Take 2 with Jerry & Debbie

Bullying has been around forever. Every generation sees its share of it. It’s always ugly, and never acceptable. On Friday, live from the annual Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, Jerry and Debbie will tackle this thorny topic – as always, with your insights and wisdom. There’s no doubt that bullying has taken on new dimensions in our day, especially with the ability of people to harass one another via social media. How prevalent is this in your lived experience? Do you have or know kids who have been bullied? Perhaps you yourself have been a victim. With all the emphasis on “tolerance” and “diversity,” why is that there are still so many among us who make life miserable for others, sometimes to the point of encouraging them to take their own lives? Be sure to join us for what should be a lively discussion.

RESOURCES: Stompoutbullying.org

What fills us with sorrow, what pains us? We have shed so many tears in hopes that God hears us.  If you could fill a vessel with the tears that have been poured out from your heart, what size vessel would that fill?  A coffee cup, or a paint bucket, or maybe even a 50-gallon container or more. Our tears are never wasted but they sure do add up.  Let’s talk about this and more on Thursday’s Take 2 with Jerry and Debbie.  Call in and share from real emotion. 1-833-288-3986.

Most of us spend quite a bit of time in the car.  Do you prefer to drive in silence?  Maybe you like to listen to music.  Then there are those that use this commute time to pray.  A rosary perhaps or even spontaneous prayer in the privacy of your own vehicle.  Some folks have even said that praying makes them better drivers.  Others have resorted to prayer so that they can calm their frustrations on the road.  This is an interesting topic and with your phone call we can get a glimpse into your car regime.  1-833-288-3986.

Have you been in jail or prison? Do you have a loved one who has been or is currently serving time? Do you visit them? How has it impacted your family. Do you volunteer to visit those in prison? What is the spiritual climate like in our jails and prisons? Have you seen someone come to faith while incarcerated? There may be a lot more faith inside prison walls than we can imagine. Let’s talk about this on Tuesday.

Rare is the household that doesn’t have a television set. Some homes have several. According to a Nielsen report, adults in the United States watch an average of 5 hours of TV per day. Extend that out and it amounts to approximately 76 entire days annually. Is that good for us? Bad for us? Clearly, the answer to that question depends on what we’re consuming. And, wow, how television content has changed over the years! Join Jerry and Debbie on Monday and share your take on what role TV viewing plays in your and your family’s lives. There are some very real connections to our spiritual lives.

For any sin to be forgiven, there has to be authentic contrition, or sorrow, for having committed that sin. Thankfully, as the Catholic Church teaches, our sorrow can be “imperfect” and we’re still forgiven. Naturally, the goal is to strive for “perfect” contrition. The latter is sorrow driven by the motive of love for God and having offended Him, and nothing else. The former may include an element of that, but might also be motivated by something like a fear of going to hell. In any event, sorrow must be present or sins are not forgiven. Have you ever confessed your sins, then wondered, “Was I really sorry?” After all, so many of us have that “besetting sin,” the one that keeps coming up over and over in confession. Do you fear your sorrow may not be adequate because of the very real possibility that you will commit the same sins again? On Friday, join Jerry and Debbie as we have a conversation about this important subject. Share your take on how you cultivate sorrow for your sins, and whether or not you might at times struggle to accept that your contrition is sincere.

Here is a link to a good article on confession on EWTN’s website.

Here’s a link to a great examination of conscience by Fr. John Trigilio.

We all know the saying, “When it rains, it pours.” That’s typically uttered by those who are going through a string of hardships. It’s something we’ve all experienced. But on Thursday, Jerry and Debbie are going to turn that phrase around and look at it from a positive perspective. We’ll invite your takes on how God has “showered” you with an abundance of blessings. This will be a helpful exercise, as we may all realize that we’ve received many more blessings from above than we were aware of. Plus, it will be a great opportunity to show our gratitude for all that Our Heavenly Father does for us.

Have You Ever Made a Mistake You Can’t Fix?  That’s our topic on the next Take 2 with Jerry and Debbie.  There are some situations in life that simply cannot be rectified.  Moving forward with life knowing that the past won’t be corrected shows how well we are able to accept the things we cannot change.  We all face this in life whether it is big or small.  This discussion, with your participation, can help many souls cope with this reality.  Please call in and share your experience. 1-833-288-3986.

On Tuesday, Jerry and Debbie invite your takes on what may be a delicate matter: Wishing your husband or wife were different in some way. Oh, not that you don’t love them. You may be madly in love with them and still wish that he or she dressed differently, shaved or didn’t shave, wouldn’t watch a particular TV show, didn’t snore at night. You get the idea. This show is not at all about complaining about one’s beloved spouse. Just a real-life conversation to prove that nobody’s perfect, and we can love deeply those whom we wish were slightly different in some area of their lives. We look forward to your take on this!

It may be the most sought-after – and misunderstood – commodity among the entire human race: Peace. True peace. Not the absence of war. Not lack of strife or division. No. We’re talking about peace in the human heart, mind and soul. Maybe the key reason why there is so little peace in the world is because there is so little peace in individual human beings. Do you have true peace in your soul? Do you even know what it means? Have you experienced it, only to lose it over the worries and concerns of life? What robs us of peace? How can we restore it? On Monday, join Jerry and Debbie for another poignant conversation about the stuff of real life. Share you take on what true peace means to you – and if you have it in your life.