Latest / Catholic Spirit Radio / Catholic Conversations #185: Why Fulton Sheen Should Be a Saint Now — A Call to Action
Transcript
- 0:00Catholic Conversations on Catholic Spirit Radio. Hello and welcome, friends.
- 0:04I'm Stan Ketsick. You know, some of the best conversations happen when we simply
- 0:08sit down together, maybe with a cup of coffee or tea in hand and talk about
- 0:13what matters most, the joys, the questions, the everyday moments where we find our faith.
- 0:18That's the spirit of this show. Welcome to Catholic Conversations.
- 0:23This is your place to listen in, to reflect, and to feel connected,
- 0:26Whether you're commuting, working at home, or actually sitting with that cup
- 0:30of coffee like I am today, we're really glad you joined us.
- 0:33Each week we'll explore the beauty, the depth, and the lived experience of the
- 0:38Catholic faith. We'll chat with interesting guests.
- 0:41We'll dive into timeless teachings and discuss how our faith illuminates our
- 0:45modern lives. So let's get comfortable.
- 0:47Let's start a conversation that matters.
- 0:50This is Catholic Conversations on Catholic Spirit Radio. And today we're discussing
- 0:55a topic that has inspired a heartfelt campaign.
- 0:59My guest is Dr. Peter Howard, theologian and ardent promoter of the cause for
- 1:05venerable Fulton Sheen.
- 1:07Dr. Howard has authored a powerful open letter advocating for Sheen's canonization,
- 1:12and he's here today to share why he believes Fulton Sheen's voice and witness
- 1:17are so urgently needed in our time. Dr.
- 1:21Howard, it is truly an honor to talk with you, you fantastic human. Welcome to the show.
- 1:27Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to be with you. Hey, as we begin the conversation,
- 1:30there seems to be like a reawakening going on.
- 1:33Many young people are seeking faith, and there seems to be a renewal interest
- 1:36in Catholicism, kind of a revival.
- 1:39Can you fill us in as we begin on this amazing man who was the first to use
- 1:44media to reach the masses?
- 1:46Sure. Well, you're right. There is a revival going on, and it's global, too.
- 1:52I just returned to Ireland, and there's a lot of great things going on there,
- 1:57especially in the North.
- 1:58And I think that we
- 2:02have a generation that I guess it
- 2:05would be the Gen Z generation that is so purpose
- 2:08oriented they've opened up to the realities of just kind of the failures that
- 2:15we've had in leadership I would say on every level both in the secular arena
- 2:21and politics and then of course within the church we have a crisis of leadership and so they're,
- 2:27they find themselves in a void.
- 2:29And so they're looking for things that are authentic and genuine.
- 2:32And we see them having a strong reaction to that by pursuing the things in the
- 2:37church and discovering the beauty of the treasures of the church as it applies
- 2:44to the liturgy, the lives of saints, religious,
- 2:48what it means to live a fully Catholic life.
- 2:51So it's exciting to see that that's happening.
- 2:53They just need, I'd say, a lot of support. And,
- 2:57And I would say also direction, because the leaders that we should have,
- 3:01you know, they're kind of leaving them hanging or confused.
- 3:04They're kind of tired of confusion that's going on. And so it's interesting
- 3:09how there is a pull to the discovery of Fulton Sheen because he was a voice
- 3:14and an example of extreme clarity of what the faith taught,
- 3:21how it applies to our daily human life, and really what it means to be,
- 3:25to become. the great saints that we have.
- 3:29Excellent, excellent point. And, you know, I was doing a little research on
- 3:33Fulton Sheen when I knew I was going to have this conversation with you,
- 3:36and it's very interesting to look at things on YouTube.
- 3:41And just last night I was watching something, and I believe one of his talks
- 3:44is called You Can't Build Down.
- 3:47And I thought, oh, this must be AI.
- 3:49Somebody has put this together with Fulton Sheen's, you know,
- 3:53is, you know what I mean, with AI, and I thought, this can't be from the 1960s.
- 4:01I mean, and it wasn't AI. It was real.
- 4:04So, I mean, it was crazy to look at this and think that here's a gentleman that
- 4:08reached 30 million people weekly before social media. I mean,
- 4:13that's pretty fascinating.
- 4:15Yes, it is. It's extraordinary how he was able to do that, you know,
- 4:19but it's one of those things where,
- 4:22The truth, and especially when the Holy Spirit is behind something,
- 4:26the Holy Spirit always brings fire.
- 4:28And he was really the bricklayer of the foundations that we now have,
- 4:35because he was such a prophetic voice.
- 4:37As you're pointing out, something he said in the 60s, if you didn't know who
- 4:41he was, especially if you found a remastered version of it where it sounds clear,
- 4:45you would be like, oh, where is this person today?
- 4:47Let's be one to have him come out with a parish mission or something, or have him on a show.
- 4:52But no, he's more relevant now than he was.
- 4:57You know, and it's kind of interesting to think that if he does become a saint,
- 5:02we'll be able to just go to YouTube and see what a saint is actually like.
- 5:08You know, how did you get interested in Fulton Sheen?
- 5:12I got interested in, gosh, this goes back almost 30 years now.
- 5:16And I was in my mid-20s, or early 20s, I should say, not too long, right after college.
- 5:26And I was in a period of my life of discernment, what did God want me to do?
- 5:29And I spent a couple of years just starting the priesthood, and I was still
- 5:34in the midst of that, and I took a personal retreat.
- 5:38I was spending some time in Texas. My sister gave me this stack of cassette
- 5:42tapes, and she said, this is a retreat series that changed my pastor's life.
- 5:48And he was actually at this retreat given by Fulton Sheen here nearby in Dallas.
- 5:53And so I was like, I heard of Fulton Sheen.
- 5:56I was like, I wasn't really in the mood to probably listen to a whole series.
- 6:01He said, well, just take it and see what the Holy Spirit does.
- 6:04So I'm like, all right, I'll give him like 10 minutes to see if he captures me or not.
- 6:08And it took about two minutes. Yeah. I put him in. It was, like I said,
- 6:12it was a remastered series.
- 6:13So it was, it was clearer than our conversation is right now.
- 6:17So it was as if he was next to me in my three hour drive. Wow.
- 6:20Speaking directly to me.
- 6:22And I just felt like this is a man who speaks, like in the gospel,
- 6:26who's this man who speaks with such authority?
- 6:28I've had great teachers. I've gone to Franciscan University at that time.
- 6:32I was already graduated.
- 6:34Now I'm looking to do more things. And I'm like, this voice stands out.
- 6:37And then he challenged me in every single way. And I knew by the end of that retreat,
- 6:42that no matter what path God was going to call me to, that he was going to be
- 6:46really central to my mission and to my own interior life, because he had some
- 6:52things in there, especially the call from the daily daily hour,
- 6:55that personally, it radically changed my life.
- 6:58Wow. Wow. Did you, how did that lead you to start a foundation?
- 7:03I I mean, what was the process from there?
- 7:06What was the next step in your life that, you know, got you to the point where
- 7:13you started the Fulton Sheen Institute? Sure. Well...
- 7:17After that retreat, I said, you know, I need to give God a little bit of time.
- 7:20And so I spent a year, I moved to Denver, spent a year with the community out there.
- 7:26By the end of that year, it was clear to me that God wasn't calling me to the priesthood.
- 7:32Kind of a bit surprising, but he used everything to supercharge the next phase.
- 7:39And Colton Sheen was a part of that. And so I decided to go back to my studies.
- 7:44So I went to Rome on my own and did my studies there for my license.
- 7:48And then eventually my doctorate. And Sheen was always at the forefront of my theology.
- 7:53I was like, how do I get him to the forefront? Because nobody communicates things like he does.
- 7:58And a lot of people don't know the depth of Fulton Sheen. So for me,
- 8:02I saw that this was becoming a mission of a man whose time has really come.
- 8:08And so by the time I finished my degrees in the early 2000s,
- 8:11I started giving talks on Fulton
- 8:13Sheen when I could. I was working for the church at various capacities.
- 8:17And then after I finished my doctorate in 2008, I started, it was called the Fulton Sheen Society.
- 8:25And that was something I was like, how is this going to manifest?
- 8:28I just want to bring people into this world.
- 8:29So that was, you know, kind of slow in the works. But then right before COVID hit,
- 8:34after years and years of moving around, I said, this is the time to start having something formalized,
- 8:39an institute where people can be formed in the pillars of what today's saints
- 8:44should have in the style and in the wisdom and even the very example of Fulton Sheen himself.
- 8:52And this was coinciding with the movement.
- 8:56The cause of Fulton Sheen. At this time, he was already venerable.
- 9:00And right after I founded the Fulton Sheen Institute was the announcement that
- 9:06the miracle had been approved for his beatification.
- 9:09And I was like, wow, that's like everything converged. So that was the genesis of that.
- 9:14COVID came in and kind of disrupted everything.
- 9:17So over the last few years, we've been able to recalibrate ourselves or retread it.
- 9:24And now we're working back into building it up and it's a lot through live events
- 9:28retreats conferences um that's i'm you know with i'm in california right now
- 9:33doing a parish mission on this went to ireland i brought bolt and sheen back
- 9:37to ireland at the shrine of national shrine in knock ireland recently,
- 9:42and it's it's great to see there's an explosion of interest and so it's it's
- 9:47something that needs a lot of momentum and the more people discover him they're
- 9:50like we we need this in almost every facet of our lives.
- 9:53Dr. Howard, you just mentioned the miracle.
- 9:56Can you, for someone who might just be driving down the road right now or sitting
- 9:59in their home and not know a lot about Fulton Sheen, can you talk about the miracle?
- 10:04Sure. The miracle involved, I forget the exact year it did, but it was 2015
- 10:09or so, I think, beside the point.
- 10:14But it was the Engstrom family, a family that lives in Peoria,
- 10:18actually, of all places, kind of ground zero.
- 10:21Bonnie and Angstrom, she'd written a book about this, too, and it involved the birth of her son.
- 10:29Her son, James, now it's James Fulton, was born without a heartbeat for 61 minutes.
- 10:36And so it was, obviously, you could imagine what was going on.
- 10:40But they turned to Fulton Sheet and prayed the entire time.
- 10:43They had a priest there. He was praying with them. and literally at the 61st minute.
- 10:49Baby James that took his first breath. And it was a resuscitation,
- 10:55like a resurrection, because the baby was clinically dead.
- 10:59And not only did the baby come to life without explanation, but there was no brain damage.
- 11:05Things that should have been very, very severe as a consequence of that.
- 11:09And there was none of that.
- 11:11And that was a direct, I'm sorry, that was, I just want to say They were directly
- 11:16praying to Fulton Sheen to intervene, and it happened.
- 11:23Exactly, exactly. So that went through, that was submitted through the Archbishop
- 11:30Fulton Sheen Foundation, and they're the ones who were in Peoria with the cause
- 11:36itself, and then it went to Rome.
- 11:38And they were going through the commissions, Theological Commission,
- 11:40Medical Commission, and they certified that it was truly unexplainable and there
- 11:45was a divine intervention through the intercession of Fulton Sheen.
- 11:49So when that was granted, yeah, that green-lighted the beatification.
- 11:55Amazing. And so now Fulton Sheen, he was all set to be a saint. And what happened?
- 12:03Well, this is where the story changes, kind of like the movie,
- 12:05you know, the music changes.
- 12:07It's unfortunate, yeah. Because what happened was just really tragic because
- 12:13we're talking two and a half weeks or so before the actual beatification date.
- 12:20It was set, Rome improved it, and it was for December 21st, 2019.
- 12:25And so at that
- 12:28time an announcement came out that the edification mass
- 12:32was indefinitely postponed and
- 12:35there wasn't much explanation behind it other than
- 12:38that there was a couple of bishops including two cardinals who intervened and
- 12:46asked Rome to delay it and Rome who I later learned recently because I went
- 12:54to Cheryl I'll talk about it a little bit more.
- 12:57Was that they don't, they need a harmony between themselves and the diocese.
- 13:02But at the same time, the diocese was totally on board.
- 13:05This is why the people who were behind it, or I should say behind the cause in Peoria.
- 13:12Especially Monsignor James Cruz, who was a canonist, heavily involved in the case.
- 13:16He came out in a personal letter and he said that this was an act of sabotage
- 13:21because there's no explanation.
- 13:22How do you overturn the edification mass when Rome has already determined that
- 13:28he is blessed? The mass is really a formality.
- 13:31People don't realize that. It's like a five-minute part of the mass at the very beginning.
- 13:35And they read a little bit of the life of Sheen. And then they proclaim him
- 13:38because there's nothing else to do.
- 13:40The miracle has been approved. and then at that
- 13:43point everybody now can publicly venerate him
- 13:46as blessed but for all intents and purposes he already is
- 13:49determined by Rome so this was this was a big big deal that came out the diocese
- 13:55of purity was furious because the excuse that was given was that there was this
- 13:59attorney general report that had not been released that was investigating all
- 14:03the diocese of New York as had been done like in Pennsylvania, Ohio,
- 14:08you know, all these things, the review of all the history of any clergy sexual abuse.
- 14:15And, and Rome's already just, they've already investigated all of these things.
- 14:22And so, and they knew that and they're saying, well, we just want to be sure
- 14:25that, you know, nothing could come out. We want this to be a time of celebration.
- 14:29And, you know, But the craziness about it was that nobody cared.
- 14:35Nobody had any objections to them.
- 14:37Everybody trusts Rome in their process, which is the most meticulous process
- 14:41that you could have is the investigation,
- 14:45historical investigation, theological investigation, everything of a potential
- 14:49saint because ultimately it's verified by the miracle that he is in heaven.
- 14:54So it casts so much doubt.
- 14:58On the integrity of the church. Sure.
- 15:02And people out of nowhere were saying, well, they created a problem for everyone
- 15:06to start saying, well, what is this problem?
- 15:08And they said, well, we need to wait on this. But people are like,
- 15:11well, we don't need to wait on this. So it was so strange from the beginning.
- 15:15And in all the hard work of the Dietary of Peoria was, I mean,
- 15:20these are powerful prelates who were involved, was able to be,
- 15:23literally, they used the word sabotaged, and it was. So it's been a standstill for six years.
- 15:30So if I'm understanding this right, we're just waiting for a five-minute confirmation
- 15:36during a Mass and he would be a saint?
- 15:39Is that really all it would take? That's all that has to be done.
- 15:43Everything else that's been mentioned, like this report is necessary.
- 15:48Even the Dietes of Peoria, even the current president of the foundation.
- 15:53Senior Jason Gray, you know he's been on he's been
- 15:56on interviews since we started the movement of for
- 16:00fulton sheen this was specifically directed to
- 16:03we need to get this beatification done
- 16:06not because we want a trophy for sheen it's because it's all about what she's
- 16:10mission it's about the salvation of souls and what blessed fulton sheen would
- 16:14mean to maybe potentially billions of people because of how that would go through
- 16:18the airwaves and as the writing is to be discovered is i mean it would just explode So,
- 16:24yeah, it's a big deal.
- 16:27I don't say it's a formality, but it really is. Because nothing's going to change
- 16:32the determination of the church that he's,
- 16:36blessings by decree. Pope Francis at the time, he's the one who issued the decree
- 16:40that simply just approves the miracle.
- 16:43And then says, okay, basically set the date.
- 16:46And so the bishops that intervened either took the gamble or knew that they
- 16:53could throw a wrench into this and just use this excuse, well,
- 16:57we should wait for this report to come out.
- 16:59When Peoria says, we know everything that could possibly be
- 17:02in the report and even more because we know we've
- 17:05done all and they were like oh there's a couple of questions about
- 17:08one of the priests and or two priests that were that
- 17:11when he was bishop of rochester we wanted and fury is like we already knew that
- 17:16we investigated that sheen was completely clean about that perfectly handled
- 17:21it was open and shut there was it's no rome knew all about it fury went back
- 17:24and visited with rome just to say hey just let me make you sure that you know
- 17:27we did cover on these things that you may be hearing rome's like okay that's great.
- 17:30Like Rome's sitting there and literally saying, okay, you guys kind of figure
- 17:35out your stuff because we're good.
- 17:38We have no objections. We've never had any to this. This is now your issue that you're creating.
- 17:46And so in the beginning, Peoria was outraged and that was justly so,
- 17:54but now it's been six years.
- 17:56There's a new bishop, there's a new team that's involved and it hasn't changed,
- 18:01and they've come out saying.
- 18:05Specifically to Monsignor Gray because he's now the voice of the foundation
- 18:08who did all the work for the cause, saying that there is nothing holding him back.
- 18:15The issues, he would say, are on this side of the pond.
- 18:18I would say, if you want to know what's going on, you could look at an interview
- 18:21he did with Raymond Arroyo in 2023 and he really puts out the case. He's,
- 18:28Okay, so, and that's what Raymond says at the end. He said, so what is holding?
- 18:31He said, well, we just want to make sure, but nobody else cares.
- 18:35And Rome doesn't care. I just spoke with the Dicastery of Saints.
- 18:38This, when I went out for the Carlo Acutis canonization and Pier Giorgio Fasati
- 18:42canonization, I was blessed to actually have a conversation with them,
- 18:46because I delivered a petition with 14,000 signatures of people from all around
- 18:51the world saying, would you please set the date? We need to.
- 18:55Yeah. Yeah. So, and you think, yeah, well, unfortunately, the way Rome works
- 19:00is we want to be able to work in harmony with the diocese. So they've got issues.
- 19:05Unfortunately, they're the ones that have to come to the point of saying we're ready.
- 19:09Absolutely. Dr. I just want to say, I can hear the passion in your voice that
- 19:13I, I'm going to give you a little break. We have to take a break here for a second.
- 19:16I'm way past my commercial break. John is shaking his hand at me going,
- 19:20Stan, we've got to take a break here.
- 19:22But please, hold that passion. Hold that passion.
- 19:25We're going to pause for just a moment. But when we return, we'll continue this
- 19:29vital conversation with Dr.
- 19:30Peter Howard about why Fulton Sheen's message is ripe for a revival.
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- 20:14This is Catholic Conversations. I'm Stan Ketsick. Our guest today, Dr.
- 20:19Peter Howard, who has authored a powerful open letter advocating for Fulton Sheen's canonization.
- 20:26Before the break, Dr. Howard, we had the passion going.
- 20:31I'm angry at somebody. Tell me the person I have to be angry at.
- 20:34He should be a saint at this point.
- 20:36Is there anyone we can name that we can write letters to.
- 20:40I know you have an open letter that we're going to get to in this segment,
- 20:44but what can we do to push this along? This is ridiculous.
- 20:49All attention should be given to the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation.
- 20:55They are the ones who are in the middle of this, in the sense of when the date is set,
- 21:04it's going to come essentially from them and the Diocese of Peoria,
- 21:09because they're the ones who are going to be holding it. They did the cause.
- 21:14So it needs to be directed to them. And that's why I had an open letter,
- 21:18just because a lot of people need to know what the history is.
- 21:21And I know what the reasons that they've given for the delay,
- 21:27but they're not substantive.
- 21:31It's things that these are obstacles that they've created to postpone them.
- 21:37You know, they're still saying, well, we should wait on that report,
- 21:39which they have already admitted. It's not going to change anything at all.
- 21:45And then at the end of the interview with Raymond Arroyo, he also said,
- 21:49well, we also want to make sure that we have the unanimous support of the bishops
- 21:53moving forward, which was never mentioned.
- 21:56So when I heard that, I thought, well, that's going to be the miracle for his
- 22:00canonization because you're not
- 22:02going to get the unanimous support of the bishops probably for anything.
- 22:06Yeah. So, you know, I do, anyway, that's who you would direct the,
- 22:13I would say the passion for, because the question isn't what needs to be done.
- 22:20What are, you know, it's why, why are they holding it up?
- 22:26Yeah. And in my letter, I'm not insinuating, I'm pretty direct about it.
- 22:32I'm saying, if the ultimate decision comes from Peoria, the tall rope,
- 22:38we're ready for another date, and they're saying there are no obstacles,
- 22:42then who is holding them back?
- 22:45It's theological at that point, you know?
- 22:49It's like, I love my, you know, I love my fiance and she loves me and we're ready.
- 22:54And, but I know I, but why haven't you set a date for your marriage?
- 22:58Well, we're, I'm just waiting for, you know, to get, I don't know,
- 23:02the approval of everybody, all my friends who have known me over the years that
- 23:05they said what they think about this relationship. Well, who cares? Do you love each other?
- 23:08Yeah. I mean, maybe that's not the best analogy, but it kind of feels like that.
- 23:12It's just doesn't, it's, it doesn't follow.
- 23:15And so I, I think that.
- 23:18It's one of those things where one voice can be kind of muffled,
- 23:25but a crowd of voices is harder to ignore.
- 23:28And that's why we did the petitions a few years ago and garnered that steam.
- 23:33I was able to now to deliver it to Rome.
- 23:36And I did get some, I guess you could say some intel just this past week.
- 23:44Because I'm in California right now doing the full machine parish mission.
- 23:48In Southern California, and a friend of mine is not too far from here.
- 23:52Anyway, we're going back and forth. And he was sharing with me.
- 23:54He had probably a conversation with my senior in gray about it.
- 23:58And we talked about, he asked me the same question.
- 24:01But we said, well, if you can get in front of him, Terry, then let's do it.
- 24:06You know, you could ask him directly.
- 24:08And it confirmed another suspicion that I had in that the Dietary of Peoria
- 24:14has, And they announced that they have a big project that they're now,
- 24:19they just broke ground on it.
- 24:21And it's on the new Fulton Sheen Center, like a media center. Okay.
- 24:26It's like a $10 million project or something like that. And so I'm sure it's
- 24:29going to be phenomenal when it's done.
- 24:31But I'm sitting there like, please don't tell me that this is also part of it,
- 24:35that you had to build all these things so that you can then,
- 24:38you know, when you decide to have the beatification, then you have all these things in place.
- 24:44Because the whole point, the importance of Fulton Sheen's beatification is the
- 24:49salvation of souls, period.
- 24:52And every minute that we delay is the minute where souls aren't being reached by him.
- 24:57And he's not an obscure figure. He's one of the most, he is the most prominent,
- 25:01or as his biographer said, the most important person.
- 25:05Catholic figure in 20th century america so you know to to his beatification
- 25:13would be a massive magnifying glass absolutely on him for hundreds of millions
- 25:19or like i said at least a billion people will learn of it through the media
- 25:22things and at one percent of those,
- 25:25have a big conversion through Fulton Sheen, which is a very,
- 25:28very conservative number, by rediscovering him or discovering him for the first
- 25:32time, you're talking like 10 million people. Absolutely.
- 25:36Absolutely. So anyway, when you measure it like that, it changes everything.
- 25:41And any delay when there shouldn't be one is a scandal.
- 25:45And I know I make myself the enemy in this, but I'm not their enemy.
- 25:49I've been the advocate with the Diocese of Peoria for 20 years when Father Apostoli was alive.
- 25:55And, you know, it's like, this is not about Peter Howard and my passion.
- 26:01This is only about souls.
- 26:03I know what he did to me. And I know that people, what I introduce in the places,
- 26:08a fire starts. It's not my fire.
- 26:11It's what he was meant to give to the church. So, you know, I don't know if
- 26:14that's a long-winded answer.
- 26:16No, no. There's so many angles. It was a perfect answer. And I got to say that,
- 26:20you know, you really hit it on the head.
- 26:22I cannot think of another Catholic personality that has ever communicated as
- 26:27much to the masses as Fulton Sheen.
- 26:31And it almost seems like there's something like a good versus evil in here that's holding this back.
- 26:38And the reason I say that is because once he becomes a saint,
- 26:42all of those broadcasts that are still on YouTube, all of those broadcasts that
- 26:47are on the radio archive that we can listen to, You know, people will have an example of,
- 26:53I mean, we'll actually be able to look and go, that is a saint.
- 26:56That's what a saint looks like right there.
- 26:57These are the messages from a saint. And, you know, it almost sounds like somebody's
- 27:02holding it back so that can't happen.
- 27:05I don't know if that makes any sense, but... No, I think, well,
- 27:08I think you're exactly right. That's the only reason that could possibly exist.
- 27:13Because you can't have someone...
- 27:16Say, and this is on record publicly, my senior Gray in the interview with we
- 27:21need Sheen now more than ever.
- 27:25Nothing follows in the inaction that says that's what you really believe.
- 27:31I know when I need something now more than ever, I drop what I'm doing and I find out a way to get it.
- 27:38If there's a sickness going around and there's a cure for it,
- 27:42I'm going to find out what it is and I'm going to make sacrifices to make sure
- 27:46I have it and give it to my family.
- 27:47So when there's spiritual sickness, apathy, neglect, indifference,
- 27:52scandal, I mean, lack of leadership, every vacuum that Venerable Fulton Sheen
- 27:57fills, I call him like the General MacArthur for this today.
- 28:02The guy who saw the vision, had the battle play, and lived it himself,
- 28:06could reach any audience. This is the one you want.
- 28:10There are those who do not want this to happen but because he also stands as
- 28:14really an example or a symbol of judgment of what they're not doing.
- 28:20He was so patriotic. They know the spiritual grace that will come through a blessed folding sheet.
- 28:25And he loved our country. That was amazing, too, to hear his message. He was patriotic.
- 28:31It was all about, you know, America. It was about doing the right thing. And we need more.
- 28:37We need somebody like that. And here we have all of his archives.
- 28:41And it just, I don't know.
- 28:43It's frustrating from my end to listen to what's going on here because it just
- 28:48seems to me that, you know, when you want to get something done,
- 28:51you got to get right in front of the person who says yes or who can say yes.
- 28:55And it sounds to me like right now they have their hands over their ears.
- 28:58And let's talk about this letter you put together. It's a very passionate letter.
- 29:03Where can people go and read this right now? If they're just tuning in,
- 29:06we're talking to, I'm sorry, if you're just tuning in, we're talking to Dr. Peter Howard.
- 29:11He is just a, he's doing his best to get Fulton Sheen canonized.
- 29:17And where can they read this letter, Dr.
- 29:21Howard? You can go to the FultonSheenMovement.com.
- 29:27Fulton Sheen Movement.
- 29:28Okay. And now, do you want to talk a little bit about the letter?
- 29:31I know we can't read the whole letter right now, but what, you know,
- 29:34I know we've been pretty much talking about what's in there,
- 29:36but are there suggestions that you'd like to give to people?
- 29:40What can we do? What can I do? What can the listener do to help this along?
- 29:49Well, in one good sense, I covered some of the essentials of it already, just in your questions.
- 29:54Your questions were excellent. So we kind of got right to the heart of it.
- 29:59The essence of the letter, the first, you know, the first 50% plus or whatever
- 30:04is, is helping people simply know what the truth is.
- 30:07Why are we where we're at? And it's an open letter to everyone,
- 30:11but it's, it's addressed to a few people in the church.
- 30:13It's addressed, it's addressed also to the diocese of Peoria.
- 30:19Okay. And the, and the, the foundation, you know, in the very beginning,
- 30:24it says, Hey, your Excellency, most Reverend Louis Tilka, Bishop of Peoria,
- 30:27Reverend Monsignor Jason Gray, Director of the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation,
- 30:31and then Your Brothers and Sisters in Christ throughout America and the world.
- 30:35So, you know, it was written on October 16th, which was a very powerful day
- 30:41in history because a kindred saint to Fulton Sheen is St. Maximilian Maria Colby.
- 30:48He's one of the, you know, kind of the co-patrons of the Institute.
- 30:52And that was the day that he founded the Militia Immaculate,
- 30:56the Knights of the Immaculate.
- 30:57That was to literally have a global conquest of victory over the world and conversion
- 31:05through consecration to Mary.
- 31:09And, you know, how one man, how one man did this.
- 31:13And Fulton Sheen was the man on a mission who God gave us for these times.
- 31:19Like you said, too, there's a very specific mission that Fulton Sheen has for
- 31:24the future of America because, as he says, and I have a great,
- 31:29great clip that I want to, I would call everybody to listen to.
- 31:33I've forged together some clips of Sheen in promoting the importance of the
- 31:37daily holy hour, which is, you can find it on our institute site,
- 31:41called sheeninstitute.com.
- 31:43He says, the old world is dead. We don't want to save anything of what brought
- 31:50us to the point where we are today.
- 31:52We are at the edge of the abyss.
- 31:56And what's going to come has to be something new.
- 32:00And that's why when we look at what's going on in the world right now,
- 32:03and all of these upcoming major jubilee anniversaries that are basically converging
- 32:08around the year 2031, it's only five years away.
- 32:12Our Lady Guadalupe, which is what his feast day coincides with.
- 32:16December 9th is the first day Our Lady appeared in Mexico City to evangelize the Americas.
- 32:23Sheen died on that anniversary, and he prayed every day of his life,
- 32:27he said, that he'd die on a Marian feast day in the presence of our Lord and
- 32:31the Lord of the Sacrament. And he got both of those wishes.
- 32:33So what does God want us to learn about Sheen and Our Lady Guadalupe and the
- 32:37mission of the evangelization of the Americas?
- 32:40So, you know, the letter, you know, it leaves on a positive note,
- 32:45telling people a number of things.
- 32:48One, certainly contact the diocese. Yes.
- 32:51And the more good pressure there's put on there, I mean, this is how it used
- 32:56to always be in the church.
- 32:57The saints were made saints by what they called acclimation.
- 33:00There was no process like we have now.
- 33:03It's like their holiness was known, and they just made it so loud that Rome's
- 33:07like, okay, okay, okay. we don't really know if anything is an obstacle.
- 33:10Your country can now proclaim, you know, Thomas Beckett, a saint,
- 33:14you know, in England. So...
- 33:18We're kind of going back to that. And the letter is helping people to see that
- 33:23the emperor has no clothes, that the arguments that are being used,
- 33:26there are no arguments at all because they're refuted by the people who make them.
- 33:32Right, right. So anyway, a lot of it is to help people just to know what the truth is.
- 33:38Then what we can do to contact them, spread it out, have events.
- 33:43We've had rallies in Illinois in the past at the Annunciation Byzantine Catholic
- 33:49Parish there with Father Thomas Loya.
- 33:52We've had a few of those. We've had people, you know, the co-owner of the Bears
- 33:55came out, and we drew attention to that.
- 33:58And unfortunately, there's been, you know, what I'm doing comes across by them in the diocese.
- 34:04It's like, well, look, Howard is against us, and he's, oh, yeah, he's causing problems.
- 34:08He's like, no, I'm not. But I'm a voice of, you know, I'm not John the Baptist.
- 34:14You're trying to help. I'm a voice that's crying out, though, in this wilderness.
- 34:18We have a saint that God has given us, and you're holding him back.
- 34:22And I want everyone to know that because you need to get out of the way of that.
- 34:26Sure. And, you know, and in the end, we're all going to be happy.
- 34:30But they're measuring things by something different, and there are definitely
- 34:35powers behind them saying, don't do this. this is not the time.
- 34:40That's why they're not going to get the unanimous support.
- 34:43So, but they are building the center. And this is, this is where I was saying
- 34:46before I kind of cut myself off.
- 34:48Things that I've learned recently seem to confirm my own kind of gut on where
- 34:52things are going when I heard about this new center being built is that they're
- 34:56most likely going to wait till that's done. And this seems to be what's happening.
- 35:02A friend of mine is very close, Very passionate. We owe him a lot when it comes
- 35:07to Fulton Sheen and having access to everything that we watch.
- 35:13And I think he has a radio interview, so I would recommend, I have to look about
- 35:17myself since I'm on the road right now, but his name is Terry Barber,
- 35:21Virgin Most Powerful Radio.
- 35:25His work inspired me, and he's now on board, and he just had an interview with him, and so with J.
- 35:31Spock, my senior Jason Gray. okay and it sounded like because
- 35:35my thing was if they don't beatify sheen and set a
- 35:37date really sooner for 2026 which is
- 35:40the 225th or 250th anniversary of our nation like just no more perfect year
- 35:46to do it than that as you're saying sheen has a as a mission for our country
- 35:50and america 2.0 if they don't do that then then this is this is extremely malicious because we You know,
- 35:59there's, well, our country might not even make it past that.
- 36:03And that's not hyperbole, you know, for following things. No,
- 36:06I understand. We're on a nice edge.
- 36:07You're right. And so, anyway, I think it's going to, I think it will happen next year.
- 36:14I don't know when, but I also don't have a way to prove that unless I personally got it out of them.
- 36:20So, I do hope that either I say get an interview with my senior gray.
- 36:25I don't know if he'd be amenable. He might think that an invitation is coming
- 36:28from hostile territories via hostile, you know, it'll be direct and no nonsense.
- 36:33But it's like, how are we fighting for the same thing?
- 36:36The difference is that you hold the power and I don't. And you're,
- 36:40you know, you're literally tying your own hands behind your back saying,
- 36:44I can't, I can't do anything.
- 36:46Well, you know, I don't know. I understand. Hey, you know, I just want to say
- 36:51you were talking about being inspired. Well, you inspired me.
- 36:55I was watching your YouTube channel.
- 36:57I love the teachings that you've put together. Can you talk a little bit?
- 37:00I want our listeners to be able to go to YouTube, and I want them to be able
- 37:04to see you and Fulton Sheen.
- 37:07You've put some great lessons together. Can we talk about that a little bit?
- 37:11I'll tell you what. Maybe a reference of some of the lessons,
- 37:14but our YouTube channel is at Fulton Sheen Institute.
- 37:18So it's really easy to find at Fulton Sheen Institute. I'll tell you what,
- 37:21I have to break again. John is waving his pencil at me.
- 37:25But don't lose that thought. I love your passion. I love what you're doing.
- 37:29I hope that everybody will get involved with this. We're going to take a short
- 37:33break. If you're just joining us or if you've been listening in, we're speaking with Dr.
- 37:37Peter Howard about his campaign to canonize.
- 37:40The great Archbishop Fulton Sheen. More of your Catholic conversations are coming
- 37:45up right after these messages.
- 37:47You're listening to Catholic Conversations on Catholic Spirit Radio.
- 37:51December 8 is a holy day of obligation. You can find the special mass times
- 37:55for over 100 local churches in the cities of our listening audiences.
- 37:59Go to catholicspiritradio.com and click on the mass tab at the top of the page
- 38:04and then click December 8.
- 38:12You are listening to Catholic Conversations. I'm Stan Ketsick. My guest today, Dr.
- 38:17Peter Howard, who is, oh, we're having a heck of a conversation.
- 38:20We're both all revved up over Fulton Sheen. And just before the break,
- 38:24we were talking about your YouTube channel.
- 38:27I want people to be able to see you. I want them to be able to see Fulton Sheen.
- 38:32I wanted to give an opportunity to you to talk about the lessons that you have and the videos.
- 38:37They're just absolutely wonderful. They're very educational.
- 38:40They're not very long, so people just want to get into it.
- 38:45This might be a way to ease into learning more about Fulton Sheen.
- 38:49Can you talk a little bit about the YouTube channel?
- 38:53I guess when you come down to it, Dr. Howard, you put something phenomenal together. Is it,
- 39:00Is it a step-by-step, I guess, what I'm asking? Or can you just tune into any
- 39:06video and pretty much get a lesson?
- 39:08Each video, like the podcast especially, they're kind of...
- 39:13Not random topics, but they're appropriate for a particular time or a subject of Fulton Sheen.
- 39:20I did put together during the COVID time, I did put together,
- 39:24it was like a mini course.
- 39:26I think that's what I saw, yeah. I think you can still find that.
- 39:30And it's actually, like everything else, I find it's more appropriate now than it was then.
- 39:36That's great. Certain things could be historically outdated because we've moved at a warp speed.
- 39:42And no pun intended on that phrase, but from what was said then,
- 39:50it's actualization right now, but the teachings of Sheen that are within that
- 39:55are priceless, and it's called The Final Hour, Fulton Sheen's Plan to Save America
- 40:01and the World, so pretty cool title.
- 40:05But that's what really his ultimate purpose was,
- 40:09was to help us to see what the world was thinking, what were its errors and
- 40:13how do we respond to it with the full treasures of the church and being grounded
- 40:18in something solid like St. Thomas Aquinas.
- 40:20Now, most people would know that that's really what he did, but that's his whole
- 40:24philosophy behind his whole life is worth living series on the Christian philosophy of life.
- 40:29And so, you know, I've tried to choose things that really show what his blueprint is.
- 40:36So those things that I talk about are, of course.
- 40:41Who's the enemy that we're up against because if we don't know who our enemy is we will understand,
- 40:46what we're given to fight the enemy and why Fulton Sheen
- 40:49taught what he did what our Blessed Mother taught and gave us in her messages
- 40:54in like Fatima let's say because Fulton Sheen if you want to condense Fulton
- 40:58Sheen and his life and mission it really ties into he lived the message of Fatima
- 41:03that's what made him such a great saint and I dissect how and why.
- 41:10And then after that, it's been focusing a lot on helping people to see the connection
- 41:15of Fulton Sheen and Our Lady of Guadalupe and how heaven has combined these two great events.
- 41:26Sheen's life and his death on the day that Mary appeared.
- 41:29I think that that's probably the most important thing right now for Catholics
- 41:33to understand, as well as what really made Spulton Sheen the saint that he was,
- 41:40the power and the holiness was his...
- 41:43Unbroken dedication of 60 years to a daily holy hour before I adored in the blood of the sacrament.
- 41:49Because in the end, that's what we need to change the world.
- 41:52We need a power that's way beyond our mere intellect because we don't have what's
- 41:58needed to fight a demon on our own.
- 42:01And that's what Fulton Sheen tells us. He's like, we're fighting against the
- 42:04demon, something intrinsically wicked.
- 42:07And it's not going to answer to us on any human powers that we have,
- 42:11no matter how eloquent we are.
- 42:13But we're going to need that power from spending time with Jesus every day in
- 42:17an hour of prayer and meditation in the Boston Sacrament.
- 42:22And he was bold and he said this is in a time of war we have to do it.
- 42:26He said Protestants and Jews should be doing this as well and if you can't make
- 42:30it at church make it in your own home.
- 42:32But the hour is so important because of biblical significance,
- 42:36the hour of evil and it's the one direct appeal that Jesus had to his apostles and his disciples.
- 42:41Could you not watch one hour? His only direct appeal.
- 42:45And Sheen says, I'm not going to be the one who's going to miss that.
- 42:48So anyway, when it comes to why Sheen is so important and what we can learn,
- 42:53I always say we start there.
- 42:55And then we can supplement that with his various teachings on the various things
- 43:00of life because we need that so desperately.
- 43:03Not just theological or philosophical formation, but even our human formation.
- 43:09He's a saint that focuses on human formation, which is often,
- 43:13I don't want to say neglected or admitted, but it is kind of certain by saints
- 43:18in the past, they don't have the same issues that we have today.
- 43:23And Sheen really gives a holistic approach to evangelization and the salvation of a person.
- 43:32You know, you've studied him so closely. What do you think he would say about
- 43:36what's going on today? Do you have any thoughts on that?
- 43:40Just the world in general. That's a big question, but would he say anything
- 43:45different than he has said in the past?
- 43:47Because as I mentioned, when I was going through his videos,
- 43:51I just thought, man, this is today.
- 43:55Somebody put this together. This isn't from, you know, the 1960s.
- 44:00What do you think he might think of today? He would be speaking out and helping
- 44:06us to identify the evil more precisely.
- 44:09You know, what he was driven by was the chief threat in his time,
- 44:13but not just his time, but in the future was communism.
- 44:18And communism has been so often associated simply with like the harsh brutality
- 44:23of Soviet Russia that spread through militarily and just took over countries
- 44:28by power and force and then tried to steal their soul.
- 44:32He said, well, communism will come back to the West, which is an interesting
- 44:36thing that he said, come back to the West.
- 44:39And when he thinks it started out in the East, he said, no, because Karl Marx
- 44:42got his philosophy from Germany, he got his economics from England,
- 44:49and his sociology he got from France.
- 44:51All the things that really came together in the French Revolution afterward.
- 44:55And everything that, all the philosophical diseases that would materialize in our times,
- 45:00they all stem from that
- 45:04period and he was like how do we manifest
- 45:07he said well it's going to hit the west through
- 45:10culture which is the most dangerous form of communism because
- 45:13communism has the goal not just eliminating
- 45:17economic differences but it ultimately had the goal of the destruction of monogamous
- 45:26marriage the redefining of the family and even to eradicate the gender differences.
- 45:35That's crazy to think he was talking about that back then. Wow.
- 45:39Yeah, because he knew what the dialectical thinking was, but he said once this
- 45:44applies to morality, that's where that thinking then goes catastrophically wrong.
- 45:51But obviously this is a satanic plan working through this, because in the end,
- 45:55he says that the world has three choices.
- 45:58It's either totalitarianism, where man is a tool of the state,
- 46:03or it's materialism, which means that man is only an animal,
- 46:10which he says, which the West believes, and he says, and too many Americans
- 46:14believe, or that man is made in the image and likeness of God.
- 46:18This, he said, is the essence of the conflict. And I think Sheen,
- 46:22since he was so vocal during his time of communism, he was the number one enemy
- 46:25of communism, officially, during his life was Swanson Sheen.
- 46:30He would be helping us to identify in a time of great confusion how that's being manifest.
- 46:36And so that was kind of the essence behind the final hour course,
- 46:40was to help people to see what they are.
- 46:42Because once you see that, you know, today we simply call it being red-pilled,
- 46:46then you can identify and call out the enemy, but then how do we respond to
- 46:53it? He'd be helping us to know.
- 46:54I think his other, his spiritual message would be without question the daily
- 47:00holy hour, which is, you don't hear that often enough. No.
- 47:04That's a big, that's a tall order, a daily holy hour.
- 47:07Now, oh, I go to adoration, it's like daily, and he never broke it for 60 years
- 47:12and the day of his ordination to the day he died.
- 47:14And he says, I know it's not going to be easy. He says, but if I can do it, you can do it.
- 47:21And I'm like, you're right. I'm busy, but I can't.
- 47:24Knowing his life, you have 24 hours in your day, so you pick your hour and then you hold to it. Yeah.
- 47:30Preferably earlier rather than later. But I really believe those are the two
- 47:34things that he would help us to do.
- 47:35How do you identify the enemy, especially in an age of deception,
- 47:39a spirit of Antichrist, which he prophesied is happening.
- 47:44The mystical body of Christ and the mystical body of Antichrist.
- 47:47St. John Paul II says, similarly, We're in the final confrontation.
- 47:52Sheen called it the final battle.
- 47:54It sure feels like that. Yeah, he said, we're at the end of an era.
- 47:58And that's what's important. People, he'd be hammering that now because that
- 48:02era is coming to an end now.
- 48:05Really, I think it's coming, it'll be officially around 2031 because that's
- 48:10the 500th anniversary of Rojo de Guadalupe.
- 48:13And Sheen talked about how the cycle of the church, historical cycle is in 500 year,
- 48:20eras or ages we want to call it cycles we're now at the end of the fourth one,
- 48:26Scary. And so, yeah, so when you look at already Guadalupe, that was really
- 48:30the mark, I think, of the beginning of the era that we're in now.
- 48:36And this is what I'm getting the parish mission on, is helping people to see
- 48:40that, because 31 could actually be the year that Christ redeemed the actual redemption.
- 48:4933, 31, there's always some discrepancy when you look at different calendars, even among states.
- 48:53You know, it's just scary to hear that, to be honest with you,
- 48:56because when you think about, you know, some of the political things we hear
- 49:00about with the big reset and the 2030 agenda, oh, my gosh, it all kind of like ties in.
- 49:08And I'm thinking to myself, how did this man know this those years ago? Yeah.
- 49:13And that's it. You nailed it, Stan. And you're like one of the few people that
- 49:17who's going to be on Catholic radio, who's going to mention that or even talk
- 49:20about it because we don't want to be controversial. We want to make people scared.
- 49:24I'll tell you what, to not know what's happening and then to be a victim of
- 49:28it, as we all were five years ago, and the church was one of the biggest complicit
- 49:32parties in terms of leadership of not telling the truth or just complying with things.
- 49:37It's been disastrous. People have died, let
- 49:40alone that now people haven't gone to church so what you just said
- 49:43it's it's revolutionary i think it
- 49:46was george orwell who said you know to speak truth in
- 49:49the in a world of universal deceit is a revolutionary act to say two plus two
- 49:54equals four is revolutionary to say there's two genders like we're at the age
- 49:59of crazy shesterton so she would be he'd be on the front lines of this you can
- 50:05see why the devil wants to kind of.
- 50:08Decafetate that yes the spirit is happening I do it in the way that I can I've
- 50:12been trying to do this for 20 plus years but especially now but just imagine.
- 50:17Just imagine when the church is like okay and the Holy Spirit is like here he is,
- 50:22Then people who love, I mean, I'm sure at that moment there'll be people like,
- 50:26oh my gosh, I loved them all my life and I really don't care.
- 50:29It's just, direct people to shame, you know, and make your whole daily holy out.
- 50:34If you're doing that, then, you know, you're carrying on his legacy,
- 50:38you know, and what he was here, why he was sent to us. Well,
- 50:41what you were talking about is saving souls, and how many souls have we missed
- 50:44because of the delay on this?
- 50:46And, you know, I know people are tuning in right now, Dr. Howard,
- 50:49and they probably want to learn more. Where can they go exactly?
- 50:54Like, can you give your website? Can you give social media some way they can learn more about this?
- 51:03Sure. Well, as far as the history of things, there is the open letter,
- 51:06and that is on the Fulton Sheen movement.
- 51:08You see at the very top of the menu. It says open letters. Click on that.
- 51:12It's right there. You can download it.
- 51:13And that gives us an idea of where things are at with Sheen.
- 51:16As far as what Sheen's message for today is, you can look at our YouTube channel
- 51:21at Fulton Sheen Institute and look at our podcast that we have on there.
- 51:25We also have a weekday rosary. So people see a lot of rosary videos pop up.
- 51:29That's a big part of what we do every weekday morning at 10 a.m. Central Time.
- 51:36And of course, you have ways to rediscover. we have access to the audio and
- 51:40video on our website you can click on that, it gives you how you get access
- 51:45to hundreds of his audio files and access to his videos as well,
- 51:49there's a link for that on our website that, you know, why and reinvent the
- 51:53wheel and some of those things,
- 51:55other things, it's been through,
- 51:58For me, it's through conferences, live retreats, bringing it personally to people
- 52:02because I've seen how that, even conversations like this, when things are real,
- 52:08touch point to touch point, person to person, I see immediate impact.
- 52:12People's lives change because we've gotten used to a virtual world and it doesn't
- 52:17quite have the same impact. So that's another thing.
- 52:19I continue to do that. I lead pilgrimages to our Lady Guadalupe,
- 52:23to Europe, trying to increase that.
- 52:25They're all full-tinching pilgrimages. So, this is something people can learn
- 52:29more about by going to our website and see what the latest one is.
- 52:34We have one next week. It's Fulton Sheen and Our Lady Guadalupe.
- 52:38Well, now, are these open to the public or is this something that's closed off
- 52:43to scholars or something? So, anybody could go to these.
- 52:47Anybody can come. And that's the whole point.
- 52:51The point is to try to make all of these things accessible to a level like a ninth grader.
- 52:57That was why Sheen spent 30 hours preparing a 30-minute talk. Yeah, yeah, wow.
- 53:04Well, I got to tell you, your passion is, it lights a fire.
- 53:09I hope you never lose that passion. I hope you'll keep going because when you
- 53:13think about the, whatever's holding this back and, you know,
- 53:16like we were talking about good and evil, something evil is holding this back or postponing it.
- 53:22And I don't know what we'd do without you. We need more. Is there anyone else like you out there?
- 53:28Do we have an army of people pushing for this?
- 53:32I don't know what the army would be. I mean, that's something I've tried to like as I go.
- 53:38I mentioned, you know, he's a brother in arms for sure. It's Terry Barber.
- 53:45You know, he is the founder of St. Joseph Communications and then Lighthouse Media.
- 53:49So all those kiosks and things where you see Sheen and all the retreat series.
- 53:55Like he's the one who really made them accessible to us. Now you can find a lot of them on YouTube.
- 54:00He's on Catholic Radio as well he's on the front lines of this,
- 54:05he's been there for a long time.
- 54:08Other than that, you just have people who say, yeah, I love Sheen,
- 54:13but it's not quite your mission.
- 54:17For me, this is something that I knew God was going to put me involved.
- 54:22I didn't think I'd be fighting for this, to be honest.
- 54:25I saw all the stars being aligned in 2019, but I'm not God, and God has his reasons.
- 54:35It's certainly something he's permitted. I wouldn't say it was like a direct
- 54:39willing because it's all about saving souls, but God will do something.
- 54:43And it might be because next year is the 250th anniversary of our country and
- 54:50the spotlight will be extremely fresh.
- 54:55And once his proclamation comes with the mass, and we're talking,
- 54:59I guess it's like a five minute ceremony at the very beginning of the mass.
- 55:02There's talking to my friend Terry he said
- 55:05that he had learned from the Archbishop Sheen Foundation
- 55:08Peoria that they already are looking at another like three to five miracle so
- 55:14that's the other thing is that stratification needs to happen now because that
- 55:19means those other miracles could really happen fast and then we can go from
- 55:23blessed to Saint Sheen in light speed,
- 55:26and this is holding that process up as well so So, you know,
- 55:30that's why I said just pray, contact the diocese, don't have animosity.
- 55:36I mean, speak from a heart that's wounded. It's like, how can we not have full conscience?
- 55:41Because, I mean, there's a holy, righteous anger behind it because souls aren't
- 55:47being reached like they should be, and they will be when he's beatified.
- 55:51But, you know, put the pressure on. We have to. I mean, this is six years.
- 55:55And the devil's going to be still working at it. And it's all going to sound
- 55:58like, oh, it's all for good intentions.
- 55:59But it's not in the end. It's for, you know, we only care about saving our families,
- 56:06our children, saving, rebuilding our country.
- 56:08I mean, this is like we're in a whole, this is like the fall of the Roman Empire
- 56:14and civilization now starting again when this is all done.
- 56:17And you mentioned it, 2030, Agenda 2030. 30. Evil has its deadline.
- 56:22Yeah. And the response to that I see is exactly there. 2031 is our Lady Guadalupe.
- 56:27The 500th anniversary, it could be the 2000th anniversary since redemption.
- 56:32A lot of it. The 100th anniversary of Divine Mercy is 2031.
- 56:36I see all of these things converging. You gave me a chill when you said that,
- 56:39because when I thought about the 2030 agenda, I thought, oh my,
- 56:44maybe we are getting close to the end here.
- 56:47And, you know, I'm just so worried that people are going to spend their lives
- 56:50on Tik TOK and all of a sudden they're going to look up and everything's going
- 56:53to be gone because they're so distracted and if they want,
- 56:58I, we need more, we need more of a Fulton Sheen, that type of,
- 57:03that type of message coming from people.
- 57:06And, you know, I hope, I really hope that your, your open letter,
- 57:11I hope that all of the efforts that you are putting forth pushes this agenda and gosh, I'm just.
- 57:18It's been an honor to talk to you today. It really has. And really,
- 57:22listen, I hope I didn't add a lot to the conversation.
- 57:25I just tried to be quiet and let you go because I love hearing that passion,
- 57:30and I really hope that this all works out.
- 57:33And we talked about prayer. Would you mind leading us in prayer as we leave?
- 57:37Would you mind saying a prayer for what our goal is with this conversation,
- 57:41to bring forth the knowledge of Fulton Sheen and this open letter that you've put together?
- 57:48Let's hope the message gets to the right person. Would you mind praying for us?
- 57:52Absolutely. I'd love to do it. In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
- 57:56and of the Holy Spirit, amen.
- 57:59Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for the gift of the saints that you give the
- 58:05church, and you have them perfectly timed for when we need them most.
- 58:09Forgive our impatience, but always know that it's always in a sense of a love
- 58:14for you and a love of why you came to save souls.
- 58:18And we ask for the special grace now for the sake of countless millions in our
- 58:25own country and throughout the world, especially for the rebirth of America.
- 58:31We ask that you move the church especially that it may bring honor and glory
- 58:36to you through the church to raise Venerable Fulton Sheen to the altar through having him,
- 58:43rightly proclaimed blessed as the church has already determined help us to imitate
- 58:49him help us to see that the reason behind all this is so that his legacy will
- 58:53continue for every single one of us give us discipline,
- 58:58strength, dedication to the daily holy hour,
- 59:03unswerving commitment to your blessed mother to carry out all of her wishes
- 59:07as venerable as she did, who lived the method to fathom the faithfully every day,
- 59:12and help us in the end to be what you called us to be, the great saints of these
- 59:17times, the end of this era,
- 59:19an era prophesied by St.
- 59:21Louis de Montfort and so many others, the time where so many saints would dream
- 59:25to be alive today, make us grateful, no matter what faces us to realize that
- 59:30we are invincible when we live in you.
- 59:34We entrust all these things to our Blessed Mother and to our Lady of Guadalupe.
- 59:38As we pray, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
- 59:41Blessed art thou, my woman, and blessed is the fruit of thine Jesus.
- 59:46Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now at the hour of our death.
- 59:51Amen. Venerable Fulton Sheen, pray for us.
- 59:55Dr. Peter Howard, you are a hero. Thank you so much for joining us on Catholic Conversations.
- 1:00:01I just love this hour we spent together. You are an amazing human being,
- 1:00:05and I just want your letter to get to the right person, and I want to see this go through.
- 1:00:12Again, can you give your website or your YouTube channel any way people can
- 1:00:17contact you or be more in touch with this phenomenal subject that we've discussed today?
- 1:00:23Sure. Very simply, go to FultonSheenInstitute.com. You can see what we're up
- 1:00:27to, our offerings as well.
- 1:00:29If you want to access the open letter, go to Fulton Sheen Movement.
- 1:00:32It is something separate.
- 1:00:34A complimentary FultonSheenMovement.com. Our YouTube channel,
- 1:00:38simply type in Fulton Sheen Institute and you'll see all that we offer.
- 1:00:42Join us on our weekday rosary at 10 a.m. Central, live, people around the world.
- 1:00:47And I think that's it. I'm just grateful and thanks for you,
- 1:00:50Stan, for Catholic Spirit Radio because you guys, just by doing this,
- 1:00:55this reveals so much about what your station is about.
- 1:00:59It shows to me, you guys are the tip of the spear because I'm just a,
- 1:01:04channel of this information and all of this, it's because of.
- 1:01:10Radio stations like Catholic Spirit Radio that makes this happen.
- 1:01:13So you're doing a huge, huge service to all of this by putting this in front of so many Catholics.
- 1:01:19I just can't thank you enough. It's been an honor to talk to you today,
- 1:01:23and I will be watching you on YouTube and listening to Fulton Sheen.
- 1:01:27One thing we never even got into was he had a great sense of humor.
- 1:01:30Oh, I love his sense of humor, his corny jokes, and maybe we can do this again
- 1:01:37in the future if that would be okay with you.
- 1:01:39Yeah, anytime. Reach out. I'd love to do it. Thank you so much, Dr. Peter Howard.
- 1:01:43He's been our guest on Catholic Conversations. I'm Stan Ketsick.
- 1:01:46I look forward to talking to you again.
- 1:01:48Usually we sit down with a cup of coffee, but Dr. Howard was so fascinating,
- 1:01:52I didn't even get to take a sip. So thanks again, Dr. Howard.
- 1:01:56Take care. You've been listening to Catholic Conversations. Download our podcasts
- 1:02:00at catholicspiritradio.com.