Talking Catholic

Much to our co-host Mike Walsh’s surprise, it’s Catholic Press Month! His far wiser co-host Jen Mauro set him straight and the two brought together a legendary grouping of Catholic journalists to chat about the vocation. Joining us today is J.D. Long-Garcia, a senior editor at America Magazine (and past-president of the Catholic Media Association); Matthew Gambino, director & general manager of Ca...

On today’s Talking Saints, hosts Laurie and Pete share the buzz on Saint Abigail, patron saint of honeybees and beekeepers.  This medieval Irish saint from County Clare, Ireland, also known as Saint Gobnait, left her domestic family to find a home serving God and his people.  In this episode, learn more about this saint’s literal path to holiness, and the glory of living a life worthy of eternity....

This week we continue our occasional series on women religious by chatting with Sister Stacie Marie Gagnon of the Franciscan Missionaries of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. We chat with her about her own vocation calling and the unique twists and turns it took, including long stints in Europe, the Middle East and China, before returning stateside for the moment as she’s teaching fifth-graders in Sai...

It’s one of our favorite weeks of the year, Catholic Schools Week, where we take a few days to revel in the Catholic school experience and encourage families to consider a Catholic school education for their children. Our hosts Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh are joined by three great Catholic elementary school principals: Patti Paulsen of Holy Angels School in Woodbury, Sr. Michele DeGregorio of S...

The parish level portion of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops has completed in the Diocese of Camden, so we invited the co-chair of the diocesan efforts, Donna Ottaviano-Britt, on to the show to discuss the process so far, what the plan is for the spring, and what she would advise other dioceses who are still working through the parish process. It’s a very informative chat...

It’s bittersweet day at Talking Catholic, one of our favorite guests and colleagues is leaving Catholic Charities, Diocese of Camden for bigger things. Over the last 5 years, Cristina Chillem has gone from a volunteer straight out of college to an expert grant writer and program director overseeing the Health and Wellness initiative in Salem County. She’s moving on to take the reigns of another or...

With big legislative news in New Jersey having been announced today, we decided to bring you an emergency crossover Talking Catholic and Am I Not Here podcast to bring everyone up to speed on the details. Joining Am I Not Here host Tara Smith and Talking Catholic host Mike Walsh is the New Jersey Catholic Conference executive director James King and Jennifer Ruggiero, head of the Secretariat for F...

Talking Saints kicks off the New Year with a discussion on this month’s Saint, John Neumann.  Hosts Laurie and Pete dive into the life of this 19th century Bohemia-born Redemptorist and American bishop, who built more than 90 churches and established the first Catholic diocesan school system in the United States.  This missionary can teach all how to courageously serve the Lord, no matter where th...

We made it to 2022! To celebrate, Jen Mauro and Mike Walsh invited onto the show our friends from the Keepin’ It Catholic YouTube show (https://www.youtube.com/TalkingCatholic), Star Martinez and Jose Rodriguez. The quartet discuss making it through 2021, their pastoral plans for 2022, and perhaps most importantly, Star and Jose’s upcoming nuptials! Listen to Talking Catholic everywhere podcasts c...

It’s our second annual crossover episode where we welcome back the hosts of one of our favorite podcasts, Am I Not Here. Tara Smith and Jerry Wutkowski – the director and associate director of communications for the Diocese of Metuchen. The duo join us in studio to chat about what we did in 2021 and what we have planned in 2022. Our own host Jen Mauro did her best to keep the podcast on track but...

This week, we’re talking Advent and spirituality in our Catholic schools with guests Fr. Joshua Nevitt, Holy Spirit High School Director of Catholic Identity, and Jennifer LaRosa, Camden Catholic High School Director of Campus Ministry. Our hosts Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh chat with the duo about the spiritual nature of our schools, what a day in their school lives look like, and how they’re p...

This week we wanted to bring you a podcast all about Advent, instead it become a smorgasbord of seasonal topics that also included the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the Solemnity of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and some discussion of a few American saints in waiting. Joining us in this chat is a fan favorite - who has been absent from the podcast for far too long - the beloved Fr. Vince Guest, now...

“It is not the actual physical exertion that counts towards one’s progress, nor the nature of the task, but by the spirit of faith with which it is undertaken.” Today the Catholic Church remembers the example of Saint Francis Xavier, prolific missionary and one of the first members of the Society of Jesus.  On this his feast day, Talking Saints’ Laurie and Pete reflect on the miles he traveled, hi...

Advent begins this week so we thought we’d bring you a unique perspective on prayer. We’re joined by Josemon Abraham, a devotee of Taizé Prayer - a style of meditative prayer developed by an ecumenical community of monks in rural France, which had it’s start in the 1940’s. Josemon gives us a thorough history of the Taizé community, its distinctive prayer style and how it has become beloved by so m...

Earlier this month, the Catholic Church dedicated a week to promoting vocations in the United States. It’s a topic we never want to miss, so we bring you a belated but brilliant conversation featuring one of our favorite guests, Fr. Adam Cichoski, Director of Vocations for the Diocese of Camden. Fr. Adam is always a delight and our hosts Jen Mauro and Mike Walsh had a blast chatting with him.   If...

On this feast of Saint Margaret of Scotland, Talking Saints hosts Laurie and Pete dive into the life of this 11th century model of charity and the domestic church.  An English princess born in Hungary, this saint married King Malcolm Canmore III of Scotland at the age of 25.  Her work to help the poor, correct Catholic abuses, care for her husband and eight children, and her holiness earned her th...

We may be a little biased, but we think Catholic schools are consistently the best option for most families. They provide excellent academics, dedicated faculty, and a deeper connection to our faith. With those thoughts in mind, we brought in some guests that live this values every day. Joining hosts Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh today are are educators Dr. Janice DeCicco Fipp, principal at St. J...

This week we’re talking pilgrimages, both local and international. Our guests this week include pilgrimage guru Fr. Robert Hughes, vicar general for the diocese of Camden, and listener favorite Donna Ottaviano-Britt who famously had her professional life forever changed thanks to a pilgrimage. The two chat with hosts Jen Mauro and Mike Walsh about what differentiates a pilgrimage from a trip/vacat...

In honor of the Solemnity of All Saints, we invited to the show our resident saint experts Laurie Power and Pete Sanchez of the award-winning Talking Saints podcast. The duo walk hosts Kari Jannise and Mike Walsh through a litany of saintly topics including the canonization process, their favorite saints, and how to utilize the saints. It’s a great conversation touching on many saints, both famous...

We don’t often think about the professionals working for the Church, but in every diocese in the world professionals work every day to keep the lights on, provide services, handle the accounting, staff the schools, and a myriad of other blue-collar and white-collar jobs. With that in mind we brought a few of our favorite people together to chat, both in terms of why they work for the Church and wh...

“Open wide the doors to Christ.” With these words, Pope John Paul II began his pontificate in 1978, and in the next three decades, he sought to show the masses how to embrace a life for Jesus.  In the latest Talking Saints, Laurie and Pete share the life and teachings of a Saint who wasn’t afraid to reveal his own joys and sufferings, on mission of a “springtime of evangelization” to bring God’s l...

This week, across the globe, dioceses began the process that will result in the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in 2023. This two-year worldwide conversation begins in the local church and will methodically move it’s way from parishes, to deaneries, to ecclesiastical provinces, to national conferences, and finally to the Vatican. To discuss this unique effort we brought back...

It’s been an incredibly busy few weeks in Catholic world, so Jen Mauro and Mike Walsh brought in someone working at least as much as they are to talk shop - Jose Rodrigues, the Director of Family and Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Camden. As Catholic world is in full-swing again, the trio talk about a recent, hugely successful catechist event, an upcoming Synod event that will feature the award...

At the midpoint of Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15), hosts Marianela Nunez and Mike Walsh chat with two favorite returning guests, Fr. Rene Canales, pastor, Our Lady of Guaduple Parish Shrine, Lindenwold, NJ and Helen Persing, principal, Saint John Paul II Elementary School, Stratford, NJ. Fr. Canales and Mrs. Persing have been working together as pastor and principal for only a year, bu...

September 20-26 was #NationalMigrationWeek – a longstanding celebration and opportunity for the Church to reflect on the circumstances confronting migrants and refugees.  In this episode, we hear from J. Antonio Fernandez, President/CEO of Catholic Charities of San Antonio, who has years of experience in Catholic Charities leadership across the nation. He shares with Mary McCusker his perspectives...