Universal Voices

In this Bonus Episode, Alissa talks with Cameron Bellm, Lauren Winter, and Sara Alexander the creators of No Unlikely Saints, A Mental Health Pilgrimage With Sacred Company.  This conversation was packed with so much goodness.  Listen in as the women unpack:

• The Necessity of Conversations around Mental Health in the Catholic Church
• The gifts of therapy and medication  
• The gifts of walking with Saints who experienced mental illness
• The gift of not walking alone
• The harm that shame does
• The reasons the writers wrote the devotional
• The both/and nature of both praying and seeking medical help with our mental health

You can purchase the amazing devotional at www.brickhouseinthecity.com or find more information at the From Here Instagram page.

In this Bonus Episode Alissa talks with Vanesa Zuleta Goldberg, Natalie Alfaro Frazier, Jenny Nutzman and Cameron Bellm,  some of the creators who are part of Common Horizon, a print publication that explores the 7 Themes of Catholic Social Teaching.  

Listen in to hear the five women discuss:

• Caring beyond ourselves
• Caring beyond our Church
• Following the model of Jesus via Catholic Social Teaching
• Making spaces that allow for showing up as our real selves
• Racism
• The Death Penalty
• Widening our tables and the voices we hear from
• Nuns and the role of women in our faith
• Being a Church of Accompaniment 
• Giving Rise to Courage
• Stepping into Silence
• Rejoicing and Grieving at the very same time
• The importance of being in line with Church teaching for this project
• The catechism affirming our call to act
• The balance of being voices of honest and voices of grace

In the final episode of this 12-part series Alissa wraps up this project by:

• Talking about the evolution of this mini-series
• Exploring the necessity of reckoning what we believe and how we live that out
• Pushing back on comfortable Christianity
• Doubling down on the daily work that we are called to do 
• Asking what Christian discipleship costs us
• Pointing to the necessity of drinking from the well of the sacraments, prayer and community
• Giving a soccer analogy as it relates to going out and bringing the love of God into the world
• Remembering the ultimate reward of Christian discipleship
• Thanking you for your belief in this project

In the 11th installment of this 12-part series, Alissa welcomes her friend Raquel.  In honor of The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the two friends talk about all types of motherhood--the spiritual mothers they know and love, their lives as moms now, and our Heavenly Mother, Mary.   Listen in as they chat about:

• This interview Raquel did on the loss of her mom on the podcast, Mamas in Spirit.
• Healing and consolation after loss through sharing our story
• Looking for glimpses of Mama Mary's attributes in the women around us
• The interior life as a way to care for ourselves
• Mary walking us closer to her Son, and also each other
• Motherhood being hard and the importance for asking for help from our spiritual mom and other women
• The awesomeness of WOMEN
• Mary being there, waiting to mother us
• Stepping into our YES the way Mary did over and over
• Mary as our model of love, trust and obedience 
• The piercings Mary felt that help moms know she gets their struggle

To find out more about Raquel, previous guests, the weekly giveaways, or to support the work of this project, visit from_here_sessions on Instagram.

In the  TENTH episode of this 12-part series,  Alissa (finally!) convinces her husband of 17 years, Junior, to let her interview him.  The couple talks about his heart for family life and the conversation covers a lot of ground in a short time.  Tune in to hear them talk about:

• Preaching always, and if necessary using words
• The Source of Junior's joy
• The power of the everyday witness
• The Church as family and as a place we fit
• The intimacy of praying as a couple
• Junior's family of origin
• Both the discipline and depth necessary in the faith life
• The vital practice of worship
• One of the things in family life Junior did not see coming
• Bringing our best selves to our family
• Teamwork [with God] makes the dream work
• Communication as a key component to married life
• Holiness as proximity to God

To find out more about Junior, previous guests, the weekly giveaways, or to support the work of this project, visit from_here_sessions on Instagram. 

Today in the 9th installment of this 12 part series Alissa welcome in Alysse Gear to talk about her heart for creation.  Alissa and Alysse share all kinds of passions and hit it off really quickly.  The two new friends spend some time discussing care for God's creation and how people of faith can make small changes to be better stewards of the beautiful gift that is the earth and everything in it.  Jump in and listen to the two talk about all the things like:

• Bringing the passions God has placed in our hearts to the Church
• The power of welcome
• Plant walks!
• Integrating the care of creation into our everyday lives
• Loving creation by finding the habits that work best for us
• A few habits to try
• The power of modeling
• Alysse's ONE request of anyone who hears this podcast
• The beauty of our multifaceted faith
• Consumerism 
• Catholic Social Teaching

Find out more about Alysse, other Universal Voices Guests, weekly giveaways or how to support this work by visiting from_here_sessions on Instagram. 

Today Alissa welcomes Hannah Sherfinski to Universal Voices.  Hannah is a medical student and this conversation left Alissa so inspired and encouraged.  Hannah speaks so passionately and knowledgeably about public health.  This discussion on integrating faith into how she learns, grows, studies and sees herself as a future physician gives Alissa so much hope.  In this 8th episode of this 12 part series, we chat about:

• Science + Faith
• The awesomeness of the integration of our passions, interests and faith  
• The miracle of being alive
• Imitating the relational way of Jesus
• Health equity
• Living faith through loving and advocating for people who are often silenced
• The complexities of reproductive issues
• Seeing the whole person
• Embracing the gray
• The fact that Covid-19 is a thing (wear a mask!)
• Ways Hannah connects to Jesus within the hectic pace of medical school
• The power of a caring physician 

In this 7th episode of this 12 part mini-series, Alissa brings in newly ordained priest Fr. Will Rooney to chat about his heart for story.  The two friends talk about their common love for story--the ones that come from each of us and the Grandest Story of all time.  So much of this episode reminds us all how important we are to that Story.  Tune in to hear:

• A crazy connection Alissa figures out in real time about a beloved priest she knows.
• How God uses the Church to give us a bigger story.
• The imagery of God singing all things into being.
• And also the imagery of God being able to use notes of discord to create something magnificent.  
• Our stories giving us a sense of rootedness in who we are.
• The gift that are priests who recognize the wholeness of people and the value of their story.
• How God can take the hard parts of our story and redeem them.
• How Fr. Will's heart for story influences the way he lives his vocation.
• Looking for the way God has worked in our story.
• How the sacraments proclaim that we are part of God's story.
• The hope that God's bigger story provides us.

Thank you so much for your continued support of this project.  For more information on guests, the zoom community sessions or to financially back it, go to from_here_sessions on Instagram.

No new episode is slated for this week as Election Tuesday is an important opportunity to be prayerfully engaged.  

Instead, Alissa has recorded the recitation of the sorrowful mysteries of the most holy rosary ahead of election day.

May we continue to remember the unchanging, perfect nature of the God we love and serve.  And may He and His Kingdom be at the center of all we say and do. 

Today Alissa is STOKED to welcome Destiny Herndon-De la Rosa of New Wave Feminists to Universal Voices.  Destiny is not Catholic but Alissa could NOT shake the thought that she was supposed to reach out to Destiny and invite her on.  Destiny and NWF have played an important role in the way Alissa lives out her own Catholic call to protect the dignity of all human life.  Strap in for the packed sixth episode of this 12-week series where the two empaths talk about:

• The gift of failure and closed doors.
• Badass saints.
• The power of prayer.
• New Wave Feminists recent work in Juarez.
• The most perfect wax on and wax off analogy.
• Sharing the gospel and if you have to, using words.
• Mr. Miyagi
• Memento Mori.
• The Five Part Holy Spirit Series that led to AMAZING.
• The 2016 Pivot.
• Wiggling free of hypocrisy and extremes through a consistent life ethic.
• The amazing work of Abide Women's Health Services.
• Creating a wholistic culture of life.

Thank you so much for your continued support of this project.  For more information or to financially back it, go to from_here_sessions on Instagram.