City on a Hill: Kansas City – Details, episodes & analysis

For our last episode of Season 4: 

Fr. Mattingly sits down with Rey Wilkinson, where Rey shares about making his way back to the Catholic Church through the graces of great communities in Kansas City. Rey was raised Catholic by his grandma and mom, though he sparingly went to Mass. Upon graduating college, he moved to Kansas City and through a few invitations got connected with a good community of young adults. 

Rey attributes the his reversion to the Church through the intentionality of the communities that he found in Kansas City, friendships that centered on a pursuit of holiness... rather than the current secular trend! Rey's radical openness to say yes to invitations, which allowed Rey to encounter Christ through community. (Matthew 18:30, "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”)

Show Notes: 

- Mir House of Prayer (St. Joseph): 24-hour adoration chapel 

- Morning Glory Ministries: a local ministry for homeless 

- Saint Paul's Outreach: young adult community 

- Young Catholic Professionals: Kansas City Chapter 

Justin & Kaylene Brown sit down with Fr. Mattingly, to share of their individual testimonies which coincide in a mutual conversion to the fullness of the Catholic Church. Justin grew up in a small town, with a lively Catholic Church, but Justin notes that there seemed to be a general sense of culture over faithfulness. Kaylene grew up in a home with one Catholic parent and one non-Catholic parent. 

Justin and Kaylene had their own experiences and encounters with the Lord prior to meeting one another - confirmation retreats, Teens Encounter Christ, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and more. Their story culminates in meeting one another (hint: on St. Patrick's Day while in college). From this point, Kaylene began to experience healing from her brokenness and eating disorder while dating Justin. Justin allow Kaylene to be a source of truth in his life, which led to a full belief in Catholicism. Tune in to hear how their pursuit of sainthood continued in marriage. 

Lauren Bauer shared with Fr. Mattingly and Taylor Furrer about her own conversion of heart, which began with her head and then moved to her heart. After having been raised Catholic, Lauren's parents separated and attended different churches. Lauren was faced with a decision, but chose to remain Catholic and defend the faith with her knowledge. 

After reading a book about Pope Saint John Paul II, Lauren's head learned that Jesus is a friend and desires relationship with her. So her heart followed her head, and began to dedicate her time in prayer, to be in relationship with Jesus. Lauren has continued to learn the delicate balance between knowing and loving Jesus. 

Show Notes:

- Saint John Paul the Great: His 5 Loves by Jason Evert

- Benedictine College

- Morning Offering by St. Philip Neri: "Watch me, O Lord, this day; for, abandoned to myself, I shall surely betray thee."

- Sisterhood Small Groups

- Abiding Together Podcast

- This Present Paradise: A Spiritual Journey with St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

Father Mattingly is associate pastor at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Kansas City, MO! In an effort to tap into the City on a Hill pillar of 'formation', we we will begin to record and share his Sunday homilies!

This episode features his Homily from the Baptism of the Lord (January 10, 2021).

Father Mattingly is associate pastor at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Kansas City, MO. 

In an effort to tap into the City on a Hill pillar of 'formation', we we will begin to record and share his Sunday homilies! 

This episode features his Homily from the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord (January 3, 2021). 

Our first episode of 2021 is one you will not want to miss! Gordon and Katrina Schmitz seem to do it all for City on a Hill - listen in now to learn how their passion and zeal came to be!

Katrina… even after having an encounter with God, wanted to find a group of young adults who believed what she did. Her first taste was in Peoria, IL but then moved to Maryville, MO. She routinely drove to Kansas City to find community! Eventually, she moved to KC permanently. Gordon went on a retreat and encountered the Lord. He still had highs and lows, but had a base level of happiness established after encountering the Lord better than he’d known. He selected Benedictine to take the faith seriously in order to let it grow. He also came to KC in an effort to find another community to help foster his faith.

Show notes:
- Katrina & Gordon both discovered how hard it is to live for what you believe in without people around you! They both compete regularly in Catholic Challenge Sports.
- Katrina joined a Sisterhood group once she moved to KC. She recently led a women’s group using this study.
- Gordon has been a part of Band of Brothers.
- AND their first child is due in February. Pray for little Schmitz :)

During banter, Emily teaches us about allergy tests - it’s really amazing! Throughout adolescence, her spiritual life was filled with retreat highs and then ordinary life. She didn’t know how to make the faith relevant to the day to day. She details her story of hitting rock bottom and finding hope in the Lord. AND despite loads of opposition, Emily started a pro-life group on her campus… while in medical school! Check out her episode now, wherever you get your podcasts!

Show notes:
- Interested in starting a Students for Life group? Find more information here.
- Emily hosts an event on the MAP. You can find more info about 2nd Sunday at Spokes here.

Taylor had always wanted to be a good person thanks to a great family and talkative dinners. She went to YoungLife and accepted Jesus into her heart. She graduated from Mizzou, and it was there that she took on four different bible studies of various Christian denominations. She encountered the Lord in Matthew 16, where Jesus claimed Peter as the rock on which his Church would be built. Previously she’d been to Rome and saw the bones of St. Peter and connected the dots that the Catholic church was started by the Lord and consequently is her home.

Show notes:
- Check out FOCUS at Mizzou.
- Read more on the discovery of St. Peter’s Tomb in Rome.

"The journey to sainthood is a lifelong thing… I’ve realized more and more throughout discernment that the Lord needs time to work with and on me." Listen to hear of Paul Sappington, seminarian for the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, share of his life and discernment!

Show notes: 

- Paul attended Missouri S&T, and mentions the Rolla Newman Center. 

- Pray for the seminarians from the KC-SJ diocese.

Will has a contagious joy and childlike trust in God’s mercy that surfaced in a unique way through the Community of the Lamb. Will used to play basketball on Monday nights… then after one Monday night with the Community of the Lamb, he gave up the league.  Now, he routinely goes door to door with mendicants to beg for food for the Community!

Show notes: 

- Will leads a Monday night group with the Community of the Lamb. Find information here. 

- For Community of the Lamb information in general click here.