Matters of Soul Importance with Roxane Salonen

Dia Boyle is a graduate of Cornell College and of the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, where she earned her M.S.L. and met her husband. Happily at home in a university community in Minnesota, Dia has raised three children, made a home for her family, and fostered lasting friendships around her coffee table. She is an author, most recently of The Thoughtful Home, a book about what a home...

Alexandra DeSanctis is a contributing writer to National Review and co-author of the 2022 book, Tearing Us Apart: How Abortion Harms Everything and Solves Nothing. She writes and speaks regularly on topics including the pro-life movement, abortion policy, religion, politics, and family issues. Her work has been published in The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, the Washington...

Prisha Mosley is a detransitioner and ambassador at Independent Women. In her teen years, Prisha was set on a path of medical "gender transition" by doctors and counselors who insisted that changing her body through large amounts of testosterone and undergoing surgery to remove her breasts would remedy her mental health problems. Since sharing her "detransitioner" story publicly, Mosley has become...

Joanne Poehls grew up 12 miles southwest of Fergus Falls, Minnesota, where her dad worked as a grain farmer and her mother was a gardener who loved growing flowers and vegetables. With her four older siblings and a twin sister, Joanne enjoyed the outdoors, the farm animals, and the rural life that afforded space and peace, along with hard work. Now married to Jeff for 32 years, she is once again i...

Brittany Poppe is a Christian abortion recovery coach, pro-life speaker, and advocate for truth and healing. She helps women partner with God to find freedom and restore their hearts after abortion. She hosts "Abortion Recovery for Christian Women," a globally ranked top 2% Christian podcast that equips women with biblical guidance, hope, and practical steps toward emotional and spiritual healing....

Lisa M. Hendey is a bestselling author, speaker, and founder of CatholicMom.com. A lifelong advocate for faith-filled living, she encourages readers to deepen their relationship with Jesus through storytelling, Scripture reflection, and practical application. Lisa's Chime Travelers children's book project is now streaming as an animated series. She speaks internationally on the intersection of fai...

Shawn Hagstrom, wife of Mike and mother of two adoptive children, Therese and Joseph, is also the grandmother of 11-year-old identical twin boys, James and Oliver. Shawn recently retired from her 40-year teaching career, through which she nurtured pre-school children in both secular and Catholic school settings. The Hagstroms, longtime residents of Fargo, also have a longtime marriage of 42 years....

Kimberly Souba is a writer, communications specialist, and former educator who taught for 15 years. Originally from Illinois, she now lives in Fargo, North Dakota, where she continues her work in communications, storytelling, and advocacy. Kimberly speaks openly about her journey of healing from childhood sexual abuse, parental abandonment, and seasons of deep struggle. Through those experiences,...

Our guest today, Maria Ruiz Scaperlanda, was born in Cuba and grew up in Puerto Rico. She is a freelance writer and the author of several books, most notably, the award-winning, "The Shepherd Who Didn't Run: Blessed Stanley Rother, Martyr from Oklahoma," and was recently named "Promoter of the Cause for Blessed Stanley Rother." Maria and her husband, Michael, live in Oklahoma City and have four ad...

Our guest today, Peter Andrastek, is married with 8 children, 5 to 20 years old, and holds a master's degree in pastoral theology from Ave Maria University. Peter has worked with seminarians and clergy on formation, taught graduate-level theology, and brought his teaching gifts into numerous parishes, dioceses, movements, and institutions in the Church. He currently advises a team that serves over...

Our guest today, Laurie Lind, grew up in Lairmore and Fargo, North Dakota, in a Christian family with a father, Bob Lind, who was a true newsman. As a child, they lived in an upstairs apartment of the "ancient, tottering building" where the Larimore Pioneer, a weekly newspaper, was produced. Laurie majored in journalism at the University of North Dakota and has worked in various forms of print and...

Our guest today, Samantha Stephenson, is a Catholic convert, bioethicist, and author of several books helping Christians grow in faith and navigate the spiritual and ethical questions shaping our rapidly changing world—whether in the hidden rhythms of home or at the frontiers of science. She hosts the podcast Brave New Us and writes the "Choosing Human Newsletter" on Substack. You can also find he...

Our guest today, Noelle Mering, is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, and the author of "Awake, Not Woke," as well as co-author of the Theology of Home book series, and an upcoming book, "No Contact: How a Seductive Ideology Broke Families and Friendships and How We Can Repair Them." Noelle has been published in Newsweek, Daily Wire, National Review, The Federalist, and National Cath...

Rabbi Eitan Webb co-founded the Chabad House of Princeton in 2002 with his wife Gitty, and has served as a Jewish Chaplain at Princeton University since 2007. In addition to his service to university students, Rabbi Webb serves on the board of directors of the Chabad on Campus International Foundation and of the Sinai Scholars Society. Today, we're going to talk about young people today, and if it...

Nichole Haugen is a wife, mom to six daughters, nurse, and grief coach. She spent over 10 years as a hospice nurse helping families through hard times, so she has dealt with grief both personally and professionally. Through losing her parents close together in 2019, and marriage struggles, Nichole eventually found a path to healing, forgiveness, and learning to live with grief. Today, she will hel...

Rob Port is a reporter and a columnist for the Forum Communications Company, as well as host of the Plain Talk podcast. But beyond that, he's a husband and father who tilts conservative politically, and yet not so much that he'd always identify as a Republican. While he grew up in a Christian home, Rob doesn't practice any faith, nor does he believe in God. Today, Rob and I will share the mic to t...

Born first in a family of six children, Cariysa Powell was given a strong Catholic base on which to launch her life. But in 2020, as our world experienced a global pandemic crisis, her parents went through a personal faith crisis and departed from Christianity. This defining moment in Cariysa's life challenged her to decide what she believed. Today, she'll share what helped her find firm grounding...

Father Joel Sember, a priest from Wisconsin, is the author of a series of books about the Christian season of Advent that he's written annually since 2020. Each year's book bears the same title, "Oriens," a Latin word meaning "rising" and "dawn," and is meant to take the reader on a journey through the Advent season, with Fr. Joel as a guide. What is the origin of Oriens, and why should we even ca...

Mary Flannery O'Connor was an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist whose work is often described as "Southern Gothic," a style which has left many readers scratching their heads, as they come across her grotesque characters who are often in violent situations — none of which match the life of their author, a devout Catholic. "Flannery," as she was known, had begun making a major imp...

Leah Libresco Sargeant describes herself as an author, speaker and, interestingly, instigator. She's written for such publications as "First Things," "The American Conservative," and "Commonweal," and has been a guest on CNN as well as at "Theology on Tap" events in multiple countries. Her interests include religion, statistics, and the theater. She grew up Jewish and atheist, and in 2012, convert...

In this episode, we'll be introduced to the man who became known as "the Rosary priest," Father Patrick Peyton, by the priest helping advance his cause for canonization, Father David Marcham of Holy Cross Family Ministries. How did Father Peyton, a poor farmer's son from Ireland, end up in America? What was his impact here and elsewhere? And did he really coin the phrase, "The Family that prays to...

In this episode, Dr. Stacy Trasancos will discuss the premise for her latest book, "IVF is Not the Way," which tackles the topic of in vitro fertilization, or fertilization that takes place in a scientific laboratory, using the Church's age-old wisdom as a grounding place, and a logical, moral, philosophical approach to move through it thoughtfully.   SHOW NOTES:  IVF is Not the Way book: https://...

 Ken Koehler has been speaking out on abortion locally for many years now, and prays regularly at our area's only abortion facility, where, on average, a classroom of babies die every week. A faithful Lutheran and longtime member of Lutherans for Life, Ken has been a powerful force in keeping this important topic before us, including as a frequent contributor to The Forum's "Letters to the Editor"...

In this episode, Emmy-award-winning journalist Monica Hannan, who is readying soon to complete a 45-year career as a television news anchor—37 of which happened at KFYR-TV in Bismarck, North Dakota—explores the topic of "surrender" in anticipation of her forthcoming book, "Surrender to Lead," which follows the journeys of 11 individuals who learned what surrendering their lives to God truly means...

Rose Sweet has been studying and teaching the temperament for decades now, and has finally brought her collected knowledge into a book delving into how our ascent to holiness can be affected by our temperament—for good or ill. Even if you've already assessed your personality type, you might not have given much thought to what this has to do with your personal sanctity, but for the serious seeker o...