Category: Local Programs + Archive

Three Generations, Apostolic Authority, and St. Gabriel Radio

Scott Osborne marvels at how the Holy Spirit has used AM 820 to bring his marriage, his children, and his grandchildren into the Roman Catholic Church.

In fact, Scott’s own daughter and son-in-law entered the Church even before he did. Then, in 2022, Scott and his ﬁve grandchildren made the move to Catholicism. Eventually, his wife, Daryse, joined as well. “All nine of us agree that St. Gabriel Radio has been a major factor in our decision to become Catholic,” aﬃrms Scott.

The journey into the Faith actually began 13 years ago when Scott and his family were attending a non-denominational church. They were very engaged with church activities. Scott served as an Elder.

“The teachings on St. Gabriel Radio sank into my soul,” affirms Scott.

FR. RICCARDO, A REAL PREACHER

“My wife, Daryse, was listening to Christ is the Answer with Fr. John Riccardo (weekdays 7 A.M.) on St. Gabriel Catholic radio, and she suggested that I check him out,” recalls Scott. He began listening when driving to work and was hooked. “Fr. Riccardo sounded like a real preacher to me. I set the car radio to AM 820 to catch Catholic Answers Live (weekdays 6 P.M.). The teachings on St. Gabriel Radio sank into my soul over the course of three years. Next, I downloaded a PDF of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I delved more and more into Catholic teachings for 13 years through St. Gabriel Radio programs and reading materials recommended by show hosts.”

Scott reflects on his journey, “I grew up in a Protestant, anti-Catholic environment. I thought that Catholics were not Christian and that Catholicism was a cult that didn’t ascribe to the Bible!” He was especially surprised when his nondenominational pastor confirmed that we owe the Bible to the Catholic Church.

In 2019, during the pandemic, he started watching Mass online and discovered the glory of the liturgy. “I liked the online Mass arrangement because afterwards, I could still go to the non-denominational Sunday service.”

INVITE A LOVED ONE TO LISTEN

Scott’s wife also told their daughter Hannah about hearing Fr. John Riccardo on AM 820. Hannah and her husband, Kyle, became avid listeners, and in 2020, they both entered the Catholic Church.

Scott continues his story. “In 2020, I decided that I had to become Catholic. I resigned from my volunteer role in the nondenominal church and entered RCIA. It was a difficult decision. We had been deeply involved in our faith community for 30 years, had responsibilities, and had many friends. Many didn’t understand why my family was drawn to Catholicism.”

Though an engineer by profession, in retirement Scott has undertaken a Master’s Degree in Catechetics and Evangelization Theology at Franciscan University, Steubenville. He is drawn to the logic of the Magisterium and apologetics. The catalyst for his decision to embrace the Faith was the realization of the importance of Apostolic Authority and Apostolic Succession. He acknowledges these as the rock foundation of the Church on earth (Catechism of the Catholic Church 954). For example, through the validity of Apostolic Authority and Apostolic Succession Catholics believe that only an ordained Catholic priest has the ability to perform transubstantiation in the consecration of the Eucharist.

“ In 2020, I decided that I had to become Catholic,” Scott says.

WIFE RETURNS TO HER ROOTS

It took a while for Scott’s wife, Daryse, to decide in favor of Catholicism. In fact, it was a decision to return to her roots. “I was raised Catholic but left the Church as a teenager.” She was looking for help learning about the Bible and found help by attending a denominational and then non-denominational church.

She adds, “Several years ago, a Protestant friend told me about Mother Angelica and AM 820. I enjoyed listening to Mother Angelica and began listening to other programs, my favorite being Christ is the Answer. As Fr. Riccardo practically taught the Word of God, my interest in my Catholic roots increased.”

ONE STOP TO COME HOME: CONFESSION

“ I went to confession to be able to ‘come home,’” Daryse explains.

Fast forward a few years after Scott and Daryse’s daughter and son-in-law became Catholic. Daryse recalls, “I began thinking I, too, could see myself returning to Catholicism. Shows like Women of Grace (weekdays 11 A.M.), Catholic Answers Live and The Journey Home (weekdays 1 A.M.) nurtured me along the way. I began going to Mass with my husband, who was in RCIA at the time, and in the spring of 2022, I went to confession to be able to ‘come home.’”

Daryse is grateful to be able to receive the Eucharist again. “I never stopped believing in transubstantiation. Being able to participate in this sacrament is truly a gift! I have also learned to embrace challenges and suffering in my Catholic journey, as part of what Jesus uses to help me embrace Him more, so I can become more like Him. I can’t fi x anyone or anything…but I can love everyone and pray. My favorite prayer (from the Surrender Novena) has become: “O, Jesus, I surrender my life to You. Take care of everything!”

FOUR YOUNGSTERS GIVE A GREAT EXAMPLE

Four of the grandchildren also wanted to weigh in about their decision to embrace Catholicism and the role that AM 820 has played in their lives.

The eldest grandson, who is 18, explains that Called to Communion (weekdays 2 P.M.) is his favorite AM 820 program. “I just fell utterly in love with how reasonable Catholic philosophy is.” His sister, a 16 year old, says that her journey into Catholicism was a complex interplay of the Catholic community and exploration into the Church’s truths. She says that AM 820 has been a significant contributor to her conversion. She expands on this: “The station’s focus on community gave me the privilege to hear how others live out their faith in daily life. I was able to hear through personal stories and opinions which enriched my journey.”

The thirteen-year-old second grandson also likes Called to Communion, a program that changed his view on the Bible. He declares that it just made sense to become Catholic. “It’s the Church Jesus actually started, and not like one someone just made up a few hundred years ago.” The youngest grandson, an eight year old, likes to listen to Called to Communion as well. He says about his father, Kyle, “My Abba was really good at teaching me. I’m really glad we’re Catholic.”

The Osborne family on the day Scott and his grandchildren entered the Church.

“ I just fell utterly in love with how reasonable Catholic philosophy is,” avows the 18-yearold grandson.

CALLED TO COMMUNION, FAMILY FAVORITE

Hannah, the mom of these youngsters, also attributes her Catholicism in great part to St. Gabriel Radio. She explains, “I started listening to Catholic radio in 2008. At the time, I was Protestant, but my mama had told me about Fr. John Riccardo. He constantly challenged me and opened my eyes to a new way of thinking.” Hannah’s favorite show is Called to Communion. “Without a shadow of a doubt, it has helped to catechize me and to keep me pursuing my faith in love. I hope that the result of my becoming Catholic is that I love better and see the dignity in all of creation.”

Scott wraps up his story of journeying into the Faith by declaring, “I love being Catholic!” He notes with joy that Sunday family dinners are a great roundtable of Faith discussions. “We gather as a family of three generations and talk about the Mass’s homily, what we’ve read, and what we’ve heard on AM 820.”

“I love being Catholic,” Scott declares.

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“Years ago, I would listen to St. Gabriel Radio whenever I couldn’t sleep at night. The late-night programs were so captivating that I didn’t want to go back to sleep!” says longtime-listener Dee Dee (Mary Lynn) Monaco. She continues, “Back in the infancy of St. Gabriel Radio, the signal was so weak at night that I had to put my transistor radio next to my pillow so that I could hear what they were saying!” That was when St. Gabriel Radio was broadcast out of the Mansfield area on WFOT 89.5.

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Dee Dee discovered St. Gabriel Radio through the Columbus Women’s Conference in early 2008. She had stopped by the St. Gabriel Radio booth to thank the radio station and thought to herself, “When I retire, I want to help them by volunteering.” And that’s just what Dee Dee did when she retired from Battelle Memorial Institute a few years ago. “I do whatever I can to help at St. Gabriel because I love the listeners who drop by the radio station and the staff,” she says.

“ I do whatever I can to help at St. Gabriel because I love the listeners who drop by the radio station and the staff.”

ST. GABRIEL RADIO INFUSES MY SPIRIT

A committed cradle Catholic, she believes that AM 820 radio programs have helped her go much, much deeper into the Faith. “People ask me to name my favorite program, but that’s like asking me to name my favorite child! All the programs — and the programs run 24/7 — infuse my spirit with good things.

“We live in a crazy world that shuts out and shuts down so much of the positive. On Catholic radio, I find a continual cycle of inspiration. I love the prayers, the call-in programs, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, Church history, the unbiased news, and the current events commentary. I love it all. St. Gabriel Radio gives me a direct line into the teachings of Jesus and reminds me that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

“ St. Gabriel Radio gives me a direct line into the teachings of Jesus and reminds me that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

SINGLE GRANDMA RAISES SECOND FAMILY

Another important aspect of St. Gabriel Radio is the fellowship that Dee Dee finds among the listeners. This means a lot to her, now a “single grandmother” raising her two teenage grandchildren. The children’s mother passed away two years ago. In Dee Dee’s day-to-day responsibility for the well-being of these two young people and coping with the loss of her own daughter (the mother of her grandchildren), the St. Gabriel Radio programs and friendship community have become a comforting touchstone.

Reflecting on the loss of her daughter and “single grand-motherhood,” Dee Dee sees God at work. “Thinking about Jeremiah 29:11, I know that God is so faithful. God gives a peace that passes all understanding. The Lord made me feel His presence when I lost my daughter. I knew that His plan is a good plan, and that plan put me in a deep, day-by-day, hour-by-hour relationship with my two grandchildren.

JESUS IS REAL AND ALIVE AMONG US

“God gave me a second family with my grandchildren, and my role is to help them know how much God loves them. The Lord is my anchor, and now, I am the anchor for these two precious young people during a very difficult time in their lives. I want them to experience how real God is, how alive He is, and how Jesus is the only way.

“The greatest adventure, the greatest human achievement, the greatest romance is to seek God, to find Him, and to fall in love with Him,” Dee Dee echoes from St. Augustine. “This is the treasure that I want to give to my grandchildren. When I’m walking my dog in the morning, I pray that Jesus will reveal this mystery to these two young people whom I love so much!”

“ The greatest adventure, the greatest human achievement, the greatest romance is to seek God, to find Him, and to fall in love with Him,” Dee Dee echoes from St. Augustine.

Dee Dee is always looking for ways to evangelize. While Dee Dee’s daughter was in the hospital in a coma, Dee Dee was at her bedside daily with prayers, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, AM 820, and other inspiration available through her smartphone. In the hospital, she passed out prayer cards and spoke about the Faith with the medical staff. This prayerfulness and attention to her daughter, who was unconscious, made a deep impression on the hospital staff and even the chaplains.

BUMPER STICKERS MAKE DEE DEE’S DAY

“ When I see a car with an AM 820 sticker, I want to say‘Hi, I listen too!’”

The AM 820 bumper sticker is another of Dee Dee’s tools for evangelization. “When I see a car with an AM 820 sticker, I want to say ‘Hi, I listen too!’ to my brothers and sisters in Christ. One day, at a stop light, an elderly gentleman pulled up next to me in a car with an AM 820 sticker. I leaned over and said, ‘Hey, I listen too!’ He smiled and tipped his hat. I don’t honk my horn anymore because that can confuse the other driver. But maybe the Radio should record a special honk, like the first notes of the Ave Maria, that we can program into these fancy new cars that have all the technology.”

Recently, Dee Dee volunteered at the St. Gabriel Radio booth at the Grandview Hop. She approached passersby with, “Do you know Mother Teresa.” She then handed out holy cards, and answered the questions of curious visitors. She says that the response from the visitors was very positive.

ST. GABRIEL RADIO FAITH FAMILY

“The interconnectedness of the people I’ve met through the radio station has created a kind of Faith Family of like-minded people who love the Lord,” explains Dee Dee. She says that these relationships have impacted her spiritually, emotionally, physically, and mentally. “Living the Catholic life makes Jesus even more real to me. The more that I share the Faith in personal relationships, the more it seems that people respond positively.”

Dee Dee encourages us to speak up about faith. “Some Catholics don’t know how to express the Faith to others,” but Dee Dee urges us. “If you don’t know what to say, ‘Jesus, I trust in you,’ can be just the opening for the Holy Spirit to take over an encounter.”