Outside The Walls With Timothy Putnam

Greg Metzger is the Associate Publisher at New City Press, part of Focalare Media, the communications arm of the Focolare movement. He's written for a variety of publications, including Christianity Today, Commonweal, and Christian Century. He lives with his wife in Pasadena, CA. He joins us to talk about the new book of Pope Francis's meditations on the Nativity entitled Christmas at the Nativity available from New City Press. We also spoke about the Focolare Movement's way of corporate formation for Christian Living, and their charism of pursuing unity. 

In this rerun from 2020, Deacon Charles Beard, from St. Pius X in Tulsa and the Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic Worker, joins us to talk about the Solemnity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. We often imagine this Cosmic Kingship with the implication of his rule over the nations; today we explore the implications of his rule on a personal level. In the Patreon segment, I discuss my recent airplane conversation with a Buddhist. Learn more at patreon.com/outsidethewalls. 

It seems like only yesterday that Outside the Walls launched on St. Michael radio in Broken Arrow, but here we are nine years in and still going strong. It seemed fitting to take this week and look back over the past nine years and reflect.  My wife Kristin joins me to talk about our experiences with the show, and to discuss the idea of looking back as a means to prepare for moving forward. This idea is borne out in scripture, in liturgy, and in sacrament and gives us a method for preparing for our own futures.

Dr. Holly Taylor Coolman teaches theology at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. Her areas of specialty include Christian accounts of Judaism, as well as the family, especially adoption. She and her husband are parents to five children, ages 25 to 15. We discuss her forthcoming book on Baker Academic Press, Parenting: The Complex and Beautiful Vocation of Raising Children.

My wife, Kristin, and I recently spent a week in Rome, Italy. We talk about our experiences and reflect on the Communion of Saints.

Father Jeffrey Kirby, STD, is a Papal Missionary of Mercy, the Pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish in Indian Land, South Carolina, and an Adjunct Professor of Theology at Belmont Abbey College. Father Kirby is a Senior Contributor to the Crux news site, the Host of the daily devotional, The Morning Offering with Father Kirby, and the Host of the podcast, Truth Be Bold. Father Kirby has authored several books, including Understanding the Bible: A Catholic Guide to Applying God's Word to Your Life Today on OSV.   More information on Father Kirby can be found at frkirby.com. He can be followed on X @fatherkirby

I'm in Rome this week, so we're revising a conversation we had in June of 2022 with Fr. Josh Johnson. Be sure to visit patreon.com/outsidethewalls to see highlights from Rome! What picture pops into your head when you envision "the Church?" Whose faces are situated next to yours in the family portrait above God's mantle? The answer to this question has implications on how we live out our faith, practice evangelization, and make disciples. It's the fundamental question of "Who Belongs?" Fr. Josh Johnson joins us to discuss his new book, On Earth as It Is in Heaven: Restoring God’s Vision for Race and Discipleship. This book follows Fr. Josh’s journey of serving as the only Black priest in the diocese of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Fr. Josh draws from the riches of Scripture, personal experience as a Catholic of color, his priestly ministry, and the wisdom of the Church to encourage Catholics to understand more deeply the call of Christ to make disciples of “all peoples and nations (Matt. 28:19).”

I'm in Rome this week, so we're revisting a conversation from last April with Dr. Ann Garrido, an associate professor of homiletics at Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis, Missouri, where she previously directed the school’s Doctorate of Ministry in Preaching program. Dr. Garrido has served as the Marten Faculty Fellow in Homiletics at the University of Notre Dame. She is the author of seven books, including the award-winning Redeeming Administration, Redeeming Conflict, and Let’s Talk About Truth. She travels nationally and internationally helping communities discuss the topics they find toughest to talk about—conversations that always involve questions of truth. Make sure to visit patreon.com/outsidethewalls to see highlights from Rome.

Pia de Solenni, S.Th.D., is a moral theologian, ethicist, and cultural analyst. She can be contacted through social media and at her website MoralTheologian.com. We discuss what to expect from a synod, what is different about this synod compared to others, and what would be an appropriate response toward the synod from Catholics at home. This past week she has written to salient and wise responses to the synod in America Magazine and the National Catholic Register.

Fr. Casey Cole, OFM graduated from Furman University in 2011 with a degree in Religious Studies and a minor in Poverty Studies. He entered the Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans) in August of 2011, made solemn profession in August of 2017, and was ordained to the priesthood in June of 2019. Fr. Casey has published three books, Called: What Happens After Saying Yes to God, Let Go: Seven Stumbling Blocks to Christian Discipleship, and The Way of Beatitude: Living with Radical Home in a World of Division and Despair. He is the creator of two YouTube channels, and regularly gives talks throughout the country on evangelization and vocations. He currently lives in Macon, GA, where he serves as chaplain to Mount de Sales Academy, St. Peter Claver School, and Mercer University.  Learn more about his work at breakinginthehabit.org.  We talked today about a recent video he produced: They're Not Coming Back (but we can do something).

Not every family is the perfect model of Catholic family life. Some of us approach parenting still wounded by childhood experiences that were less than ideal. When we start our own families, at best we feel a bit unprepared, and at worst we feel paralyzed with fear that we will repeat our parents dysfunctional, abusive behaviors. In All Things New, Erin McCole Cupp draws on her own and others experiences to discuss how to develop a joyful family life when our own experience of being parented was damaging. Erin wrote this book for moms and dads who want to parent better than they themselves were parented. Drawing on the Holy Family as the model of family life, and distilling practical lessons from the Two Greatest Commandments and the Beatitudes, All Things New shows readers that, while change isn't easy, God has given us all the ingredients we need to create a holy, joyful family. Erin and I discuss recognizing and overcoming toxic cycles, setting boundaries, and moving toward sanctity.

Dr. David Russell Mosley is an author and poet with a PhD in theology from the University of Nottingham who currently teaches literature, theology, and philosophy at a Catholic, classical high school in the Inland Northwest. David has authored books on theology, (Liturgical Entalnglements, and Being Deified: Poetry and Fantasy on the Path to God), fiction (On the Edges of Elfland: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups) and poetry (The Green Man). Our discussion today centers around his book The Love that Moves the Sun and Other Stars, a poetic reflection and commentary on Dante's Divine Comedy published by Wipf and Stock.

Kelly Wahlquist is the founder of WINE: Women In the New Evangelization, a women’s ministry that invigorates Catholic parishes through inspiring, supporting, and nurturing women in the faith and by equipping and mobilizing women as intentional disciples of Christ. She is the Director of the Archbishop Flynn Catechetical Institute, a popular school that serves Catholic adults in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota. She is the author of several books, including the conversation of today's conversation Gaze upon Jesus: Experiencing Christ’s Childhood through the Eyes of Women, published by Ave Maria Press.  We talk today about a multifaceted approach to Bible Study, including Ignatius imaginative prayer and contemplation.

Randy Petrides retired after practicing law for 40 years. He holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Notre Dame Law School and has a Master’s in theology from Franciscan University in Steubenville. He is the author of How the Saints Shaped History, available on Our Sunday Visitor. We talk together about the influence sanctity has on the movement of cultures throughout history.

Dr. Marylynn Wesson Has served for over 20 years in roles related to Faith Formation and Evangelization. She received her Doctor of Ministry in Evangelization from the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. She is the author of Building a Firm Foundation: An Invitation to Parents of Children Preparing for Sacraments, an eight-week evangelization and formation program for parents and guardians whose children are preparing for their first sacraments. It is available on Our Sunday Visitor (OSV.com).

Fr. Daniel G. Dozier, Pastor of St. George Byzantine Catholic Church - Olympia, and Adjunct Professor of Sacred Scripture at Byzantine Catholic Seminary of Saints Cyril and Methodius, joins us to talk about the similarities and differences between the Church of the East and of the West. The plan was to talk about the Feast of the Assumption/Dormition, but we ended up spending the whole first segment laying the groundwork for that more specific topic. (We do get to the Dormition in the second segment).  If you are curious about Byzantine Catholicism, you can learn more at God With Us Online or Becoming Byzantine.

The saints' abandonment to Divine providence, and deep desire to cling to the hope of Christ, even (and especially) in the midst of hardship, provides a path for us to emulate. Terry Polakavic focuses on the lives of the four "Women of Hope." These four saints and doctors of the Church are extraordinary exemplars of living out the Christian life in Hope.  Terry Polakovic is cofounder of Endow (Educating on the Nature and Dignity of Women)  (endowgroups.org) and served as president of the organization from 2003 to 2015. She worked in nonprofit leadership for more than 30 years and is now retired. In 2010, she received the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross award (“For the Church and Pontiff”) from Pope Benedict XVI. In 2011, Terry was recognized as an “Outstanding Catholic Leader” by the Catholic Leadership Institute. Terry's book Women of Hope: Doctors of the Church is available from Our Sunday Visitor.

Father Jeffrey Kirby, STD, is a Papal Missionary of Mercy, the Pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish in Indian Land, South Carolina, and an Adjunct Professor of Theology at Belmont Abbey College. Father Kirby is a Senior Contributor to the Crux news site, the Host of the daily devotional, The Morning Offering with Father Kirby, and the Host of the podcast, Truth Be Bold. Father Kirby has authored several books, including Be Not Troubled: A 6-day personal retreat with Fr. Jean-Pierre de Cascade on Ave Maria Press. We talk about God's Providence, and our response to difficult situations in life. More information on Father Kirby can be found at frkirby.com. He can be followed on Twitter @fatherkirby.

Marcia Lane-McGee is the cohost of the Plaid Skirts and Basic Black podcast and co-author of Fat Luther, Slim Pickin's: a Black Catholic Celebration of Faith, Tradition, and Diversity on Ave Maria Press. She is a founding member, executive board member, and secretary of Catholics United for Black Lives. We talk about Black Catholics, Equity vs Equality, and the Lay Apostolate.

Today we revisit and expand on a 2018 conversation I had with Dr. Lawrence Feingold. There is approximately 15 minutes of extra, previously unbroadcast, content. Dr. Lawrence Feingold is an Associate Professor of Theology and Philosophy and Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis. He is the author of Faith Comes by What is Heard: An Introduction to Fundamental Theology, Touched by Christ: The Sacramental Economy, and the topic of today's discussion, The Eucharist: Mystery of Presence, Sacrifice, and Communion all published by Emmaus Academic (emmausacademic.com) and available on Verbum (https://verbum.com/product/231407/lawrence-feingold-fundamental-and-sacramental-theology-collection)