Host Bo Bonner returns from sabbatical on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul to explore Pope Leo XIV's June prayer intention for the value of sports with Dowling Catholic chaplain Fr. Reed Flood. The show then travels north to the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion, where John Paul Brissette previews the first-of-its-kind "Catholic Saints of America" exhibit honoring 76 American holy men and women for the nation's 250th anniversary. Plus daily news, sports, weather, the Saint of the Day, and a gospel reflection from Fr. Nick Smith on Iowa Catholic Radio.
Bo Bonner is back. After roughly six weeks away — including travel in the UK during the World Cup — Bo Bonner returns to the host chair alongside Alexia Baker, Brady Grimm, and Ayden Pugh on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul.
Segment 1 – The Value of Sports with Fr. Reed Flood. Dowling Catholic High School chaplain and Diocese of Des Moines assistant vocations director Fr. Reed Flood joins the show to unpack Pope Leo XIV's June prayer intention "for the values of sports," timed to the FIFA World Cup. Fr. Flood reflects on sport as a school of virtue, the Greek idea of eutrapelia (good play), the link between play and the liturgy (drawing on Josef Pieper and Romano Guardini), and practical ways families can pray through their fandom — including praying for athletes to become saints. He also points listeners to the upcoming Ad Astra high school youth conference hosted by Serva Fidem: servafidem.org. Learn more about the Holy Father's monthly intentions through the Pope's Worldwide Prayer Network.
Segment 2 – Catholic Saints of America with John Paul Brissette. John Paul Brissette, director of communications for the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in Wisconsin — the first and only approved Marian apparition site in the United States — previews the Catholic Saints of America exhibit, July 1–9, honoring 76 saints, blesseds, venerables, and servants of God for the nation's 250th anniversary. Highlights include 14 relics available for public veneration, daily speakers, a children's scavenger hunt, an All-American picnic hosted by the Knights of Columbus (July 5), and a Novena for Our Nation beginning July 1. The shrine is about four to six hours from most of Iowa, roughly 20 minutes outside Green Bay. Full details and novena sign-up: championshrine.org/AmericanSaints.
Also on the show: daily headlines and diocesan news, a Monday sports update, an extreme-heat-warning weather forecast, the Saint of the Day for Saints Peter and Paul, and a gospel reflection from Fr. Nick Smith, pastor of St. Patrick's in Perry.
Miss a segment? Catch the full show and every interview on the Catholic Morning Show podcast page at IowaCatholicRadio.com.
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