Podcasts about nahant

We've seen more and more reports of brazen behavior from coyotes over the last couple of years. We've talked about the coyotes in Nahant terrorizing residents and pets, now we discuss the latest example of a coyote attacking a dog in Brookline. Local police are warning residents that coyotes can get bolder as they grow more comfortable in their surroundings. We talked to residents about their coyote experiences and we discussed preventative measures!Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

We've seen more and more reports of brazen behavior from coyotes over the last couple of years. We've talked about the coyotes in Nahant terrorizing residents and pets, now we discuss the latest example of a coyote attacking a dog in Brookline. Local police are warning residents that coyotes can get bolder as they grow more comfortable in their surroundings. We talked to residents about their coyote experiences and discussed preventative measures! Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

Carl Stevens

A joyride on a Nahant beach ends with criminal charges, college football playoffs are full steam ahead, and there's such a thing as staying in for New Year's. Stay in "The Loop" with #iHeartRadio.

Coyotes are a sort of goldilocks animal. They can be active during the day, and at night. They can hunt in groups, or survive solo. They're wolfish enough to survive in the wild, dog-like enough to blossom in the big city.  That adaptability has arguably made coyotes one of the most successful mammalian predators on the planet. It's also given them a reputation as opportunistic villains that prey on neighborhood garbage, livestock,  and (occasionally) household pets. So what makes these animals so special? And if coyotes are so good at living amongst us, how do we get better at living amongst them? Featuring: Daniel Proux, Dan Flores, Christine Wilkinson, Stan Gehrt, and Kieon HalonaSUPPORTOutside/In is made possible with listener support. Click here to become a sustaining member of Outside/In. Follow Outside/In on Instagram or join our private discussion group on Facebook.LINKSIf you enjoyed learning about coyote vocalizations, check out Janet Kessler's blog about San Francisco coyotes, or her YouTube page, where you can find dozens of videos showing the diversity of coyote yips, yowls, barks, grows, and more .Read about coyotes in the Massachusetts town of Nahant, where municipal officials asked the federal government to help kill them in 2022. (New York Times) CREDITSHost: Nate HegyiReported and produced by Kate DarioMixed by Kate Dario and Taylor QuimbyEditing by Taylor QuimbyOur staff includes Justine Paradis, Felix Poon, and Marina HenkeExecutive producer: Taylor QuimbyRebecca Lavoie is NHPR's Director of On-Demand AudioMusic by Blue Dot SessionsOutside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public RadioSubmit a question to the “Outside/Inbox.” We answer queries about the natural world, climate change, sustainability, and human evolution. You can send a voice memo to outsidein@nhpr.org or leave a message on our hotline, 1-844-GO-OTTER (844-466-8837).

With Hurricane Lee bringing potential swells over 10 feet, a surf shop owner in Nahant will be open to assist experienced surfers if needed.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we're talking about craft fairs and plush taxidermy with my guest, Jen Gubicza. Jen is the designer and maker behind the handmade brand Zooguu. She graduated with a BFA in graphic design from Massachusetts Institute College of Art in 2001 and worked as a graphic designer and creative director at Big Blue Dot and the Boston Children's Museum. In 2004, Jen started designing and sewing her own creatures as a hobby to get back to the enjoyment she feels when making things by hand vs. mainly on a computer. With the evolution of online selling tools like Etsy & the growth of the Maker movement, Jen made the decision to go full-time with Zooguu in 2008. Together with her husband Brian, who is an illustrator, Jen sells her work at fine art + craft shows, conventions, online, and in small shops throughout the United States. Jen has also contributed soft sculpture to gallery shows, designed and produced custom toys and sculptures for corporate clients, and created the Lockheed puppet for the X-Men New Mutants film. The Zooguu Studio is a 1200 sq. ft. space located on the island of Nahant, MA. +++++ Calling all crafters! Are you ready to dive deep into your favorite crafting projects and learn new techniques along the way? Then it's time to join Craftsy Premium Membership. For ONLY $1.49, you'll receive a full year of access to expert-led tutorials, patterns, and projects in every category you can imagine. With a massive library of resources at your fingertips, you'll be able to create your best work yet and bring your crafting dreams to life. Don't wait – sign up now at CraftsyOffers.com and discover the endless possibilities of Craftsy Premium Membership! +++++ To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

Retired art teacher Gary White uses an endless supply of sand, saltwater, random recyclables, and some dollar-store tools to create sculptural masterpieces on Nahant Beach. These sculptures deliver surprise jolts of joy before the ocean swallows them up again.

Three women are hospitalized after being pulled from the water at Mayflower Beach in Dennis, a Lexington mom want to toss out the MCAS exam, and Nahant preps for potential book bans. Five minutes of news to keep you in "The Loop."

Emily Spinucci, of Nahant, said she was trying to help her neighbor, David Horrigan, after his golden retriever, Tucker, got loose. Spinochi said she saw the dog when he was squatting to do his business and when she grabbed his collar he bit her several times. WBZ's Kim Tunnicliffe reports:

Nahant, Massachusetts has been tackling the issue of an aggressive coyote population for months now. There have been a handful of incidents involving coyotes attacking residents' pets. Last weekend a dog was attacked and killed by a coyote while on a walk with its owner. Towards the end of 2022 town officials voted to bring in sharpshooters to eliminate some of the habituated coyotes. Has any progress been made? Nahant resident Chris Del Dotto, who lost his pet dog to a coyote attack, joined Dan to discuss.

Nahant, Massachusetts has been tackling the issue of an aggressive coyote population for months now. There have been a handful of incidents involving coyotes attacking residents' pets. Last weekend a dog was attacked and killed by a coyote while on a walk with its owner. Towards the end of 2022 town officials voted to bring in sharpshooters to eliminate some of the habituated coyotes. Has any progress been made? Nahant Town Administrator Antonio Barletta joined Dan to discuss.

Part 2 of 2In honor of Women's History Month, Julie Butters performs "Ahead of Their Time: Inspiring Women of Literature." In this collection of dramatic readings, Julie brings to life some of classic literature's most exciting leading ladies, along with several historical women who created brilliant works in defense of their gender including Lysistrata, Joan of Arc, Anna E. Dickinson ("America's Joan of Arc"), Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, Louisa May Alcott, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Christine de Pizan, and more. Julie Butters is a Salem-based actress and writer, a cantor at St. John the Evangelist Church in Swampscott and St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Nahant, and an aide at the Swampscott Public Library. A graduate of Harvard University, where she co-chaired the Hyperion Shakespeare Company, Julie has portrayed many inspiring women, including Julian of Norwich, Jo March, and Jane Eyre. You can also listen to Julie on the ReachArts podcast for a discussion and recitation of Emily Dickinson's poetry. If you enjoyed Part 2, CLICK HERE to listen to Part 1 of this riveting performance.Series in association with ReachArts.org89 Burrill StreetSwampscott, MA 01907CONTACTInformation: info@reacharts.orgPress Inquiries: press@reacharts.orgMusic: "Waltz for a Cat" by MondayHopes on PixabayEdited by Lajla Dale for TravelOggy. com Series in association with ReachArts.org89 Burrill StreetSwampscott, MA 01907Open Sundays 10-1CONTACT Information: info@reacharts.org Press Inquiries: press@reacharts.org

Part 1 of 2In honor of Women's History Month, Julie Butters performs "Ahead of Their Time: Inspiring Women of Literature." In this collection of dramatic readings, Julie brings to life some of classic literature's most exciting leading ladies, along with several historical women who created brilliant works in defense of their gender including Lysistrata, Joan of Arc, Anna E. Dickinson ("America's Joan of Arc"), Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, Louisa May Alcott, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Christine de Pizan, and more. Julie Butters is a Salem-based actress and writer, a cantor at St. John the Evangelist Church in Swampscott and St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Nahant, and an aide at the Swampscott Public Library. A graduate of Harvard University, where she co-chaired the Hyperion Shakespeare Company, Julie has portrayed many inspiring women, including Julian of Norwich, Jo March, and Jane Eyre. You can also listen to Julie on the ReachArts podcast for a discussion and recitation of Emily Dickinson's poetry. If you enjoyed Part 1, CLICK HERE to listen to Part 2 of this riveting performance.Series in association with ReachArts.org89 Burrill StreetSwampscott, MA 01907CONTACTInformation: info@reacharts.orgPress Inquiries: press@reacharts.orgMusic: "Waltz for a Cat" by MondayHopes on PixabayEdited by Lajla Dale for TravelOggy. com Series in association with ReachArts.org89 Burrill StreetSwampscott, MA 01907Open Sundays 10-1CONTACT Information: info@reacharts.org Press Inquiries: press@reacharts.org

Hey everyone! Now that my mental health has finally been dealt with in the way it needed, here's an episode about my ~episode~

The overpopulation of habituated coyotes is becoming a growing problem for some Greater Boston towns. The town of Nahant & Malden have been tackling the issue of how to handle intrusive and aggressive coyotes. The town of Nahant made the controversial decision to bring in sharpshooters to cut down the coyote population. We heard from listeners about their own coyote encounters!

The overpopulation of habituated coyotes is becoming a growing problem for some Greater Boston towns. The town of Nahant & Malden have been tackling the issue of how to handle intrusive and aggressive coyotes. The town of Nahant made the controversial decision to bring in sharpshooters to cut down the coyote population. Mass Wildlife Biologist Dave Wattles joined Dan to discuss.

WBZ's Brooke McCarthy reports.

The investigation of a missing Cohasset woman leads to a transfer station in Peabody, the plan to thin the coyote population in Nahant meets resistance and The Bulldogs are repeat champs. Five minutes of news that will keep you in “The Loop."

WBZ's Suzanne Sausville reports.

Due to the overpopulation of the town's coyotes, Nahant officials made the decision to bring in USDA Wildlife Services to eliminate some of the coyotes. Humane Wildlife Control Inc. is not thrilled with the town's chosen tactic for dealing with the habituated coyotes. Rebecca Dmytryk, President and CEO of the humane group joined Dan to discuss.

The town of Nahant, MA has been tackling an overpopulated, habituated coyote population for a couple of years now. With the problem getting worse, town officials voted to sign an agreement with the USDA Wildlife Services to eliminate habituated coyotes by bringing in professional sharpshooters to cut down the population. What do you make of this?

The town of Nahant, MA has been tackling an overpopulated, habituated coyote population for a couple of years now. With the problem getting worse, town officials voted to sign an agreement with the USDA Wildlife Services to eliminate habituated coyotes by bringing in professional sharpshooters to cut down the population. What do you make of this?*Dan also incorporated the story of a potential new cat cafe coming to Beacon Hill in Boston*

Brittney Griner touches down on American Soil one day after her release from Russia, a license to kill coyotes in Nahant and celebrating the birthplace of the chicken tender. Five minutes of news that will keep you in “The Loop.”

Local golf courses are struggling to keep things green through this long drought. WBZ's Carl Stevens checks in from a golf course in Nahant.

Lt. Stephen Shultz came up with the idea of a "dog address book," which includes the dog's picture, contact information and name. WBZ's Brooke McCarthy has more:

Episode 75 begins by looking back at what could have been the worst author event ever.  What follows is a series of unfortunate events.  However it will be left up to the listener as to whether this was truly a bad event, or just a funny story being shared on this week's episode.It might be the smallest town by sheer land size to be featured on the podcast but Nahant, Massachusetts is a worthy addition to the Road Trip series.  Beaches galore, seemingly endless beautiful views, there's a lot packed into just over one-square-mile.Children of the 1970's and 80's rejoice.  We go way Back In the Day to the Lee J Ames collection of drawing books.  Learning to draw is tough, the Draw 50 series that dotted elementary school library shelves made it easier.  Reminisce about these forgotten classics, or learn about them for the first time.This week's Top 5 is a rarity, it will actually go in order rather than random order as per usual.  We look at the Highest Grossing Movies Ever at the box office when adjusted for inflation.  Which ones made the list?There is a new This Week In History and Time Capsule which details the introduction of the very first emergency telephone number 999.Helpful Links from this Episode(available through Buzzsprout)Purchase Iconic Hotels and Motels of Cape CodBuy Me A Coffee!Wear Your WishKiwi's Kustoms - EtsyDJ Williams MusicKeeKee's Cape Cod KitchenChristopher Setterlund's YouTube ChannelChristopher Setterlund.comThe In My Footsteps Podcast BlogArchive.orgGreater Lynn Chamber.comListen to Episode 74 here.Support the show

Now wait a minute. (Bryan) is still galavanting abroad in gorgeous England and Scotland, but have we got a special guest for you this week or what! Joining us in The Carriage House is none other than Nahant, Massachusetts' favorite son Jason Mantzoukas! You know him from literally a million things on TV and in the world of podcasts (HOW DID THIS GET MADE? is a pure delight, excuse me). Jason joins Ronna to give advice on a very unexpected development in a familial relationship, an upstairs neighbor from Hell, and dealing with working with your ex. And if you love Jason as much as we do, join us on Patreon on Friday where he'll pull a double-double and act as special guest host once again! patreon.com/askronna It's finally here! Welcome to refinement. Welcome to luxury. Welcome to the AR Social Club. This is your opportunity to receive expertly curated cocktails every month and spend some quality time with Ronna, Bryan, and other Social Club Glitterati. Visit arsocial.club for details.

Ahoy faithful listeners! We are holding at 95 subscribers on YT. Wouldn’t it be just so darn great to get to 100 by the 100th episode? If you haven’t already, please subscribe. Let’s get to 100 together! Today’s episode features Norm in caller free-form mode. Coming to us from April 6th, 1996 it is titled: ‘Yo-ho-ho and a Bottle of Fun.’ Tom Howie was the producer. We begin our journey with Norm and I talking everything from guest and scheduling issues to bumper stickers and job dedication. Norm’s Hungarian Gypsy Princess Grandmother (HGPG) offers up more sage advice that has me on the edge of my seat, only to fall right off the chair in disappointment. There was a guest problem as Carol Gardner, author of ‘Bumper Sticker Wisdom: America’s Pulpit Above the Tailpipe’ was attending a function that conflicted with our interview time but that doesn’t stop us from having a lively discussion about bumper stickers that Helene from Belmont join in on later. Marge from Indiana calls in to talk about pirate radio stations.Norm had mentioned that our guest the next night would be Andrew Yoder who wrote ‘Pirate Radio: The Saga of America’s Underground Illegal Broadcasters.’ It was also going to be Game Night on Sunday with Linda Romero and the game ‘Perspectives’ then John J. Moran with ‘Daring Passages: The Boardgame in a Bottle.’ Uncle Norm talks about being the interviewee when he was speaking to Jeff Kaufman of WFAD in Middlebury, VT where Norm and I were going to do our little Old Time Radio Show. This leads to a list of the upcoming event dates on the Old Time Radio Show World Tour. Peabody, Topsfield, Medford! If any of you had a chance to see us do this or just want to say hi, I’d love to hear from you. There’s a double date brewing for the Prom with Monica and her daughter Veronica from Nahant. We learn that one or both of Norms’ daughters were overwhelmed by Boston at Christmastime when their grandmother took them to see Santa at Jordan Marsh. Peter with a sweet call and Norm is just so grateful he’s sending him quite the gift. We are now graced with the presence of the lovely and talented Linda Chase. She’s accompanied by the lovely and talented Dick Paris. They promote some upcoming shows and talk to callers including: The one and only, Robert from Everett. This is another classic Norm and Robert call. The tape skips to an inquisitive caller asking about Linda’s looks and wishing she would cut an album. Moving to side B we continue with Linda as we hear from Carrie. She’s a high school student who, at the time, was ranked #2 in the State for drumming. Lawrence from PA tells us more than you’d ever want to know about Windber, PA. Mary from PA adds a very important detail Lawrence left out. Bernie asks about Guy Mainella and Norm lets him know what his own personal goals are. There’s another very sweet call. This time from Dottie. She sums up how, I believe, we all felt about Norm. Episode 81, ‘Yo-ho-ho and a Bottle of Fun’ set’s sail in 3, 2, annnd 1. Email: normnathanvos@gmail.com

Amy McCoy is the Creative Director, Illustrator, and Founder of Tiny Farmhouse based in southeastern Massachusetts, right near the Rhode Island border. She has spent her career as a Freelance Broadcast Producer, but loves being an artist, traveling, growing her own food and raising animals, spending time in nature, and thinking about sustainability. In this episode, she references numerous times how she wants her uniquely designed tea towels, aprons, greeting cards, notebooks, market totes, and more, to make people happy! Where you can find Tiny Farmhouse:- Website: http://www.tinyfarmhouse.com- Instagram: http://instagram.com/amymccoy- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tinyfarmhousebyamymccoy- Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/tinyfarmhouse/_shop/- Twitter: https://twitter.com/tinyfarmhouseMentions from the show:- Amy's Cookbook, "Poor Girl Gourmet:" https://amzn.to/3uMf2h6- Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Continuing Education: https://ce.risd.edu- Center for Women & Enterprise: https://cweonline.org- Affra Gibbs: https://affragibbs.com- Terry Runyan: https://www.terryrunyan.com- 1canoe2: https://1canoe2.com- Bee Cups: https://www.bee-cups.com- Ira Glass, "This American Life" on "Taste" and "The Gap:" https://www.thisamericanlife.org/extras/the-gap- Turnstone Market in Nahant, MA: https://www.turnstonemarket.com- Craftland in Providence, RI: https://shop.craftlandshop.com- The Brooklyn Women's Exchange in Brooklyn, NY: http://www.brooklyn-womens-exchange.orgStay in touch with People, Place, & Purpose on Instagram and stay tuned for a new episode every Monday!Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Tragedy at a lake in Brockton, Nahant and Northeastern University continue to be at odds, and President Biden spoke with both Israel's Prime Minister and the President of the Palestinian Authority about the current tensions in Jerusalem and the West Bank.Five minutes of news that will keep you in "The Loop."

Some major retailers are dropping mask requirements for customers who are fully vaccinated. Massachusetts reaches a new vaccine milestone. Residents of Nahant are gathering for a town meeting today to vote on dozens of articles. Five minutes of news that will keep you in "The Loop."

The poetic voice can be heard In the echoes of ages pastIn the rise and fall of musical cadenceIn the first crack of the bud bloomingIn the silent circuit of the sunWhich has its beginning and end in magenta huesThis voice is in whispering treesIt thunders from the sacred mountainsIt stirs the tumult and dances in the desertGreat men learned to harness its energyEven greater men knew enough to set it freeAnd it speaks to us all in rhythm and in timeThe bird with its songThe prophet with his penSpeak in words and soundsAnd in the silent spaces between themFirst to be heard so as to be knownTo be understood only after the heart has drunk its fillBe inspired to seek the good, the true, and the beautiful. It's all around. Thank you for listening and if you would like to share your poems (or even songs (listen to know more)) with me, please send them to poetry.deertracks@gmail.comPoems spoken (or sung) in this episode:Backs to the SunParty in BabylonThe TideThe Bells of Lynn, Heard at Nahant by Henry Wadsworth LongfellowClick here to read that poem

Summary of today's show: In his new book “Jacob's Ladder: Ten Steps to Truth,” Dr. Peter Kreeft sets forth a narrative with which most Americans can relate, talking to a young skeptic about truth, absolute truth, the meaning of life and where that ultimately leads: a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Scot Landry talks with Dr. Kreeft, walking quickly through many steps on the ladder from the need for a passion for the truth to why love is the meaning of life and how that truth leads to acknowledging the existence of God and to acknowledging that we accept that either Jesus is God or he is a madman, with no alternative possibility. Listen to the show: Watch the show via live video streaming or a recording later: Today's host(s): Scot Landry Today's guest(s): Dr. Peter Kreeft Links from today's show: Today's topics: Dr. Peter Kreeft's new book “Jacob's Ladder: Ten Steps to Truth” 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed everyone to the show and introduced today's guest, Dr. Peter Kreeft, and his new book “Jacob's Ladder: Ten Steps to the Truth.” He's written more than 70 books. Dr. Kreeft is a professor of philosophy at Boston College and continues to teach there. Scot noted that Dr. Kreeft has written a wide variety of books, including books on surfing, theology, philosophy. Scot said Jacob's Ladder is a book of philosophy written around a fictional narrative of two people from Nahant discussing the important questions of life. These questions are the ladder and going up the ladder gets more and more specific to higher and higher truths. Dr. Kreeft said the two characters are taken from his novel “An Ocean Full of Angels” which is situated in Nahant, one of his favorite places in the world. He said these characters have occurred in some of this other books as well. One of them is Mother Kirk, a large, benevolent, multi-racial women who is clever and has all the answers and represents Mother Church and the other is called Seeker. He said dialogue is the best way to learn philosophy as Plato discovered. Each of us talks to ourselves in our minds in dialogue. We can all identify in ourselves the believer and non-believer, optimist and pessimist and so on. Scot said the character of Libby is in her mid-20s, a college graduate who worked in social work, but recently left her job because she was disillusioned. He asked f Libby represents the kind of students he's met a Boston College. Dr. Kreeft said Libby is a sympathetic character. She's skeptical, but has reason to be skeptical. You need a skeptical character to keep things moving. The idea of ten logical steps isn't original. One question comes before another logically. Scot said he never thought another entry point for the pursuit of the truth was to ask whether someone has a passion in pursuit of truth. He said plenty of guys he knows can have instant recall of the minute stats of their favorite athletes and can spend hours on fantasy sports leagues. Yet it's rare to know someone who has a passion to know the most important things in life. Dr. Kreeft said he uses a long quote from Paschal who says if you don't have a passion in knowing what happens after death, then you aren't living, you're a wet noodle. You need passion to understand anything. Passion comes from the heart and that drives the head. The main reason people don't find the truth is because they don't have much passion for it. He said he finds that less brilliant students to find the truth because they care more than the brilliant ones. Scot said you don't have to be Christian to care about what happens after death. Dr. Kreeft said you have to overcome relativism to come to the understanding that there is an absolute truth. Dr. Kreeft said everyone wants to know life's ultimate meaning. Science and the scientific method gives you provable answers and we want to do that with the big questions, but you can't; not because the answers aren't there, but because the method doesn't work. Science starts with skepticism, but that doesn't work with everything. On the perception of the heart, it can know things that can't be proven, like the fact that love is better than hate. He said the meaning of life is an easy question to answer: It's love. But when asked to prove it, you can't do it very easily or well. So skeptics have to suppress that perception. Scot said the next part of the book shows that when you think deeply about, people can agree that love is the meaning of life, but not everyone would define love as willing the good of another person. Dr. Kreeft said that too we intuitively know. We know you can't run your life on feelings. Love has to be a work, it has to do something. It has to change people. If you know that, does it follow that God exists? Most people argue from the other direction. arguing for the existence of God and then saying God is love. Dr. Kreeft argues that love is the ultimate meaning and if that is so, how far up the ladder does it go? Does it go all the way up to God? Scot noted that the book shows that philosophy as a science, just different from other sciences. Dr. Kreeft said art and science are different in that art is something we create. We create our own truth in art. In science, we discover the truth. The ancient meaning of science isn't what moderns call it. Science is an ordered body of knowledge that seeks the truth by reason. He said it's a natural result of the success of the hard sciences in understanding and conquering nature and controlling time and space. Compared to the soft sciences, we say the latter must be weaker. But just because you don't come to agreement doesn't mean there isn't truth. Philosophy is the science of life. You don't want to get A's in all your subjects and flunk life. The final exam of life is how did we love and we don't want to flunk the exam. Dr. Kreeft said when we understand the true nature of love, we are much less comfortable with our lives because we realize that it's work, not just a feeling. Your fundamental attitude toward another human being if based on feelings is going to be unreliable and based on the whims of our feelings. It has to be based on something fundamental like a choice to value a person because they are fundamentally valuable. You use objects and you don't worship objects. You have to adore God and nothing else. You use objects and nothing else. You love and don't use people because they aren't God and aren't objects. Love says to another I love that you exist. The world is a beautiful place because you are in it. The world is a wonderful place because you are in it, which is a quote from an Elton John song. He asked how we come to the understanding that love is the purpose and meaning of our life. Dr. Kreeft said most things we know not from proof or philosophical experiment, but from experience. If we live a day without love, then everything falls apart. If you live a life of love for a day, you say you didn't know how happy you could be before. Prove that love is the meaning of life by living it. He said you'd rather be poor and in love in Detroit, rather than wealthy and alone in Hawaii. Scot said the book also looks into how we know good laws from bad laws. We need good laws that allow love to flourish. Some of the reasons for conflict because there are bad laws that hurt the exchange of love. Dr. Kreeft said laws and love go together. People usually think love and laws are opposites. Without principles, then love can't flourish. Laws are the skeleton of the body. Laws of human nature are always in favor of love, while manmade laws sometimes aren't. Natural laws aren't arbitrary. They're based on human nature. Scot said many people think of the Church as a system of rules and they think of rules as cold and inhuman. Dr. Kreeft said rules don't have to be cold. A skeleton is cold because it has no flesh around it. Scot said the Ten Commandments were written for love. You could read it by putting love in each one. “Love doesn't bear false witness. Love doesn't kill.” Dr. Kreeft said it's impressive that the religions of the world pretty much agree on morality. They differ on theology, but not on morality. 2nd segment: Scot said the second half of the book begins by asking the question How can we know how God exists. Dr. Kreeft said we can ask from the outside: “How did the universe begin? Is there a mind behind the intelligence of the universe?” Or from the inside, our own experience: “How can I love? Why am I bind to my conscience?” If you're open-minded, you can find the answers from the clues. But it's not guaranteed that you can find them. You have to seek them. Once you understand how authoritative love is, you want it to go up to the ultimate reality. you don't want love to die when the human race is dead and gone. God is a real presence in our lives. Not just like the moon, cold in the sky, but like the sun, which touches the earth and warms it. Libby says in the book that if I invite God in, I lose control and thus being scared of the unknown creeps in. How much does being scared of that prevent people from asking the key question because we're not able to take the leap. Dr. Kreeft said the ultimate sin is pride, which means playing God, always wanting to be in control. That's deadly. Handing over the reins to God takes trust and love. If you know God as true love, you want to trust him. Jesus is the definitive revelation of God. The Father isn't different from Jesus. There is no more to reveal. If you know Jesus you know the Father. Before that point in the book, Mother Kirk leads Libby through the ladder of religions and talks to her about Judaism. Scot noted that he never knew that religion means relationship. He said Judaism is a different relationship with God than any religion that came before. Dr. Kreeft said Judaism is different because it's historical. There is a universal search for God in the human heart, but in Judaism, God comes down in search of us. Most religion searches for God, like those airport paperbacks. Judaism on the other claims to be the one road down the mountain, unlike all the others that go up. You can learn good stuff on the roads up, but if God says this one road is the best way, you can't ignore that. And Jesus was a Jew. That's a historical fact. The character of Mother Kirk explains how Jesus came from that faith and how we can't get to Christ without understanding God's revelation. Dr. Kreeft said we can understand a lot why people resist converting to Christianity by looking at why people are anti-Semitic. The attitude toward the concrete, historical claim of the Jews is similar to the attitude toward the concrete, historical claim of Jesus. You can't relativize him. You can't just say Jesus is a good man. Either he is who he says he is or he's one of the biggest liars of all time. Either Jesus is who he says he is or he is not. Christians believe Jesus is God. If Jesus isn't God, he's a blaspheming insane liar who wants you to trust him and put your life in his hands.

Summary of today's show: The Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) has been present on college campuses around the country for 14 years, reaching out to tens of thousands of Catholic students to introduce them to Jesus Christ. Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams talk with Curtis Martin, the founder of FOCUS, about the FOCUS difference, the intense training and strategic plan they give their missionaries, and how they call people to live heroically for something bigger than themselves. Also, they discuss Curtis' appointment as a consultor to the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization in Rome. Listen to the show: Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today's guest(s): Curtis Martin Links from today's show: from on . Today's topics: Curtis Martin, evangelizing on campus, and the New Evangelization 1st segment: Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams talked about the annual Middle School Harbor Cruise. They started at Our Lady of Good Voyage chapel on the harbor, where they had a catechesis on the Eucharist and a little bit of Adoration. He said toward the end of the evening the thunderstorms hit and the light show was pretty spectacular. Tomorrow is a youth ministry gathering, a beach day for those who work in ministry, starting with Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas in Nahant followed by a beach party. Scot welcomed Curtis Martin to the show. Curtis is founder and president of Fellowship of Catholic University Students, which has presence on several local college campuses, Boston University and MIT. They will be adding Harvard this fall. Scot said Curtis spoke at the Boston Catholic Men's Conference a few years ago. Curtis said there are a lot of exciting things going on in Boston. He said there is a great local parish near Harvard in St. Paul's, which helps their efforts greatly. Scot said FOCUS missionary is said to be the toughest job they will ever have because they have to raise their own funds and talk in sometimes hostile environments on college campuses. Curtis said being a missionary is awesome and you're paired with great people, but it's really tough. Curtis said they are right on the front lines and they don't pull punches. This young generation wants to do great things for great reasons. The New Evangelizations is a great cause. They just completed their training with 110 new missionaries to become part of 450 missionary staff around the country. Scot said FOCUS is about 14 years old. People often lower their expectations for young people. Do young people respond because Curtis sets expectations so high? Curtis said secular culture treats them like consumers and the Church is sometimes tempted to talk down to them too. Christ is calling us into a life of holiness and greatness. He sees young people making heroic decisions one after another and we need a nation full of young people like that. Fr. Matt asked what qualities does he see in the missionaries that makes them successful. Curtis said friendship and broke it down to friendship with Jesus Christ personally; friendship with peers, like the students on campus just a couple years younger than them; and friendship with leaders in the Church, like local pastors. Curtis said there are great Catholic colleges and Newman Centers around the country. What makes FOCUS different is that it's a lay outreach. Most are in their early 20s on campus engaged with students. They go out onto to campus to meet students in libraries, athletic fields, and everywhere to draw them back to the Newman Center. That's where they can engage a vibrant Newman Center. Scot said he's amazed at how the missionaries have to raise a significant amount of money themselves to support their mission. Curtis said they raise their basic living expenses from friends, family and parishioners. They raise about $2,000 per month. He said they don't want them going broke serving FOCUS. They ask for a two year commitment and the average is 3-1/2 years. When they raise money, they want them to talk about what's going on with the Church, what's going on with young people, and what's going on in the donors' lives. It's a form of evangelization. They also find the donors tend to pray for the missionaries in addition not giving money. Where your heart is, there is your treasure. Scot asked Curtis what inspired the idea. He grew up Catholic but drifted in his adolescence. He said he had a come to God experience his sophomore year in college. He came to know Jesus personally along with some Evangelical friends. As he grew in his faith, questions arose about his faith and it led him back to the Catholic Church. He realized then that there was no outreach on college campuses for Catholics like there were for Evangelicals. They build a new model and bishops wherever they've gone have been very receptive. Scot said they are receptive because FOCUS has a proven impact wherever they go. The witness of FOCUS missionaries on campus makes a difference. Curtis said they go wherever they are welcomed and so they serve both secular and Catholic colleges. They're even going to Baylor in Texas, which is the largest Southern Baptist college in the country. Ninety percent of Catholic college students don't go to Catholic schools and they pretty much have followed that ratio in their efforts. Fr. Matt asked why FOCUS is the place the Church should put its efforts. Curtis said there's not a part in the human lifecycle in this culture that isn't in desperate need for renewal in Christ, from before birth to death. If you have to go everywhere, where do you start? They think it's universities. You can go to 2nd graders, but they don't autonomy to serve. You can go to nursing homes, but they won't be able to serve long. University students have the rest of their adult life to serve and can begin immediately. No other institutions gathers young people in the numbers that universities do, 10,000 people, 20,000 or more. They can influence the next generation of parents, priests, and religious. Almost all of our future leaders will pass through universities. Scot said on the FOCUS website, they don't have a mission statement, but a “main thing”. Inviting College Students into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church. Inspiring and Equipping them for a Lifetime of Christ-centered Evangelization, Discipleship, and Friendships in which they lead others to do the same. Curtis said FOCUS launches college students in lifelong Catholic mission. Whether it's the new working document for the upcoming synod this October or the almost daily comments from Pope Benedict, there is a growing sense we have to talk about our faith in terms of our relationship with God. It is in real deep friendship that we love. The Church exists to people into right relationships with God, one another, and ourselves. The reason we need Christ, because we find ourselves desperately lonely without Him. If we don't have the ability behave how a friend would behave, we won't have friends. Young people today have thousands of “friends” on Facebook, but not many real, good friendships with people they share life with. They may come from a broken home and no or one sibling they are close with. The average young Italian doesn't have a brother, sister or first cousin because they are only children of only children. Fr. Matt said rules without relationship equals rebellion. Friendship with Christ helps us to understand his teachings.He said he downloaded the FOCUS app on his iPhone and asked him about it. Curtis said there is a website at with resources, including phone apps. He said St. Augustine asked one question: What will make me authentically happy? Pope John Paul II walked through the false ideologies of Nazis and Communists and asked what would satisfy people. It's Catholicism. Relationship gives us the why. You can give a doctoral dissertation on adultery, but we don't do it because we love our wives. John Paul II shared his friendship with Christ with those he spent time with. If we're friends then my friends become your friends. Not everyone is called to do soap-box evangelization, but everyone is called to friendship evangelization. Scot asked what things do well-meaning people do that doesn't help bring people to Christ. Curtis said he's met a lot of men in his ministry around the country, and men in particular tend to be successful at work because they are strategic, but in our faith we're not strategic. Good farmers outproduce bad farmers, but God always causes the growth. But he gave us rules to live by. You need a strategic plan: Win, Build, Send. Win people into relationship by going out and doing things you love to do with other people and do things they love to do. Build them up: what do you need to know to think like a Christian? What do you need to be formed in to act like a Christian? What skills do you need to be an effective leader? Now send them out to win more people. The most central form of leadership is self-control, to lead oneself. Curtis said one of the reasons they ask for a two-year commitment because that's how much time they need to train them. They start with a five-week training session from the very beginning. They are trained in prayer, leading bible study, apologetics, fundraising. After that five weeks, all of the missionaries serve on teams and for the whole next school year, they are mentored by a veteran missionary. In the following summer they come back for five more weeks of training. Only then do they consider the initial training is finished. At this pint they are committed lifetime learners. Scot asked about the resources it takes for the overall national organization. Howcan people support FOCUS or a particular missionary. Curtis said it's essential that people who work for the Church are cared for. Go to FOCUS.org and adopt a missionary or to support a particular project. Scot said Curtis is one of two Americans appointed to serve as consultors for the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization in Rome. 2nd segment: This week's benefactor card raffle winner is Maria Ippolito from Reading, MA She wins a Glory Stories CD: Be Not Afraid, the Story of Blessed John Paul II and a “Gospel Champions” computer game. If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit . For a one-time $30 donation, you'll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for WQOM's weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We'll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program. 3rd segment: Scot read the prayer for religious liberty from the Fortnight for Freedom campaign. He then said the Vatican has called a Synod of bishops for the New Evangelization in Rome this October as well as the Pontifical Council. He asked what it was like for him and Ralph Martin, no relation, to be two Americans called to assist the Pontifical Council. Curtis said he would never guessed when he was elected that Pope Benedict would make the new evangelization am ajar theme of his pontificate. Curtis said his major role will be to listen and to share it with others and when asked to give his two cents. The Pontifical Council has only been around for about a year. He said the synod will be an exciting time. After the synod, Pope Benedict will issue a papal document to the world on the New Evangelization that will give the marching orders for the New Evangelization, who is supposed to be involved and what we are supposed to do. Curtis said it's an exciting time in the Church's history when he vigor for the faith incoming back with tremendous power. Scot asked Curtis to compare evangelization in the US to what's going on around the world. Curtis said the message he's been receiving as a consultor is that there's a sense the Church is looking to America, North and South, for inspiration. In the Americas there is the family-centered devotional life of the Latino communities plus the entrepreneurial drive and if we could bring those together, we could bring about a major change in the New Evangelization effort. In Europe, they are looking for the Americas to re-evangelize Europe. There is a real Catholic wealth living in the two halves of our continents and if we can bring them together, we could be a real blessing to the world. Curtis said to look at the apostles. They lived with Jesus for three years, but even after the Resurrection, they were hiding in the upper room until the Holy Spirit was sent. Without the Holy Spirit we can't bring the faith to the world. We need to learn to rely on the Holy Spirit and to live in a state of grace. The Holy Spirit takes up residence in us to give us the power to live the life of Christ. In can't be about us, but God working through us. We have to be open to the Spirit's promptings. Scot asked for his hopes for the Year of Faith in the US. Curtis said it's a call to come back to the foot of the Cross to live a life for Christ. We don't live very differently from the rest oft he world as Catholics. If Christ lives within us, then we should living radically different lives. Many Catholics have allowed the secular culture to speak to them more loudly than the Church has. Faith is the gift that allows you to see things that aren't visible: the Trinity, grace, the Eucharist. If you have faith, you will live differently. Scot said one of FOCUS's two missionaries at Boston University has entered religious life. How important is that to FOCUS in terms of its impact? Curtis said it's wonderful to see people responding to their vocation. FOCUS is calling people to hear how Christi is calling them to live their lives. In 14 years, they've seen 75 women in their programs go on to religious life and 270 men have entered seminary, more than half of them in the last 4 years. There is snowball of people going on to live lives in which they are hearing God's call for them.

Summary of today's show: The Theology of the Body was the foundation of Pope John Paul II's pontificate and an answer to the depersonalization and objectification of the human person in society in recent decades. Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams are joined by Damon Owens of the Theology of the Body Institute for an introduction to this teaching and discussion of a definition of love that moves beyond mere feelings to an act of the will and desire to make a complete self-gift of oneself. Listen to the show: Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today's guest(s): Damon Owens, executive director of the Theology of the Body Institute Links from today's show: Today's topics: Theology of the Body 1st segment: Scot welcomed Fr. Matt to the show and wished him Happy Easter. They noted that Easter takes place over 8 days. Fr. Matt said on Holy Thursday he concelebrated Mass at St. Joseph in Holbrook and then on Good Friday he took part in the Hunger for Justice retreat in Nahant. He then concelebrated the Easter Vigil at St. Mary's in Lynn with many of the teens from the Hunger for Justice retreat. On Sunday, he was back at St. Joseph and then celebrated Mass in the chapel at Bridgewater State College. Fr. Matt said the Hunger for Justice retreat was wonderful. He said the receptivity of the teens and reverence and respect were powerful. He said the retreat began on Short Beach in Nahant with a lesson that salvation is impossible on our own and that God comes to save us. They then walked in a procession with the Cross to St. Thomas Aquinas Church. He said lots of people were drawn to what the hundreds of teens were doing. He said their actions proclaimed Jesus. Scot said he saw many of the photos from the beach at Today's topic is Theology of the Body. Fr. Matt said Pope John Paul II began to write and reflect upon the Theology of the Body at the beginning of the sexual revolution. He believes this is a profound gift from God to speak to the hearts of all people, especially the young, to help them realize our lives are intended to be a gift given to another, and that gift is inscribed in our bodies. It speaks to the hook-up culture many of our young people are saturated in today. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Damon Owens to the show. Scot asked him how Pope John Paul developed the Theology of the Body. Damon said like many of the major teachings in the Church, this developed out of a crisis. He said it takes time to delve into it. It responds to some of the worst degradation of humanity in history during the 20th century and it tell us what it means to be a human being. Scot said Pope John Paul put these teachings forward in a series of 129 Wednesday general audiences over 5 years ending in 1984. He thought it was so central in our understanding of the human person and how we relate to each other. Damon said it is the culmination of his priesthood from his time as a pastor to theology professor to bishop and cardinal and then pope. It laid the foundation for the entire 25-year pontificate. Each encyclical shows how he unveils it and applies it to every facet of the world. Scot asked Damon to define what is Theology of the Body. Damon said it is a body of teaching that is the fruit and implementation of the Second Vatican Council. It doesn't replace the body of faith, but makes it accessible. It's not a new teaching, but draws from our teachings to help us understand who Christ is and learn what hit means to be made in the image and likeness of God. The first part of the 129 audiences ask and answer the question of who we are, what is our identity. It starts with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eve. Scot asked what are some misconceptions about what it means to be a human person debunked by John Paul. Damon said there is an overspiritualization and an overly materialistic view. John Paul said physical and spiritual are not working against each other, but they work together to bring us to the deepest truth about our identity. It's a both/and not either/or. Damon said they always begin with morality. Everyone asks the fundamental questions of morality, who can they love, how do they know if it's true love. What they don't realize is that they're asking questions of identity more than morality. Questions of the moral law build on top of our identity. If we know who we are, we will know how to act. Many have absorbed a false identity, but they offer the dignity of masculinity and felinity, which have no parallel in our culture. John Paul said love is an act of the will. We make of ourselves a self-gift, which Christ on the cross is the prime example. In marriage, we make a gift of ourselves as a state of life, where we literally learn how to love and become love by the acts we choose to make and pledge of our being to another. We need to be on our knees asking God how to love with his love. Fr. Matt said we've been called to live our lives as gift, which comes from John Paul's philosophy of personalism. Damon warned that many of these ideas are deep and profound and hearing them the first time can be intimidating. But we have to recognize the full depth of what John Paul is calling. We are mde in the image and likeness of God, male and female. God created masculinity and femininity out of that image, when God is neither male nor female. God is a communion of divine persons and being made in the image and likeness of God, he has given us the capacity to love as he loves. The language of our bodies shows what we are called to as male and female is a call to communion. We are not meant for solitude. When we love like God, we become what we love like, we become God. Damon said John Paul said overcoming the dominance of sin, the temptation to concupiscence is the beginning of the accessibility of eternal life won by Jesus Christ. The challenge is to live purity of the heart. We have to dig deep to things that move our heart. We have to seek, will, and do the good. We have to have a singularity of learning how to love. Purity is not simply following rules or avoiding some things. It is the singularity of our posture toward God, serving him our of love, not out of a sense of obligation. Fr. Matt posed a hypothetical about what to say to someone we know who is having sex outside of marriage. Damon said there should be a necessary affirmation of the longing for love and desire that it shown in relationships, even these ones. What they're seeking is good and true and beautiful. But there has to be an acknowledgment that they will never find it if they don't follow the calling to the greater dignity of love. Scot said wherever you are in life is an opportunity to begin again with God. Damon said marriage is a major theme in the Theology of the Body because it conjures up the lived encounter. It's a universal natural institution in every human community. As Christian,s we see God placed it there from the beginning. It gives us a spiritual truth about how we live our lives. Marriage is beautiful and gives us a union in which a full human person can come into being. Scot said statistics show that about half of all marriages end in divorce. Theology of the Body tells us that our vocation in life is lived out through our state in life and the truth is that the heart of marriage is self-gift, not selfishness. When he hears about divorce, it's often a story of one or both of the spouses living selfishly. Damon said society says love s what we feel and it places us at the center of the universe as the measure of what's good and worth fighting for inasmuch as it benefits me. But Theology of the Body speaks of willing, not wishing, the good of another. This describes all different aspects of self-giving love. Not just giving something of self, but giving totality of self. The beauty of an act is measured by the depth of self-giving. We cannot love if we don't suffer. We don't look for it, it comes to us anyway. But we see that suffering is not evil in itself. Love embraces suffering. Fr. Matt said when he meets with engaged couples, he asks them what they mean when they say, “I love you.” They usually respond with how the other makes them feel. But that won't sustain them long term in marriage. He said young people are influenced by Hollywood's vision of love. Damon said Titanic is a good example. On the one hand, he gave his life for her. On the other hand,we recognize that there isn't a sexual maturity or mature sexual love. The sign of that is that it moves from how the other person makes me feel to who the other person is. It moves from affection to identity. That attraction and affection isn't bad, but we are called to grow beyond that immature state. The second great vocation of living our masculinity and femininity is celibacy for the sake of the kingdom. John Paul says some who live the state in life isa fulfillment of masculinity and femininity. We have to see their supernatural origin. Loving as self-gift. Priest, religious, bishop have full possession of their masculinity and femininity that the signs of marriage are still there, but lived in a deeper reality. Priests are spiritual fathers, not as a Plan B. Spiritual fatherhood and motherhood is the Plan A for humanity, and some are also called to biological parenthood. They discussed the resources available of the Theology of the Body, which was formed to teach everyone this body of teaching. They have weeklong Head and Heart immersion courses with world-class faculty. On April 27 & 28, Damon will also be a speaker at the Eucharistic Congress for College Students & Young Adults.

Summary of today's show: The Easter Vigil is the Super Bowl of liturgies in the Catholic Church calendar, with our most beautiful prayers and symbols and imagery, encapsulating all of Salvation History. For the first time this Easter, we will hear the prayers using the new translation of the Roman Missal, which restores the beautiful phrase lost over time. Fr. Jonathan Gaspar joins Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams to discuss the Easter Vigil and especially to chant the Exsultet, the Easter Proclamation, like you've never heard before. Listen to the show: Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today's guest(s): Fr. Jonathan Gaspar, Director of the Office for Divine Worship Links from today's show: Today's topics: The Easter Vigil Liturgy 1st segment: Scot and Fr. Matt discussed the topic for today's show which will be the Super Bowl of liturgies, the Easter Vigil on Saturday evening. Fr. Jonathan Gaspar, the director of the Office for Worship will assist them with examining the Vigil Mass. Fr. Matt will be very busy on Good Friday and Holy Saturday, starting in Nahant and engaging in many service projects with the Hunger for Justice retreat for high school students. Fr. Matt said he has only been the main celebrant of the Easter Vigil liturgy once as a priest, because he's either been a parochial vicar or head of the Office for the New Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults and it's usually the pastor who celebrates. Also, tonight is the last opportunity for The Light Is On For You, to go to confession in any parish or chapel in the archdiocese from 6:30-8pm. Scot welcomed Fr. Jonathan to the show and said over the past year he;s been helping people adapt to the changes in the Roman Missal. Fr. Jonathan said all the texts of the Mass have changed and the Easter vigil is no different. He said the texture of the language is changed, phrases that were lost in the old translation have been restored, including language related to the work of Creation in preparing the liturgy./ Scot said the Mass is usually in two parts: Liturgy of the Word and Liturgy of the Eucharist. But the Easter Vigil is not just two parts. Fr. Jonathan said the Easter vigil is four parts: We begin with the Service of Light, the blessing of the fire in darkness outside of the church. This blazing fire scatters the darkness of night. This goes back to the second century and Eusebius refers to this in the fourth century, saying the Easter fire illuminated the city of Byzantium. The deacon or priest then proclaims the great praise of Easter. Scot talked about taking small children to the Easter Vigil, how they will love seeing all the different aspects. He suggested sitting in the back to see the events surrounding the lighting of candles. Then there is the Liturgy of the Word. There are seven readings from the Old Testament, which are the story of Salvation History, how the love f God for his people culminated in Easter; the Epistle from the New Testament; and the Gospel. Fr. Jonathan said it tells the story of how God remembers his covenant even when we have failed to love him. It tells the story of God calling us back each time, reestablishing his covenant. Finally the Father sends His Son to establish a new eternal covenant that will never be broken. Scot said you can't walk away from the Vigil without being aware of God's love for us. The third part of the Vigil is also different. It's the celebration of the sacraments of initiation for candidates and catechumens. During Lent they have been preparing through prayer and examination of themselves to receive these sacraments. They receive the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist. This part also helps everyone renew their baptismal promises. In a beautiful way we relight our own candles. The water of the baptism is sprinkled upon the people, reminding us of the blood of the sacrifice of the lambs sprinkled over the people of Israel during the first Passover in Egypt. Scot said it also reminds us of our own baptism. Fr. Jonathan said a funeral liturgy is like a mini-Easter Vigil, from the way t he body is greeted at the door to the church and blessed and carried forward and clothed in baptismal gowns and the use of the paschal candle and more. Fr. Matt said the funeral is first and foremost a celebration of the paschal mystery of Christ. The fourth part is the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Fr. Jonathan said every Mass is a celebration of the special meaning that the Eucharist has on Easter, receiving the risen body and blood of our Lord. Fr. Jonathan said at the cathedral they have the blessing of the fire outside because the rubrics say it should be a roaring fire. Then they will hold a procession around the cathedral. CatholicTV will broadcast the Easter vigil. Scot said the Mass always has to start after dark. Fr. Jonathan said this goes back to the 2nd century. In the 7th century they started creeping back the vigil to Saturday morning, but in 1951 the Vatican released a new text for the vigil that required that it take place after dark and finish before dawn. In the Archdiocese of Boston, parishes cannot begin until after 8pm. How can Christ cast out darkness if the sun is still shining. The symbolism speaks volumes when done in a dark church. Fr. Jonathan said at the beginning of the Liturgy the priest blesses the fire. The fire represents purification, passion, and illumination. The first should represent our passion for evangelization. Dear brethren (brothers and sisters), on this most sacred night, in which our Lord Jesus Christ passed over from death to life, the Church calls upon her sons and daughters, scattered throughout the world, to come together to watch and pray. Ifwe keep the memorial of the Lord's paschal solemnity in this way, listening to his word and celebrating his mysteries, then we shall have the sure hope of sharing his triumph over death and living with him in God. Then the Priest blesses the fire, saying with hands extended: Let us pray. o God, who through your Son bestowed upon the faithful the fire of your glory, sanctify this new fire, we pray, and grant that, by these paschal celebrations, we may be so inflamed with heavenly desires, that with minds made pure we may attain festivities of unending splendor. Through Christ our Lord. R. Amen. They then bless the candle, and the priest inserts some Greek letters and the numbers of the year. The priest then puts five spikes of incense. Incense is part of sacrifice and the incense signifies that the candle itself burns in praise. The incense is inserted in a shape of cross, representing the wounds of Christ. The candles is a symbol of the resurrected and glorified body of Christ. After the blessing of the new fire, one of the ministers brings the paschal candle to the Priest, who cuts a cross into the candle with a stylus. Then he makes the Greek letter Alpha above the cross, the letter Omega below, and the four numerals of the current year between the arms of the cross, saying meanwhile: 1. Christ yesterday and today (he cuts a vertical line); 2. the Beginning and the End (he cuts a horizontal line); 3. the Alpha (he cuts the letter Alpha above the vertical line); 4. and the Omega (he cuts the letter Omega below the vertical line). 5. All time belongs to him (he cuts the first numeral of the current year in the upper left comer of the cross); 6. and all the ages (he cuts the second numeral of the current year in the upper right comer of the cross). 7. To him be glory and power (he cuts the third numeral of the current year in the lower left comer of the cross); 8. through every age and for ever. Amen (he cuts the fourth numeral of the current year in the lower right comer of the cross). [Insert inscription diagram for candle, cf. Missale Romanum, p. 339] When the cutting of the cross and of the other signs has been completed, the Priest may insert five grains of incense into the candle in the form of a cross, meanwhile saying: By his holy (Insert incense diagram for candle, cf. Missale Romanum, p. 339] and glorious wounds, may Christ the Lord guard us and protect us. Amen. The candle is lit from the bonfire and the priest sings, and the deacon leads the procession of the people into the church, reminding us of the Israelites being led by God as a pillar of fire from Egypt through the darkness of the wilderness into the Promised Land. The church is the promised land, a sign of the eternal reward. Scot said he loves to see the church become lit up with the candles held by individual parishioners. It showcases the beauty of the churches lit only by candlelight, showing us how churches have traditionally been lit throughout the centuries. Fr. Jonathan said the new fire blessed in the bonfire is brought into the church by the paschal candle for all the individual candles and all the lamps of the church. The deacon sings a proclamation three times. This when the electric lights are turned on. At this point the Easter proclamation is chanted. Fr. Jonathan said it is an over-excited expresso not Easter joy. In the old liturgy the priests were still in the purple of Lent, while the deacon was in the Easter color of white or gold. He sings of the joy of the Paschal Candle, which tells the story of our redemption and the mystery of the Easter vigil. It probably goes back to the third or fourth century and it originated in or around southern Italy. The chant itself is an ancient chant. There is both a new text and new music this year and it's the only time in the liturgy that Gregorian chant is permitted to be over the top. We heard a recording of the Exsultet made at St. Cecilia Parish in Boston: Exult, let them exult, the hosts of heaven, exult, let Angel ministers of God exult, let the trumpet of salvation sound aloud our mighty King's triumph! Be glad, let earth be glad, as glory floods her, ablaze with light from her eternal King, let all comers of the earth be glad, knowing an end to gloom and darkness. Rejoice, let Mother Church also rejoice, arrayed with the lightning of his glory, let this holy building shake with joy, filled with the mighty voices of the peoples. (Therefore, dearest friends, standing in the awesome glory of this holy light, invoke with me, I ask you, the mercy of God almighty, that he, who has been pleased to number me, though unworthy, among the Levites, may pour into me his light unshadowed, that I may sing this candle's perfect praises). (V. The Lord be with you. R. And with your spirit.) V. Lift up your hearts. R. We lift them up to the Lord. V. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. R. It is right and just. It is truly right and just, with ardent love of mind and heart and with devoted service of our voice, to acclaim our God invisible, the almighty Father, and Jesus Christ, our Lord, his Son, his Only Begotten. Who for our sake paid Adam's debt to the eternal Father, and, pouring out his own dear Blood, wiped clean the record of our ancient sinfulness. These, then, are the feasts of Passover, in which is slain the Lamb, the one true Lamb, whose Blood anoints the doorposts of believers. This was the first section of the Easter Proclamation. Scot said he doesn't recall hearing the beautiful imagery of the building shaking with the voices of the people. That's how he envisions heaven to be: Heaven rocks because everyone participates fully. Fr. Matt said when you've been entering the spirit of Lent and the Triduum, there's a sense of your heartbreaking for Him along with Our Lady. And then the Holy Light and the church lights up and the proclamation says there's great hope in the Resurrection. It's amazing how you enter into realizing that without Christ there is darkness, but with the Resurrection there is great hope and joy. there's something that happens in you that lifts up your spirit. Scot said all of Creation sings aloud the triumph of the cross and all Creation on earth is to be glad. The Church is involved in that. Fr. Jonathan said every single word is packed with joy. He said musically you hear all those beautiful lines. He said parts of the chant sound like bells and he's convinced that when the bells of Westminster Abbey were made, they had this chant in mind. Another line sounds like a trumpet. The music matches up with the imagery of the text. He said are not to be shy as Christians. We have mighty voices because of what we celebrate this evening. At the end of this section, it shows that tonight we celebrate the Christian Passover. For this next section, the music changes, and we hear longer notes for the great mystery that is being proclaimed: This is the night, when once you led our forebears, Israel's children, from slavery in Egypt and made them pass dry-shod through the Red Sea. This is the night that with a pillar of fire banished the darkness of sin. This is the night that even now, throughout the world, sets Christian believers apart from worldly vices and from the gloom of sin, leading them to grace and joining them to his holy ones. This is the night, when Christ broke the prison-bars of death and rose victorious from the underworld. Our birth would have been no gain, had we not been redeemed. O wonder of your humble care for us! O love, O charity beyond all telling, to ransom a slave you gave away your Son! O truly necessary sin of Adam, destroyed completely by the Death of Christ! O happy fault that earned so great, so glorious a Redeemer! O truly blessed night, worthy alone to know the time and hour when Christ rose from the underworld! This is the night of which it is written: The night shall be as bright as day, dazzling is the night for me, and full of gladness. The sanctifying power of this night dispels wickedness, washes faults away, restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners, drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty. On this, your night of grace, O holy Father, accept this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and of your servants' hands, an evening sacrifice of praise, this gift from your most holy Church. But now we know the praises of this pillar, which glowing fire ignites for God's honor, a fire into many flames divided, yet never dimmed by sharing of its light, for it is fed by melting wax, drawn out by mother bees to build a torch so precious. O truly blessed night, when things of heaven are wed to those of earth, and divine to the human. Scot said his favorite line was “to ransom a slave you gave away your Son! O truly necessary sin of Adam, destroyed completely by the Death of Christ! O happy fault that earned so great, so glorious a Redeemer!” Fr. Matt said the words before it are different from the previous translation because now they emphasis the love of God, love beyond all telling. Fr. Jonathan said these all come from St. Ambrose's commentary on Scripture. His favorite line is “Our birth would have been no gain,had we not been redeemed.” Fr. Matt recalled the imagery of Christ breaking the prison bars of death. Therefore, O Lord, we pray you that this candle, hallowed to the honor of your name, may persevere undimmed, to overcome the darkness of this night. Receive it as a pleasing fragrance, and let it mingle with the lights of heaven. May this flame be found still burning by the Morning Star: the one Morning Star who never sets, Christ your Son, who, coming back from death's domain, has shed his peaceful light on humanity, and lives and reigns for ever and ever. R. Amen. Scot encourages all listeners to come to the Easter Vigil at any parish in the Archdiocese. Fr. Jonathan said the morning star is the last star seen before the sun comes up. In Christian thought, Christ is the star that never sets.

Summary of today's show: For 17 years, teens from the North Shore have been spending their Triduum in a 3-hour fast and serving the poor and needy in Boston on the Hunger for Justice retreat. Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams interview organizers Chris Carmody and Andrea Alberti to see how 400 teens are challenged to move beyond their physical hunger to experience their spiritual hunger for Christ and then go out and serve Christ in those they encounter in a profound experience of the reality of Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Listen to the show: Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today's guest(s): Andrea Alberti, youth minister at St. Thomas Parish in Nahant and St. Mary High School, Lynn; and Chris Carmody, youth minister at Immaculate Conception in Salem and religion teacher at St. Mary High School, Lynn Links from today's show: Today's topics: Hunger for Justice 2012 1st segment: Scot welcomed everyone to the show. He noted it's the last full week of Lent and said it's a busy time for many in the Church. He said the catechetical congress last weekend was a big event preparing for Lent. Fr. Matt spoke at a breakout session on praying and ways of prayer. His talk focused on love as as not just a feeling, but as self-gift. Nor is faith a feeling. We don't pray to make ourselves feel good or have faith because we feel God close to us. Instead, we exercise the disciplines of prayer. Scot said the Holy Father has been in Mexico and Cuba over the past few days. In the past 24 hours, the Pope met with Fidel Castro in a personal meeting at Castro's request. Scot said the Missionaries of Charity have a ministry where they adopt a priest to pray for every day. Pope Benedict has met his spiritual godmother, a Cuban Missionary of Charity who has prayed for him every day for the past 25 years. The Holy Father then celebrated Mass for 700,000 people in Havana today. Scot said it recalls when Pope John Paul went to Poland and it is hope that it has a similar effect in Cuba, to bring freedom to the people. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Chris and Andrea back to the show. Andrea said they've been holding the Hunger for Justice retreat for 17 years and about 70 total retreat experiences. Chris said the Hunger part of the retreat is a fast that starts about 5pm on Good Friday and ends after the Easter Vigil. The Hunger for Justice is the found in the service work for the homeless and they see the value and human dignity in people. This hunger for justice grows in the young people. Scot asked how they prepare the teens for the fasting, physically and spiritually. Andrea said the Triduum focuses on death to life. No matter how small their sacrifice, it can have a profound impact by uniting it to Christ. They mention St. Therese a lot. She said they tell them that when they experience physical hunger, it makes them more aware of the spiritual hunger in our hearts for the love of God. The teens are also getting sponsors who pledge money for each hour the participants fast. Chris said the Hunger for Justice that engages the entire parishes of all the kids who participate. They ask parishioners to donate food and other goods for the kids to give to the homeless. Andrea said they tell the kids that they should tell 25 people about the sacrifice they're making, just tell 25 and people are so impressed by what they're doing and the money will roll in. The kids get apprehensive about asking for money, but just by letting others know what they're doing, people want o donate. Last year, they raised $18,000 and the year before $25,000. Fr. Matt asked what makes service so appealing to young people. Andrea said the youth want to help, to be engaged. The reason we don't see them involved is because our expectations are so low. We need to challenge them. Ask an adult to fast for 30 hours and they'll tell they're too busy. But if an adult tells a teen that we see God's plan ready in them, they will only be held back by their own self-doubt. Andrea said she wishes all the adults listening could see what she sees, including 300 to 400 kids fasting and serving for 30 hours. Fr. Matt said the Hunger for Justice brings a balance between the project they're doing and Who they are doing it for. Chris said they are very deliberate in doing Christian service. It's not just Christians doing service, but that Christ is at the center of what they do. When they bring food or donations to the homeless, they see Christ in them. The goal isn't just to feed people or hand things out, but to serve the other and see Christ in him. Andrea said it's the holiest days of the year in which Christ died for you and that inspires the kids to give everything for Him. Andrea said it's not just a hunger relief program to raise money. It's also identifying with, becoming one with the hungry and homeless. They tell the homeless that the kids have slept on the ground the night before, have gone without a phone. The kids get that they will go home and sleep in their bed tonight, but the guy they just met won't be able to. the parents talk about how the kids come home profoundly changed. Chris said whatever they do, they always process what happened and reconnect it back to the Passion of Christ. The kids now understand what “offer it up” means. They understand that sacrifice of a meal is a sacrifice for other. The Hunger for Justice takes place in Lynn and Nahant next week. 3rd segment: This week's benefactor card raffle winner is Patricia Hogan from Quincy, MA She wins an Audio Book CD: The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ by Anne Catherine Emmerich, read by Roger Basick, and a booklet: Meditations on the Stations of the Cross from Belmont Abbey College theology professor, Dr. Ronald Thomas. If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit . For a one-time $30 donation, you'll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for WQOM's weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We'll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program. 4th segment: Scot asked them to describe what happens on the week. Andrea said on Good Friday they gather at noon on Short Beach in Nahant. They prepare for the Veneration of the Cross by honoring the Cross in a less traditional way on the beach. Fr. Matt preaches the Cross to those present. She said many of those present are hearing it proclaimed so well for the first time. They then carry this very large cross up the main road in Nahant, taking turns holding it, praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. They carry the Cross to the St. Thomas Aquinas parish in Nahant, where the community is waiting for them and they have the traditional Veneration of the Cross. This ends by 4:30pm. They travel to St. Mary's in Lynn for a last meal together donated by local restaurants. After this last meal, they have an hour of getting to know each other and then they watch The Passion of the Christ, for the first time for many of them. Afterward, Fr. Matt goes into a healing service. They go from what Christ did for them and why to living life to the full. They gather in small groups to pray, claiming the cross for what they need in their life. At about 11pm, the students make their cardboard, makeshift homes for the night. Scot asked Chris about the carrying the Cross through Nahant and for how many of the students it's their first public profession of faith and what they say about it? Chris said many are still nervous because it's the beginning of the retreat. When they see positive reaction from people they see, they realize being public about your faith doesn't have to result in persecution. They love to carry the Cross and begin to thrive on it. Andrea said those who watch the Passion for the first time are often very moved and there are often tears.It's not so much the gore, but the realization of what Christ really went through for us and what that means for how we live our lives. He died for you, so are you going to go back to the way you were? Many of those who are most moved by it become the peer leaders for the next year. They express it in how they set the bar high for themselves and each other in how they live their faith publicly. Scot asked why there's a healing service on the first day? Fr. Matt said on the Saturday morning, they stop at St. Anthony's Shrine for confession where ultimate healing occurs. But they recognize that a lot of these kids are hearing the Gospel for the first time, having had the whole Gospel shrunk into one day and experienced it in three different ways. The message is that God so love the world. We were born to live, but Jesus was the only one born to die. So their hearts are confronted by the truth and it gives an opportunity to be able to say how do we now take that message and let the Lord love us in our lives? How do we begin with precision to bring that Gospel message in to our heart. For the most part they know what the typical struggles are and so the leaders ask who is struggling with a particular problem. Hands go up and the other kids in the small group will lay hands and pray over them. Andrea said Love heals. The understanding and experiencing the Gospel message and embracing it, experiencing God as loving father is powerful. The openness of the kids is amazing. Chris said it's humbling to see them turn their struggles over to God. You can see it in their faces and attitudes and how they act after. It's because of this prayer service that the service projects have real fruit on Saturday. They've let go of what was holding them back and they are able to focus on seeing Christ in others. They were able to let go of their baggage and let God work in them. Andrea said the kids get between four and five hours of sleep, which is more than most retreats, considering all these hundreds of teens. They know they will be working hard on Saturday morning and even harder on Saturday afternoon. They will be doing physically taxing labor. On Saturday, they split into three groups. One goes to Boston Common to hand out food to the homeless. Another third goes to Arch Street to hand out food and clothing. And the last group goes to Pine Street Inn. they will all eventually make their way to Arch Street where they will receive the Sacrament of Confession. Chris said his favorite part is seeing 300 youth and adults all going to confession. It's a beautiful scene to see people receiving the sacrament. They also process what they've done, asking what it was like to serve the homeless and to hear the stories from the homeless. The students are often shocked by what they learn about the homeless. After they finish in Boston, they return to the North Shore where they help out at parishes, schools, shelters, food pantries, or camps. They do yard work, clean out messes, and all other kinds of hard work. They bring them all back together in Lynn where they process their experiences and they have a commissioning. They don't want it to be a one-time event. They want to commission them to go out and serve Christ every day. This occurs about 5pm. ABout half the group stays at St. Mary and half goes back to their parishes to join the Easter vigil in their communities. Andrea said they see a response to the reality of sacrifice and love. They are hearing the sacrifice of Christ for them and they want to go do that for others. She's inspired hearing kids who have an epiphany that the first food they will receive will be the Body of Christ. Scot asked what they're supporting this year with the donations. Andrea said they are giving some to the Coalition for the Homeless in Lynn and Chris is going on a mission trip to Ecuador so the Hunger for Justice will be paying for some water filtration systems. Anyone who would like to donate, can send checks to Andrea Alberti or Chris Carmody at St. Mary High School, 35 Tremont Street, Lynn, MA 01902

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams**Today's guest(s):** Andreas Widmer, former Swiss Guard to Pope John Paul II and CEO of Seven Fund* [The Swiss Guard](http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/swiss_guard/index.htm)* [Seven Fund](http://www.sevenfund.org/)**Today's topics:** Pope John Paul's lessons for how to elevate our work into a vocation.**1st segment:** Fr. Matt joins the program via phone. He's on a planning retreat for his office. He spent the Triduum on the Hunger for Justice retreat for teens. Holy Week is the Super Bowl for priests. About 200 teens from the northern part of the archdiocese came together for the retreat on which they fasted for 30 hours. Their fasting was sponsored, each one raising about $250. They raised about $15,000 total for Japan earthquake relief. They started on the beach in Nahant with a theme that sin leaves us homeless because sin alienates us from the Lord, from each other, and ourselves. We are outside the loving embrace of the Lord. But the cross of Jesus welcomes us home. They had Good Friday service at St. Thomas Aquinas in Nahant, then went back to St. Mary in Lynn where they had a final meal for the fast.On Saturday they served the homeless in Boston. One man in a wheelchair told one of the girls how he sometimes finds himself sleeping in a garage in a sleeping bag. He had only a thin shirt under his jacket and the girl gave him her own sweatshirt she was wearing. It was raining all day, but they didn't have a rain contingency. The homeless get rained on whenever it rains, so the kids took part in solidarity with them. It helped them appreciate the blessing they have and what the homeless go through.Toward the end of today's show, we will answer listener questions about the Holy Father's Beatification. If you have a question, please email [LIVE@TheGoodCatholicLife.com](mailto:LIVE@TheGoodCatholicLife.com), text or call us at 617-410-MASS.**2nd segment:** Andreas Widmer joins Scot and Fr. Matt. Andreas was on the show a few weeks ago and he shared how he became a Swiss Guard and his first encounter with Pope John Paul II. Andreas has since studied John Paul's life and has written a book, "The Pope & The CEO: Nine Lessons in Executive Leadership Learned by a Swiss Guard at the Feet John Paul II" (coming soon from Emmaus Road) on how to apply those lessons to his life. After the Swiss Guard, he entered the high-tech industry and went through the ups and downs of the tech boom. In the downs of life, you can sometimes find God more easily. In one of those downs, he started to think about those lessons of John Paul.Vocation is often talked about a religious vocation, but John Paul made sure to emphasize that vocation is whatever mission we are sent from God. 98% of Christians have a vocation outside of religious life. John Paul said you know that you're working well, you don't just make more, but you become more. Is my job helping me to become more? How do you approach your job? How do you see your job?How did John Paul teach someone to find their specific vocation? Andreas said John Paul would say that God is asking you what you are going to do with all the talents and opportunities He has given you? We present what we are going to do and then God will bless us and help us to excel in life and become a saint.Fr. Matt said Pope John Paul II wrote a letter to young people in 1985, [Dilecti Amici](http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_31031985_dilecti-amici_en.html). John Paul saw young people as the hope of the future. In the letter, he identified adolescence as a time of intense discovery where we ask what is our life's project. God has created us in a particular time and place for a purpose that we have to discover. In our culture, we are constantly surrounded by noise and distraction and it keeps the heart and soul from listening. That's why Eucharistic adoration is so powerful. When Fr. Matt was first thinking of a priestly vocation, his dad went to an Oblate priest and asked him about it. The priest asked if Fr. Matt prayed and if not then he didn't have a vocation.Andreas said the second chapter is prayer after the first chapter on vocation. The Church gives us many ways to pray. It is our particular way to have a loving relationship with the Lord. Be careful not to fall into the trap of going before the Lord and "putting in your order." It needs to be a two-way street. It's okay sometimes to just go and sit and listen. Some prayers can help you to calm the mind and then have a period of silence at the feet of Christ.**3rd segment:** Andreas observed John Paul's prayer in his time as a Swiss Guard. One of the key experiences was once during a rosary on Vatican radio with the Pope and about 50 other people. The pope was kneeling and Andreas was standing in front of him looking out at all the people. Andreas suddenly felt different, he had a peace that he hadn't felt before. Andreas thought, "Whatever this guy has, this peace and humanity, that's what I want." Many people would tell Andreas how they would find the Holy Father in his private chapel late at night, sitting with the Lord, often writing in a notebook. Or they would find him prostrate in front of the Eucharist for hours on end. He had a comfort and a sense of being at home in front of the Lord. We can do a physical action that brings our heart along with the body. Fr. Matt said the translator of John Paul's "Theology of the Body" once said that the Holy Father wrote that masterpiece at a desk that was in his chapel. The Holy Father's tremendous love of the Blessed Mother is worthy of emulation. Before he entered the seminary, John Paul was introduced to St. Louis de Montfort and the total consecration to Mary, the prefect disciple and model for being the best disciple we can be. Almost everything he wrote, he turned at the end to the Blessed Mother for her intercession and mediation. The rosary was one of his favorite prayers. When he was praying he felt his prayers. He valued intercessory prayer. When the Holy Father visited the Philippines in 1995, he had an occasion to pray the rosary with a group. As the rosary ended, he took another 30 minutes to pray by name for specific bishops around the world and their intentions.Andreas pointed out that the bishops and priests he prayed for were part of his work. Likewise, we can take that opportunity to pray for those we work with. We are sent from Mass to carry Christ with us to the world. When we go about our daily work, wherever it is, we can take the opportunity for prayer, to offer up our work to God. This is why John Paul is so inspiring, because he left us many ideas and ways to do this.Fr. Matt said our suffering is a kind of prayer, whether it's diseases or difficulties in life and in our work. The Holy Father helped us rediscover the value of redemptive suffering. The Holy Father himself suffered in the years after being shot in the early 80s. The pope's base state in life is prayer. He prayed, went to do his work, and then returned to prayer. The infusion of prayer in his life was n't forced, but an attitude that came naturally. Being a saint is what we're here for. Becoming a saint is a decision we make and continue to make as we stick to the plan. Holiness is a part of life. It's not about being gloomy or pietistic.Andreas said there was always so much laughter in the papal apartments. As a 20-year-old he was drawn to Pope John Paul because he wanted to be just like him.**4th segment:** Discussing the extraordinary virtues of Pope John Paul II and the Church's sense of his holiness. Scot said flowing from Pope John Paul's prayer was how he treated people he encountered. Andreas told us during his last appearance on the show about how Pope John Paul saw how Andreas was hurting inside when others didn't. When you perceive the world as God sees it, then you can see the basic human dignity of the person you encounter and you are present to them. Whenever you met Pope John Paul, you felt like he got out of bed that day just to meet you. He did that with everyone from presidents to the homeless. How he treated others then changed how everyone around him treated those people as well.Fr. Matt said grace builds on nature and John Paul's human nature was so great. He was a healthy and vigorous man who loved so greatly. His humanity was a bridge by which people could encounter Christ. John Paul saw every person as a unique, unrepeatable soul, a masterpiece crafted by the hand of God. In our culture we get caught up with appearances, with what we do, with our education, etc. That didn't matter to John Paul. And this why so many flocked to him from all over the world.Andreas said the model of someone who is beatified shouldn't someone who is on a pedestal above, but that being like him is easy. That's why John Paul made so many saints. We are all called to be saints and it is attainable for us. John Paul was a like a coach who tells us that we are made for greatness and he can't wait to see how far we will go. The coach is tough on you--"You can do better than that". The coach doesn't bend the truth for you in some false Kumbaya sense, dumbing it down for us. No, he says we can do better because we are made in the image and likeness of God.**5th segment:** It's time to announce the winner of this week's **WQOM Benefactor Raffle**. Our prize this week is the “Messengers of Faith Talking Jesus and Mary Doll Set – Donated by [BibleToys.com](http://www.BibleToys.com).”  Children can learn more about Jesus and Mary as these dolls narrate their lives while children play with these 11" tall dolls. This week's winner is **Jacqueline Bouzan from Abington, MA**.  Congratulations to Jacqueline. If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit [WQOM.org](http://www.WQOM.org). For a one-time $30 donation, you'll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for our weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We'll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program.**6th segment:** Andreas is going to Rome this week for the beatification of Pope John Paul this Sunday. It's a dream come true for him. Andreas was in Europe when John Paul died and was able to go the funeral, which was one of the most spiritually charged events of his life. It was an experience of the universality of the Church, with people from all over the world praying together in communion and receiving Communion. In other beatifications, people often had a devotion to the beati, but didn't personally know them. But in this case, no other person in the world may have been as exposed to the person of John Paul. Andreas said John Paul's spirit will be present as they celebrate John Paul as the vicar of Christ. It's going to be just as much about being with the people around him at the event as it is about the beatification itself.Fr. Matt said for those who can't be in Rome, keep in mind that it's Divine Mercy Sunday, also May 1 which is usually the Feast of St. Joseph and the beginning of the month of Mary. We can imitate the Holy Father by entering into the Divine Mercy mystery, which was a powerful message promoted by John Paul. St. Faustina was the first saint canonized in the new millennium. Enter into the spirit of the day by embracing Divine Mercy.Andreas said in Europe, May is also Labor Day, and John Paul was himself a laborer. He was a stonecutter in a quarry in his youth. So on Sunday, we can contemplate our work and see how we can elevate our work into a prayer and find a spiritual meaning in it.* [Divine Mercy](http://thedivinemercy.org/)Fr. Matt explained a little about the Divine Mercy devotion and St. Faustina. Jesus wanted us to embrace more deeply the mercy brought to us by the power of the cross. Even the worst sins can be blotted out by the mercy of God. God's mercy is infinite and anyone who turns to Jesus can experience this great mercy. The Divine Mercy chaplet is prayed on the rosary beads. It was the wish if Jesus in those Divine Mercy messages to St. Faustina that the Sunday after Easter would be the feast of Divine Mercy. Andreas pointed out that John Paul died right after celebrating the Divine Mercy Mass in 2005.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams**Today's guest(s):** Andrea Alberti, youth minister at St. Thomas Parish in Nahant and St. Mary High School, Lynn; and Chris Carmody, youth minister at Immaculate Conception in Salem and religion teacher at St. Mary High School, Lynn.* [Hunger for Justice on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_134715953259931)* [St. Mary High School, Lynn](http://www.smhlynn.org/)* [St. Thomas Parish, Nahant](http://www.stthomasnahant.com/)* [Immaculate Conception Parish, Salem](http://icsalem.org/)* [The Light Is On For You](http://www.thelightisonforyou.org)**Today's topics:** The Hunger for Justice retreat for 350 youths on Good Friday and Holy Saturday; and a special message from Bishop Robert Hennessey about the Sacrament of Confession**A summary of today's show:** Andrea Alberti and Chris Carmody share the amazing story of 350 youths on the Hunger for Justice Retreat fasting from Good Friday to the Easter Vigil, while serving the poor of their community, experiencing God's love and mercy in the sacraments, and raising tens of thousands of dollars for charity. Thousands of youths have experienced one of the 27 retreats and have borne much fruit in the Church.**1st segment:** Scot said that one of the things he hears so often working for the Church is the concern that we are not doing enough to engage young people in our Catholic faith. Behind this concern is the hope that we can figure out fresh ways to present our faith so that it connects with young people and sparks their interest to make a commitment to it as teenagers and adults.Today's broadcast of The Good Catholic Life will give us all hope. What Andrea Alberti and Chris Carmody are doing up on the North Shore really works.  The [Hunger for Justice](http://www.smhlynn.org/page.cfm?p=1083) retreat they organize on Good Friday and Holy Saturday attracts 350 students, who participate in carrying a cross through the town of Nahant, serving the homeless in Boston, and then experiencing together the joy of the Easter Vigil. Also today, we will hear a special message from Bishop Robert Hennessey about the Sacrament of Confession and its availability each Wednesday evening during The Light Is On For You campaign. **2nd segment:** Scot and Fr. Matt welcome Andrea Alberti and Chris Carmody to the program. This is the 27th time that Andrea and Chris have run the Hunger for Justice retreat. Andrea said it is now celebrated during the Triduum, but it started just as a service project with 6 confirmation students at Immaculate Conception Parish, Newburyport, who wanted to do something about the fact that children are denying every day. Chris was one of those students. They made a difference by fasting from food and any other kind of luxuries and got sponsors for each hour they did this, raising $7,000. Last Good Friday, they had 350 students who raised $25,000 that went to a hospital in Haiti.Scot asked Chris about what attracted him to do this as young person and who are the young people who take part in the Hunger for Justice retreat on Good Friday. Chris said it started when he was a freshman in high school and he remembers the adults in his parish who were so on fire with Christ and invited the kids to understand poverty, especially since they didn't see it growing up in Newburyport. As part of the retreat they walked miles for whatever water they needed because they had seen videos of poor women and children who walked for miles every morning and night for their water. The kids who come now see a need and feel a call from God in their hearts, knowing that they can make a difference, they can do something about it. They are God's hands and feet.What is the experience for the kids on the retreat? Andrea said they always try to begin everything around the sacraments, in an intimate relationship with Jesus. Their axiom is "Rules with Relationship = Rebellion." They could get students who have been in Catholic school for 11 years but can't relate what it means that Christ died on the cross on Good Friday and don't understand the basics of their faith. So on Good Friday, they get to carry the cross literally. They hear the Gospel message that Christ loves them so much He died for them. Fr. Matt last year preached for the kids on the beach during a prayer experience. There are sometimes kids who come because their parents make them because they got in trouble. One part of the experience is that they go into Boston to serve the homeless. Last year, they brought 2,500 pairs of socks into Boston and 2,000 sandwiches and the students were sent out to interact with the homeless. At one point they ran out of socks. This one boy who had been forced to go by his mother because he had got into trouble came up to Andrea to ask for more socks for a homeless man and when she said they didn't--on this freezing, cold Saturday--he gave away his own socks to the man who needed them. It is conversion on every level. Kids who are already in a relationship with Christ can go deeper on this retreat. Kids who have never met Christ can have an encounter with Him.Scot noted that the students fast from food for 35 hours and in the midst of the fast they hand out sandwiches. He remarked that it must be very difficult for them when they're hungry. Andrea noted that this is usually the first fasting experience for most of these students. She thinks that the retreat has grown so successful because the fuel that power it is prayer, fasting, and sacrifice. The kids are amazed that they can do this. When Chris did this, the kids worked in a soup kitchen cooking hot food and serving it. One year, the kids baked cookies and said, "Are you kidding me?" but the youth ministers encouraged them that they could do it. They see the power of fasting and the power of prayer.Scot asked Fr. Matt what it's like to see kids experience this retreat during the Triduum. Fr. Matt said he prays every day that God would raise up men and women who would not be afraid to mentor young men and women in the faith. What makes the Hunger for Justice experience powerful is that there is a core group of people who make young people a priority in their life and they are willing to pour out their lives for them. Kids respond to that. He remembers being on that beach on that Good Friday, just before noon, before the Way of the Cross to the Church for the Good Friday service, seeing those 350 kids and to have the opportunity to preach the Gospel to them.Fr. Matt asked how Chris and Andrea started off the retreat last year in a way that got the kids' attention. Andrea said they look for a way to make it interactive and dynamic, just like the sacraments. There were 400 people all together milling around on the beach. They had coordinated with the Nahant police to come down to the beach, to pull Fr. Matt aside to talk to him, and then the school principal, and then they had one of the dads start calling for his son. The son came out of the crowd and the police "arrested" him, put him in cuffs and in the police car. Another one of the students students stood on the giant cross they have and called out, "No, it wasn't him. It was me. Take me."All of the people present thought this whole drama was real. And then student's dad explained that this is what happened to Christ, that He was falsely accused and crucified on Good Friday. There was a beautiful moment of openness where they were receptive to hearing what Jesus Christ did for them. That's why they are able to fast. When the reality of Christ's sacrifice becomes real to them, they can then endure the 35 hours of fasting.**3rd segment:** Fr. Matt said that last week, they had [Bob Rice on the program](http://www.thegoodcatholiclife.com/2011/04/06/program-0021-for-wednesday-april-6-2011/) and he spoke of the importance of evangelizing young people in the classroom, that when we're catechizing them, we're not giving them dry facts, but we're witnessing to them and they experience Christ through us. He asked what makes Hunger for Justice so effective? What is it about their experience of the way the Gospel is presented that sets young people on fire? Andrea said it comes down to the sacraments of the Church. We often have such low expectations of young people, but really they want the truth. Their hearts are restless, until they rest in the Lord. They want to know about the One True Church and we shy away. This retreat is bold. The leaders of the retreat are challenged to daily Mass in preparation and say a daily Rosary. The kids are challenged to take their faith seriously and when they do their lives are changed. Amazing things happen.Fr. Matt reflects that so often when he celebrates Mass, he sees so few young people and those he sees look bored. But Andrea is saying something different, that when they are challenged and are exposed to the beauty of the Church something powerful happens. If we know of a teen who has an apathy toward the faith, what can a parent do to help them to know Jesus Christ? Andrea said you need to build a relationship with them, but first let your own faith grow. You can't give what you don't have. Your own life has to be rooted in Christ. You have to be a witness. We die to ourselves and Christ lives in us. All of our conversations on whatever topic, all our interactions, will have Christ at their heart. And when they say No to our first overtures, we should say Why not? The world pressures them to fall away from Christ, so we should persevere to give them what they are truly hungering for.Chris said Hunger for Justice makes Christ alive for them. They hear about Christ and they know facts about Him. But the retreat makes Christ a person to them. Like Mother Teresa would say she saw Jesus in the people she served, so too the kids see Jesus in the poor people they encounter on this retreat, as well as the adult leaders, during the Easter Vigil Mass, in the confessional where hundreds of kids all go to confession with 15 different priests.Scot brought the discussion back to the retreat itself. We know it starts on the beach with a moving and attention-grabbing beginning, followed by a procession of the cross to St. Thomas Parish in Nahant. Andrea said it takes 7 students at a time to carry the cross and they rotate in to help carry. Andrea grew up in the parish and last year she said she'd never seen the church more full and had never seen a more reverent congregation. They knew what was happening because they'd just heard the Gospel preached. They are an inspiration to the older people in the pews. They sat quietly for hour after hour.After that service, they head to St. Mary High School for a final meal and fast until Saturday after the Easter Vigil Mass. At the school, Chris said they eat the meal together and then get into small groups for group-building activities. They are not just serving the poor, but also serving one another. The kids come from many different parishes and this helps the teens to overcome shyness and awkwardness to relax and enjoy.Then they watch the movie "The Passion of the Christ". When they survey kids after the retreat on their favorite parts of the weekend they consistently say it is "The Passion of the Christ" and the Easter Vigil Mass. They take time to process what they saw and there is a time of prayer and healing. Taking up the retreat theme of "From Darkness into Light," they have a "glowstick" party and a time of fun. Then students sleep in cardboard "homes" where they sleep for the night. No pillows or anything. The girls are in the school cafeteria, the boys are in the gym.Chris said that on Saturday, they get up early and get on buses to go to Boston. They are broken up into three groups and they split up for three different locations: Boston Common, [St. Anthony's Shrine](http://www.stanthonyshrine.org/), and [Pine Street Inn](http://www.pinestreetinn.org/). They hand out whatever they have to the homeless. But the point is to stop and talk with the people they serve. The kids are amazed to have their preconceptions shaken up. Many of the homeless are educated or from good backgrounds who have fallen on hard times or just struggling. The kids are rotated by group through St. Anthony's Shrine where they hear a talk on God's mercy and confession. They have the opportunity for confession. Chris and Andrea said about 99% of the kids go to confession when given the opportunity, which Scot said it was positive peer pressure. Chris said about 10 or 12 priests available, including many of the Franciscans as well as pastors from the kids' parishes. The kids encourage each other to go to confession and talk about what it means for them.**4th segment:** Their work of service doesn't end here. They return to St. Mary's in Lynn and the leaders explain that after receiving absolution, they can now be filled with Christ to go out and evangelize and serve. They serve locally within Lynn in their small groups of 8 to 10 to homeless shelters, an orphanage, the local YMCA, the St. Vincent de Paul store. They do spring cleaning in every parish church available. Having fasted since the previous day, they continue to work hard with passion. It is rooted in what they see Christ did for them on Good Friday and now they serve others.Then they prepare to go the Easter Vigil Mass. Scot asked for how many is it their first Easter Vigil experience? Chris knows that is the first time for most of them because you can see it on their faces when they encounter the darkened church. They start on the Lynn common outside of St. Mary church for the candle-lighting ceremony and then process into the church singing. They get the kids as involved as possible, so they act as readers and servers. Last year, one of the youths was confirmed at the Vigil. While they're nervous at first at the unfamiliar Mass, they enjoy it immensely.Scot said it is the longest Mass of the year, but so moving. The [Exultet](http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=6341) that is sung in the darkness, with just the one candle, is a tremendously moving experience and song. Then it is followed by the 7 Old Testament readings that take us through salvation history, and the New Testament, and the Gospel and any rites of initiation. It's a catechesis of our whole faith in the one Mass. Fr. Matt said that over the previous 35 hours they've heard the Gospel, they've seen the suffering of the poor, they've been invited to give of themselves. There's something about the power of fasting that enables us to empty ourselves and make us think of others and the essentials of others. There's something about everything they experience that tills the heart so that they can experience the Mass anew. Without the relationship with Christ, Mass would be a boring routine, but after this weekend they have a new appreciation for the Mass.Andrea said she knows of three priests who heard their call to their vocation at an Easter Vigil Mass. They hear from some kids  every year how shocking it is to realize that having fasted for so long that the first meal they receive is the Eucharist, that they understand that is truly Jesus. they are empty and they receive Jesus, and they say that this is how they came to the retreat: Empty, but now filled with Christ. when that epiphany happens, it is a beautiful moment and they pray for their openness in that moment so that the Easter Vigil is the pinnacle event.Fr. Matt notes that in their normal lives they are so full--full schedules, they get pretty much anything they want--yet the seem so spiritually empty as well. Andrea said that they see that so many of them "have it all" and it doesn't bring happiness. All these things of the world do not bring contentment and teens will admit that quicker than many adults will. That emptiness that they feel is the heart's longing for God's love. When this is revealed, that hunger for love is obvious on their faces. This is the message that works.This is the 15th year of doing the Hunger for Justice retreat during the Triduum and the 27th overall. Fr. Matt said that he knows that there is a ton of work that goes into making it happen. Andrea said it takes a year of planning. They start meetings with adult leaders 2 months out. They train youth leaders. They start bulletin announcements 3 months early. They put a cross in the back of churches that are participating with requests for supplies such as cases of Gatorade or water or other goods for the poor. The whole parish participates in the evangelization efforts of the youth.Chris said there are many adults who are involved in all the details. For example, there's the cardboard needed for the kids to make their cardboard houses. They need huge piles of cardboard for all 350 kids. They also have to provide lots of juices and other drinks for the kids while they fast. They have a leadership track of 70 high school students who have been on the retreat before. They meet every Wednesday night to help plan the retreat. Last weekend, the peer leaders spent another weekend on retreat to prepare for the Triduum weekend. And as much work as the logistics is, prayer is even bigger need. They get all the adults and all the kids to stay in prayer.One of the many fruits is the 70 high school leaders. Andrea said 21 of the young men among them went to a St. Andrew's Dinner, which is an event held at St. John's Seminary for young men who might be discerning a vocation to the priesthood. These are kids who are going to go deeper in their faith, building on the experience of the retreat. They go out to evangelize their world. 75 of the kids went to the March for Life in Boston. Every Tuesday at 7:15 am, before school, at St. Mary's, they 50 or more kids who come to pray in their chapel. Anytime they have a reconciliation opportunity at the school, they have 99% who show up. Andrea said Chris himself is one of the fruits of the retreats and there are others like him who went on the retreats and who are now students at Franciscan University of Steubenville, and planning to become youth ministers themselves.The retreat is open to all high school-age students. First, check to see if your parish is one of the 12 currently participating as a group, but the St. Mary High School website also has registration information (see link above). There is also a Hunger for Justice group on Facebook (see link above).Chris said that in the week's before the retreat the kids ask family, friends, neighbors, and parishioners to pledge donations. They emphasize that they need to give everyone an opportunity to be generous of whatever amount they can afford. Last year, they sent the funds to [Hospital Albert Schweitzer](http://www.hashaiti.org/), just outside of the capital. It was one of the few hospitals still functioning months after the earthquake. A family from Nahant knew of the hospital and its need for basic medical supplies. This year they will be sending the money to Japan. Anyone who wants to donate can send a check to Andrea Alberti, St. Mary's High School, 35 Tremont Street, Lynn, MA 01905 and make the check payable to "St Mary High School" with "Hunger for Justice" in the memo line.**5th segment:** It's time to announce the winner of this week's **WQOM Benefactor Raffle**. Our prize this week is a copy of the book [“Seven Pillars of Catholic Spirituality,”](http://www.dynamiccatholic.org/index.php?page=seven_pillars) a great book by Catholic writer Matthew Kelly.  Kelly describes the pillars of Confession, Daily Prayer, The Mass, The Bible, Fasting, Spiritual Reading and the Rosary in a compelling way. This week's winner is **Theresa Rose Verhault from Stoneham, MA**. Congratulations to Theresa.  If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit [WQOM.org](http://www.wqom.org). For a one-time $30 donation, you'll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for our weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We'll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program.And now a special message from Bishop Robert Hennessey on the Sacrament of Confession: