talks about the importance of parents as role models in the faith of their children. He challenges us all to pray for young people to return to the Church. Rich also challenges men to take their responsibility as head of the family seriously, with passion and dedication.

Rich can be contacted through the Catholic Speakers Organization:

Rich Gannon - Business, Corporate Speaker, Faith & Fitness, Fatherhood, Men's Issues, Motivational, Professional Athlete, Radio / TV, Sports & Faith Catholic Speaker

#catholicsports, #raidersfootball, #nflbroadcaster, #catholicprofootball, #catholicspeakersorganization

Michael left Notre Dame drawn to music and spent time in Nashville in search of his dream. He is a multi-instrumentalist (voice, guitar, bass, piano) and played with legendary musicians such as Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine, The Allman Brothers Band, and Genesis.

Michael’s life changed when he was given the opportunity to shoot a film in the Holy Land. This and many other experiences led him to develop a deep devotion to our Lord as well as his Catholic faith. Michael credits his success to attending Mass, Eucharistic Adoration (Holy Hour), praying the Rosary, devotion to the Divine Mercy and Sr. Faustina. The Holy Hour helps Michael ground his busy life by dedicating each day to the Lord.

Michael encourages us to dedicate each of our days to the Lord. He challenges us to start each day in adoration of our Lord through the practice of a Holy Hour. Michael’s passionate love for our Lord and the abundant fruits of his labors are a testament to the efficacy of this practice. Through his ministries and films, Michael hopes and prays to bring many people closer to our Lord.

Links:

Sistine Films:  Sistine Films

Adore Him Daily: ADORE HIM DAILY | Substack

Divine Mercy: Chaplet of Divine Mercy | USCCB, What is Divine Mercy? The Chaplet of The Divine Mercy | The Divine Mercy

Sr. Faustina: St. Maria Faustina Kowalska - Biography | The Divine Mercy

Eucharist: The Eucharist | USCCB

Eucharistic Adoration: Eucharistic Devotion | USCCB

#catholicsports, #sistinefilms, #divinemercy, #eucharisticadoration #fightingirish

Christopher McLaughlin joins us from Glasgow, Scotland and is one of the people heading up the Cause for Tommy Burns, hoping that Tommy will eventually be declared a saint in the Catholic Church. Christopher is our guest on this episode and shares his experiences and knowledge about the quest for Tommy’s sainthood that many are praying for. Tommy was a professional soccer player, which in Scotland and most of the world, is called football. Tommy was a footballer for the famous, and beloved, Celtic team in Glasgow from 1975 to 1989 and later coached and managed the team. Tommy died in May of 2008 at the young age of 51 of melanoma, a form of skin cancer. He left behind his wife and four children.

Christopher has a wealth of knowledge about Tommy, his life, and his humble and deep devotion to God and the Catholic faith. Christopher shares some history of Catholicism in Scotland and how it is intertwined with Celtic football. Tommy was very pious and humbly practiced corporal works of mercy throughout his life. According to Christopher, the love for Tommy was very apparent at his funeral, which included 40 priests and an estimated 20,000+ people.

Christopher describes the process of opening a Cause for Sainthood according to the Church’s Canon Law. The first step involves the bishop of the diocese where Tommy passed away. The final step, which could be a few years to hundreds of years away, culminates in the Pope declaring the person a saint. There are many steps and an enormous amount of prayer, research, and verification prior to a Pope declaring someone a saint. Opening a Cause for Sainthood does not guarantee Canonization, it often does not. 

Christopher, and his fellow researcher Philip Church, are the “petitioners” in this process (see sainthood link below). They are asking for anyone who knew Tommy or is praying for an intercession from Tommy to contact them at [email protected]

Information about the process of sainthood in the Catholic Church: Saints | USCCB

#catholicsports, #tommyburns, #celticfootball

Amayrani Higueldo actively participated in the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage last year and is our guest in this episode. This event was a precursor to the National Eucharistic Congress that was held in Indianapolis on July 20 – 21, 2024. The Pilgrimage consisted of four routes, East, West, North, and South which made the shape of a cross over America. The four groups met in Indianapolis for the Eucharistic Congress. Each group took our Lord, present in the Eucharist, as they made their way across the country ministering to everyone they met. Amayrani was on the Seton Route from the East that began in Connecticut. The Pilgrimage and Congress were part of a three-year Eucharistic Revival currently taking place in the Catholic Church nationwide.

A devoted Philadelphia Phillies fan, Amayrani shares some experiences she had on the pilgrimage, which she describes as an intense ocean of grace. Although each day was different, Amayrani experienced her love for Our Lord in the Eucharist and in the lives of the people she met along the way. Amayrani shares many heartfelt and inspiring stories as she traveled with our Eucharistic Lord and fellow pilgrims. She has had a close relationship with Our Lady of Guadalupe for most of her life. Amayrani credits Our Lady’s intercession with helping her apply for and participate in the procession. 

Amayrani is now embarking on her profession as a nurse and looks forward to blessing her patients with the dignity and love of Our Lord, as she prays for them and strives to deliver the best care possible. Amayrani encourages us all to strive daily to stay close to Our Lord by attending Mass, receiving the Eucharist, completing a Holy Hour, reading Scripture, and praying the rosary.

Amayrani’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amayrannniii?igsh=aDExemppZXlmZDRr&utm_source=qr

Link to the National Eucharistic Revival, Congress, and Pilgrimage:  10th National Eucharistic Congress - Official Website

Link to information about the Eucharist: The Eucharist | USCCB

Link to information about Our Lady of Guadalupe: The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe - Vatican News

 #catholicsports, #eucharisticpilgrimage, #eucharisticrevival #Phillies

Kevin Becker played soccer in college and is our guest on this episode. Kevin was in his senior year of college at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania when he fell off a roof. He was found on the ground by friends, his head fractured, and his body broken. Kevin was in a coma and his devout parents rushed to be by his side. They were told by his doctors to brace for the worst.

His family continued to pray and started a novena to Blessed Giorgio Frassati, a young man who died in 1925. While in a coma, Kevin had a supernatural experience which he explains in this podcast. Kevin didn’t know who he encountered while he was in a coma until after his miraculous recovery. Now Kevin is a healthy man who enjoys playing soccer and beach volleyball with friends. He maintains a relationship with his friend Giorgio, is involved with the organization Frassati USA, and talks to groups about his experience.

Blessed Giorgio Frassati’s canonization to sainthood will take place during the Jubilee of Youth from July 28–Aug. 3, 2025, in Rome.

https://youtu.be/S4JPnDZWQoo

Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati | USCCB

Brief Biography of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati | FrassatiUSA, Inc. | Nashville, TN

Information about the process of sainthood in the Catholic Church: Saints | USCCB

Go Fund Me link for Blessed Giorgio Frassati canonization trip to Italy: https://gofund.me/8becefb9

 #catholicsports, #blessedgiorgiofrassati, #frassattiusa, #miracle