6 Podcasts for Catholic Women

I enjoy podcasts so much - I love learning from them, getting inspired by them, and I find that when I listen to the really good ones, they help me to stay focused on the important things. They are also amazing for making monotonous tasks and road trips so much more enjoyable.

I am always searching for new great podcasts, so I thought I would do a few posts on different categories of podcasts that I find really helpful and inspirational in case anyone else is searching for some new ones to try out.

Here are some podcasts that I listen to that really help me strengthen and stay focused on my faith, as well as inspire me. Sometimes they answer a struggle or question so directly I feel that God is speaking to me through the speaker on the podcast.

The other day I was so overwhelmed with how messy my house was. I felt too overwhelmed to even start cleaning it, and so I procrastinated and sat in my overwhelmed/sad state - so unproductive.

Almost every morning while I am getting breakfast ready for Rose and I (and getting the coffee brewing - that's the number one priority), I listen to one of Fr. Mike Schmitz's 5-10 minute podcast episodes. I looked at the next episode I had on my "listen later" queue (I use the app Stitcher to listen to podcasts) and it was titled:

"Overwhelmed?"

I totally think that was a God thing. Anyway, the podcast episode completely spoke to me, addressing everything I was struggling with the day before, and I had a much better start to the next day and made some progress on my disaster of a house.

This is like the 10th time it's happened! So anyway, I can't recommend Fr. Mike's podcast enough.

Here is a list of 6 podcasts that I think are amazing for any Catholic woman to listen to. They will help you learn about and grow in your faith, answer your questions and struggles, and are also enjoyable.

1. The Fr. Mike Schmitz Podcast

I had to start with this one because it's my favourite. Fr. Mike is a renowned priest and Catholic speaker. Like I said, epsidodes are about 5-10 minutes long and are actually his awesome youtube videos converted into podcast episodes. Fr. Mike somehow manages to sum up the most profound and applicable topics in a very short time. He talks about faith topics as well as all sorts of relatable life topics. Listening will change your life, can't recommend it enough. (If you want to know more about who Fr. Mike Schmitz is, click here).

Some great episodes:

- The Power of Prayer

- Procrastination Isn't Always Laziness

- What's Your Burden?

Average length: 5-10 minutes

2. The Catholic Feminist

The Catholic Feminist is a podcast hosted by Claire Swinarski for Catholic women. It is a podcast for "Jesus-loving women who want to be inspired, involved, and intentional" (quoted from their site). Claire interviews Catholic women about faith and life topics each week and they talk about various things that we all face, hard truths, tough questions, and they don't shy away from anything. There are many inspiring interviews of women who are living out their faith in really cool ways, and the topics are really relatable and applicable. I always get a lot out of these episodes and really enjoy listening.

Some great episodes:

- Theology of the Body and the Pain of Miscarriage ft. Carrie Archual

- What Losing Everything I Own Taught Me About Jesus ft. Kallin Zehren

- Women's Healthcare and Natural Family Planning ft. Leah Jacobson

Average length: 30-45 minutes

3. This Inspired Life

This podcast isn't currently running, but the archives are full of amazing episodes to listen to. It was hosted by Kristin Sanders and I always find in her interviews that she would ask the exact questions I would be wondering (and would have wanted to ask). In the podcast, they talk about things such as "parenting, marriage, current events, blogging, at-home business and writing books all in light of trying to live out our faith." It's such a good podcast for Catholic women and Catholic moms in particular (as well as any woman or mom!). A couple of my favourite Catholic mom bloggers were featured on the show as well, so I especially enjoyed those episodes.

A few awesome episodes:

- TIL 014: Project 333 creator Courtney Carver on the Capsule Wardrobe, simplicity, and tips for travel!

- TIL 013: Advent and Christmas Traditions with Kendra Tierney from Catholic All Year!

- TIL 019: Grace from Camp Patton on baby mode, transitioning to more kids, and being open to life!

Average length: 45-60 minutes

4. UMD Newman Catholic Campus Ministry

This is another podcast done by Fr. Mike Schmitz. The episodes are recordings of his weekly homilies and he goes into a bit more depth about very relatable and applicable topics that face us all in our faith lives and daily lives in general, as well as general teaching about the faith. I come away from these episodes strengthened in my faith, with a greater understanding of Jesus, Catholicism, and with great insights and practical tips about how to better live my life.

- 05/11/14 Follow Through: Schedule to Love (this one is a must listen, it's so good)

- 08/13/17 Courage and Jesus

- 02/16/14 "I Do What I Want"

Average Length: 20 minutes

5. Word on Fire Show

Word on Fire Show is a podcast done by Bishop Robert Baron, the Bishop of Los Angeles, who is well known for his evangelization through "new media" (he is one of the most followed Catholics on social media, has a popular YouTube channel, and is very involved in teaching the Catholic faith online). It is an interview style podcast where Bishop Baron is interviewed and I find it to be really great for learning more about the faith and growing stronger in it. There are discussions of the issues facing the church today, tips for growing stronger in your faith, informational episodes to learn more about Catholicism and Jesus, answers to questions you may have, and tips for living a more holy life.

- WOF 079: The Spirituality of Marriage

- WOF 084: 5 Reasons We Don't Evangelize

- WOF 073: Making Christ the Centre of Your Life

Average length: 20-30 minutes

6. Fountains of Carrots

Fountains of Carrots is a podcast hosted by two Catholic moms, Haley Stewart and Christy Isinger. It's called Fountains of Carrots because they combined the names of their two blogs, Carrots for Michaelmas and Fountains of Home, for the name of their podcast. This is less of an informational podcast and more of a conversational one, it is full of inspiration and beautiful (and sometimes very vulnerable) stories and interviews, as well as discussions on all sorts of life topics from a faith perspective. They are also big book lovers. It's such an enjoyable podcast to listen to, and I love that they discuss such interesting topics, especially the ones that are often shied away from but are so important to talk about.

- FoC 060: Transformation and Hope Through Adoption with Shannon Evans

- FoC 066: Love Multiplied - Four Times with Justina Kopp (an interview of a mom of quadruplets!)

- FoC 027: Navigating Social Media as a Parent and Blogger with Kendra Tierney

Average length: 45-60 minutes

What do you guys think of these podcasts? Are there any other good podcasts that I'm missing on the list? Please leave a comment and let me know, or even just comment if you enjoyed the post, I love to hear from you guys!