Just One Small Thing Podcast for Catholic Parents

Hey friends! Please enjoy this short episode explaining how the Eucharist IS the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Join us, and let's continue to work to BRING THE EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL HOME!

Explore with me how I came to know, believe and love the Church's teaching on Mary! Thank you for listening to the Just One Small Thing Podcast. Tuning in each week means so very much! Want to hear more great Catholic content perfect for the whole family? Make sure to tune in each day to the CATHOLIC SPROUTS PODCAST. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-sprouts-podcast/   Looking for a way to supp...

Storytime! Since we are talking about the saints celebrating their feast days this week, including St. Dominic, I took this opportunity to share my own Dominic/Holy Rosary stories. Both take place in France outside of Toulouse, but they are set about 10 years apart.   In part one, I am a solo traveler to rural France where I realize my High School French is 0% helpful and no one there speaks Engli...

This week on the Catholic Sprouts Podcast we are exploring what it means to be Catholic. This is an important question to tackle as we build and nurture our identity as Catholics. It is our goal to nurture our identity as Catholics here at Catholic Sprouts, which is why we are launching the CLUBHOUSE today. The CLUBHOUSE is a membership for Catholic kids, and I'm explaining all of the details in t...

Well, I decided to spill the beans on a project that we have been working on for a long time, and I am hopeful will come into being this fall: a church history book told through biographies of the saints. I have grown frustrated with how many church history books tell history either through secular leaders (like emperors) or heretics. So, we decided to write a history of the church told through th...

We are finally done with all of the CST topics! Yay! From here forward this podcast will be weekly, and will explore, in a more adult way, the topics we are covering on the Catholic Sprouts podcast. The plan is to hit record on this podcast as soon as I finish recording the Catholic Sprouts Podcast, and that is exactly what I did today!   So, friendship. I have often felt like I was a "bad friend"...

This is the last episode covering the topics of Catholic Social Teaching! Yay!!! Thank you for following along, and I hope you enjoy this last episode.    This episode explores the fact that the land and animals are a gift from God, and how amazing that truth is to hold onto as we interact with nature and animals. Also, we become co-workers with God when we plant a seed of care for an animal. I sh...

The Church teaches that all people, regardless of race, are created in the image and likeness of God. Also, Christ died and shed His blood for ALL people. Therefore, all people are worthy of love and should enjoy equal rights. Also, we are not called to simply "tolerate" people. We are called to love them.   Unfortunately, we all will need to teach very clearly on the issue of race. This came to t...

Terrorism is the use of violence against non-military people for political or personal gain. Terrorism attempts to control or change through fear. 9-11 Was the greatest act of terrorism this country has seen, and when our children learn about the events of that day, we need to be clear that terrorism is wrong.   However, the Bishops teach that when terrorism occurs, we need to look for causes in o...

As the Church teachers, war is a terrible phenomenon that should be avoided at all costs. To illustrate this, the Church offers us the "Just War Doctrine" something that applies to every few modern conflicts. In order for a war to be "just" it must: Be the result of damage by the aggressor that is lasting, grave and certain. All other means of resolution must have been exhausted There must be a se...

Today's episode explores the fifth theme of Catholic Social Teaching as laid out by the US Bishops. I am discussing both topics, Dignity of Work and Workers Rights, together in this episode.   Above all else, I desire for my children to learn that work has dignity--and this applies to all work: jobs, chores around the house and school work. We are like our Creator when we work, and we are often al...

According to a recent study, up to 3 Million Americans are currently homeless. The US Bishops refer to this as a tragedy, which we are all asked to help remedy. Afterall, as JPII said, a home is not just a roof and four walls. A home is where life takes place, and each human person has a right to a home.   In this episode I share my own experience with homelessness, which I witnessed as a teacher...

The fourth theme of Catholic Social Teaching asks us to care also for those addicted to drugs. They too were created in the image and likeness of God and even drug addiction does not remove that dignity. This topic can be hard for many of us as we wrestle with feelings that drug addiction is the addict's fault and, in a way, it serves them right. This, of course, is not how we are called to treat...

Once again, we are called to love and care for our elders because all humans, no matter how old or infirmed they may be, are still children of God and because of this filled with a special God-given dignity. Caring for our elders is also part of the 4th commandment.   Care for elders also touches on an important Catholic concept: Memento Mori, or our call to remember our death. Often we neglect ou...

For several years Pope Francis has been outspoken about the love and care we should offer those with disabilities, in particular, we need to make sure that those who are disabled have access to the sacraments. This means more than having functional elevators and sign language interpreters. It means welcoming those with sometimes several mental disabilities.   The care for those who are disabled is...

Health Care is the first of five that the US Bishops include in the fourth theme of Catholic Social Teaching: Care for the Poor and Vulnerable. JPII reminds us that we should not only care for the poor, but practice a preference for the poor and vulnerable, as often they need special defending in our world.    The Church defends that Healthcare is a basic human right. Since all humans were made in...

Today we are tackling the third and final topic in the Rights and Responsibility section of Catholic Social Teaching, as laid out by the USCCB: Freedom of Religion.   Following the Second Vatican Council, the Church taught that all people have a right FROM and FOR religion. This means that we can't force people to be part of a certain religion. It also means that a person can not be hindered or pr...

Today's discussion dives into Immigration, which the USCCB has placed under the third theme of Catholic Social Teaching: Rights and Responsibilities. Immigration is a tricky topic that is regularly in the news, especially in this moment as Title 42 expires here in the US, and around the world as war engulf the Sudan and many countries are struggling with terrible famines.   The USCCB lay out three...

Criminal Justice is the first topic we are discussing under the third theme of Catholic Social Teaching as laid out by the USCCB. The third theme is called Rights and Responsibilities. In this section we investigate the rights each person is entitled to, simply because they are human and created in God's own images. But, it is not enough to simply defend our own rights. We also have a responsibili...

The second theme of Catholic Social Teaching laid out by the USCCB is the call to family and community. Although the topics we have been talking about recently might sound quite different from Civic Duty and Political Activism, they are related. Humans are social beings and we need each other. We are training in the family--the school of love--but at some point we need to go beyond our family and...

Today's discussion will equip you to discuss marriage and same-sex marriage with your children. Too often we think that Homosexuality and (Same-Sex) Marriage are the same topic, but they are not. Here are some important points to keep in mind as you discuss (Same-Sex) Marriage: Marriage is a covenant relationship between a man and a woman ordered toward the creation of children and formation of a...

Today we are discussing an important and emotional topic: Homosexuality. With family and friends living homosexual lifestyles, this will likely be one of the first topics we have to cover with our children (unfortunately) and we need to be ready!   A few important things to note on the topics of homosexuality: We need to differentiate between homosexual attraction and homosexual acts.  The Church...

Today we are continuing our discussion of our call to marriage and family, as laid out by the USCCB and discussed in our new book, CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING FOR YOUTH.    Divorce is likely the very first topic from this book that you will need to address with your children. That's how it worked for us! Unfortunately many people we know, both family and friends, have been through divorce, and that i...

In today's episode we continue to discuss issues laid out by the USCCB that define our call to marriage and family. This topic specially discusses the use of artificial birth control and why using anything to prevent conceiving a child, inside or outside of marriage, is always wrong.   The Church teaches beautifully on this point, specifically through JPII's Theology of the Body. Sex and marriage...

For the next several episodes we will be exploring God's plan for marriage and family and the variety of ways Satan's lies attack that plan. Today we start with sex outside of marriage.   Now, it is important that we don't just teach the "rule". Instead we need to share with our children what is good and beautiful. God's plan for sex is so good! The reason why we know that sex outside of marriage...