60 Second Reflections » Seize the Day
Tuesday, June 14, 2017
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Today is St. Anthony of Padua‘s feast day so Gus dedicates the show to him. After giving a little background on the revered saint, which includes being the patron saint of lost articles, people and souls, Gus listeners about a time in their lives when they lost something, prayed to St. Anthony and found it. […]
Monday, June 13, 2017
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Gus starts off eulogizing a dear friend of his who passed away last week, Marie Bobak, who was the funeral director at his old parish. Afterwards, Gus asks listeners to call in and share how and what they pray after communion. And, it wouldn’t be a Monday without a little Tell Me Something Good. Eternal rest […]
Friday, June 9, 2017
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Gus talks about a statement made recently by German Cardinal Walter Kasper about how the world needs a more “evangelical Catholicism and Catholic Protestantism” to build on unity grounded in baptism. After talking about his experience in an evangelical church, Gus takes suggestions from listeners on how we, as Catholics, can better do that. And, […]
Thursday, June 8, 2017
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Based on today’s first reading from Tobit, which talks about the marriage of Tobiah and Sarah, and how the two prayed together for its sanctity, Gus talks to listeners about the importance of couple prayer and what it can do for a marriage. Gus challenges his married, and dating, listeners to the 30-Day Prayer Challenge, where the two […]
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
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Gus talks to Matt Loboda whose daughter Joy made headlines earlier a few months back when she suffered a near drowning incident, which stopped her heart for 30 minutes. Miraculously, she was revived and has made a full recovery. Matt tells Gus the story. Afterward, Gus talks with listeners who’ve experienced a close call or near-death experience […]
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
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Gus remembers his sister Nancy who died from cancer three years ago today under Gus and Michelle’s care. It still chokes him up just thinking about it. He later talks to listeners who were, or are, caregivers to a loved one with cancer. Also, Gus sits down in the Conversion Corner with Emily Stimpson Chapman, a […]
Monday, June 5, 2017
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Gus is back live from his Spain & Portugal pilgrimage and he talks about some of the things they did in their final couple days. He also talks about Pentecost Sunday and the start of Ordinary Time. Later, Gus tackles President Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord last week and he goes […]
Thursday & Friday, June 1-2, 2017
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Gus’s pilgrimage in Spain and Portugal continues on. We’re all done with new shows for today and tomorrow, so Gus and the pilgrims can focus on their final days abroad, but we are playing some of our favorite moments from the past two weeks. Gus will be back Monday morning, live from Tampa so be […]
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
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Gus kicks off today’s show by talking with his wife Michelle about her impressions of Portugal. She talks with Gus about walking the Camino de Santiago, praying the Rosary at Fatima and the several God moments she’s had over the course of the pilgrimage. Later, Gus talks with pilgrims Erica Choy and Cathy Leddy Codner […]
Tuesday, May 30, 2017
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Gus and Fr. Leo talk about their pilgrimage weekend, which was action packed. They walked a portion of the Camino de Santiago, visited the cathedral there and witnessed its famous botafumiero (pictured below), which is a giant incense-burning censer that is swung from the ceiling over the heads of those in attendance for mass. They […]
Friday, May 26, 2017
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Gus kicks off Day 4 in the bus where he plays a spirited round of “Pilgrimage Jeopardy” to see who’s retained the most knowledge thus far. Then, Gus talks to two very special pilgrims, Fr. Leo Patalinghug’s parents and, later, Mike and Maria Bridges. Mike, also known as Sarge, talks about his conversion to the Catholic faith following […]
Thursday, May 25, 2017
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On Day 3 in Salmanca, Gus gets to know many of the pilgrims today. First, he talks with mother/daughter pilgrims Tricia and Alice Nelson who were last minute entrants into the pilgrimage. Tricia’s other daughter, Kelly, died a few months back and they talk with Gus about her last days and how they’re dedicating this pilgrimage […]
Wednesday May 24, 2017
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Gus and Fr. Leo are in Avila, Spain and they start off discussing the meeting earlier today between President Donald Trump and Pope Francis. Later, Gus does a Conversion Corner segment with pilgrims Dave and Holly Benefield and the experience of being in Madrid when the Real Madrid soccer team won the La Liga title and how they […]
Tuesday, May 23, 2017
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It’s Day 1 of the Spain & Portugal pilgrimage and Gus talks about meeting the pilgrims at the airport in Madrid. Gus talks at length with several of them about their respective faith journeys, including Tom and Gale Flynn. Tom had a miracle healing in 2008 and he also shares that inspirational story. Later, Gus […]
Monday, May 22, 2017
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It’s Day 0 of the Spain & Portugal and Pilgrimage. Gus and Michelle arrive a day ahead of the pilgrims. They talk about why they chose this location and what they’re expecting on this pilgrimage. Later, Gus’s tour companion Fr. Leo Patalinghug arrives and talks with Gus about Spain and Portugal’s deep Catholic heritage and, together, […]
Friday, May 19, 2017
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After a friend of Gus’s family experienced a medical miracle, Gus asks listeners to call in who’ve experienced a medical miracle of their own. And, John Knutsen sits down with Gus in the Conversion Corner. John, a convert from atheism, grew up the youngest child in a Catholic family but his faith waned after his […]
Thursday, May 18, 2017
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Building off of yesterday’s caller segment where Gus talked with listeners about following a priest to a parish after he’s been moved, Gus asks listeners how long they think a priest or pastor should stay at a parish. And, Gus talks again about how women are coming off oral contraception because of health reasons and […]
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
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Fr. Andrew Small, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies, calls in to talk about MISSIO, a unique new Catholic crowdfunding platform designed to make a difference for the poor and forgotten around the world. Also, Gus takes on a couple hot topics. First, it’s that time of the year where priests are transitioned to […]
Tuesday, May 16, 2017
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Gus went to a different parish this past weekend because he was out of town and he noticed that the guy sitting in front of him had about three different prayer postures for his hands, so he asks listeners how they fold their hands at mass and if they hold hands during the Our Father […]
Monday, May 15, 2017
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Gus talks about a particular incident that took place over the weekend. He was in Myrtle Beach, helping his son Patrick move into his new apartment when Gus told him about a struggle he’s having with a friend. Gus said something out of character and Patrick called him out, spiritually. Gus asks listeners about a time in […]
Friday, May 12, 2017
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It’s Mothers Day on Seize the Day so Gus opens the phone lines to mothers, or those who wish to honor their mothers. Callers who get on the air get a Seize the Day prize which they can either keep for themselves or give to their mothers. At the end of the program, Gus pays tribute […]
Thursday, May 12, 2017
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Catholic News Agency recently ran an article with the headline “France’s new president is a “zombie Catholic,” which means that, although raised Catholic, its teachings play a very minor in his life, although he still identifies himself as such. The term was coined by two French sociologists, Emmanuel Todd and Hervé Le Bras, and Gus asks listeners what […]
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
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Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle calls in to talk about her new book, “Our Lady of Fatima: 100 Years of Stories, Devotions, and Prayers,” which is especially poignant as Bls. Francisco and Jacinta, two of the three children who Our Lady of Fatima visited in 1917, are being canonized by Pope Francis this weekend. Gus also revisits […]
Tuesday, May 9, 2017
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What Catholic feast day is special for you? Gus matches callers, dates and feast days. He invites listeners to call in and either share a special feast day for them, or if there’s a special date for them and would like to know what saint has a feast day that day, Gus tells them. Also, Gus […]
Monday, May 8, 2017
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Gus talks about how he learned from his deacon friend the other day that the vast number of times “shepherd” is mentioned in the Gospel. It’s something new he never knew before. He invites listeners to call in and talk about times they learned something new, and it doesn’t necessarily have to have a religious […]
Friday, May 5, 2017
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Gus plays some clips from the White House rose garden yesterday where President Donald Trump spoke about the religious freedom executive order he signed, which allows certain protections from the federal government and a relaxing of the Johnson Amendment, which prevented religious institutions from preaching politics from the pulpit. Gus is joined by Becket Fund […]
Thursday, May 4, 2017
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Gus talks about the recent announcement made by Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas Archbishop Joseph Naumann that they’d be severing ties with the Girl Scouts of America because of their ties to Planned Parenthood and would now join with the American Heritage Girls. Gus gets listener reaction. Also, today is the National Day of […]
Wednesday, May 3, 2017
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Former NBA All-Star Caron Butler (pictured below) joins Gus in our NY studio to talk about how his troubled youth took a turn for the better after being arrested 15 times before turning 15. While incarcerated at a youth detention center in his home state of Wisconsin, Caron started reading a Bible his grandmother had given […]
Tuesday, May 5, 2017
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Following the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker yesterday, Gus talks about being evangelists of our faith in the workplace. He takes calls from listeners about how they display their faith at their workplace. Later, Fr. Timothy Reid (pictured below) joins Gus in the Conversion Corner and shares his amazing conversion story, which ultimately led him to the […]
Monday, May 1, 2017
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Gus starts off talking about the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, which is today. He goes a little bit into the history. The feast day was begun in 1955, by Pope Pius XII, who installed it as a counter measure towards the rise of communism. Several communist nations celebrated the worker every May 1st, […]
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
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Catholic author Bret Thoman joins us from Italy where he is in the midst of walking the Camino of Saint Benedict, a walking trail from St. Benedict’s birthplace, Norcia, to the monastery where he died and where his body is kept, Montecassino. He’s doing this to draw awareness to the damage caused by last year’s devastating earthquake […]
Monday, April 24, 2017
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Over the weekend, one of Gus’s nieces got married. Also, his daughter and son-in-law celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary over the weekend. Gus talks with listeners about their wedding day memories. And, it wouldn’t be a Seize the Day Monday without a little Tell Me Something Good!
Friday, April 21, 2017
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Billy Kangas sits down with Gus in the Conversion Corner. Billy was raised in the Lutheran faith and his conversion began when he started asking himself tough questions about the nature of authority in his own denomination, but couldn’t quite buy the idea of papal authority. Gradually, he came around. Check out Billy’s recent appearance on […]
Thursday, April 20, 2017
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Today, Gus talks about the First Reading from today’s mass, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, where St. Peter, at Solomon’s portico, addressed those in attendance about Jesus and how they handed him over to Pilate in their ignorance. Afterwards, Gus talks with listeners about times in their lives when they were ignorant in […]
Wednesday, April 19, 2017
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Gus talks about two suicides that took place over the last two days. First, former NE Patriots TE Aaron Hernandez was found hanging in his jail cell this morning. Second, Steve Stephens, the Facebook killer who killed 74-year-old Robert Godwin (pictured below) in cold blood and posted the video on Facebook, took his own life during a […]
Tuesday, April 18, 2017
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Catholic speaker/author Christopher West calls in to talk about his new free eBook “Theology of the Body at the Movies,” where he reviews 26 secular movies that have deeper spiritual meanings than most of us realize. Afterwards, Gus talks with listeners about what movie had a deep spiritual impact on them. Also, Gus talks about the […]
Monday, April 17, 2017
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It’s two days after the Saturday Easter Vigil, where Catholics going through RCIA are confirmed (and baptized in some cases), so Gus invites newly-minted Catholics to call in and share their experience. And, Steve Baker of Baker Architects calls in to talk about Catholic architecture and why it’s important for our edification and why modern churches […]
Thursday, April 13, 2017
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It’s Holy Thursday and Lent is over, but not necessarily for us. For our final Lenten 40/40/40, Leslie Tardoff, executive director of Save a Family Plan, joins us to talk about their mission, which is a commitment to poverty reduction in India through sustainable development and the overall strengthening of families and communities. Also, Dr. […]
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
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Gus talks about two bishops who gave conflicting statement on churches being sanctuaries for illegal immigrants. Manchester, New Hampshire Bishop Peter Libasci said his diocese will not allow illegal immigrants to take refuge by living in its churches and suffer criminal prosecution and fines for harboring those not in this country legally. Conversely, Bishop Robert […]
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
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We’re almost to the end of Lent and Gus talks about what his has been like and gives himself a letter grade. Afterwards, he invites listeners to call in and give their Lenten letter grades. And, for our Lenten 40/40/40 Project, Sister Constance Veit of the Little Sisters of the Poor calls in to talk about […]
Monday, April 10, 2017
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Gus talks about the Passion Narrative from the Gospel of Matthew at yesterday’s mass. Usually the priest, two readers, and the crowd at mass read it, but at Gus’s church, only the deacon read everything. He asks listeners what their experience yesterday was like. Also, Carla Dobrovits, director of Reece’s Rainbow, calls in to participate in our […]
Friday, April 7, 2017
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For our Lenten 40/40/40 Project today, Gus talks with Jon Radulovic, vice president of National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, talks about hospice and how our listeners can contribute to them or to their local hospice care in a variety of ways. To contribute to the NHPCO, click here. Afterward, Gus talks with listeners who’ve had experience […]
Thursday, April 6, 2017
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Pam Moffitt, president and founder of Tree of Hope Foundation, calls in for our Lenten 40/40/40 Project, which specializes in post-partum depression awareness. To help support Tree of Hope Foundation, click here. Also, Gus talks about Sunday homilies and what people think of the ones they hear on a weekly basis and whether or not […]
Wednesday, April 5, 2017
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Tom Basile joins Gus in studio. Tom talks about his new book “Tough Sell: Fighting the Media War in Iraq,” which talks about his time in Iraq, during President George W. Bush’s administration, helping implement a free society and the criticism they encountered from the American media. Afterwards, Tom stays for our Lenten 40/40/40 and tells our listeners about a […]
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
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Gus talks about Fr. Tony Flannery’s comments that people are leaving the Catholic Church because of its teachings on the Holy Trinity, the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Immaculate Conception. He feels they no longer make sense. Fr. Flannery (pictured below) has been suspended by the Vatican since 2013. Gus gets listener reaction. And, as […]
Monday, April 3, 2017
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Gus talks about the furor over the realization the Vice President Mike Pence never dines alone with a female or goes near alcohol without his wife present. Several people, mostly on the left, criticized the VP’s practice, calling it sexist, misogynistic and chauvinistic. Gus gives his take on it, which is supportive of the VP’s stance, […]
Friday, March 31, 2017
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Bill LeMire, of the Laboure Society, calls in for today’s Lenten 40/40/40 Project. The Laboure Society specializes in assists men and women seeking the religious life eliminate their student debt so they can enter the seminary or convent. Gus also talks with listeners about Lenten family traditions and prayers they doing each season and it’s […]
Thursday, March 30, 2017
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Gus talks with Fr. Bismark Chou, pastor of St. John’s Parish in Newark, NJ. Fr. Chou also runs St. John’s Soup Kitchen (pictured below) and, for our Lenten 40/40/40 Project, he talks with Gus about the work they do, who they help and how they can assist them or their local soup kitchen. To donate to […]
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
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We honor our non-Catholic listeners today when Gus invites those who aren’t Catholic to talk about their current faith denomination, if any, and why they listen to the Catholic Channel. Also, Gus talks about night two at the St. Timothy Parish Mission, including an attendee who approached him and asked him if God would forgive […]
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
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Ed Clancy of Aid to the Church in Need joins Gus for our Lenten 40/40/40 Project. Aid to the Church in Need is an international Catholic charity under the guidance of the Holy Father whose mission is to help suffering and persecuted faithful worldwide. To give to Aid to the Church in Need, click here. […]