Erika Bachiochi

EPPC Fellow Erika Bachiochi is a legal scholar who works at the intersection of constitutional law, political theory, women’s history, and Catholic social teaching. She is also the editor-in-chief of Fairer Disputations, the online journal of sex realist feminism.

Bachiochi is a Senor Fellow of the Abigail Adams Institute. Her book, The Rights of Women: Reclaiming a Lost Vision was published by Notre Dame University Press in 2021.

The Rights of Women

Bachiochi’s study on feminist history uncovers an underlying reliance on the cultivation of morality. This was as much for the betterment of individuals as it was for society. Author of the Rights of Men and the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft was strongly influential in British society. Her work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, which was published in 1792, appealed for women’s education in order that they should have greater independence of mind and thus be better able to appreciate their duties and enter into marriages of reciprocal friendship.

Bachiochi makes the argument that “The trouble with the women’s movement today lies, rather, in its near abandonment of Wollstonecraft’s original moral vision, one that championed women’s rights so that women, with men, could virtuously fulfill their familial and social duties.” Wollstonecraft believed that in reforming themselves, women could reform the world. The weight she places on domestic duties is novel compared to the base regard we give it today. Reading her work, one is inspired by the heroic perseverance and resolution necessary to be a woman of purpose, particularly as wife and mother. Virtue is the measure by which all things should be judged.

Reimagining Feminism Today

My question to Erika mirrored the title of the final chapter of her book. As we find ourselves Reimagining Feminism Today in Search of Human Excellence, we again ask questions regarding men and women that are framed in virtue. This topic was key in my own research for the book Motherhood Redeemed: How Radical Feminism Betrayed Maternal Love. The conclusions point to the necessity of self-governance and independence of mind, which may only be formed through education and proper moral formation. For this reason, parents, above most, have a vital mission to cultivate these virtues in their children through guidance and nurturing care. These manifestations of human excellence are found in the fulfillment of the day-to-day responsibilities one has to God, self, family, and society, emphasizing sexual integrity, faithful marriages, and devoted parenting.

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One of the essential starting points in understanding ourselves is to know our purpose and mission in this world. Understanding that shared mission of our humanity then allows us to explore our differing modes of humanity, that is as women or men. When I asked Dr. Deborah Savage to delve deeper into these points, she answered that our mission, and the mission of all Christians is to return all things to Christ, to whom they originally belonged anyway. She added that woman reminds man that he cannot make a gift of himself to a bottom line or a project. He can only make a gift of himself to another person. Both of their work must be ordered toward authentic human flourishing. “Woman’s task is to bring the divine presence into the world.” This is the model that the Blessed Mother creates for all women through her fiat.

Therefore, if a woman enters a corporate boardroom, parish office, or her own home, her task is to bring the divine presence into that room. “Woman is responsible for reminding us all that all human activity is to be ordered toward authentic human flourishing.” When pressed to answer how individual women live out their mission in their particular vocations, Dr. Savage emphasized the critical importance of a woman’s prayer life, because she can’t give what she doesn’t have. Further, she added, “Whatever I do, I do it as a mother.” This was my favorite and the most compelling line that Dr. Savage spoke to me, because I believe that spiritual maternity is the gift that women bring into all situations. This spiritual maternity is imbued in her nature as a woman and is oriented toward the care of all of humanity. Understanding this truth gives women access to fully living their mission in Christ. As Savage so eloquently articulated, “Women are the guardians of the gift of life.”

Politicians have often debated about the capacity, roles, and therefore the rights of women. Philosophers have considered the differences of women and men in their mental abilities and trajectory of potential. Yet, theologians, inspired by the wisdom of the faith and the Scriptures, ask what mankind is to God, in the created partnership of male and female, and beyond that, how each individual relates to God and finds his own way back to Him. This is why I was struck when Dr. Savage stated that the real driving force behind the question of what it means to be a Catholic woman, is “what does it me to be me?” In asking this, I am asking, “How can I live out my womanhood in a way that God had in mind when he created me?” Now this is certainly a deep question to ponder in prayer, and one that all women should be dedicating far more time to than to any political debate about women. This question should shape us.

“It’s a principle of the natural law, that we’re born already in debt to our Creator for the gift of life, and the only way to repay that debt is to become that person God had in mind when he created me.”

Have I become the person God had in mind when he created me? This question has certainly resonated with me and I believe it should challenge any area of our lives that have become lukewarm or apathetic. Let’s pause to experience the great mystery of human existence! Living within my body and soul is how I discover the meaning of creation and my place in it, not by creating my own body or my own purpose.

Lovely Lady Linens

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Dr. Scott Hahn is a world-renowned American Catholic theologian and apologist. He joins me on The Dignity of Women to discuss the holy family and their everlasting impact on family life, as well as his own marriage and family life, and the dignity bestowed on women by Jesus Christ!







Dr. Scott Hahn
Dr. Scott Hahn is the Fr. Michael Scanlan Professor of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he has taught since 1990. He is the Founder and President of the St. Paul Center, an apostolate dedicated to teaching Catholics to read Scripture from the heart of the Church. 
Dr. Hahn has been married to his wife Kimberly Hahn for forty years, and together they have six children and eighteen grandchildren. Two of their sons are currently in priestly formation with the Diocese of Steubenville.
He is the author or editor of over forty popular and academic books, including best-selling titles Rome Sweet Home, The Lamb’s Supper, and Hail Holy Queen. A former Presbyterian minister, Dr. Hahn entered the Catholic Church in 1986. Over the last three decades, Dr. Hahn has delivered thousands of popular talks and academic lectures, nationally and internationally, on a wide range of topics related to Scripture, Theology, and the Catholic faith.
He lives with his wife, Kimberly, in Steubenville, Ohio.




















 
Jesus and The Holy Family
 
"Through real-life examples and from the Scriptures, Hahn makes it clear that, no matter what sort of family we come from, we can all find our family in the Church."
It was a real gift to hear from this biblical scholar on the joys and trials of his own family life. To learn of his courtship with his wife Kimberly, and of the raising of their six children together in the Catholic faith, after stepping down as a Presbyterian minister.
Dr. Hahn shares of the importance of those seemingly insignificant hidden years of Jesus' life on earth, and how the model of the holy family still guides modern families today. 
 























 
  EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 

The hidden years of Jesus
The holy family and the human family
The special dignity given to women by Jesus Christ
Circumcision as a covenant
Prayer in the early Church







LINKS AND RESOURCES

Scott Hahn
St. Paul Center
First Comes Love
Rome Sweet Home
The Lamb's Supper
Hail Holy Queen
Hope to Die







SOCIAL MEDIA
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Justin McClain is a black Catholic author, who strives to live the message of Jesus Christ, whether teaching in his classroom, at home with his family, or through encounters of daily life in our American society. Justin McClain joins me on The Dignity of Women to give a Christocentric perspective of the current race issues in America, Black Lives Matter, and the necessary Christian response.







Justin McClain
Justin McClain has taught theology and Spanish at Bishop McNamara High School in Forestville, Maryland, since 2006. He has also served as an adjunct lecturer in Spanish for the pre-college programs at the University of Maryland, College Park, and taught English as a second language at Prince George’s Community College. He received a Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching and commitment to Catholic education from the Archdiocese of Washington in 2017.
McClain is the author of several books, including Called to Teach and the award-winning Called to Pray. He is a regular contributor to the National Catholic Register, Catholic Exchange, and the National Catholic Educational Association. He was a consultant to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church’s Subcommittee on African-American Affairs in 2015, as well as to the USCCB’s Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development, and the Secretariat of Catholic Education, in 2018. McClain is a lay Dominican.
He lives with his wife, Bernadette, and their children in Bowie, Maryland.
































Reconciliation over Restitution
As our country faces turbulent social unrest over outcries of racism, many ask what they can do. People feel motivated to be part of the change, but many Christians are conflicted with affiliating themselves with the 'Black Lives Matter' organization, because of its non-Christian stances on political issues and its affiliation with radical non-Christian groups. 
Justin recommends focusing on reconciliation as opposed to restitution. One way we have decided to do this, is to facilitate a book reading and discussion of the book, Forgiveness Makes You Free by Fr. Ubald Rugirangoga, who is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
Here's how to join us:
1.) Go to: Forgiveness Makes You Free by Fr. Ubald Rugirangoga at Ave Maria Press
2.) Use code: DIGNITY at checkout for 20% off AND free shipping!
3.) Join The Dignity of Women FB page, where the discussion will be held
4.) Join us every Monday on The Dignity of Women FB page to discuss a chapter of the book, and to ask Justin questions about the book, his podcast, and the proper Christian response to race issues. 
 
























 
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  
 
 
 

Current race issues in the United States
The rioting and looting response
The social constructs of racism
Examining the 'Black Lives Matter' movement
The proper Christian response to injustice
Reconciliation over restitution

 
 
 
 
 
 LINKS AND RESOURCES 
 
 
 

Called to Teach: Daily Inspiration for Catholic Educators
Called to Pray: Daily Prayers for Catholic Schools
Alleluia to Amen: The Prayer Book for Catholic Parishes

 
 
 
Here's how to join our social media discussion group:
 
1.) Go to: Forgiveness Makes You Free by Fr. Ubald Rugirangoga at Ave Maria Press
 
2.) Use code: DIGNITY at checkout for 20% off AND free shipping!
 
3.) Join The Dignity of Women FB page, where the discussion will be held
 
4.) Join us every Monday on The Dignity of Women FB page to discuss a chapter of the book, and to ask Justin questions about the book, his podcast, and the proper Christian response to race issues. 
 
 
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Mary Lenaburg is a writer, speaker, and woman of God who has given keynotes at conferences across the country. Mary's book, Be Brave In the Scared rocked audiences with its candid look at overcoming pornography and food addiction in marriage as well as life with a disabled child, and the eventual loss of that child. Mary Lenaburg joins me on The Dignity of Women to share how her raw and honest testimony has drawn many to a greater healing of their own suffering. Mary and her husband, Jerry, live in Fairfax, Virginia, with their son, Jonathan. Their daughter, Courtney, passed away in 2014.







Mary Lenaburg
Mary Lenaburg gave birth to her son Jonathan in 1989 and her daughter Courtney in August 1992. One month later, while being baptized, Courtney had her first of many grand-mal seizures. Going from the church to the emergency room that day, Mary’s life was changed forever.
For the next 22-years, Mary and her family took a spiritual journey that led them to numerous hospitals and specialists, to Lourdes, France and finally to a home-based hospice for their daughter. Courtney Lenaburg died in her mother's arms in December 2014, on the feast of St. John the Beloved. She is now her family's most powerful intercessor.
Courtney’s unique ability to love without ever speaking a word taught Mary and her family that everyone has a purpose and a mission. They came to accept Courtney's condition and her prognosis, trusting God and allowing His plan for their family to unfold.
Mary began a ministry in 2016 and travels the country speaking about God’s Redeeming love and encouraging others to embrace the story God is writing with their lives. Her witness encourages others to trust God with their own outcome and have hope in times of desolation. Mary Lenaburg's story of trust and healing has taught countless men and women to be brave in the scared, even if they cannot see where the path leads.






































 
Be Brave in the Scared
 
When the bomb dropped that their daughter Courtney would continue to require more and more care throughout her disability, Mary and her husband Jerry both coped through addiction. She turned to overeating and Jerry turned to pornography. Mary stepped out in immense faith when she began sharing the most intimate struggles of their lives on the pages of her book.
 
In the podcast Mary shares the example that her father taught to her, which she says requires only being brave one breath at a time. This inspired the title of Mary's book, Be Brave in the Scared, which is the uplifting account of human frailty (and stubbornness) surrendered to faith." It's the heart-rending journey of how caring for her severely disabled daughter affected Mary's self-image, marriage, family life, and her faith.
 
Mary's extraordinary story affirms that God’s redeeming love never fails and that he is there to help us through all of the challenges we encounter.
 


















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Pornography in marriage
Food addiction
Adjusting to life with a severely disabled child
Walking in faith
Dealing with crisis one breath at a time
The loss of a child
Finding peace for the family after loss

 LINKS AND RESOURCES 

Mary Lenaburg
Be Brave in the Scared
How a Young Woman with a Mystery Diagnosis Left a Legacy of Love

 
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Sonja Corbitt, The Bible Study Evangelista and creator of the LOVE the Word Bible study method and journal is a Catholic Scripture teacher with a story teller’s gift – a Southern belle with a warrior’s heart and a poet’s pen. A best-selling author, her weekly CatholicTV and radio show and other Bible study resources are bites of spinach that taste like cake - to help you “love and lift all you’ve been given.” Sonja's work resonates deeply with the female heart and she joins me on The Dignity of Women to unpack everything from letting God heal the "father wound" to resolving anxiety and fear in the Word of God. 





Sonja Corbitt
Sonja Corbitt is a vital Catholic voice - a best-selling author, speaker, and broadcaster - who produces high-impact, uplifting multimedia Bible studies.
A Carolina native who was raised as a Southern Baptist, Corbitt converted to Catholicism and served as director of religious education at St. John Vianney Catholic Church in Gallatin, Tennessee, and as executive director of Risen Radio.
She is the riveting weekly host of the Bible Study Evangelista Show on CatholicTV and radio. Corbitt is in formation as a Third Order Carmelite, a columnist at The Great Adventure Bible Study blog, a regular contributor to Magnificat, and a best-selling author who also wrote for the Gallatin News Examiner and Oremus, the Westminster Cathedral magazine. She lives in Tennessee with her husband, Bob, with whom she home schools two sons.


























LOVE The Word
 Pope Francis called Mary the “mother of listening,” because she didn’t just hear the word – in our case read, also – she understood how to interpret it in light of her own relationships, circumstances, and habits. Pope Benedict XVI called her the “model of prayer,” and said her unique holiness was the fruit of her way of pondering relationships and circumstances in her heart with God.
LOVE the Word is lectio divina without the Latin. Modeled on the Annunciation, the LOVE the Word® method invites Our Lady to guide each of us in her own personal prayer practice: L – listen, O – observe, V – verbalize, E – entrust. We learn how to LOVE the Word like Mary, from Mary. She teaches us to interpret the word we hear and read through the landscape of our lives.


















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Facing Fear and Anxiety (Spiritual/Metal/Emotional attack)
Conversion from Southern Baptist
Healing the Father Wound
Struggle with Mary
Understanding Scripture
Prayer Plan
Becoming Fearless

 LINKS AND RESOURCES 

Sonja Corbitt
Fearless: Conquer Your Demons and Love with Abandon
Unleashed: How to Receive Everything the Holy Spirit Wants to Give You
Exalted: How the Power of the Magnificat Can Transform Us
Ignite
Suffering & Miracles

 
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Carrie Gress, philosopher, mom, and author of The Marian Option, The Anti-Mary Exposed, and Theology of Home, joins me on The Dignity of Women to boldly discuss toxic femininity in our culture - the effects it's had and how to rescue ourselves, our family, and our society. 

Carrie Gress
Carrie Gress has a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America and has taught as a professor at Pontifex University. She is the editor at the online magazine Theology of Home. Carrie is a regular contributor to Catholic and secular media. She is the author of seven books including The Marian Option, The Anti-Mary Exposed and Theology of Home.   

But beyond all of her many wonderful accomplishments in advancing Christendom, Carrie is a homeschooling mother, awaiting the birth of her fifth child! As she lives out her vocation of marriage and motherhood, Carrie has often contemplated the role feminism has played in our society.
She has naturally been drawn deeper into reflecting on the role of Our Lady and her unique "gentle" power, which of course remains at odds with many elements of the feminist movement's ideal quest for power. Carrie shares her inspiration to write The Marian Option, also inviting children to enter into a deeper relationship with Mary through her book, Marian Consecration for Children.

























Theology of Home
One of the things that most resonated with Carrie was the need Americans have to return to the home as a sanctuary for the family. We are addicted to HGTV, DIY projects that give our homes a unique and personal touch, and absolutely anything produced by Joanna Gaines.
But the element of home (a stay at home mom, domestic activities and projects, cooking and decorating) have been abandoned, forgotten, and protested against over the last few generations, and now we find ourselves hungry to rediscover them. We find that we were never taught domestic skills such as sewing and cooking, and perhaps our childhood home didn't seem "homey" at all.
But now, as parents, we want a cozy sanctuary from the world to return to. We want to nurture our family relationships, create warm memories, and most importantly, draw everyone who enters under our roof closer to Christ.
Personally, I find great comfort in the liturgical decorations of the Church seasons, such as the glorious Advent wreath, the Jesse tree, and the hauntingly beautiful chants of the season. It's hard to put these elements of our home back into boxes for another year. These are the sentiments that inspired Carrie's latest book, Theology of Home, which guides readers to find the eternal in the everyday!

















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Feminism
Motherhood
Who is the Anti-Mary?
What is The Marian Option?
Communism, Marxism, and Feminism
What is the antidote to rescue the culture?
What is the Theology of Home?

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Carrie Gress
Theology of Home (website)
The Marian Option
The Anti-Mary Exposed
Marian Consecration for Children
Theology of Home (book)

 
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Doug Johnson, husband of pro-life activist Abby Johnson and stay-at-home dad to their 8 children joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to share his side of the Unplanned story.

 
Doug Johnson


When Doug Johnson was a boy, he didn't have a favorite job he wanted to do when he grew up. He was willing to do any job and never shied away from hard work. But the one thing he knew that he wanted to be was a husband and a father. 

After marrying Abby Johnson, who had undergone two abortions in her previous marriage and was now moving her way up the ranks of Planned Parenthood, a large family seemed impossible. In fact, Abby was happy with the small family they had (one child), as she wanted to focus more attention on her growing career.
When are planning to hire someone to write your school project or essay, you likely don’t want to pay for a mess of uneducated, difficult to understand ramblings written by someone with little knowledge in the subject matter at hand.
Google is a great resource, however, when it comes to finding quality written papers, there is a more trustable site – and you’ve found it! You can visit a home page of free essays where you can find a list of writers are experts in all grade levels willing to write your essay for you. This means that you can confidently request scholarly work for high school, college, university, even graduate school and rest easy knowing that the order will be made at a high level.

Doug began to stay at home with their daughter Grace, as Abby's job as director at Planned Parenthood became their primary source of income. The issue of abortion, which Doug grew up strongly opposed to, was a constant source of background contention between he and Abby. It affected their relationship with the Church and caused them both to consider their relationship with God.    






























 

 

Unplanned Conversion

 

As Abby Johnson continued to question the principles of Planned Parenthood, she was unexpectedly called into a clinic room to assist for the first time with an abortion. She watched the ultrasound screen in horror as she held the wand over the woman's uterus. The fully formed baby squirmed and fought for its life against the abortionist's instruments - a battle it quickly lost. Abby was forever transformed and so began her exit out of Planned Parenthood and into the pro-life movement.

 

Doug was Abby's biggest cheer leader, although he had reservations about the pro-life movement considering death threats they had received and certain un-Christian tactics he had witnessed. Still, there was no question that Abby could never go back to Planned Parenthood, and also she need to expose them for what they were really doing.

 

Abby began to speak out against Planned Parenthood and work to help others escape the abortion industry as well. Doug says that it was through the teaching of St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body that he and Abby eventually converted to Catholicism. 

 

That first confession was truly remarkable, or as Doug puts it - "diarrhea of the soul." There was no shortage of tears as Abby and then Doug went into the confessional to unload their heavy burden of guilt before Easter.

 

Add one adoption, one set of twins and four boys to the mix, and you have the family of eight kids that Doug and Abby have now!  

 





















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Stay-at-home fatherhood
Married to a Planned Parenthood Director
When Planned Parenthood pays your bills
Embracing the pro-life movement
Becoming Catholic
Grace sees the movie Unplanned
Message to young women





LINKS AND RESOURCES

Doug on Tap
@dougontap
Exclusive interview with Doug Johnson
Abby Johnson Podcast
UnPlanned Film



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Dawn Eden Goldstein is a Jewish convert and Rock and Roll historian. As a victim of childhood sexual abuse, Goldstein is an outspoken advocate for healing through proper counsel and God's mercy. She joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to share the unconventional road that brought her to the Catholic faith.
 
Dawn Eden Goldstein

Dawn Eden Goldstein is the author of Sunday Will Never Be the Same: A Rock and Roll Journalist Opens Her Ears to God, The Thrill of the Chaste and My Peace I Give You. Goldstein began her writing career as a rock and roll historian, using the pen name Dawn Eden. In the 1990s, she contributed to Billboard, the Village Voice, Mojo, and Salon and co-wrote The Encyclopedia of Singles. She went on to work in editorial positions at the New York Post and the Daily News.
At the age of thirty-one, Goldstein, who was raised Jewish, experienced an encounter with the divine, which began a personal transformation that would eventually lead her to enter the Catholic Church. In 2016, she became the first woman to earn a doctorate in sacred theology from the University of St. Mary of the Lake. She has taught theology at universities in the United States, England, and India.



























The Heart of Rock and Roll
The heartfelt saga of Goldstein's captivating memoir, Sunday Will Never Be the Same, carries you through God's redeeming love for this young Jewish girl who experiences her parents divorce and sexual abuse at an early age. The raw clarity of the human heart is so eloquently portrayed by Dawn in recounting her childhood perspective of life and God.
It was impossible not to see a reflection of myself in the angsty teenager desperately searching for joy and wanting the freedom of an exciting life away from home. Even as she studied in New York, began a career as a rock and roll journalist, and hung out in the company of famous musicians, there was an emptiness that inspired a continuing search for the divine. 
Many women won't so candidly admit to the loneliness of the single years and how self-worth and value was often gauged by successful relationships or attention from guys. How casual plans were often made with hopes of finding true love, and how being overlooked was the greatest defeat. 
Sunday Will Never Be the Same opens wide the heart of Dawn Eden Goldstein, who now speaks with great wisdom on her journey of lifelong healing from sexual abuse, her path from Judaism to Catholicism, and how rock and roll has always seen her through. 






































EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Judaism and Catholicism 
Childhood Sexual Abuse and Lifelong Healing
Influence of Music and the Music Culture
Struggle with Depression and Seeking Purpose
From boy-crazy to Consecrated single
Risking career on the basis of truth
St. Maximilian Kolbe's Intercession



LINKS AND RESOURCES

Dawn Eden Goldstein
Twitter Handle - @dawnofmercy 
Sunday Will Never Be the Same: A Rock and Roll Journalist Opens Her Ears to God
The Thrill of the Chaste (Catholic Edition): Finding Fulfillment While Keeping Your Clothes On
My Peace I Give You: Healing Sexual Wounds with the Help of the Saints 
Integrating Faith and Music



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Fr. Donald Calloway is a Catholic priest, often known as the "surfer priest", with a radical conversation through Our Lady joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to explain how a high school dropout and juvenile delinquent becomes the prolific defender of Mary and her spouse Joseph.
 
Fr. Donald Calloway

Fr. Donald Calloway is a convert to Catholicism and a member of the Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception (MIC). Before his conversion to Catholicism, he was a high school dropout who had been kicked out of a foreign country, institutionalized twice, and thrown in jail multiple times.
After his radical conversion, he earned a B.A. in Philosophy and Theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville, M.Div. and S.T.B. degrees from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, and an S.T.L. in Mariology from the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio.
Fr. Don is the author of 13 books and his upcoming book “Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of our Spiritual Father” will be published on January 1, 2020. It will be a 33-Day program of preparation and consecration to St. Joseph.

 

Consecration to St. Joseph
"Today we have a real crisis in manhood. Men don't know what it means to be men and they've kind of been emasculated by the culture. They don't know how to be heads of a family, how to be leaders, how to be strong and yet tender. I think that St. Joseph is going to be a perfect model for that - for men. I really think that this upcoming book: Consecration to St. Joseph is going to really help individuals, families, and society at large, because when we bring St. Joseph onto the battle field we're going to get the restoration of order. That is what a father does - in a household, when there's chaos, when there's confusion, the father is the one who brings order to things, so we need St. Joseph right now."
 Mother Angelica said of St. Joseph - "Old men don't walk to Egypt," and I think she's right! There is nothing in scripture to shows us that Joseph was anything other than strong, faithful, loving, and obedient. He was a carpenter and would have been physically strong from that trade. Joseph was chosen by God to fulfill a supremely important role and he was obedient each time the angel visited him. Joseph walked from Nazareth to Bethlehem, Bethlehem to Egypt, and back to Nazareth again. He sought to provide a place for Mary to have shelter and rest when she was to give birth to Jesus after their long journey. Joseph and his wife presented their son to the priest Simeon in the temple, and Joseph also received the painful prophesy concerning Mary - at her side. The two searched for Jesus together when he was lost as a 12-year-old boy after the feast of the Passover. The hidden 30 years of Jesus' life on earth were spent almost entirely in family life with Mary and Joseph.

















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Fear of confession
Comfort brought to penitents in relating to a priest's past and conversion
Why was Mary instrumental in Fr. Don's conversion?
St Joseph - the greatest man who never spoke
Was Joseph old and feeble with children from another marriage?
What is consecration to St. Joseph?
Are there approved apparitions of St. Joseph?
Manhood, Fatherhood, Priesthood


LINKS AND RESOURCES

Fr. Donald Calloway, MIC
No Turning Back (Audio)
Consecration to St. Joseph with Fr. Calloway 
Champions of the Rosary
The Virgin Mary and Theology of the Body






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Patrick Sullivan, Catholic evangelist, was raised by a single mother in rough neighborhoods of Canada. He grew up with poor examples of father figures throughout his childhood and teens. It wasn't until a miraculous experience that Patrick turned to God and the Catholic Church. There he found the example of fatherhood he had longed for in the Catholic priesthood. 
He joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to share how he learned to fully live his fatherhood through the scriptures, and how he works with others to create a household rooted in peace. 
Patrick Sullivan

Patrick Sullivan is a Catholic evangelist, author, educator, public speaker, and founder of Evango, a Catholic media organization based out of Canada.


He lives in Barry's Bay, Ontario with his lovely wife and their 8 children and travels across North America leading parish missions.
 
Me & My House
Patrick certainly isn't the guy you would have expected to get Godly parenting advice from if you would have known him growing up. He grew up fighting, was hurt by the men in his life, and became angry as a teen. Especially when a relationship he really cared about ended due to her increase in her Catholic faith.
An encounter with the Lord really shook him to his core and left Patrick wondering for years to come, what God was asking of him. One thing he knew was that he "wanted to try harder." God granted him that opportunity. Patrick began to study theology and find in the priests he encountered a true example of manhood and fatherhood. 
As Patrick and his wife began to grow their own family, they were determined to create a household of peace rather than allowing the chaos to wear them down and steal their joy. They worked tirelessly with other parents whom they admired, took the best of all they gathered, and tested them out in the home and the classroom. 
Years of searching and applying, with constant reliance on scripture, led them to develop a program they can share with others called Me & My House.
 














Me & My House is a practical game plan for Catholic parents who are struggling with all the things that parents struggle with. It challenges you to do little things. To make little changes that will make a huge impact on your family.
In this Catholic Parenting Program, you will discover the foundations that can strengthen your motherhood and fatherhood. You will learn the habits that can make parenting easier, and the habits that you absolutely want to avoid. In fact, it gets so practical that it discusses discipline and how to set boundaries, so that by the end of the program you will have a very clear sense of how you want to build your unique family culture with the children God has given you.
 


Supermom
The example Patrick did have growing up was his mom. He saw her as holding her children in one arm and holding out the darkness of the world with the other. Her example certainly helped to form his image of motherhood and the beauty and greatness of The Blessed Mother. Patrick shares the message he hopes his daughters learn from him with every woman listening, and speaks to the heart of women who may not have heard this message from father figures in their own lives. 

















EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

A troubled past
Father examples and Supermom
The heartbreak and miracle that changed course
Wanting to do better
Searching for God
Family and peace in the domestic church
Evango and becoming an evangelist
8 kids later and wisdom for other parents


LINKS AND RESOURCES

Evango
Me & My House
Joyfully Big - Shalom World TV Video of the Sullivan Family

 
MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

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How does a young man from a devout Catholic family, with a Catholic school education, and a strong desire to help others, become a medical doctor who preforms abortions, sterilizations, and creates embryos for In Vitro Fertilization? Dr. John Bruchalski of Tepeac Family Center joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to explain how he was carried down this "slippery slope," and how an encounter with the Blessed Mother brought him back to the truth - where he has been fighting the pro-life cause ever since. 
 
Dr. John Bruchalski
Dr. John Bruchalski received his M.D. from the University of South Alabama College of Medicine in 1987. He then completed his residency at the Eastern Virginia Medical Center and the Jones Institute for Reproductive Medicine in Norfolk, Virginia, receiving board certification in 1993.
Motivated by a desire to become the best trained physician possible, Dr. Bruchalski learned methods for preforming abortions, sterilizations, and artificial reproductions during his residency. His follow-up experiences with the women he served made him question whether the services he offered were truly improving their situations in any way. After a spiritual awakening, he returned to the Catholic faith of his youth and answered God’s call to start a medical practice that truly helped women.
Dr. Bruchalski founded Tepeyac OB/GYN in Fairfax, VA, in 1994, which has become one of the largest pro-life private OB/GYN's, offering excellent care, which is in line with Biblical medical ethics and pro-life values. The center provides comprehensive care to women regardless of their religious beliefs, background, or financial situation. 
In 2000, Dr. Bruchalski founded Divine Mercy Care as an umbrella organization to support Tepeyac and other pro-life healthcare initiatives. Today, DMC has 8 programs, which all advance the pro-life healthcare movement, broadening community awareness of holistic, life-affirming medicine.
Dr. John Bruchalski's tireless leadership in the pro-life movement has led to countless other conversions, positive birth experiences, and the advancement of fertility awareness, family planning, and religious freedom in the medical world.
 
Abortionist to Pro-Life Doc
What I wanted to understand is the mindset behind a doctor who believes he's truly helping women through abortion. I asked Dr. Bruchalski if he had every grappled with the personhood of the aborted fetus or questioned the morality of creating human embryos. His answer was "no," stating that his four-year Jesuit education was mostly about situational ethics, relativism, and proportionalism. The way it was presented to him was that the Church simply had not caught up yet with medicine and that Pope John Paul II was still stuck in the past. Good theologians across the world were arguing and dissenting from Church teaching, and it was still widely believed that you could dissent and still be a good Catholic.

"By the time I got to medical school, it was a done deal. Meaning, you just were surrounded by really good people who were trying to improve the quality of health of women, and  contraception and abortion were just part of it."

Dr. Bruchalski remembers the sadness of his parents when Roe v Wade was passed, saying that they were good people who always prayed for him, but he just "slipped away." When I asked him what I thought of his medical practices, he said that he never told his parents at that time what he was doing because of the shame. This caused him to begin building walls.
Dr. John Bruchalski also recounts how his prayer life began to fall off. He lost his sense of the Mother of God and the Eucharist, and began to see the Church as crazy - they were talking about old stuff that didn't matter anymore. I wanted to be excellent, so I went to the best school I could - a contraceptive and research development center.

"And, oh by the way, we (Jones Institute for Reproductive Medicine) were the home of the first IVF baby in our country.

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Originally published in 1938 in German by Gertrud von le Fort, The Wedding of Magdeburg recounts the sacking of a German city, in 1630, by the Holy Roman Empire. It takes place in the wake of the Reformation and challenges both the wielding of power and religion in war. “The Wedding of Magdeburg tabulates the spiritual cost of war and shows how grace can dramatically imbue even the darkest moments of history.” The book was recently translated into English and published by Ignatius Press. I had the delightful opportunity to receive an advanced copy and read it in preparation to discuss the work with Vivian Dudro, a senior editor at Ignatius. Vivian has a great love of Le Fort’s work and is a wealth of information on the author. She has been a senior editor at Ignatius Press for more than twenty years. Prior to that, she wrote for Catholic publications including the National Catholic Register and Catholic San Francisco.

Gertrud von le Fort (1876-1971) was a German novelist and essayist. She was a baroness and attended the universities of Heidelberg, Berlin and Marburg. Le Fort converted to Catholicism at the age of 50, after which she wrote most of her influential works, including the Song at the Scaffold and The Eternal Woman.

Relevance: The work of Gertrud von le Fort is extremely relevant to the work that I am doing, in exploring the role of woman and mother in humanity. Le Fort visited St. Edith Stein in the Carmel in Cologne as well as exchanging letters with her. Both women were deeply impacted by the concept of woman and mother, elevated by the most perfect example of the “eternal woman,” the Blessed Mother. While The Wedding at Magdeburg does not focus on the concept of woman in the same way that Le Fort did in The Eternal Woman, she masterfully weaves in the concept of bride and mother, both in physical reality and as symbolism.

Motherhood Redeemed A Hermitage of Her Own

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Feminism is largely associated with women's rights. It has remained a fluid term throughout its several waves, currently promoting reproductive rights and the abolition of gender. It seems almost impossible to imagine how feminism and Catholicism could possibly share any ideologies at all, much less considering Jesus, Mary, and many saints to be feminists. Claire Swinarski of The Catholic Feminist joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to explain how Catholicism and Feminism are compatible and intertwined. 
 
Claire Swinarski
Claire Swinarski, a 2013 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has a bachelor’s degree in mass communication and political science, with a certificate in criminal justice. She served as a FOCUS missionary from 2013 to 2015. Claire is a writer and the founder and host of The Catholic Feminist podcast. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and two children.
Swinarski recently published her book, Girl, Arise!: A Catholic Feminist’s Invitation to Live Boldly, Love Your Faith, and Change the World through Ave Maria Press. 

“The Church is absolutely filled to the brim with examples of believing in the importance of womanhood. The world needs so much more than your impeccable cookie-baking skills or your ability to quote scripture from memory. It needs more than your hashtags. It needs the resilience, strength, and true beauty given to you by God.”
~Excerpt From Girl, Arise!


Catholic Feminism?
Is it possible to be both a Catholic and a feminist? Claire Swinarski, writer and creator of The Catholic Feminist podcast, believes it is.

“I’m a feminist for the same reason I’m bold and honest and sometimes ragey: because Jesus was all of those things.”

In Girl, Arise!: A Catholic Feminist’s Invitation to Live Boldly, Love Your Faith, andChange the World, Swinarski argues for the reconciliation of the two identities by demonstrating the strengths and abilities women have to share with the Body of Christ, the importance of women throughout the history of the faith, and how the love you experience through Christ and the Church can change the world around you.

Swinarski points out that while both “feminism” and “Catholicism” can mean different things to different people, both feminists and Catholics desire to make the world a better, fairer place. And that by treating women with dignity equal to that of men—by calling them his friends and teaching them—Jesus acted as a feminist as well.
In her book, Swinarski addresses her frustration with the traditional concerns churches ascribe to women, as shown by the many talks directed at women focused on marriage and modesty rather than social justice. She pinpoints the areas where modern feminism goes too far, arguing against abortion and exploring what it means to serve others rather than focus on personal needs first.
Swinarski champions Biblical women—including Vashti in the book of Esther, as well as Sts. Thérèse of Lisieux and Joan of Arc, Mary Magdalene, and the Blessed Virgin Mary—to show how their faith influenced their actions, even when those actions went against traditional norms and roles of women. 

"If the Church truly believed the only qualified women were quiet, subtle Thérèses, we wouldn't hold up boisterous, badass Joans as shining examples of womanhood as well."


















 
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

What fueled the Catholic Feminist podcast?
Women's talks vs Men's talks in the Church
The unique call of each woman
Sts. Thérèse of Lisieux and Joan of Arc
Women's rights and the manifestation of feminism
Feminism's disdain for motherhood

"No woman should be authorized to stay at home to raise her children... Women should not have that choice, precisely because if there is such a choice, too many women will make that one." ~Simone de Beavoir to Betty Friedan


Secular feminists and Catholic feminists
Abortion and pro-life issues
Mary as the "ultimate feminist"?

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It always seems to surprise people in modern society that the Church is still receiving vocations, and that God is still calling young men and women to give their lives to Him as priest or religious sister. Beyond that surprise however, lies a much greater awe - the embrace of some men and women to the life of a cloistered monk or nun. Sr. Mary Veronica joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to share what life in like from inside the cloister, and how a well educated and intelligent young woman with everything going for her chose such a life for Christ.
 
Sr. Mary Veronica
Sr. Mary Veronica entered the Monastery of Our Lady of the Rosary in Summit, NJ as a cloistered Dominican nun in 2010. She had previously graduated with a Political Science and German degree from American University in Washington, DC.
From there, Sr. Mary Veronica worked for one year as a market research analyst before pursuing religious life and entering the convent. Her main activities in the cloister community now revolve around a common life of prayer, work, and study - shared by the Dominican nuns.
And did I mention that I was Sister's campus minister during her college years at American University? Sr. Mary Veronica was one of my most dedicated students, and I could always count on her to help with every retreat or event in our Catholic community. She went with me on pilgrimage to Rome and on mission to Belize.
I guess you could say that there was just something very special about Veronica - as we knew her then. She was extremely witty and had a quick dry humor that could catch you off your guard if your brain wasn't constantly working and filled with endless jeopardy knowledge.
Veronica could easily fit in on the DC subway, the busy streets of Rome, and behind the walls of the monastery cloister. The beauty of her nature was her simple love of Jesus and her ease in all things due to her confidence in that. She would have been a great biological mother, and is sure to be a powerful spiritual mother. 
 
Why This?
Sr. Mary Veronica will tell you that there was nothing else but this (religious life) for her, and she continued to hear that calling in little ways since her childhood.

“If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world on fire!”
― St. Catherine of Siena 

It might not seem likely to many of us that by giving all of ourselves to God - in hiding ourselves away in a monastery dedicated to prayer, we would be setting the world on fire. But that's exactly what St. Catherine of Siena taught and how she lived her life; a life largely consumed by prayer.
And despite an active youth and intense study at a progressive college, Sr. Mary Veronica continued to be drawn to the silence of prayer and study lived by the Dominicans, and particularly to those Dominicans detached from the world in a life of cloister.























Visiting Sr. Mary Veronica for her final vows! We are in the guest room (notice a wall separating us that is about waist high). 

















 EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS  

Dominican monastic life - a day in the life of a cloistered nun
Praying intentionally and willingly practicing penance
Vocation story and transition to cloistered life (from secular culture)
Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience
Fulfillment apart from God?
American University - college culture
What women have inspired you in the contemplative life?
Practical advice to grow closer to God for those in the world

 
LINKS AND RESOURCES

Dominican Nuns of Summit, NJ
The Cloister Shoppe
A Bride of Christ on her 29th Birthday
The Life of St. Catherine of Siena

 
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The first time I heard the CD Contraception: Why Not?, which made Janet E. Smith a household name, I was completely blown away. I knew that the Catholic Church frowned upon contraception, sex-before-marriage, and cohabitation...but I didn't really know why (or at least couldn't defend the position in an argument). With that same straight-forward and easy to digest wisdom,  Janet E. Smith joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to discuss gender issues, fertility, sex-before-marriage, and the lasting relevance of Humanae Vitae. 
 
Janet E. Smith
Janet E. Smith is the Father Michael J. McGivney Chair of Life Ethics at Sacred Heart Major Seminary. She taught at the University of Notre Dame for 9 years and the University of Dallas for 12. She is the author of Humanae Vitae: A Generation Later, The Right to Privacy, and Self-Gift: Humanae Vitae and the Thought of John Paul II . She edited  Life Issues, Medical Choices (with Christopher Kaczor) Living the Truth in Love: Pastoral Approaches to Same-Sex Attractions (with R. Paul Check) and Why Humanae Vitae is Still Right.
Professor Smith served three terms as a consulter to the Pontifical Council on the Family and also served as a member of the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission, III for 8 years.
She has received two honorary doctorates and several other awards for scholarship and service.She has appeared on the Geraldo show, Fox Morning News, CNN International, CNN Newsroom, Al Jazeera and has done many shows for various series on EWTN.
More than two million copies of her talk, “Contraception: Why Not” have been distributed. 
Gender
Janet E. Smith's work has had a heavy focus on sexuality from a Catholic perspective, including issues of natural family planning, contraception, homosexuality, and life issues. Smith's work has often leaned on Humanae Vitae (Encyclical Letter of Pope Paul VI in 1968), which she maintains is equally relevant today. Janet speaks on gender-confusion, same-sex attraction, and homosexuality, which have become pervasive and widely accepted in our culture. Many Catholics find it hard to combat these issues among family, friends, and society - even with the truth. Janet speaks on why homosexuality has become an encouraged avenue for youth to experiment with, and what is at the root of the current gender confusion. 
Feminism, Motherhood, and the Church
Janet E. Smith's chapter, Feminism, Motherhood, and the Church, from the Wethersfield Institute Proceedings in 1990 is one of my favorites! In it, Janet tackles head-on the disdain and incompatibility that motherhood has taken from many of the leading feminists. Janet addresses this rejection of the natural state of conceiving and bearing children, and the push to remove this burdensome process from the female altogether, which has highlighted many reflections of prominent feminist philosophers. The question in this segment is whether this element of feminism is in fact a hatred of a woman's own nature?
God is not masculine or feminine and the relationship between men and women in Genesis is not hierarchical or patriarchical, but equal. This understanding has been lost and a power struggle has ensued. "Feminists generally are more concerned to see the workplace restructured so that it allows women with small children to remain at the job than to restructure the economic system so that it allows mothers with small children to stay at home."
"Virginity and motherhood" are the "two particular dimensions of the fulfillment of the female personality." ~Mulieris Dignitatem 
FERTILITY DECISIONS
With the widely accepted use and practice of Natural Family Planning within the Church, how do families navigate the moral conversation of welcoming children who can be properly loved and educated, in preparation to merit eternal life? Janet explains the "providentialist" mentality, which is not found within Church teaching, and can strain a marriage and family,

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The "feminine genius" is a term that was advanced by St. John Paul II during his papacy, and has challenged and encouraged both women and men in the Church since then. But what exactly "is" the feminine genius and how do women fully live this out, in order to find that happiness that brings her communion with God through her unique created nature.  Irene Alexander joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to unpack the teachings and richness of the theology of the feminine genius. 
 
Irene Alexander
 Irene Alexander is an Assistant Professor of Theology at the University of Dallas. She received her MA and PhD summa cum laude from Ave Maria University. She specializes in moral theology, Christian marriage, and bioethics. She has published in Nova et Vetera, the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, The Josephinum, and the Linacre Quarterly. She is a wife and mother of five children. 
Feminine Genius
As a professor with 5 young children, Irene shares her own discovery of what St. John Paul II titled "the feminine genius," and how she lives that out in her daily life.  
A woman, in her nature has certain gifts and qualities that are feminine. Through her receptivity in both physical nature and soul, she is able to make room for others. This feminine genius also includes an intuitive quality that allows others to entrust a richness of thoughts and concerns on the heart with women, who are naturally empathetic in a mysterious way. God entrusts the human person to women in a very unique way, and this is a gift. Women also possess a generosity that has the quality of being very self-less. John Paul II draws a lot on the ideas of St. Edith Stein, who said that women are interested in the personal. Often she is interested in abstract principles in light of the personal, and the deeper concern and awareness of others. 
One of the great feminine gifts is magnetism, and even in her soul she send signals that can attract and draw others into her joy and feel comfort in her presence. This cultivation of intimacy is beautifully lived and fulfilled in marriage, single life, and religious life. Women, in a unique way want to be cherished, adored, and to know the deeper meaning of love. 
Alice von Hildebrand rightly states that "women are unashamed of their tears," because they are moved profoundly and are able to enter in a deep and empathetic way into another person's heart. This is often looked upon by society as a weakness, but given that loneliness is the new poverty, this sensitivity and empathy toward the other person is a great and needed strength. 
 
EQUALITY
Woman's uniqueness satisfies her through sharing her gifts in the family, as well as outside the family and with society. John Paul II talked about the equality and the difference that is complementary between women and men. When Adam first beheld Eve, he says "At last!" about one made like him. St. John Chrysostom gives the imagery of Eve as not being made from his head so as to Lord over him, or from his foot so as to be Lorded over by him, but rather from his side (right near his own heart.)
The man is called to lay down his life for his wife. Masculinity has a proper aggressiveness that is not necessarily violence. The masculine heart will spend himself entirely for the sake of his beloved. 
 
DOUBT
The serpent implants a doubt in Eve, challenging the nature of God. Eve initially corrects the serpent on God's goodness, but plants the seed of doubt that God is holding out on her. There is something slightly true about his lie, which makes it so powerful. Though they are in a paradise, they are not yet beholding the beatific vision. Satan says that if she wants that fullness, she needs to take it. Adam is complicit in the sin, for he is with her. This desire to be like God is part of the original plan, to be with Him. This is at the root of all human sin, but in a specific way the woman feels called to do things her own way in order to find happiness - re-create the w...

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Alice von Hildebrand was close to her PhD in philosophy when she began applying to Catholic colleges - all of which turned her down, despite her strong curriculum vitae, because they refused to hire a women to teach philosophy. Alice had only been in the country for 7 years, speaking French most of her life previously, and at this point desperately needed a job. Hunter College (for women) desperately needed a substitute philosophy professor, so Dr. Von Hildebrand began immediately what would become a very challenging 37 year career, finally accepting an early retirement with the lowest possible pension. For 14 years she was paid hourly, with no medical coverage, no tenure, and a teaching schedule that kept her until 10PM, precisely because she was a woman. Dr. Von Hildebrand won an award for excellence in teaching - competing against 600 professors. Alice von Hildebrand joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to share her great wisdom on femininity, feminism, and the greatness of faith that distinguishes the two.
 
Alice von Hildbrand 
Alice von Hildebrand is a treasure to the Catholic Church, as was her late husband, Dietrich von Hildebrand. Both were philosophers and professors, and the two have brought great richness through their many years of teaching, writing, and their powerful example.
Alice Jourdain von Hildebrand was born in Belgium on March 11, 1923. She arrived in New York City in 1940 as a war refugee. Soon afterwards she met Dietrich von Hildebrand and began philosophy studies at Fordham University as his student where she took nearly 18 courses with him. The two were married in 1959 and collaborated on writing many books. Starting in 1947, she began teaching at Hunter College in New York City. After enduring 14 years of hardships from the college on account of her sex, she was appointed Professor of Philosophy, where she served for 37 years. Upon her retirement in 1984 she received an award for excellence in teaching by Hunter College after having achieved the highest student evaluation at the College.

In addition to her many years at Hunter College, she has also taught at the Catechetical Institute in Dunwoody, NY, Franciscan University of Steubenville, the Thomas More Institute in Rome, Ave Maria College, and at the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College.
Dr. von Hildebrand is the author of numerous books, including The Privilege of Being a Woman, Man and Woman: A Divine Invention, By Love Refined, By Grief Refined, The Soul of a Lion, as well as numerous published philosophical papers.
In 2004, with the support of Pope Benedict XVI, Dr. von Hildebrand joined several students of her husband in launching the Dietrich von Hildebrand Legacy Project (www.hildebrandlegacy.org) to ensure the long-term promotion and dissemination of her husband’s life and thought. 
Alice von Hildebrand could be considered a radical for the traditional, the truth, and the faith. Her authentic look at womanhood as an intentional and crowning design of creation (The Privilege of Being a Woman) challenges both those who see women as the lesser sex and those feminists who seek to abandon or exploit the riches of their own sex.
 
Meeting a Legend


The fact that I recorded this podcast in-person often gets a shocked reaction from philosophy and theology fans alike. I must admit that I haven't fully processed it myself, and have resolved to be happy with gratitude alone.  
Yet, it's not only the fact that I recorded it in-person that is amazing, but it's the way in which the whole thing came about, and the reality that it was recorded in Alice's living room - in the very same house that she and Dietrich von Hildebrand lived, and where he died!
When I began writing, after earning an MA in theology, the direction my work was headed became quickly evident. Having lived outside of the Church, and strongly influenced by the feminist movement and the philosophy of Simone de Beauvoir,

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All that you didn't know about the hookup culture and how we're all living in it - whether we like it or not! How is marriage the cure?

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Kimberly Hahn spent 26 years homeschooling her 6 children before moving into local politics. Here she shares her wisdom on how motherhood prepares you for your best!

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Do you ever feel caught in an endless cycle of working harder and longer to get more while enjoying life less? The Stewart family did—and they decided to make a radical change. Popular Catholic blogger and podcaster Haley Stewart joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women to explain how she and her husband gave up home, jobs, and comfort for a year-long internship on a sustainable farm changed her family’s life for the better, allowing them to live gospel values more intentionally.
 
Haley Stewart 
Haley Stewart is a Catholic author, podcaster at Fountains of Carrots and speaker. She co-authored Feast! Real Food, Reflections, and Simple Living for the Christian Year with her husband Daniel, who is a farmer/beekeeper/chef. They live in Waco, TX with their four children and Haley tells about how they gave up everything to get to where they are now - living simply and happily. You can find her at Carrots for Michaelmas, where she blogs on cultivating a Catholic family through literature, liturgical living, and urban homesteading.
 
The Grace of Enough 
When Haley Stewart married her bee-keeping sweetheart, Daniel, they dreamed of a life centered on home and family. But as the children arrived and Daniel was forced to work longer hours at a job he liked less and less, they dared to break free from the unending cycle of getting more yet feeling unfulfilled. They sold their Florida home and retreated to Texas to live on a farm with a compost toilet and 650 square feet of space for a family of five. Surprisingly, they found that they had never been happier.
In her book The Grace of Enough, Stewart shares essential elements of intentional Christian living that her family discovered during that extraordinary year on the farm and that they continue to practice today:

live simply
offer hospitality
revive food culture and the family table
reconnect with the land
nurture community
prioritize beauty
develop a sense of wonder
be intentional about technology
seek authentic intimacy
center life around home, family, and relationships

Drawing from Pope Francis’s encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’, Stewart identifies elements of Catholic social teaching that will enhance your life and create a ripple effect of grace to help you overcome the effects of today’s “throwaway” culture and experience a deeper satisfaction and stronger faith.
 
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 

How motherhood made her a maker - enhanced rather than diminished her creative spark

I get emails a lot from young women who are scared to have kids.They have brilliant talents and passions to pursue and they are terrified that entering motherhood will mean that they will be trapped and all those dreams will die.


Freedom in pursuing less

too much stuff, too many hours, too much time apart


Integrating lessons from the year on the farm to the return to ordinary life
Christocentric understanding of minimalism
Wonder and Beauty
Embracing authentic community
Return to the practice of hospitality
Not allowing social media to separate the family
Choosing hope

 
LINKS AND RESOURCES 

The Grace of Enough: Pursuing Less and Living More in a Throwaway Culture (Ave Maria Press)
Carrots for Michaelmas - Cultivating a Catholic family through literature, liturgical living, and urban homesteading
Motherhood Didn't Squelch My Creativity, It Made Me a Maker
Fountains of Carrots Podcast
Feast! Real Food, Reflections, and Simple Living for the Christian Year
Fountains of Home
Hosting a Crappy Dinner Party


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On this The Dignity of Women podcast about catholic single life in the modern world, Kimberly is joined by co-author Sterling Jaquith as they discuss their book Into the Wilderness: 40 Day Devotional for Catholic Single Women, as well as the comedies and struggles of the single journey. They also share their unique conversion stories and how they each eventually met their spouses. Sterling shares the inspiration behind compiling a book of Catholic love stories called Smitten; The Raw and Real Truth of Fighting for Love in a Modern World. In it she wanted to inspire and encourage Catholic singles on their own path, showing them the many avenues couples took in meeting one another - the lessons learned as well as the struggles to grow with one another in holiness.
Sterling Jaquith is a mother of five and an adult convert to Catholicism. She lives in Boise, Idaho and is an author, speaker, and podcaster. Sterling met her own husband on an online dating site and they were at odds over faith (he was Catholic...and she wasn't), but his was the first profile that matched hers so well. She loved the fact that he actually mentioned "Jesus" on his profile and not just that he liked listening to Christian music and went to church when he felt like it. There was that, and the fact that he loved dogs! The rest eventually fell into place after a rather embarrassing first date.


Into the Wilderness:
As the years go by, remaining single leads many women to feel discouraged and alone in their struggles. The single years are tough, and require us to cling close to Christ, even as our heart cries out to him, “What are you asking of me, Lord?”
Throughout these 40 days, you will read excerpts from women – sharing their personal struggles and life-learned lessons. You will be strengthened in your discernment process, spiritual goals, commitment to remain true to pure desires, and use this time as a way to grow in greater virtue for God’s very unique future plans for your life. Together with scripture verses and support from the saints, you will be given daily journal prompts – leading you to gently reflect, examine, and grow your relationship with Christ in this specific season of single life. We look forward to going on this journey with you!


 

Amazon Link
























EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

Playing the game of Catholic single life
Sharing funny stories from past dating experiences
How Sterling came from an agnostic household to Christianity to Catholicism
How the Protestant Sterling and her Catholic husband came to be a Catholic household
Accepting more than two children
Kimberly's journey to meeting her husband
Feeling the call to write something specifically supporting single Catholic women
The collaboration of love stories that made up the book Smitten
How Kimberly and Sterling joined forces to create the devotional on the heels of Smitten
Offering encouragement and hope on the journey of Catholic single life in the modern world

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Into the Wilderness: 40 Day Devotional for Catholic Single Women
Smitten; A Collection of Catholic Love Stories
Sterling Jaquith / Catholic Convert and Life Coach
Into the Wilderness - Video


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Kevin and Mary O’Neill are a Catholic homeschool family with seven children. Mary is a stay at home mom with a degree in elementary education. Kevin runs the family landscaping company, which has given him ample time to listen to Catholic audio and to read on the off-season. As a result Kevin now considers himself a product of the New Evangelization with the development of the Lego Catechism.
Their idea for the Lego Catechism was born when their kids brought a popular children’s Bible to their attention and upon realizing it was blasphemous, Kevin and Mary knew that they were being called to create a catechism on the seven sacraments, utilizing theology of covenant and typology to teach the truth of the Catholic faith.
The O’Neill’s “Catechism of the Seven Sacraments" is the first book in a series. It uses typology to explain the necessity of the Sacraments in our relationship with Christ and His one, holy catholic and apostolic Church. The books are published through Storytel Press - a private non-profit foundation on a mission to inspire people to restore the sacred. Kevin and Mary are new to the world of publishing and the Catechism of the Seven sacraments is their first book.

The O'Neill Lego Family Portrait

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

From a bad children's Bible to Legos and Sacraments
How are you missionaries in the new evangelization?
Re-evangelizing Catholics through a creative and youthful approach
Orthodoxy of the Lego Catechism
"American Entrepreneurial Catholicism"
Old Testament typology
Missionary work as a couple and family right from the home
Mary as the Ark of the New Covenant

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Lego Catechism of the Seven Sacraments
StoryTel Trailer
Holy Heroes Trailer
Fr. Dwight Longnecker


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About Erin

Erin has extensive experience coaching and training high-achieving professionals at all levels of their career. Her approach is informed by her diverse experience in project management, strategic planning, and human formation in the political, legal, nonprofit, and higher-ed industries. She spent her early career in public policy and project management in Washington, D.C. Often finding herself at the beginning phases of multiple start-ups, Erin enjoys the challenges of entrepreneurship. She currently serves of the Board of Advisors at the Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship at The Catholic University of America. Erin holds a Bachelors degree in political science and coaching certifications from multiple programs including the Life Coach School. Her favorite city is Krakow, Poland where she lived for nearly 3 years. You’ll find her traveling on adventures with her husband and 4 boys.

SMART Goals

When you determine the goals that are actually meaningful to you and your family, the ones in which you really want to achieve, then you need to put them into SMART goals. SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely. These goals help us actually achieve what we set out to accomplish because we can measure and know when and how we have succeeded because of the specifics we outlined for ourselves. In evaluating through the SMART goals formula, we are also able to decide if our goal is relevant to the stage in life we are in and if it is the right time to set such a goal. If we decide that it is the right goal and time to accomplish it, then we need to have proper accountability and a deadline set in which to accomplish the outlined goal.

Questions to Ask

Begin with reflection, asking what I am grateful for in this last year and what goals I accomplished, what good habits I formed, and what drove the most happiness for me, personally and professionally. What am I most proud of? This kind of reflection helps to ground us and grow our self-reflection. If we skip this first step of reflection, then it is hard to move forward and we are not setting ourselves up to succeed.

Then ask, what it means if I succeed or fail at my goal? How long will this goal realistically take to achieve? What does this look like in the greater context of my life? How will I give myself parameters that will make something very big become practical? Am I allowing perfectionism to get in the way of meeting my goal? Do I need to adjust my expectations? Who is my accountability partner? How will I prioritize my goals?

Keeping in mind what it will look like to succeed and what I will do when I fail are important to beginning to set realistic goals. Sometimes the ultimate question to ask myself is whether or not my goal or the means of achieving that goal are realistic or if I need to shift the parameter of what success looks like.

First thing’s first! What is first for you?

Links

Goal Setting Guide

West of Perfection

The Busch School of Business CUA

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Fiorella Nash is one of the leading modern Catholic feminist voices in the Church today. As I read through her recent book, The Abolition of Woman: How Radical Feminism is Betraying Women, I was overwhelmed by her mastery of the work – her vast research into feminism, the abortion industry, the fertility industry, and gendercide issues.
Fiorella’s faith and understanding of human nature, social responsibility, and inviolable human rights clearly determine her pro-life convictions. I challenged Fiorella on how feminism can possibly reconcile with the pro-life stance, and what is left, if anything to “reclaim” of the feminism of ages past!
Author and bioethicist Fiorella Nash joins me on The Dignity of Women podcast. Fiorella is a writer and bioethicist in the United Kingdom with over ten years’ experience researching life issues from a feminist perspective.
She speaks often at international conferences and has appeared on radio and in print discussing abortion, gendercide, maternal health and commercial surrogacy. She is also an award-winning novelist and has published numerous books under the nom-de-plume Fiorella De Maria, including Poor Banished Children, Do No Harm, and We’ll Never Tell Them.

Whilst women in some parts of the world were struggling with the spectre of honour killings and child marriage, female members of staff railed against any use of the word “man” in the liturgy and talked about men as though they had nothing better to do than concoct wicked plots against female emancipation.”


EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

Fiorella’s new book, The Abolition of Woman: How Radical Feminism is Betraying Women
What is a feminist and how is feminism different from human rights?
Some forms of feminism fall between victimhood, thuggery, with doses of racism and neo-colonialism.
Woman’s right to choose has become a central point in feminist dogma.
“When does human life really begin to matter?” – Ann Furedi
Distinction of language and abortion industry reinforces misogynistic stereotypes.
Social responsibility, legal restrictions, and the self-fulfilling lie.
Fertility Industry’s denigration of women.
Poverty and Gendercide.
Loss, Infertility, Abortion (sex-selective abortions).
Human rights are inalienable and inviolable.


LINKS AND RESOURCES

The Abolition of Woman
Articles by Fiorella – The Catholic World Report
Poor Banished Children
We’ll Never Tell Them
Do No Harm
The Vanishing Woman: A Father Gabriel Mystery





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The Sisters of Life is a contemplative/active religious community of women founded in 1991 by John Cardinal O’Connor for the protection and enhancement of the sacredness of every human life.
Like all religious communities, they take the three traditional vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The Sisters of Life also are consecrated under a special, fourth vow to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life.
Sr. Veronica and Sr. Mercy of the Sisters of Life join me on The Dignity of Women podcast. This podcast was a special treat because I was able to visit the Sisters in their Yonkers, NY convent and record in person! Amidst the joy and laughter that filled the time we spent together, there were deep messages shared by the Sisters that are necessary for us to hear and to ponder.
The witness of religious Sisters in our culture is certainly a testimony to the love of Christ, through his brides, which is unlike any other witness on earth. I felt that it was imperative to welcome Sr. Veronica and Sr. Mercy on a podcast dedicated to the dignity and worth of women.

Especially a woman’s heart – When she knows she’s loved she can do anything! She can run free.”


EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

What is the need for a religious order dedicated to life?
Sr. Veronica and Sr. Mercy share their personal vocation stories.
How do the Sisters of Life care for the mother as well as the baby of women in crisis pregnancies?
 Sharing the biggest surprises of religious life and this particular ministry of working with women.
How the outward sign of “bride of Christ” influences the culture.
Most important things a woman who is struggling to love herself needs to hear.


LINKS AND RESOURCES

John Cardinal O’Connor: A Tribute to the Founder of the Sisters of Life
The Beauty of One Soul: A documentary film of the Sisters of Life
Holy Respite: Manhattan Maternity Home
Visitation Mission – Pregnancy Help
Villa Maria Guadalupe – Retreats (The Stamford, Connecticut retreat house hosts Evenings of Recollection, educational seminars on life issues and retreats on Theology of the Body, Young Adult Retreats, Post-Abortion Healing, and the Dignity and Vocation of Women).
Hope and Healing After Abortion  (The Sisters host monthly Days of Prayer and Healing, monthly Gatherings, and Hope and Healing Weekend Retreats. These events are opportunities to experience the loving mercy of God in a safe and sacred space.)
Evangelization (The Sisters are currently accepting a limited number of requests, both local and out of town.)
Family Life/Respect Life Office (Since 2002, the Sisters of Life, have been serving as the Director and/or the Respect Life Coordinators in the New York Archdiocesan Family Life/Respect Life Office.)


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Abby Johnson has always been fiercely determined to help women in need. This desire is what led Abby to an 8-year career with Planned Parenthood, our nation’s largest abortion provider, and caused her to flee the organization, becoming an outspoken advocate for the pro-life movement.
As a clinic director at PP, Abby realized abortion was a “product” they were selling, yet she loved and continued to serve the women that entered her clinic. That changed on September 26, 2009, when Abby was asked to assist with an ultrasound-guided abortion. She watched in horror as a 13-week old baby fought for, and ultimately lost its life at the hand of the abortionist.
Seeking answers, Abby turned to a local pro-life group. Her leaving Planned Parenthood as a threat to the organization caused them to take immediate action. They sought to silence Abby with a gag order and brought her to court on a case that was ultimately dismissed.
Abby Johnson is the author of the nationally best-selling book Unplanned, which chronicles her experiences. Today, Abby travels across the globe sharing her story, educating the public on pro-life issues, advocating for the unborn, and reaching out to abortion clinic staff who still work in the industry.
Abby Johnson is the founder of And Then There Were None, a ministry designed to assist abortion clinic workers in transitioning out of the industry. To date, this ministry has helped over 430 workers leave the abortion industry. Abby lives in Texas with her husband and seven children.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

How a youthful desire to help women led to Planned Parenthood
How abortions are the “products” PP sells
Recounting the abortion that changed her life
Modern feminism and the issue of life and “choice”
Ministry that helps industry workers transition out
Demonization of motherhood – robber of personal fulfillment
Soon to be release movie, based on her book Unplanned
Abby had 2 abortions, and this is often what helps her connect with women in crisis


LINKS AND RESOURCES

Unplanned
And Then There Were None
Unplanned Film
About the Film
NHS ad


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Eight year old Nomi is a survivor of human trafficking in Cambodia. When Diana Mao met Nomi at a recovery shelter, she was shocked and moved by her story.
Trafficked by her stepfather, without her mother’s disapproval, Nomi was discovered by outreach workers – CAGED. She could not speak and was biting and drooling. Brought to the shelter, where she received care and nurture, it gave Diana great hope to witness Nomi’s growth – “living up to her God-given potential.”
Diana founded the Nomi Network to share Nomi’s story and to help bring hope and healing to those recovering from human trafficking, as well as preventing and intervening for people at risk of being trafficked.
Human Trafficking spokeswoman Diana Mao joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women podcast, addressing the reality of human trafficking and how she left the path to a successful future, moved by a personal encounter, in order to found an organization that assists survivors and women at risk of human trafficking.

Diana Mao co-founded Nomi Network after a rewarding career in economic development and management consulting. Since its inception, Diana has played an instrumental role in making Nomi Network the catalytic international organization it is today. She is responsible for the strategic direction of the organization since its founding and building Nomi Network’s Board and strategic partnerships with large corporations, funders, and investors.
A 2015 Presidential Leadership Scholar and New York Academy of Medicine Fellow, Mao earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in BusinessEconomics from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Master of Arts in Public Administration with a specialization in International Management from New York University.
She received the Pioneer Award from Asian Americans for Equality and New York University Recent Alumni Award for her critical work in conceiving and building Nomi Network to the powerful force it is today in the anti-human trafficking movement.”

The Nomi Network creates economic opportunities for survivors and women at risk of human trafficking.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

Personal encounter and call to human trafficking awareness
Walking away from a successful future to embrace non-profit work
Poverty, caste system, foster care, homeless youth connection to HT
Inter-generational prostitution (largely in India)
Rehabilitation and recovery for victims (50-60% success rate)
Prevention of human trafficking
Pornography and HT (80% survivors report being “trained” with porn)
Response – What can I do?


LINKS AND RESOURCES

Nomi Network
Buy Her Bag Not Her Body
Pornography and Human Trafficking
National Human Trafficking Hotline
Justice and Care
Global Slavery Index
The Business of Modern Day Slavery

Books

Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Day Slavery
Good News About Injustice: A Witness of Courage in a Hurting World 
A Crime So Monstrous: Face-to-Face with Modern-Day Slavery
Comic Books

Support/Buy

Nomi Network
Buy Her Bag Not Her Body
Everlane
Patagonia
Thistle Farms
Restores


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When we hear the word "dance," there may be a few (often unfavorable) images that come to mind. The first might be our own unskilled version. The second might be what we see happening on the dance floors of clubs and bars across the country.
But hopefully, there is room in the distortion of our mind's version of the word "dance," for the glorifying art-form that Marian shares with us! There are certainly challenges that have become closely associated with dance - such as becoming fixated on body image (Marian shares her personal journey), but all things good and beautiful have a need to be redeemed and thereby to glorify God.
Dancer Marian West Veilleux joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women podcast, explaining how dance is redemptive and a beautiful expression in which to glorify God, and how it truly embodies the Theology of the Body (with beautiful lessons from brother, Christopher West).
Marian West Veilleux graduated Summa Cum Laude from DeSales University, with her B.A. in Dance, and then moved to New York City, where she became licensed as a massage therapist. She danced with St. Michael’s Warriors Dance Co., a Catholic, hip-hop dance company, and studied under Lori Belilove of the Isadora Duncan Dance Foundation. After several years of teaching and performing, Marian embarked on a 14-month mission of compassion in Brooklyn with Heart’s Home. Now, having returned to her hometown of Lancaster, PA, Marian lives her call as a wife, daughter, sister, auntie, Godmama, friend, and pray-er. She values heartfelt, authentic connection and offers her work, integrating the beauties of dance, song, and massage therapy to touch heart, body, mind, and soul with the compassion of Christ.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

Why body issues/eating disorders have become synonymous with dance/gymnastics/figure skating
Marian's personal journey with an eating disorder
How can our faith oppose tendencies to become obsessive/compulsive with our figure
Dance as an expression of praise, contrasted with immodest expression meant to attract negative attention
Volunteer work/charity as a way to stay grounded/overcome focus on self
Surrounding yourself with family and friends who are able to reflect truth
Having courage to seek help and encountering beauty in redemption

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Theology of the Body
Reckless Love by Cory Asbury
Breaking Free from Food Addiction
From the First Bite
Overeaters Anonymous
Letter to Artists
Cavod Academy of the Arts
33 Days to Merciful Love

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Visual pornography...not just for men? That's right. I was shocked to learn of the narrowing of the "gender gap" in the porn industry - viewers, marketing, and female porn film directors. The objectification of persons through the porn industry is pervasive in our culture, and it does not discriminate. "We could say we are literally rewiring women to become more like broken men."

Pornography is an intentional depiction - either visual, written, or oral - that explicitly attempts to make a person use another human being as means of their own selfish sexual gratification."

Steve Pokorny joins me on this episode of The Dignity of Women. Steve is the founder of Freedom Coaching, a one-on-one mentoring system designed to break the attraction to pornified images. After struggling with this compulsion for more than 12 years, by the grace of God he was set free. Now Steve Pokorny helps others to embrace their true identity as beloved sons and daughter of God and to live as a gift for others.

Pornography is changing everything. The way men view women, the way women view themselves, the relationship between spouses, the popular understanding of love and sexuality - all of these have become skewed to a tremendous degree because of the pervasiveness of pornography. We are losing the ability to interact with one another in a healthy manner, and the effects are palpable."

Episode Highlights

Pornography in the culture - women and men
Altered bodies of women become norm - men less sexually responsive to real women
Pornography changes the way women view themselves (ugly, unworthy, unattractive)
Confusion of function (breastfeeding) and sexualization
Beauty is necessary for life - should embrace and not run from beauty
Sacred art as the remedy of compulsion of pornography
Importance of the image of Mary breastfeeding Jesus in transformation

Links and Resources

Redeemed Vision - Setting the Blind Free from the Pornified Culture
Freedom Coaching
Catechism of the Catholic Church No. 2354
Wired for Intimacy: How Pornography Hijacks the Male Brain
Theology of the Body
Love and Responsibility
Letter to Artists
The Virgin of the Green Cushion


 A person who does not know love cannot give love."

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There's no question that music speaks to us - it possesses a great power to capture our attention, stir up emotions, and inspire beauty. There are certainly misuses of the gift of music as well. The band His Own address that.
Just look at the distortion of the fallen angels from heaven. We've all heard music that evokes anger or intends to fill us with fear, or even arouse sexual feelings (movie soundtracks). Yet banning rock music and dancing, as was done in popular 1980's movie Footloose is certainly not a proper response.
Singer and pianist Maria Spears joins me on this first episode of The Dignity of Women podcast, explaining the ministry of her band His Own, and how they use music to inspire women with the truth that they are infinitely loved and worth so much more than the culture is selling.

His Own was formed by three friends who wanted to combine their love for Jesus, passion for music and desire to proclaim the joy of the feminine heart. In a world where women are exploited, misused, and misguided, we desire that our music and ministry will inspire women to come before the Lord as they are, to encounter His unique love for them, and to be reminded of the eternal measure of their feminine dignity and worth."


Episode Highlights

Addressing the greatest unfulfilled longing of the modern woman's heart
What is the feminine genius - what makes us unique as women
Battle against perfection and the perfect body image
Need for authentic masculinity and femininity
How can women set the bar for men and society
How do you teach a woman that she doesn't need to earn love


Links and Resources

40-Day Devotional for Single Catholic Women
Life is Worth Living by Archbishop Fulton Sheen


“When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more noble her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms o


f the level of its women.”





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Angela Perez Baraquio was the first Asian woman to win the Miss America competition. As the eighth of ten children, Angela is the daughter of Filipino immigrants. Her parents immigrated from Pangasinan, Philippines to Hawaii, where she was raised. A faithful Catholic, Baraquio leaned on her faith through pageantry, tragic loss, illness, and family life. Angela Perez Baraquio joins me on The Dignity of Women to share the valuable lessons that she has learned and now implements at the Catholic school where she is principal.




















Me, Angela, and Michelle Hillaert






Angela Perez Baraquio 
Growing up as the daughter of two teachers, Angela always aspired to follow their lead into the classroom. Her second-grade teacher was another inspiration to her, creating a life-long impression. Finally fulfilling this dream as athletic director and elementary P.E. teacher at Holy Family Catholic Academy in Honolulu, she was challenged by two of her students to enter the Miss Hawaii competition, which she had already entered twice and had no plans to enter again. Accepting their challenge, Baraquio went on to became the first teacher to win the title of Miss Hawaii 2000. This would not be Angela's last time overcoming odds.
Angela went on to represent Hawaii in the Miss America 2001 competition and became the first Asian to win the Miss America title since the pageant’s inception in 1921. Baraquio's original intention in joining beauty pageants was to supplement her higher education. The two pageants together netted $14,000 in college scholarship money,  which she used to complete her bachelor’s degree in elementary education. The $81,000 scholarship assistance she received as a prize for winning the Miss American pageant went towards her master’s degree in educational administration.
Baraquio married her High School sweetheart, Tinifuloa Grey, in 2002, who is a Polynesian musician. Together, Grey and Baraquio have five children and live in California where Angela is the principal of St. Anthony of Padua School in Los Angeles county. Baraquio is outspoken about her pro-life views and has put her Catholic values above her fame, refusing calendar shoots and television roles that compromise her beliefs. 




















Angela and husband Tinifuloa 













Platform
Baraquio used her platform to promote her advocacy of “Character in the Classroom: Teaching Values, Valuing Teachers.” She believes that it is not enough to just aim for high grades. What is more important are the values instilled in the students and their character education. Negative behaviors of students can be turned around in an environment of trust, in which adults model good character traits.
 













Angela crowning my little guy!

















Tragedy, Loss, Illness
Five years after winning the Miss America pageant, and a few days before delivering her second child, Angela's younger brother Alfred committed suicide. This period of loss shook the Baraquio family and tested their faith. They went to counseling together and a priest walked them through the anxiety surrounding the state of Alfred's soul. This eventually allowed them to have hope and eventually peace in spite of the incredible pain of his loss. 
The Baraquia's would again face suffering when Angela's older sister Bernadette contracted and went through treatment for breast cancer. Two years later, Angela herself discovered that she also had breast cancer. Thankfully, she and her sister are both currently in remission.

“Here I was—a former Miss America who loves my hair!—going through hair loss and chemo. It was brutal. Laughing was the only way I could keep from crying.”

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Better Way Designs is a Michigan based company making a real impact on those freed from the sex trafficking industry. Through 9 world-wide supplier locations, Better Way Designs purchases and resells the products made by those who have been freed.  Melanie Schmiedicke joins me on The Dignity of Women to share how she became a freedom fighter and how the emphasis of this mission is on dignity rather than charity. 















Melanie Schmiedicke
The daughter of Ukrainian immigrants, Melanie (Fedoryka) Schmiedicke was trained from a young age in classical violin, and performed with her family in concerts across the country. She spent her high-school years in Austria and eventually graduated from Franciscan University and continued to travel and live in various places abroad and here in the US. Now married with four children, she is passing her love for music on to her children, and still enjoys traveling, as well as baking, knitting, and working with others to create freedom for women through her Better Way business. 
















Shop Here!













Better Way Designs

"Trafficking is a BIG problem. So, we want to be a MASSIVE part of the solution. That is why we have chosen to partner with over 15 other organizations in over 9 different countries to FIGHT it!"

Better Way Designs is a traveling marketplace for many who have been silenced for too long. They recognized that many Americans were willing to purchase, as well as develop freedom businesses of their own, in supporting this mission. Better Way committed to buying and selling products, and then coming back again and again for more. They wanted to keep those freed from sex trafficking employed and believed that it could be done by good business practices. That's why Better Way Designs is certified by the Fair-Trade Federation and are a certified B-corporation.

"One of our favorite attributes is that Better Way allows ANYONE to be involved in the fight."

Whether purchasing, booking a freedom party or becoming a Freedom Fighter, this is a way for Americans to get involved and make tangible differences. Each purchase generates a certain amount of work hours for a woman, indicated in the catalog next to each item. These hours translate directly into income for her and her children, and the greater the demand for her work, the more stability she can enjoy. 

"Most who work for our suppliers are given health care, child care, education and an opportunity to experience independence. With safe working environments and an opportunity to create impactful relationships, you can see why this is much more than a job. This is dignity in its most active form."
















Shop Here!




































Countries:
IndiaCambodiaThailandNepalBoliviaBangladeshUSUndisclosed area in Middle EastUndisclosed area in Asia

















Freedom Fighter
If you choose to go a step beyond just purchasing products from Better Way Designs, they offer the opportunity to become a freedom fighter.
This is considered the greatest level of impact on those seeking freedom. It also provides income for the freedom fighter, and therefore can become a business for them. This is not only an opportunity to work for freedom, but alongside others who are doing the same thing. You literally become business partners with women around the world who are freed from sex trafficking and making the products!
Imagine spending your work hours to create sustainable freedom for others around the world. Working for a Fair-Trade organization bent on advancing the concept of dignity to those who were once caught in the sex trade by empowering women to run the...

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Archduke Imre and Archduchess Kathleen of Austria credit their own love story and the continuing example for their marriage and family life to their saintly ancestors; Blessed Karl and Servant of God Zita of Austria. The Archduke and Archduchess join me on The Dignity of Women to share their own story and what the legacy of Karl and Zita has taught them, and can teach all of us!






















Blessed Karl
Karl was born on August 17, 1887 to Archduke Otto and Princess Maria Josephine of Saxony. A deep devotion to the Holy Eucharist and to the Sacred Heart of Jesus began to grow in Charles and he turned to prayer before making any important decisions. Karl married Princess Zita of Bourbon and Parma on October 21, 1911, and the couple had eight children. Their marriage and family life were inspirational and Charles died saying to Zita, "I'll love you forever."  





































Emperor of Peace
On June 28, 1914 Charles became heir to the throne of the Austro‑Hungarian Empire , following the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand. He would be the last Emperor of the Austria-Hungarian Empire.
Charles approached his royal duty as a way to follow Christ, showing love and care to the peoples entrusted to him, and in dedicating his life to them.
He placed the most sacred duty of a king - a commitment to peace - at the center of his preoccupations during the course of WWI and was the only political leader to support Benedict XV's peace efforts.
Two attempts to re-establish authority in Hungry failed after the war. Wishing above all to avoid civil war, Charles was exiled to the island of Madeira, but since he considered his duty as a mandate from God, he could not abdicate his office.
Karl and Zita were reduced to poverty, and they lived in exile until he fell fatally ill. Accepting an early death in exile as a sacrifice for the peace and unity of his peoples, Karl forgave all those who conspired against him and died on April 1, 1922 with his eyes turned toward the Holy Sacrament. On his deathbed he repeated the motto of his life: "I strive always in all things to understand as clearly as possible and follow the will of God, and this in the most perfect way”.
 











Zita of Austria-Hungry
Born May 9, 1892, Zita was the last Empress. She is said to have had an energetic personality, unbending will, and superior intellect. She accompanied and influenced her husband in many important decisions, but above all, they clung to a unity in their shared Catholic faith. When Karl's peace initiative failed, Zita was vilified as a traitor by German Nationalists because of her Bourbon descent. She went with her husband into exile and was his greatest support throughout. After his death, Zita raised their eight children and defended their dynastic rights. 

"Thanks to her authority, the former empress became the central figure in the Habsburg-Lorraine family in the difficult times after the loss of the crown.During the Second World War, which she spent in exile in Canada, she became an influential advocate for the restoration of Austria’s independence, but after 1945 she mainly focused her energies on the beatification process for her late husband.
Reconciliation with the Republic of Austria was finally achieved in 1982, when the former empress, who had been denied entry to Austria, was allowed to set foot on Austrian soil for the first time again on the initiative of Federal Chancellor Bruno Kreisky.Zita died on 14 March 1989 in Zizers at the age of 96. She was interred according to Habsburg dynastic tradition in the crypt of the Church of the Capuchin Friars in Vienna. However, her heart was buried in the new Habsburg family crypt at Muri Abbey in the northern Swiss canton of Aargau,

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Ortrud and Dr. Germain Bianchi have an extraordinary story of being joined together by the famous Italian stigmatist priest, Saint Padre Pio! Ortrud joins me on The Dignity of Women to tell how she came to find her Catholic faith, befriend the saint who would change her life forever, and ultimately how that saint would lead her to her future husband.







Ortrud Bianchi
Ortrud Bianchi was born in 1945 in Ronsperg, Czech Republic as the youngest of six children. Her family settled in a small town in Germany for a few years until her parents divorced when she was only five years old. Her mother’s difficult life as a divorcee convinced her that she would never marry. Although Ortrud grew up without a religious atmosphere at home, she received religious instruction at school and the sacraments of the Catholic Church.
When Ortrud was a teenager, her maternal grandmother died unexpectedly and her mother traveled to Austria for the funeral, deciding to remain there permanently. There Ortrud's mother returned with fervor to her Catholic faith after the loss of her mother, and began to fast and pray for the return of her six children to the faith as well.
Meanwhile, Ortrud moved in with her oldest sister and brother-in-law in Landshut, Germany to finish her schooling and often visited her mother in Austria on school vacations. She strongly resisted her mother's new mission to convert her however, and even threatened to stop visiting if she kept talking about religion. Although her mother remained silent on the matter, she handed Ortrud a pamphlet with Jesus on the cover as their next visit came to a close. Despite accepting the pamphlet in order to avoid an argument with her mother, Ortrud avoided it until Easter vacation was about to begin. She decided to read one small page of the pamphlet in order to appease her mother at their upcoming visit.
She was home alone when she finally opened the pamphlet from the diary of the Polish nun, Saint Faustina Kowalska, randomly. Jesus' words to Sister Faustina hit her like lightning as He explained that His mercy was greater than any human or angelic mind could fathom and invited every soul, no matter how sinful, to draw close to His merciful heart. Ortrud realized in that moment that Jesus loved her more than she could imagine and was convicted that she didn't want to be indifferent to Him anymore. She was overwhelmed by deep emotions of contrition and felt a force that brought her to her knees as she cried out over and over, “Jesus, from now on, I want to be your friend.”
The next morning was Sunday and to her sister and brother-in-law's great shock, Ortrud woke up early and went alone to church for confession and Mass, never missing another Sunday Mass again!





































Meeting Padre Pio
 By 1964, Ortrud was living with her mother in Austria. Two years later, the family had planned to meet in Rome for her brother's wedding. When the documents for his wedding disappeared, Ortrud's mother decided to seize the opportunity for the family to use their time together to visit a holy monk named Padre Pio, who had the stigmata and lived near Rome, in San Giovanni Rotondo.
At first, Ortrud was excited to see a saint, but their first experience was Padre Pio’s 5:00 a.m. Mass, in which people were pushing and shoving so much that her brother-in-law lost his shoe, another person’s glasses flew off their face, and people were racing down the middle aisle and jumping over the pews in such a frenzy that it seemed more like a sporting event. When Padre Pio entered the sanctuary, he looked old, weak and sickly. Ortrud felt sorry for him and for the misled people who seemed more devoted to him than to Jesus and Mary. As she watched Padre Pio celebrate Mass, she was disappointed that nothing extraordinary happened, even inside of her.

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Sr. Mary Madeline Todd serves on the Board of Directors for the GIVEN Institute. She joins me on The Dignity of Women to talk about the need for Catholic Women Leaders in our culture and how young women are being formed through continuing mentorship at GIVEN. 







Sr. Mary Madeline Todd
 
Sister Mary Madeline Todd, O.P., S.T.D., a Dominican Sister of the Congregation of Saint Cecilia, serves as Chair of the Philosophy Department at Mount de Sales Academy and Adjunct Professor of Theology at Aquinas College in Nashville.
Sister earned her doctorate at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and a Master of Arts in English from the University of Memphis. Her dissertation was on Christ, The Liberator of Woman, a study of the theology of Mulieris Dignitatem in light of current questions.
Sister Mary Madeline writes on spiritual and moral theology and speaks on both theological and literary topics internationally. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the GIVEN Institute and St. Agnes Catholic School. Her retreat and parish mission ministry has been a graced opportunity to share the light of Christ's merciful love from Australia to Alaska. 




















 
What is Given?
 
When deciding what to call this initiative, our founding Sisters began with the reality that all we have has been given to us by God: our faith, our hope, our love, our gifts, our destiny, our lives—everything–is freely given to us by God. The GIVEN Institute explores the feminine response to God’s love, to illuminate the “the feminine genius” that women contribute to families, society, the Church, and the world.  We desire to help women receive the gift that they are, realize the gifts they’ve been given, and respond with the gift that only they can give.
The GIVEN Institute was established in February 2018 and has its origin in the 2016 GIVEN Catholic Young Women’s Leadership Forum, organized by the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious. Sister Mary Gabriel, SV and Sister Bethany Madonna, SV, Co-Chairs of the 2016 GIVEN Forum, conceived of the idea to host a leadership forum for young women throughout the United States with the aim of helping them to “receive the gift they are, realize the gifts they’ve been given, and respond with the gift that only they can give.”
Mother Agnes Mary Donovan, Superior General of the Sisters of Life and an organizer of the event, said “GIVEN was conceived in the hearts of women religious and remains a significant response on the part of the Church to encourage, inspire, and mentor young women at a crucial moment in their lives. We want each of them to know they are loved, noticed, and necessary.”
The 2016 GIVEN Forum brought together nearly 300 young adult women from every state in the country, and connected them with some of the leading women in the Church. The attendees were accompanied by over 70 religious sisters from more than 25 different religious communities. Each participant developed a post-forum action plan that they implemented in a community of their choice. The GIVEN Institute was formed to continue the inaugural forum’s mission of activating the gifts of young adult women for the Catholic Church and the world. 
 























 
  EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 
 

What is the Theology of Women?
How is GIVEN responding to the need for Catholic Women Leaders?
Why is mentorship important?
What is the difference between feminine and masculine gifts?
How do you live out your spiritual maternity through your religious vocation?






LINKS AND RESOURCES 
 

The Given Institute
GIVEN Academy
Women on Mission







SOCIAL MEDIA
Join our social media discussion group: The Dignity of Women Facebook page







MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

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Marjorie Dannenfelser leads the Susan B. Anthony list and works tirelessly to secure pro-life votes at all levels, to ensure that "Life is Winning" in the United States of America. She joins me on The Dignity of Women to discuss pro-life politics and her unexpected conversion to the Donald Trump ticket, after many initial hesitations, and what led her to strongly pledge her support.







Marjorie Dannenfelser
 
Marjorie Dannenfelser is president of Susan B. Anthony List. Over the last three election cycles, SBA List and its super PAC, Women Speak Out, have reached more than 4.6 million voters by visiting voters at their homes to win a pro-life White House and secure a pro-life majority in the U.S. Senate. In January 2020, Dannenfelser was named national co-chair of the Pro-Life Voices for Trump coalition, a role she held during the 2016 campaign after securing four groundbreaking pro-life commitments from the nominee.
Dannenfelser is the author of “Life is Winning: Inside the Fight for Unborn Children and Their Mothers.” She has been published widely including in TIME, The Washington Post, and National Review and profiled by New York Magazine, The Telegraph, The New Yorker, and The Washington Post. She serves on the board of Alliance Defending Freedom, on Life Perspectives’ Task Force, and was appointed to the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission by Senate Leader McConnell. She was named one of Politico Magazine’s Top 50 Influencers of 2018, Washington Examiner’s top ten “Political Women on the Move,” Newsmax’s top 25 Most Influential Republican Women, and Newsweek’s top ten “Leaders of the Christian Right.”
An alumna of Duke University, she and her husband Marty live in Arlington, Virginia, and have five children.




















 
Life is Winning
 
Ahead of the pivotal 2020 elections, momentum is building across America to revisit the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that struck down laws protecting unborn children and their mothers nationwide.
Life is Winning tells the story of how the pro-life cause went from an orphaned political “problem” to a winning issue embraced at the highest levels of the Republican Party, thanks to a small-but-ambitious group of pro-life women. These women took on Washington’s consultant class and in the process built a multimillion-dollar campaign and lobbying powerhouse with more than 900,000 grassroots members nationwide.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony List and leading architect of the pro-life strategy that helped propel then-candidate Donald Trump to his stunning victory in 2016, gives inside perspective on how her own pro-life conversion – and the President’s – resembles the national sea change happening today, and why the end of abortion and restoration of life in America is closer than ever before.
 























 
  EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS 
 

The Susan B. Anthony List and the political fight for life
Pro-Life Politics
Marjorie's conversion to the Trump ticket and why?
Planned Parenthood
Election 2020






LINKS AND RESOURCES 
 

The Susan B. Anthony List
Life is Winning
Amy Coney Barrett as a person of character
How to Donate!







SOCIAL MEDIA
Join our social media discussion group: The Dignity of Women Facebook page







MORE WAYS TO LISTEN

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