In Goodfaith

One year ago, white smoke rose over the Sistine Chapel and the world met Pope Leo XIV — the first American pontiff in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church. A lot has happened since then.
To mark the anniversary, we're joined again by Colleen Dulle. Colleen is the Vatican correspondent for America Magazine, co-host of the Inside the Vatican podcast, and author of Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Keeping the Faith as a Vatican Reporter. Colleen reported live from Rome during the Conclave and has been tracking Leo's papacy ever since. She joins us from the middle of an international move with her young family, and we are so grateful for her time.
Colleen's Links:
Struck Down, Not Destroyed on Bookshop.org
Inside the Vatican Podcast
Instagram
X (Twitter)

What does it look like to walk alongside young Latino Catholics at this particular moment in the life of the Church — and in the life of the United States? That's the heart of today's conversation with Juan Escarfuller and Elisabeth Roman from Instituto Fe y Vida, a Lasallian ministry founded in 1994 to form young Latinos as servant leaders in the Church and society.
From WhatsApp groups that outlast retreats to banner-making retreats that reunite teens with their parents, Juan and Ellie paint a vivid picture of what formation rooted in community, culture, and faith actually looks like on the ground. They also speak candidly about the fear, grief, and resilience spreading through Latino parishes in the current political climate, and what they witnessed firsthand when a delegation of over 90 migrants was received by Pope Leo at the Vatican.

In our newest installment of our parenting series The Confessional, Maggie and Stephanie sit down with Kate and Anthony, a Philadelphia couple raising three daughters while doing deeply meaningful, demanding work in Catholic higher education and climate justice. From meeting at the National Catholic Youth Conference at age 17 to building an intentional family life rooted in faith, justice, and community, this conversation is warm and deeply real.
Kate is the Director of the Center for Common Good at Villanova University. Anthony co-founded Taproot, a climate justice nonprofit working on issues of self-determination and climate reparations. Together they're basketball teams, navigating the Catholic Church's complicated moment, and trying to raise kids who understand why their faith compels them to care about the world.
Join the conversation:
We want to hear from you! What questions or challenges are you facing as a parent or caregiver trying to nurture faith in your family? Share your thoughts and help shape the series by submitting questions through the link or on social media.
Stay tuned for more episodes of the Parent Series!
In Goodfaith Podcast Topic Submissions

One year after the death of Pope Francis, Maggie and Stephanie welcome back John Grosso, digital editor of the National Catholic Reporter — this time calling in from paternity leave with a two-week-old at home.
John shares where he was when Francis died (at his desk in a bathrobe at 3am), reflects on how Francis's legacy is still being fought over, and makes the case that Pope Leo XIV is building on that foundation.
Then we get into the current moment: Trump's attack on Pope Leo XIV, JD Vance challenging the Pope on Just War Theory while standing in the homeland of St. Augustine, the American cardinals on 60 Minutes, and a USCCB slowly finding its footing. We end with the bigger question underneath all of it: what this moment is really asking of American Catholics, and what it means to choose the gospel over your politics.
Also: a baby who may owe her potty training breakthrough to Pope Francis, and John's promise to review JD Vance's book the moment he's back from leave.Follow John Grosso online:
National Catholic Reporter
Threads
BlueSky
LinkedIn

In this episode of In Goodfaith, Maggie and Stephanie sit down with writer, theologian, and speaker Laura Kelly Fanucci for a conversation about faith, grief, parenting, and hope in uncertain times. Drawing from her life as a mother of five, her experience navigating crisis in her community, and her new book Living Easter: 50 Days to Practice Resurrection, Laura reflects on how faith takes shape in the middle of real life.
Together, they explore what it looks like to raise compassionate kids in a complicated world, how community becomes a lifeline in times of fear and division, and how the Resurrection provides a path through suffering
About the Guest
Laura Kelly Fanucci is a writer, speaker, and theologian whose work focuses on faith in everyday life. She is the author of several books, including Living Easter: 50 Days to Practice Resurrection. Laura lives in Minnesota with her husband and five sons, where she writes and shares reflections on faith, grief, and hope.
Links
Living Easter: 50 Days to Practice Resurrection by Laura Kelly Fanucci
Follow Laura (@thismessygrace) for daily reflections and Gospel-based insights

In this episode of In Goodfaith, we sit down with Meghan Hatcher, Senior Director of Ministry Strategies at the Ministry Leadership Center, to explore a question that has shaped years of shared work between our organizations: What does real transformation actually look like in the life of a church?
Together, we unpack the difference between transactional ministry (focused on numbers, attendance, and outputs) and transformational ministry, which centers on belonging, encounter, and lived change in people’s lives.
Drawing from Meghan’s experience in church planting, pastoral leadership, and congregational strategy, we reflect on the moments that revealed the limits of traditional metrics, as well as the deeper stories of grace, healing, and community that often go unseen. 
We also introduce the Transformational Ministry Assessment, an innovative new tool developed in partnership between Goodfaith and the Ministry Leadership Center, designed to help leaders name, measure, and grow the kind of transformation that actually reflects the heart of the Gospel.
This conversation is for anyone who has felt the tension between what’s counted and what truly counts—and who believes the Church is still becoming something new.
Key Themes & Takeaways
1. The problem with “success metrics” in ministry
Many churches rely on attendance, giving, and growth as primary indicators of health—but those measures often miss the deeper movement of the Spirit in people’s lives. 
2. Transformation vs. transaction
Transformation is about real change—how people think, feel, act, and relate. Transactional ministry focuses on participation and outputs. Both exist, but only one reflects the fullness of discipleship.
3. A defining story: when a church was “failing”… but lives were changing
Meghan shares a powerful story of a church plant that was shut down for not meeting financial and attendance benchmarks—even as people were experiencing belonging, healing, and faith for the first time. 
4. We are resurrection people—but often tell Good Friday stories
Much of church culture focuses on decline and survival. But the Gospel calls us to notice where new life is already breaking through.
5. The Church is people, not a place
The early Christian idea of ecclesia points to a gathered people, not a building. Transformation often happens beyond the walls—on playgrounds, in homes, and in relationships.
6. What people are actually longing for
Belonging. Being known. Being accompanied. Not programs.
7. A new imagination for ministry
Across the country, leaders are rethinking what church can look like—partnering with communities, listening first, and creating spaces that respond to real human needs.
About the Transformational Ministry Assessment
Developed through years of shared research and practice, the Transformational Ministry Assessment helps ministry leaders:
Reflect on where transformation is already happening
Identify gaps between intention and impact
Shift from transactional to transformational focus
Engage stakeholders in meaningful conversation
Reimagine ministry through the lens of the Gospel
It explores transformation across four dimensions:
Head (thinking)
Heart (feeling)
Hands (action)
Community (relationships)
This tools enables churches to see more clearly, name what matters, and move forward with intention.
 
👉 Learn more: https://wearegoodfaith.org/transformational-ministry-assessment/

This conversation is a special one for us.
We first met Sister Norma Pimentel years ago through our Magdalene Circle, and later had the chance to spend time with her at the border in South Texas. Those encounters changed us. They shaped how we understand accompaniment, what it looks like in practice, and what it asks of us.
Sister Norma has spent her life walking with migrants and refugees through Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley. In moments of overwhelming need, she has helped lead a response rooted in presence and focused on meeting people as they arrive, caring for them, and helping them take the next step forward.
In this episode, she shares what she has seen over the years, how things have shifted recently, and what it means to keep showing up when the world feels heavy and uncertain.
More than anything, this conversation brought us back to something simple and demanding: our faith calls us to love the person in front of us.
Join the conversation:
We want to hear from you! What questions or challenges are you facing as a parent or caregiver trying to nurture faith in your family? Share your thoughts and help shape the series by submitting questions through the link or on social media.
Stay tuned for more episodes of the Parent Series!
In Goodfaith Podcast Topic Submissions

In this episode of In Goodfaith, Maggie and Stephanie sit down with journalist and Vatican correspondent Colleen Dulle to reflect on what it looks like to remain rooted in faith while confronting the Church’s hardest realities.
Colleen Dulle is a journalist and Vatican correspondent for America Magazine and co-host of the podcast Inside the Vatican. Her book, Struck Down, Not Destroyed, offers a personal and professional account of faith lived in tension with the realities of the institutional Church.
Drawing from her new book Colleen shares her journey covering the Vatican during moments of crisis, including the 2018 abuse scandal, and how that reporting intersected with her own spiritual life. She speaks candidly about doubt, anger, and the ongoing work of holding both love for the Church and a commitment to truth.
The conversation also explores the evolving landscape of Catholic journalism, the tension between institutional credibility and personal voice, and how motherhood has reshaped Colleen’s understanding of God’s love.
Throughout, a consistent thread emerges: faith is not the absence of struggle, but a willingness to remain in it—with honesty, hope, and trust in the resurrection.Colleen's Links:
Struck Down, Not Destroyed on Bookshop.org
Inside the Vatican Podcast
Instagram
X (Twitter)
 
Join the conversation:
We want to hear from you! What questions or challenges are you facing as a parent or caregiver trying to nurture faith in your family? Share your thoughts and help shape the series by submitting questions through the link or on social media.
Stay tuned for more episodes of the Parent Series!
In Goodfaith Podcast Topic Submissions

In this special installment of The Confessional on In Goodfaith, Maggie and Tim turn the microphones toward someone listeners know well — Goodfaith president Stephanie Peddicord — along with her husband Chad Peddicord.
Together they reflect on the realities of raising teenagers in today’s hyper-competitive youth sports culture: the joys, the pressures, and the values they’re trying to pass on as parents.
From travel teams and early specialization to sideline behavior and the challenge of keeping family priorities intact, this conversation explores what it means to form young people through sports while remembering that their worth goes far beyond performance. 
 
Join the conversation:
We want to hear from you! What questions or challenges are you facing as a parent or caregiver trying to nurture faith in your family? Share your thoughts and help shape the series by submitting questions through the link or on social media.
Stay tuned for more episodes of the Parent Series!
In Goodfaith Podcast Topic Submissions

In this special bonus episode, we bring our podcast producer and Director of Communication & Development on to help us talk about the past two years. On February 26th, 2024, The Center for FaithJustice officially rebranded as Goodfaith. The process has been full of gifts and challenges, but has continually brought the organization closer to its mission: to cultivate a vibrant movement of faith in action through transformative experiences centered in Catholic social tradition.
 
Over the course of this conversation, we reflect on what it meant to discern a new name, honor a deeply loved history, and step into a broader national calling. We talk about programmatic shifts, new partnerships, the launch and growth of this podcast, our move from Lawrenceville to Trenton, and the expansion of our team.
 
We also share honestly about the realities of leading a Catholic nonprofit in uncertain times while remaining rooted in the richness of Catholic social teaching.
 
Thank you for walking with us...in goodfaith.
 
Join the conversation:
We want to hear from you! What questions or challenges are you facing as a parent or caregiver trying to nurture faith in your family? Share your thoughts and help shape the series by submitting questions through the link or on social media.
In Goodfaith Podcast Topic Submissions