Talking Catholic

“I am the Immaculate Conception.” With these words, the beautiful lady dressed in blue and white identified herself to 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous, in the grotto of Massabielle, France in 1858. The many visions Bernadette had of the Blessed Mother contained promises of love and protection, with the recitation of the rosary. The chapel built at the site of Bernadette of Mary’s visions, the San...

You know what voice you haven’t heard in a while? That would be our beloved co-host Mary McCusker who rejoins us for the first time since January after successfully defeating COVID. Thank God! And she brings with her one of our favorite people who we’ve been wanting to have on the podcast for some time, one of Catholic Charities’ finest and most passionate representatives, Melissa Hruska. For more...

This week we welcome back the hardest working guest in the history of our podcast, Olympian Priscilla Frederick-Loomis. If we all had the energy, drive and determination of Priscilla, this world would be a vastly different place :) Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh chat with her about ambition to return to the Olympics this year competing for the country of Antigua & Barbuda, her radio show, her podcast...

It’s the most important week of the liturgical year, so our hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh brought in a couple of spiritual heavy hitters - Fr. Raymond Gormley, pastor of the Church of the Incarnation (https://www.incarnation-church.org) in Mantua, NJ, and one of our favorite friends of the show, Donna Ottaviano-Britt, head of the Secretariat for Pastoral Life for the Diocese of Camden. Togethe...

This week we enjoy a conversation with some of our favorite behind-the-scenes people in catholic schools. Advancement director of Our Lady of Hope Regional School in Blackwood,  Betty Kuvinka and Communications and Marketing Director at Camden Catholic High School, Kate Bieg. The duo talk to Mike Walsh and Marianela Nunez about their roles to support Catholic education in South Jersey. If you are...

[This episode is also available in video form on our YouTube Channel at: https://youtu.be/Rp8RxO-U0nc] On March 22, 23 & 24 the Diocese of Camden will be broadcasting a three night Lenten virtual retreat at 7 PM on our Facebook and YouTube channels. The retreat leaders join our host Mike Walsh and guest host Donna Ottaviano-Britt today to discuss the upcoming three nights filled with hope, humor a...

It’s a great hour this week as we welcome back Jeff Shields, Youth Minister at Saint Rose of Lima Parish, Haddon Heights and leader of Forgotten Truth, a band and ministry. Not only do Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh get to chat with Jeff about his ministry and his influences, but he also performs three of his songs for us! Follow Forgotten Truth at:
 www.facebook.com/forgottentruth/
 twitter.com/Forg...

Women, mothers, martyrs - the lives and heroic witness of Saints Perpetua & Felicity are chronicled in the former’s diary, one of the earliest writings of a Christian woman. Their persecution and deaths in 3rd century North Africa shine a light on the courage of Jesus’ disciples, and Talking Saints hosts Laurie Power and Pete Sanchez find inspiration in recounting the deeds of these remarkable sai...

In the Diocese of Camden, it is fundraising season again as the House of Chairty - Bishop’s Annual Appeal begins anew this winter. The annual campaign that serves many ministries of the diocese, including various social services, Catholic schools, ministries and vocations in South Jersey, is managed by our good friend of the podcast and Associate Director of Development for the Diocese of Camden,...

Our guest this week is a South Jersey pediatrician with a stunning conversion story. Dr. Daniel Costa grew up in Brazil going to a church that demonized Catholicism, the pope and the venerating of the Blessed Mother. However, as he hit his early 20’s he had an epic change of heart that he credits fully to the work of the Holy Spirit. His story leaves our hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh simultane...

This week our hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh bring back listener favorite Fr. Josh Nevitt, pastoral associate from Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish and director of Catholic identity at Holy Spirit High School, to discuss Lent and how we can better prepare for it. The trio talk about the ways people can focus on their faith during Lent, wether they’re hardcore Catholics or Catholics who haven’t...

This week our hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh sit down with Fr. Chris Bakey, parochial vicar at Our Lady of Peace Parish in Williamstown, N.J., who recently came through a harrowing COVID ordeal. We talk about the nurse in his parish who likely saved his life, the ordeal of weeks in the hospital when it very much looked like he would not survive, and how his connection to Mary helped buoy him in...

“Be good, love the Lord, pray for those who do not know Him.  What a great grace it is to know God!” - Saint Josephine Bakhita   As Black History month continues, Talking Saints focuses on today’s Feast of Saint Josephine Bakhita, a 19th century Sudanese woman whose faith and generosity of spirit continue to inspire others.   Our hosts Laurie and Pete unpack the journey of Saint Josephine Bakhita-...

On this week’s episode Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh welcome two distinguished guests to talk Catholic Schools and schools choice, Superintendent of the Office of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Camden, Dr. Bill Watson, and John Schoenig the Senior Director of Teacher Formation and Education Policy for the University of Notre Dame's Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE). In this role, he lead...

A new year of Talking Saints kicks off with the patron of “Gospel Magic,” Saint John Bosco. This 19th century Italian priest was known for his “creative evangelization” in reaching out to young boys on the margins of society. In establishing the Society of Saint Francis de Sales, he provided a home, fellowship, and the gift of the faith to hundreds of these disaffected youth. Hosts Laurie Power an...

This week our host Mike Walsh is flying solo, but there’s a ton to talk about so he brought his far more knowledgeable colleague, Donna Ottaviano-Britt, director of the Diocese of Camden’s Office of Discipleship and Leadership, onto the show to discuss a smorgasbord of Catholic news including the pro-life movement, the Year of Saint Joseph, how ashes will likely be distributed on Ash Wednesday and...

This week, Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh are joined by Brian Corbin, Executive Vice President of Member Services for Catholic Charities USA, and Kevin Hickey, who serves on the CCUSA Board of Trustees in addition to his role as Executive Director of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Camden.  Brian and Kevin are both deeply grounded in the guiding principles, social teachings and scriptures that guide...

This week we’re chatting with some young adults from our host Kari Janisse’s ACTS program, an initiative of Our Lady of Peace Parish in Williamstown, NJ that works specifically with young Catholics age 18-28. Joining Kari and Mike Walsh for this episode are Martin Deluhery, Theo Deluhery, Kim Pacis and Yailyn Nuñez. The quartet discuss what they were looking for in a program like this, what it off...

We open up the 2021 season of the podcast with a hosts-only chat as we look forward to the new year. There are a lot of great opportunities out there and Kari Janisse, Mike Walsh, Mary McCusker and Marianela Nunez have some ideas (and a lot more skill sets cultivated thanks to 2020). Listen to Talking Catholic on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, SoundCloud, Alexa or at https://talking.cathol...

We love podcasts, we love listening to them, we love making them and we hope you love listening to them. Well this week, we’re crossing over with them! We’ve invited the hosts of “Am I Not Here”, the official podcast of the Diocese of Metuchen, to join us to chat (commiserate) about our lives as Catholic communicators. Joining our own hosts, Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh, on this episode are the As...

Dr. William Watson and Dr. Robert Lockwood chat with our hosts Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh about the common questions Catholic Schools are getting regarding in-person and remote instruction this year. Dr. Watson explain how South Jersey Catholic Schools are thriving even under the pressures caused by a pandemic that seem to have come from nowhere.  It certainly has pushed Catholic school leader...

This week, Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh sit down with David Tanzola, an active and involved parishioner at the Catholic Community of the Holy Spirit in Mullica Hill, NJ, and a dear friend of Catholic Charities of South Jersey, where he’s served as a volunteer in several programs.  David is a dynamic member of our Diocese who walks us through his fascinating journey towards becoming a Catholic, a h...

In three days the Catholic Church will mark the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas.  Today, however, the church celebrates an important figure in her veneration: Juan Diego, Indian peasant, Mary’s messenger, and first indigenous American saint.  During this program, hosts Laurie Power and Pete Sanchez will unpack the life of this man, his miraculous encounters with the Virgi...

We’re going back to college on this week’s show so we can chat with two of our favorite Catholic Campus Ministers, Alison Filion and Rebekah Hardy. The two ministers, serving students at Stockton University and Rowan University, respectively, chat with Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh about the ministry and how they’ve been able to care for the spiritual well-being of their charges during covid-times....

It’s the time of year again! We’re talking about the often misunderstood and underutilized Advent season. In today’s culture we tend to skip right from Thanksgiving to Christmas and we miss out on all the opportunities Advent offers us to properly prepare for the Christmas season. On today’s episode Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh welcome one of their favorite priests - Fr. Michael Goyette, Pastor of...