Talking Catholic

Like the rest of the world, our podcast isn’t immune to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. But, also like the rest of the world, we will soldier on in new and different ways. So this week, via Zoom teleconferencing software, Mike Walsh grabs a few of his favorite co-hosts and guests for long conversation about how they’re handling the required social distancing. Joining him this week are Tal...

UPDATE: the FaithFULL food drive has been cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, However, this episode is still chock full of important information about food insecurity and what you can do to help people. ---- It’s #NationalNutritionMonth, and the 7th annual Diocese of Camden FaithFull Food Drive is less than a week away! This couldn’t have been a better time to hear from our guests, Cristina Ch...

We have a very special guest joining us this week, acclaimed Catholic speaker and musician Paul J. Kim. He is one of the most sought-after Catholic youth & young adult speakers in America. The way he presents is a rare gift, moving his audiences from laughter in one moment, to deep reflection and prayer in another; An accomplished raconteur, Paul utilizes his many talents (i.e. music – beatboxing,...

Lent is upon us, so this week we invited with Fr. John Rossi, administrator of Saint Bridget University Parish in Glassboro, NJ, on to the show. Fr. Rossi chats with hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh about Lent, how to use the seven weeks before Easter to reflect on our faith, the different spiritual techniques available us, and why it’s critical to make the effort to embrace Lent. Listen to Talki...

Laurie Power and Pete Sanchez are back for another Talking Saints episode. “Miss Drexel Enters a Catholic Convent- Gives Up Seven Million.” This was the 1889 headline in the Philadelphia Public Ledger, after Philadelphia native and heiress Katharine Drexel decided to enter the Sisters of Mercy convent in Pittsburgh. On this month’s Talking Saints, our hosts unpack the story of a woman who gave up...

If there’s anyone who can speak about the harsh (and surprising) reality of homelessness in Southern New Jersey, it’s our guest this week: Cynthia Lebron, Housing Stability Director at Catholic Charities, Diocese of Camden, who has been faithfully working with homeless populations for the past 21 years.  In this episode, Cynthia chats with hosts Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh about the many forms of...

It's time to Talk Saints with Laurie Power and Pete Sanchez! On the thirteenth day of May 1917, a “woman all in white, more brilliant than the sun” first appeared to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal.  For the next five months, the Blessed Mother continued to visit the three youth- Francisco and Jacinta Marto and their cousin, Lucia dos Santos- and shared her message of the Rosary and pr...

This week we’re talking Catholic Schools legislative advocacy with the Diocese of Camden’s Dr. Bill Watson, Superintendent of Schools and Sr. Rose Difluri, Assistant Superintendent, who chat about how state funds affect nonpublic schools but more importantly, Catholic School families. Dr. Watson and Sr. Rose discuss with hosts Marianela Nuñez and Mike Walsh the importance of advocacy work and the...

This week we sit down with members of Stockton University’s Catholic Campus Ministry - director Alison Filion, student president Dom Villanueva, and student secretary Catherine Cendana. Our hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh chat with the trio about how the campus ministry helps students maintain their faith, how the ministry interacts with students, and why college students should make an effort t...

Returning for a follow-up chat (a mere 150 episodes after his first visit) is Rod Herrera, director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection for the Diocese of Camden. He has one of the most important jobs in the diocese, making sure that the young people who attend our parishes, schools and ministries do so in safe environments. Rod talks with Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh about the VIRTUS trai...

It’s Catholic Schools Week across the country and for today’s show we lined up six of our great New Jersey elementary school principles including: - Alice Malloy from Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Berlin - Joan Dollinger from Assumption Regional Catholic School in Galloway - Molly Webb from Resurection Catholic School in Cherry Hill - Phil Gianfortune from Saint Michael the Archangel School in...

It's a Talking Saints episode! At a time when little could be done for those suffering from leprosy, Marianne Cope showed the highest love, courage and enthusiasm.  She is a shining and energetic example of the best of the tradition of Catholic nursing sisters.”  These were the words of Pope Benedict XVI, during Saint Marianne Cope’s 2012 canonization.  On today’s installment of Talking Saints, ho...

In anticipation for the March for Life on January 24, Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh sit down with Youth Minister Kim Pesotski from St. Mary Mount Carmel Parish (MMC), brothers Stephen and Manny Mertis from MMC, and Our Lady of Peace Parish’s youth Nick Starkov, Bella Pilla and Emily Simon. They each share about their experiences attending the March for Life, what they anticipate to experience this F...

This week, Mary McCusker and Mike Walsh recorded the first podcast of 2020 with a guest who is an expert in many fields, including avoiding any kind of spotlight (until now!): Dr. Andy Zmuda, Director of Program Operations & Integration, and the Asset Development Director at Catholic Charities, Diocese of Camden.  As someone who has been with the agency for 15 years and currently oversees all prog...

Happy New Year, listeners! For the last few months Talking Catholic has been working on a new project, a YouTube series of spiritually focused shows. It began in the Fall with our Spanish-language show "Compartiendo Tu Don." Joining Mike Wash on today’s podcast are several of the hosts, including: - Kari Janisse of "Youth Ministry Insights" - Donna Ottaviano-Britt of "Joyful Disciples" - Fr. Adam...

Merry Christmas, listeners! As per tradition, we’re doing a hosts-only edition of the podcast this year, but since Mike Walsh now has three new co-hosts, it’s also a great way to do some belated proper introductions and explanations as to why we’ve made some changes in format. On this episode you’ll learn more about these three great women - Mary McCusker, Kari Janisse and Marianela Nunez - their...

A Catholic club in a public school? It does exist! Monroe Township (Williamstown) public school district is home to +HE ROCK clubs. Better known as “a faith based club” in the middle and high schools of Williamstown. +HE ROCK, is a Catholic after school club that meets monthly and is open to all students to attend to learn about the Catholic faith! Cohosts Mike Walsh and Kari Janisse (founder of +...

It's a Talking Saints podcast! When he died at the young age of 49, John of the Cross - Carmelite priest, mystic, contemplative, and poet - had indeed lived a life close to the cross of Christ, one filled with its sufferings and darkness, but even more with immeasurable joy, grace, and light.  On the feast of this Doctor of the Church, Talking Saints hosts Laurie and Pete tell the story of this in...

[Ed. Note: This is a special Spanish-language podcast episode of our diocesan YouTube Show Compartiendo Tu Don.] En esta edición especial el Padre Joel Camarillo, párroco de la Parroquia de la Divina Misericordia y Norma Guzman, Asistente Administrativa del Ministerio hispano, nos describen la celebración de La Virgen de Guadalupe y lo que esta significa para los Hispanos y Latinoamérica. Ambos de...

We’ve got an early episode for your this week in honor of Thursday’s Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe! Mike and Marianela chat with Father Vince Guest, Pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish; Helen Persing, Principal of St. John Paul II Regional School; and Gelen Hernández, Director of Hispanic Ministry at Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. If you are looking to get a better understanding of the cele...

The Diocese of Camden sent 113 attendees to the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC) in Indianapolis two weeks ago. Co-hosts, Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh chat about the NCYC experience with Josè Rodriguez of the diocesan office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries; Millet LoCasale, Coordinator of Youth and Young Adult Ministries at St. Katherine Drexel; and Rianna Evans, an Our Lady of Peace P...

This week Fr. Cadmus Mazzarella, or Fr. Mazz to his parishioners at Our Lady of Peace Parish in Williamstown, NJ, visits the podcast to talk all things Advent - the often overlooked and under-appreciated season leading up to Christmas. In his conversation with co-hosts Kari Janisse and Mike Walsh, Fr. Mazz explains the importance of the season, its similarities to Lent and how we can use the spiri...

Our guest this week is the brilliant Sylvia Loumeau, MSW, LCSW, Director of Clinical Services at Catholic Charities, Diocese of Camden. In the first half of the podcast she discusses Catholic Charities’ newest addiction services initiative, iThirst. which aims to empower the Church to be a resource for those suffering from addiction and their families. In the second part of the podcast we talk abo...

November 17-23 will be Discover Catholic Schools Week across the country, an initiative by he National Catholic Education Association designated to help schools connect with prospective families, donors, educators and other community members. In the Diocese of Camden, the week will be used to highlight Catholic schools for families looking to find the right school for their children. With this in...

In 1889, an Italian Catholic nun named Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini sought the permission of Pope Leo XIII to go to China as a missionary. “Not to the East, but to the West,” he replied, urging her to travel to the United States and serve the impoverished Italian immigrants in New York City.  So began Mother Cabrini’s prolific ministry to the poor, sick, abandoned, and uneducated throughout the U...