Faith & Good Counsel Show With Staci Gulino

So pleased to welcome return guest Dawn Eden speaking more deeply about her pilgrimage of healing from abuse and trauma with the help of an integrated approach to healing of wounds through good, faithful counsel and immersion in the wounds of Christ.  Dawn was so kind to offer us a second opportunity to hear more of her personal story and wisdom in the very tender area of healing from sexual woundedness. Today's interview is a lovely compliment to our previous Faith & Good Counsel Radio Show episode together where Dawn spoke about her latest book "Remembering God's Mercy:  Redeem the Past and Free Yourself from Painful Memories". Resources: Here's an excellent article in which Dawn speaks in some greater detail regarding her healing and conversion.   Check out this short video and article about Dawn's journey from the Rome Reports news service, which includes some vintage photos and video of her in her earlier life. Catholic Therapists:  Wonderful, searchable resource to find therapists in you

Erin Franco, blogger at Humble Handmaid, returns today to talk about her discernment on a new season of life.

Are you a person who appears to others to "have it all together", but interiorly you're struggling with fears, and doubts, worries and insecurities?  Take heart!  You are not alone! Erin Franco is back on the show today sharing with us a bit about her own battle with insecurity, fear, and anxiety, and some of the tips and strategies she shared in her blog post "He Will Not Give Me a Stone: Battling Fear and Insecurity". Erin has a number of simply wonderful blog posts and other content that you can find as well on her blog "Humble Handmaid" - after the show today, I hope you check it out!  

Another great episode with Rachel Johnson, Registered Dietitian and Certified Personal Trainer, speaking about what faith has to do with our feminine body image. In our first episode, Rachel shared some of her journey from a distorted body image to a healthier understanding of who she is a young woman made in the image and likeness of God. A recent, rather innocent encounter caused her to have some questions and doubt, however.  She offers some tips and inspiration today as she speaks about how the practice of her faith quickly turned those concerns into contentment, joy, and peace. It's not a one and done healing, ya'll.  It's a lifelong journey, and we're all on it!  

Kathleen Beckman, author, speaker, certified Ignatian retreat director, and President/Co-founder of the Foundation of Prayer for Priests (www.foundationforpriests.org), visited with us today on the show about her latest book, "God's Healing Mercy: Finding Your Path to Forgiveness, Peace, and Joy"  

Does it strike you that - despite all the various conversations about our environment, nature, the universe, and our role as human persons within creation - that we seem to be more out-of-sync with Creation than ever before?   Still, we long for that connection to that which is transcendent, which cannot be manufactured by our own reason and hands.  It somehow alludes us in our reductionistic viewpoint of the world. Join me today as we listen to the contemplative wisdom of Fr. John Bartunek, LC who shares with us from his first book of a coming series of four books of meditations focused upon the beauty of the seasons, simply titled Spring Meditations. For Show Notes, visit www.stacigulino.com

OK...be honest.  Have you ever thought that you'd really love to dive into St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body, but have been...well...just a bit overwhelmed?  It's not exactly a "light read", right?! Or maybe you've read some of the TOB audiences, but haven't found a way to connect the beautiful truths contained within about who we are as human persons to your everyday life and relationships? Enter The Cor Project! Listen in today as Jason Clark, of The Cor Project shares how we can "journey into the heart of Christ", and learn to truly LIVE the Theology of the Body in our lives by the many resources and options that are available at The Cor Project. For show notes, visit www.stacigulino.com

Today, former America's Top Model, Leah Darrow, speaks with us about "True Beauty", and shares how we as women follow the standard of our cultural ideas about beauty (as she once did, and still has to guard herself against), and redirects our hearts and minds to the love of God Our Father Who created us in love, for love, and Who made us a reflection of His own Beauty.  There, we find joy and peace in the beauty of our creation which transcends the physical. For show notes, visit www.stacigulino.com

Pope Francis has called for a revolution for the family. But what does that mean exactly?  And how do we go about participating in this revolution? How do we make decisions that lead to the good for our families? Dr. Greg Popcak speaks today about his latest book co-authored with his beautiful wife, Lisa Popcak-Discovering God Together: The Catholic Guide to Raising Faithful Kids. This latest work by the Popcaks' is aimed at helping parents gain an understanding of what it means to truly (and with practically) live out the mission of the Catholic family. Prolific authors Dr. Greg and Lisa Popcak bring their unique professional education, experience, and their Catholic faith to every aspect of their work as Catholic psychotherapists, Catholic Life Coaches, as well as co-hosting an inspiring and engaging daily radio program "More2Life".  For more information, visit www.stacigulino.com

Mary-Rose Verret was my guest today, and had so much to say in introducing us to a truly unique marriage prep renewal program that combines the fullness of the magisterium of the Catholic Church (including Theology of the Body and practical implementation of the Virtues in relationship) in combination with the very best of secular psychology (Attachment Theory, Forgiveness Therapy, Marital & Family Therapy, etc.)   Witness to Love was born of prayer before the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament in an adoration chapel in Lafayette, LA in response to the heartache experienced by Mary-Rose, Ryan, and Fr. Michael Delcambre at the news of the broken marriage of a loved young couple. Mary-Rose shares how they were led from that time of prayer to join with experts in the fields of theology and psychology to produce the Witness to Love: How to Help the Next Generation Build Marriages that Survive and Thrive program. Mary-Rose and I talked about the program itself, as well as delved into some of the issues - such as self

Captivating... that word barely sums up my interview with Sue Ellen Browder, former long-time journalist with Cosmopolitan Magazine who - as an act of penance and of a contribution to cultural restoration - shares with us through eyewitness testimony the story of how she participated in the intentional manipulation of women, men, and our culture in her new book, Subverted: How I Helped the Sexual Revolution Hijack the Women's Movement. For more, visit www.stacigulino.com for the show notes and other resources.

It's the "most wonderful time of the year"....RIGHT??  For SO many reasons it truly is....most importantly, because of the Incarnation of Christ through Our Lady's "YES" to God - when the Word became flesh, dwelt among us, and brought redemption to world. But sometimes, there just might be a little bit of trepidation over the possibility of conflict around the dinner table, or in our conversation with family or friends who .... WELL .... might just rub us the wrong way.  Preparing ourselves ahead of time is a something to consider doing to help foster making more joyful memories with loved ones, and for easing some of the stress during this very busy season. But, how can we prepare?  Where do we start? Today's episode was JAM-PACKED with tips and suggestions from Erin Franco and I - and a LOT of wisdom from St. Jose Maria Escriva! - to help us all find ways to be merciful and virtuous during this wonderful, but sometimes exhausting and stressful time of the year. For show notes & more, visit www.staciguli

When you look at her lovely smile, you would simply have NO IDEA the amount of suffering this beautiful woman - Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle - has endured over her life. In her brand new book - The Kiss of Jesus: How Mother Teresa and the Saints Helped Me to Discover the Beauty of the Cross - Donna-Marie takes us on a journey through her life, which has been rather tortuous at times. From kidnapping, to relationship abuses, to pregnancy losses, single motherhood, hunger and home disruption, Donna has endured enormous trials, and shares intimately her battles, fears, worries & doubts - and how she has learned the beauty of the cross through the aid of Mother Teresa and the Saints. Though her story is heart-wrenching at times, Donna-Marie's story is tremendously inspirational and filled with hope! Beautiful interview with a beautiful soul...my return guest, Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle!

My guest on today's episode was Allison Ricciardi, LMHC, a Catholic psychotherapist in Long Island, NYC.  She is the founder of CatholicTherapists.com, and The Raphael Remedy where she offers Catholic counseling and life coaching.  She also has an amazing blog where she and several other Catholic therapists write valuable content.     Allison is quick-witted, engaging, and masterful in explaining the counterfeit spirituality of New Age ideas and practices that only serve to enslave people seeking remedy from a wound, or difficult situation....or who just are looking for a little "fun".       Tune in and learn from the best!

We are all drawn by Beauty...in music, in art, in the written word, in nature....however, do we know that Beauty is the name of God?  It is often said that "Beauty will save the world".  But what does that mean?  How can we look to the Way of Beauty to bring peace and joy to our hearts when we as human persons have been reduced to merely the sum of our parts in our progressive, modern age which promotes our value as merely what we can produce?  There's SO-MUCH-MORE, ya'll! Today's episode is rich with wonder about Beauty and how God speaks to us through the beauty that is all around is.  Bill is masterful is teaching us what Beauty is, helping us to reconnect our beings to that desire for Beauty that we all have and were created for, as well as how to embrace Beauty in our busy adult lives and offer this gift to our children. Truly, an episode not to be missed! For show notes, www.stacigulino.com

Listen in to hear the lovely Erin Franco speak about whats she's learned in her journey with NFP in her first few years of marriage. For show notes, visit www.stacigulino.com