Our Lady of Belen Catholic Church

Have you ever tried reading a classic work written by the saints, but needed help understanding it? Father Dave welcomes back Dominican friar Father Gregory Pine to discuss the latest season of the Catholic Classics podcast, which breaks down “The Confessions of St. Augustine.”

A listener asks Father Dave for help for some prayer struggles during Adoration. Geraldine asks, “I feel a call to take more time for Eucharistic Adoration. When I listen to the tug from within to go to Adoration, I find once I get to the church I feel a restlessness within me. I'm often at a loss on how to pray and wonder why praying at Adoration is different from praying at home if God is always with us.”

Father Dave welcomes writer Lillian Fallon to discuss how our personal style can connect with our Catholic faith. A veteran of the fashion industry, Lillian currently works for the Catholic women’s clothing label Litany NYC and is the author of “Theology of Style: Expressing the Unique and Unrepeatable You.”

Father Dave welcomes José Hernández, former NASA flight engineer and the first migrant farm worker to travel to space. “A Million Miles Away,”  a new Amazon Prime movie based on his life, follows José and his devoted family on a decades-long journey, from a rural village in Mexico, to the fields of California, to more than 200 miles above the Earth in the International Space Station.

Whether you read the Bible daily or only hear Scripture proclaimed on Sundays, there are always fresh ways for us to connect more deeply to God’s word. Father Dave welcomes Notre Dame theology professor and author William Mattison to discuss his new book, “Follow Me: Walking with Jesus through the Gospels.”

A listener asks Father Dave a Mass Class question about the gospel. David asks, “I know it’s probably a sign of reverence, but what started the procession of the gospel book? It's usually on the altar, and they usually process it around the front of the sanctuary.” He also attended a Mass recently where the congregation bowed and some near the altar touched the book.

Brett recently found his childhood religious education assignments and recalls how he thought the Our Father began, “Our Father, go-kart in heaven” while growing up. Father Dave invites listeners to share the prayers or religious phrases that their kids have misheard.

Friend of the show and Jesuit priest Father James Martin stops by Father Dave’s radio studio to discuss his new book, “Come Forth: The Promise of Jesus’s Greatest Miracle,” which explores the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, as told in John’s Gospel. 

Students and teachers are heading back to school, and Father Dave welcomes back friend of the show and experienced catechist Joe Paprocki to give his top 10 formation tips for religious educators. Joe has served as National Consultant for Faith Formation at Loyola Press since 2002 and has more than 40 years of experience in pastoral ministry. The tips are based off of his book, “The Catechist’s Toolbox: How to Thrive as a Religious Education Teacher.”

A listener named Darby asks Father Dave about a recent issue she experienced during the Sacrament of Reconciliation. She shares, “I went to Confession the first time in a couple of years this past weekend. I had a lot of sins to confess. As I was stating my sins to the priest, I started with an internal battle I'm having right now. He cuts me short, and he gives me the blessing and my penance. So those sins that I couldn't verbally tell the priest – are those still going to be forgiven?” She notes that she’s heard sins a person purposely withholds are not forgiven, and wonders if this would be a similar situation.