Vatican Insider

Welcome to Vatican Insider on a quiet August weekend – at least in Italy as August is the month of the so-called Great Exodus when Italians leave big cities, small towns and everywhere in between for some vacation time at a summer home in the mountains or at the seashore. Be sure to stay tuned after the news report for the interview segment and Part II of my conversation with Johnny Vrba, creator of the now famous 1000-piece, 3 x 4 foot mosaic that depicts the future Saint Carlo Acutis.

Welcome to Vatican Insider on this exciting weekend in Rome when the Jubilee of Youth that started July 28 continues with a vigil Saturday night and a Mass on Sunday on the Tor Vergata esplanade to conclude the weeklong event. My young guest in the interview segment is Johnny Vrba, creator of the now-famous 1000-piece mosaic that depicts the future Saint Carlo Acutis. He spent some days in Rome during the Jubilee, sharing the mosaic and its story with young people. Join us for this edition of Vatican Insider!

Welcome to Vatican Insider on the weekend that precedes the arrival in Rome of half a million youth from over 140 countries to celebrate the weeklong Jubilee of Youth that starts Monday, July 28! Exciting days ahead, for sure! And an exciting Special report this weekend in what is normally the interview segment of VI. I prepared a Special program because this is such a special weekend! Saturday is the feast of Sts. Anne and Joachim, parents of our Blessed Mother and grandparents of Jesus, and Sunday marks the 5th World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly.

In Part II of our conversation, we talk about the years of filming The Chosen, how he was chosen for his role as Jesus, and the extraordinary time spent in Matera for the Crucifixion. Jonathan explains when and how that season will air. I asked if he felt this role had changed him in any way over all these years of filming? I also asked an almost impossible question to answer: Did he have a favorite segment (or two)?

This week and next, Jonathan talks about how he and the cast rejoiced over meeting a fellow American, Pope Leo XIV, and he also offered a perceptive analysis of the new Pope. We talk about the years of filming The Chosen, how he was chosen for his role as Jesus, and the time spent in Matera. I asked if he felt this role had changed him in any way over all these years of filming? I also asked an almost impossible question to answer: Did he have a favorite segment (or two)?

This week we continue with the second part of the interview of 3 amazing cast members of the TV series, THE CHOSEN – Vanessa Benavente Mother Mary, Elizabeth Tabish -Mary Magdalen and George Xanthus as John The Apostle as they visited Rome after filming the Crucifixion and Season 6 in Matera, Italy. Join us for Vatican Insider!

This week I was blessed to interview 3 amazing cast members of the TV series, THE CHOSEN – Vanessa Benavente Mother Mary, Elizabeth Tabish -Mary Magdalen and George Xanthus as John The Apostle as they visited Rome after filming the Crucifixion and Season 6 in Matera, Italy. Join us for Vatican Insider!

Welcome to Vatican Insider on another hot summer weekend in Rome and so many parts of the world! Relax, enjoy a cool drink and let me bring you the news and a great interview! After the news segment, stay tuned for Part II of my conversation with Catherine Wiley and Marilyn Henry of the Catholic Grandparents Association as we continue our talk about the first international conference that CGA recently held in Rocca di Papa, near Rome, attended by grandparents from Ireland, England, Australia, the U.S., Malta, Gibraltar and the Philippines.

Welcome to Vatican Insider on another exciting Jubilee weekend in a very hot Rome – the Jubilee of Sports with a lot of events in the agenda including the Mass on Sunday the 15th celebrated by Pope Leo XIV, a Pope who likes sports, and has played tennis, and is a fan of his native Chicago’s baseball team, the White Sox. In fact, he was given a White Sox baseball cap at the Wednesday general audience and wore it briefly, sporting a broad smile! (photos from Fr.Peter Zorjan! Leo XIV is standing near a group of American seminarians and I suspect they gave him the hat!) The interview segment features Catherine Wiley and Marilyn Henry of the Catholic Grandparents Association as we talk about the first international conference CGA recently held in Rocca di Papa, near Rome. Catherine is the founder and president of CGA and Marilyn is the delegate for the U.S. and works with other CGA groups internationally. CGA grandparents from Ireland, England, Australia, the U.S., Malta, Gibraltar and the Philippines were among those attending the conference. That fascinating conversation comes after the news.

Please join me this weekend in the interview segment of Vatican Insider for Part II of my conversation with my very special friend and guest, Msgr. Roger Landry! If you watched EWTN television at any time (probably most of the time) from April 21st when Pope Francis died – you know Msgr. Roger Landry, one third of the team that covered the big events recently at the Vatican that culminated in the May 8 election of Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope and the first Augustinian to be elected as Successor of St. Peter.

What a guest I have for you this week on Vatican Insider in the interview segment! If you’ve watched EWTN television at any time this month – and very likely most every day since April 21st when Pope Francis died – you know Msgr. Roger Landry, one third of the team that covered the big events at the Vatican this past month, culminating in the May 8 election of Pope Leo XIV.

Welcome to Vatican Insider on another historic weekend – the second with our new Holy Father, American-born Augustinian, Pope Leo XIV. In fact, the inaugural Mass of his pontificate takes place on Sunday, May 18 in St. Peter’s Square. St. John Paul’s birthday was May 18 – he would have been 105! This week, in what is normally the interview segment of Vatican Insider, I’ve prepared a Special on the beautiful Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii, just south of Naples. Why this shrine this week? Well, Pope Leo XIV was elected on May 8, the feast day of this marvelous Marian shrine, and Mary is very dear to him.

Habemus Papam! History! A miracle! The first ever Pope, Successor to St Peter, Vicar of Christ, from The United States! Also, a word about my guests in the second part of my interview segment this week: two friends who have been in Rome for many years, John and Ashley Noronha. Anyone in Rome with even a remote link to the Church – people working in the Vatican, the Roman Curia, our seminary here in Rome, etc – will have at some point crossed paths with Ashley and John! They have wonderful individual stories but together, as a couple, their story is the Truth and Beauty Project. So tune in this weekend to learn about immersion in Truth and Beauty!

Welcome to Vatican Insider on this second weekend without a Pope! Such a strange feeling! Most of VI’s news segment this week will, of course, be dedicated to this period known as the sede vacante – the vacant see – from which we get our word vacancy! Another word is interregnum – the period between two reigning pontiffs. First, a word about my guests in the interview segment this week: two friends who have been in Rome for many years, John and Ashley Noronha. Anyone in Rome with even a remote link to the Church – people working in the Vatican, the Roman Curia, our seminary here in Rome, etc – will have at some point crossed paths with Ashley and John! They have wonderful individual stories but together, as a couple, their story is the Truth and Beauty Project. So tune in this weekend to learn about immersion in Truth and Beauty!

This week, in what is normally the interview segment of Vatican Insider, I bring you on a pilgrimage with the Via Lucis! After the news segment and the Q&A on the Paschal candle, stay tuned for the special story about the Via Lucis, the Way of Light, basically a post-Easter journey through 14 stations of light, the light that fills our life because of the Resurrection. This devotion is also known as Stations of the Resurrection as it encourages the faithful to meditate on the Resurrection of Jesus and on his post-Resurrection appearances to the disciples and others.(Originally aired on 4/14/24)