Catholic

A 1270 Word Interview with Joanna Loop

/ chicoinematt

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Joanna Loop via phone call on May 24th, 2025. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given. 

What inspired you to begin writing Catholic books for children?

To have a resource for mothers teaching their children about the faith. Because it is really difficult to find this information about the faith and help them fall in love with the faith.

It started as a desire to help build the domestic church. It is our job as Catholic parents to help teach our kids about the faith. 

My books are tools to help teach the faith. There’s a lot of moms who attended Catholic school but didn’t realize there’s so much more to it. We have to tell our children from birth about Jesus. 

I realized how learning the faith is simple. So much of Scripture feels like that I have known my whole life because it was internal to me or because God is speaking to you. There’s no religion out there that is so straight-forward. 

We have the ABC book to get that early exposure and the numbers book was a fun way to connect Scripture and Tradition. For example, there’s Seven Sorrows of Mary and there’s Eight people in Noah’s Ark (not everyone knows about this). 

The shapes and colors books are my favorite. They are tailored to the youngest office. When my son is tracing the circle he can learn the shape of the Eucharist. It’s been a lot of fun putting these books together. 

The most mature book I wrote was on the Marian Apparitions for Kids. All the proceeds from this book go to help the Our Lady of Guadalupe Home in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. 

The books are available at the Sanctuary Gifts Store in Kingsville, Ontario, The Mustard Seed in London, Ontario, and the Peaceful Dove, also in London, Ontario. Please support these local brick and mortar stores! They are doing so much for our Christian community.

I also travel to different Catholic events to sell the books in person.

More information about the Our Lady of Guadalupe Home:

Our Lady of Guadalupe Home is a registered Catholic charity in Windsor, Ontario, that offers a loving, faith-filled residence for pregnant women and new mothers in crisis. Inspired by the Gospel and guided by Divine Providence, this home provides shelter, food, and around-the-clock care to women who have nowhere else to go. Mothers of any background—regardless of race or religion—are welcomed with compassion and dignity.

The home is unique in offering 24/7 paid staff support, providing stability and hope to women during one of the most vulnerable times in their lives. They offer assistance for up to a year and rely entirely on donations and the grace of God to continue their mission.

As a way to help support this life-saving work, I wrote a children’s book called My First Catholic Marian Apparitions. It’s a beautiful introduction to Our Blessed Mother’s appearances throughout history and is available on Amazon Prime.

* All proceeds from the sale of this book are donated directly to Our Lady of Guadalupe Home in perpetuity. 

This is a simple and meaningful way to share the Catholic faith with children while also helping vulnerable women and babies in need.

Thank you for sharing about the Our Lady of Guadalupe Home! It’s a wonderful ministry.🙂 How does your own faith and family life influence your storytelling?

I haven’t really thought about that before. I come from that teaching background (my parents and sister were teachers) so books were a very important part of my children. We had a library in my house. I wanted to have something similar for my kids. In the Marian Apparitions book I wrote it in a way where I told the story like I was talking to my one and two year old son.

What’s been the most meaningful response you’ve received from a reader or parent?

Sometimes this happens a lot actually, parents and grandparents are so excited about my project that they are so joyful. They become champions of my project and encourage me. It’s been really meaningful. The parents want to help get their children closer to the Church. 

Natalia from The Peaceful and Jackie specifically have been so helpful to me. I reached out to them and they were immediately supportive of my project.

Your books cover everything from Marian apparitions to Mass symbols—how do you choose which topics to explore?

Very simply, it was about babies. I wanted to make baby books that were approachable for all mothers. I didn’t want to make the books too intimidating. There’s lots of feeling that we carry that we aren’t ready to study certain holy topics. So I figured I would start with more universal things like ABCs and Colors that there’s no requirements for holiness. 

For some reasons, these religious topics come with pressure and a feeling of insignificance.

What do you see as the biggest challenge and opportunity in catechizing young children today?

This is kind of complicated. I see a lot of parents trying to catechize their kids and it’s confusing because we live in a secular world. I was there before, and there’s a lot of external pressure to work. So there’s very little time to spend time with your family. There’s a challenge with parents who don’t feel like they have the time and want to rest/relax. 

I realized I need to have my priorities. Refocusing our schedule so it involved sacrifices like working from home so I could spend more time with my children and more time for faith events. The importance of being with grandparents and aunts and uncles. To sum up I feel like the biggest challenge is building up the domestic church. 

Can you walk us through your creative process—from idea to finished book?

Once I got the idea I started on the book. I cannot stop until it’s 100% done. For a few days there I was telling my kids that I needed to finish the book. So on these occasions my kids found themselves in their independence. It took me about 3 weeks to get the books done from start to finish. 

I self-published and I talked to a friend who also self-published. 

What advice would you give to other Catholic creatives who feel called to evangelize through storytelling?

I think about the early Church Fathers and how they wrote letters to each other. They always addressed/started the letters with love. Speak from your heart. While the New Testament is the “end of the Bible” it doesn’t mean that the Bible is done. 

Understand your own testimony and what drew you into Jesus. You don’t have to make it complicated. Once you know your story and testimony, who knows where this journey will take you. 

My journey wasn’t complicated, I just shared my love of Jesus. Don’t be afraid to start. 

Where can my readers find more of your work? 

Links to My First Catholic Books series:

www.amazon.com/author/joannaloop

www.wespeakup.ca

Ways You Can Help

Pray for the home:
“Thy will be done: nothing more; nothing less!”

Buy the book:
Search My First Catholic Marian Apparitions on Amazon Prime. It makes a beautiful gift for First Communion, baptism, or family prayer time.

Donate or volunteer:
Visit www.ologhome.com to make a donation, sign up to volunteer, or learn more.

Mail a donation:
Make cheques payable to:
Our Lady of Guadalupe Non-Profit Home of Windsor
591 Alexander St.
Windsor, ON N8X 3B8

For tax receipts and monthly donation info, visit their CanadaHelps page.

Together, we can be the hands and feet of Christ to women in crisis. Thank you for your generosity and prayers!

About Joanna:

Joanna Loop is a passionate author and educator from Ontario, Canada, on a mission to share the ancient traditions of the Catholic faith with young readers. With a heart for storytelling and a love for teaching, Joanna has written over five titles devoted to sharing the Catholic faith with the world’s littlest friends. Her books, including the beloved “My First Catholic Books” series, bring the spirit and symbols of the Mass and the stories of Christ into the comfort of homes around the world.

Drawing inspiration from her faith and family, Joanna creates stories that nurture children’s hearts and minds. Her works, such as “My First Catholic: Marian Apparitions” and “My First Catholic: Shapes”, invite young readers to explore Catholic traditions, learn about the saints, and grow in their relationship with God.

When she isn’t writing, Joanna enjoys spending time with her family, engaging in parish life, and exploring new ways to bring the love of Christ to young hearts.

Thank you for sharing!

The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies: Episode 16

/ chicoinematt / 2 Comments

Welcome to another The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies! Growing up, one of my favorite parts of Sunday was flipping to the comics section of the newspaper: a little pocket of humor, color, and light-heartedness to start the week.

Now, in that same spirit, I’m excited to share this weekly collection of wholesome, funny Catholic comic strips. Thanks to the incredible talents of artists like Father Alvaro Comics, The Catholic Cartoonist, Sam Estrada, and Fr. Michael DeBlanc. These comics bring a joyful twist to our shared faith, reminding us that laughter is one of God’s great gifts.

Special shout-out to Tomics by Tom Gould as our newest contributor!

Enjoy Corpus Christi Sunday with some Catholic comics.

Follow Father Alvaro Comics on Instagram

You can follow Fr. Michael on Instagram: @patermichaeldeblanc and on Facebook Fr. Michael DeBlanc).

Other frequent Catholic comic contributors:

Follow The Catholic Cartoonist on Instagram.

Find more of Sam’s work at prostrada.com!

I hope this week’s edition of The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies brought a smile to your face and a bit of lightness to your Sunday. In a world that can often feel heavy, it’s good to pause, laugh, and see our faith reflected in simple moments of joy.

Be sure to check back next week for more Catholic humor — and as always, feel free to share with a friend who could use a laugh and a little grace.

Thank you for sharing!

A 1284 Word Interview about The Miracle of Guadalupe Series

/ chicoinematt

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Whitney Hetzel via phone call on May 23rd, 2025 and June 11th, 2025. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given. 

What drew you personally to the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and how has working on this project deepened your own faith journey?

We at Good Catholic did our first series in 2017 and launched with Fatima. The response was excellent. We had a lot of conversations about which series we could do. We figured we would do the major Marian Apparitions. We realized how many layers and history to look at for Guadalupe. We shelved the project, finally the next year we decided to start the project.

I constantly hear from people who have a devotion to Guadalupe that Mary meets us in the little places. I myself am a convert and while it took me a bit to get to Mary, I have had a devotion to her ever since. Through this project I am learning that Mary is concerned about all the things in our lives (big AND small). 

The tilma of Juan Diego has survived nearly 500 years without deterioration—what does the scientific analysis reveal about this miraculous preservation, and how do you present this evidence in the film?

It’s just fascinating. It’s almost too much to present. We are probably going to do seven episodes. Science looks at something and gives the validity of something. All science points to and answers the fact that Mary gave the tilma to Juan.

Even the Church is slow to accept miracles and test things. The thing that fascinates me the most is the cornea in her eye shows what she saw. The reflection in the eye (smaller than a grain of rice) was validated by a number of eye doctors to show that Mary was looking at Juan Diego and the bishop. 

The constellations in the sky on her mantle are looking down from the galaxies on the tilma. And all the symbols on the mantle reflect certain things to the indigenous people. There’s so many things and they are equally fascinating. 

There’s no signs of aging on the actual image of Our Lady. That’s incredible after all these years. 

You’ve assembled incredible contributors like Fr. Spitzer and Jorge Arredondo from Harvard and Notre Dame. What unique insights do they bring about the theological and historical significance of Guadalupe that might surprise viewers?

Fr. Spitzer is a scientist and has a brilliant mind. He is also a priest, but he is coming from the perspective of a scientist. I didn’t think that I would be able to speak with a scientist because all of this has been studied before. 

I don’t remember how I found Fr. Spitzer’s book on Guadalupe in our warehouse (he just wrote this last year). 

We got in contact with Jorge from the authors of Guadalupe and the Flower World Prophecy. Jorge came from a linguistics perspective on the tilma. He gets into a lot of the history. We wanted to stay in line with the historical aspects and stay away from the sensational aspects. Even on the language side we wanted to cover our bases and Jorge is coming back in June for additional conversations about the Nahuatl language that Juan Diego spoke. 

We wanted to look at the tilma from a factual and unbiased perspective. That’s why we look at it from the scientific and historical perspectives. It would be silly to add to the story of the tilma because there’s so many fascinating facts from the event itself. 

Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to an indigenous man and spoke in his native language—how does the documentary explore the cultural bridge she created between indigenous peoples and the Catholic faith?

That’s a great question! Really, it’s a narrative story. The protagonist is Juan Diego. The Franciscan missionaries really did help bridge that gap. The conquest ended the human sacrifices in the Aztec culture. Truly in the ten years before Our Lady appeared the Franciscans tried to bridge and catechize. There was a language barrier that made it difficult to help in the conversion process. The bishop sent by King Charles (around 1521) was up against a lot, two steps forward five steps back. The conquistadors were poor examples of the faith. And some of the indigenous people didn’t want Catholicism to take root. 

The bishop wrote a letter to King Charles and sent it in a lard barrel and got on his knees and asked for a sign. And shortly after Our Lady was sent to Juan Diego and also appeared to his sick uncle.

In today’s cultural climate, why do you believe the message of Guadalupe is particularly relevant?

I think it’s just as relevant today. Each age has a time of challenges. When you look at the stuff that is going on in the Church the last decade, people are leaving the Church. But you see a juxtaposition of there being a resurgence of the faith. I feel like there has been a sense of the faith waning but there’s the beginnings of a Catholic moment. We are nearing the 500th anniversary of the Blessed Virgin appearing to Juan Diego. I think we are living in an exciting time.

What do you hope Catholic families will take away from this series?

I think my strongest hope is that a renewed devotion and trust in our Lady will happen. In some ways it is in the small ways that Mary cares for us. And that Mary always, always, always leads us to Christ. I hope Catholic families truly embrace this. That we can always turn to Mary and be covered under Her mantle. 

Mary is the connection to the humanity of Jesus and shows us that Jesus is still with us. When she appears, Mary helps us recognize that the Incarnation is important. Especially with Guadalupe, Mary left us something tangible with the tilma. People really do need a tangible sign that our Lord is not distant, that he is with us. 

Beyond the Kickstarter campaign, what’s your vision for how this documentary can reach both practicing Catholics and those who might be encountering this miracle for the first time?

Thanks for this question, because this is one of our biggest challenges (and our greatest hope). Because of the tangibility of the tilma, we have this opportunity to reach people who aren’t Catholic. A lot of people (myself included) kind of look at Guadalupe as a Latin American devotion. But she appeared for all of us. And I hope that this series will show through the science of the tilma that this devotion is not culturally limited, it’s for the whole world. 

In 1945, Pope Pius XII named Our Lady of Guadalupe as Patroness of the Americas (North and South). Saint Pope John Paul II confirmed this title in the late 90s. 

What has been the most profound moment or discovery during your research and filming process that reinforced why this story needed to be told?

It’s one of the scientific elements of the tilma. Truly, the evidence of the eyes of our Lady having the curvature of being the same as a human eye. And the reflection in her eyes being what she saw (Juan Diego and the bishop). Father Spitzer reinforced this truth. These are signs that were interesting to me. In 1531, the people didn’t need scientific evidence to be convinced, but she knew that our modern world would need more of this scientific evidence. The fact that the tilma has survived for 500 years is a miracle. 

My hope is that this will lead people to the truth of believing in God. 

Where can my readers learn more about this project and support it? 

Here’s our Kickstarter and you can visit Good Catholic to learn more about our other work. 

About Whitney: 

Whitney Hetzel’s most important job is her vocation as mother to nine children (ages 15–35) and grandmother to five (soon to be eight).  Whitney is a convert to Catholicism. In college, she majored in journalism and English and received a Master’s degree in Psychology from Saint Louis University. She loves her job as a writer and content creator for Good Catholic—the digital arm of The Catholic Company.

Whitney is the Executive Producer of Not Made By Human Hands: The Miracle of Guadalupe and has enjoyed combining rigorous research, theology, and storytelling to bring the story of the miracle of Guadalupe to others. Her lifelong passion for writing, sparked early on with her blog 9 Kid Fitness, has evolved into a vocation of sharing faith-filled content that helps others live as authentic Christians in their daily lives.  

Thank you for sharing!

A 949 Word Interview with an Ambrosian Rite Catholic

/ chicoinematt

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed @churchofambrose from Instagram via phone call on April 11th, 2025. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given.

Tell me about your faith journey.

I was born and raised Catholic. During my teenage years I became lukewarm, I moved to university and during the initial years my faith struggled. Slowly, but surely the Lord called me back to the faith in a deeper way. I was fundamentally unhappy for a while before I found God again. I want people to experience it.

The Ambrosian Rite is largely unknown outside of Milan. It is a local church, there’s practically one diocese (Milan). 

The Ambrosian Rite dates back to at least the 4th century with connections to St. Ambrose himself. What sparked your passion for preserving this ancient liturgical tradition through digitization?

I think the Ambrosian Rite is one of the most unique rites. It is very intrinsic in our culture. This rite starts from (most likely) the old Roman Rite. Bl. Cardinal Schuster (1880-1954) said that Saint Ambrose took the rite from Rome and slightly modified it. This is probably only partially true, however the Ambrosian Rite is the oldest Western Rite still alive today. Our Lent is the same Lent that Gregory the Great would have followed. It’s so interesting and cool that this rite is preserved. This is how Saints Augustine and Ambrose followed. It feels like I’m going back centuries; it’s very inspiring.

(For example during the 1st, 3rd and 5th Sundays of Lent, instead of the “Gloria” we sing the “Divinae Pacis”. This chant is older than the edict of Milan (313 AD))

For readers unfamiliar with the Ambrosian Rite, what are the most distinctive elements that set it apart from the more familiar Roman Rite celebrated in most Catholic churches?

In general the thing that people notice the most is the thurible. In the Roman Rite there’s a cap on top of it. We don’t have a cap on it and it’s spun in a 360 degree motion. It is spun to form the shape of the cross.

(At the start of the Mass the altar is incensed. You can remove this and add the text at the bottom)
(Another particular difference, is the incensation of the Tabernacle which is done kneeling at the start of every High Mass.)

The other thing people notice is the chants. It’s very hard to explain, it’s just very different.

(The ambrosian chants were introduced by Saint Ambrose himself in the 4th century. For the first time in the Church’s history, non-psalmic hymns were included in liturgical celebrations. Ambrose, personally composed many hymns, including “Aeterne rerum conditor”, “Deus creator omnium”, “Iam surgit hora tertia”, and “Intende qui regis Israel”. The most famous hymn is obviously the “Te Deum”, which was composed together with Saint Augustine after Augustine’s baptism. I highly suggest the reader listen to the Ambrosian Version of the “Te Deum”.
Despite the modifications it underwent over the centuries, Ambrosian chant is considered the oldest surviving body of Western liturgical music.)

And the Offertory is done before the Credo (and it is much longer). We have lots of prefaces (one for each day) and some of them are very old and date back to St. Ambrose. 

(there are other differences but these ones are the most noticed by first time visitors)

Your mission focuses on digitizing the Traditional Ambrosian Rite. What are the greatest challenges you’ve faced in translating manuscripts and liturgical books that are many centuries old into accessible digital formats?

The Ambrosian Rite was heavily attacked from its beginning. Most of the original manuscripts are gone. When it comes to more recent things, I have been looking for breviaries and missals. It is very difficult to find these items. There are subtle differences that are easy to miss. It is difficult to find where things originated from. 

The Ambrosian liturgical calendar has some fascinating differences, including six Sundays of Advent rather than four. Which seasonal celebrations in the Ambrosian tradition do you find most spiritually enriching?

Our Ordinary Time is limited compared to the Roman Rite. It is only during a few weeks of the year, and differences in color. We have a different hue of purple (morello). During the Lenten period we use black during the weekdays because it’s also a penitential color not just for mourning. Saturday and Sundays are less penitential during Lent, so morello is used.

(Red is the Eucharistic color instead of the Roman Rite white, so the feast of the Corpus Domini (Corpus Christi in the Roman Rite) is in Red not white in the Ambrosian rite)

Who are saints particularly honored in the Ambrosian Rite?

Ambrose (of course being our Rite’s namesake). 

Charles Borromeo is our second patron saint. He is the one who reformed the Archbishop of Milan. He had a huge role in the Council of Trent. In Milan he was the first one to create a seminary. He is also the patron saint of seminaries. 

We care about our bishops and martyrs. In the Eucharist Prayer we ask for intercession for most of the archbishops and martyrs.

(I’ll send a picture of the Comunicantes with the Ambrosian Saints and Martyrs)

Looking to the future, how do you see traditional liturgical forms like the Ambrosian Rite contributing to the spiritual renewal of the Church in an increasingly digital age?

I’m noticing many young people are more interested in the traditional liturgies. The church where I attend is always full. You might find a seat if you go five minutes early, but not likely. There’s a huge emphasis on the parish. It’s kind of like the dynamic between the Traditional Latin Rite Mass and the Novus Ordo Mass (in the Roman Rite).

Where can my audience find more of your work?
On my Instagram page @churchofambrose.

Thank you for sharing!

The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies: Episode 15

/ chicoinematt

Welcome to another The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies! Growing up, one of my favorite parts of Sunday was flipping to the comics section of the newspaper: a little pocket of humor, color, and light-heartedness to start the week.

Now, in that same spirit, I’m excited to share this weekly collection of wholesome, funny Catholic comic strips. Thanks to the incredible talents of artists like Father Alvaro Comics, The Catholic Cartoonist, Sam Estrada, and Fr. Michael DeBlanc. These comics bring a joyful twist to our shared faith, reminding us that laughter is one of God’s great gifts.

Special shout-out to Tomics by Tom Gould as our newest contributor!

Enjoy some Trinity Sunday humor. 😆🔥

About Tom:

I’m a lifelong cartoonist from a big Catholic family.  My art was inspired by animated superhero shows and the ever-popular “Peanuts” and “Calvin & Hobbes” comic strips; my faith was formed by my parents, several church communities, and my small Catholic college.  I’ve been posting weekly “Tomics” for just over ten years now, and I hope to continue using my gifts to bring people closer to God in a way that’s accessible, faithful, and fun.

You can follow Fr. Michael on Instagram: @patermichaeldeblanc and on Facebook Fr. Michael DeBlanc).

Find more of Sam’s work at prostrada.com!

Other frequent Catholic comic contributors:

Follow The Catholic Cartoonist on Instagram.

Follow Father Alvaro Comics on Instagram

I hope this week’s edition of The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies brought a smile to your face and a bit of lightness to your Sunday. In a world that can often feel heavy, it’s good to pause, laugh, and see our faith reflected in simple moments of joy.

Be sure to check back next week for more Catholic humor — and as always, feel free to share with a friend who could use a laugh and a little grace.

Thank you for sharing!

The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies: Episode 14

/ chicoinematt

Welcome to another The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies! Growing up, one of my favorite parts of Sunday was flipping to the comics section of the newspaper: a little pocket of humor, color, and light-heartedness to start the week.

Now, in that same spirit, I’m excited to share this weekly collection of wholesome, funny Catholic comic strips. Thanks to the incredible talents of artists like Father Alvaro Comics, The Catholic Cartoonist, Sam Estrada, and Fr. Michael DeBlanc. These comics bring a joyful twist to our shared faith, reminding us that laughter is one of God’s great gifts.

Special shout-out to Tomics by Tom Gould as our newest contributor!

Enjoy some Pentecost Sunday humor. 😆🔥

Follow The Catholic Cartoonist on Instagram.

Find more of Sam’s work at prostrada.com!

Other frequent Catholic comic contributors:

Follow Father Alvaro Comics on Instagram

You can follow Fr. Michael on Instagram: @patermichaeldeblanc and on Facebook Fr. Michael DeBlanc).

Bonus Comic from my Meme Hunt Last Week:

I hope this week’s edition of The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies brought a smile to your face and a bit of lightness to your Sunday. In a world that can often feel heavy, it’s good to pause, laugh, and see our faith reflected in simple moments of joy.

Be sure to check back next week for more Catholic humor — and as always, feel free to share with a friend who could use a laugh and a little grace.

Thank you for sharing!

A 1069 Word Interview with A Catholic Coach

/ chicoinematt

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Kramer Soderberg via phone call on May 14th, 2025. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given. 

Growing up as the son of a college basketball coach, how have the lessons you learned from the court shaped your Catholic faith journey and your approach to spiritual “coaching”?

That’s a great question! I have been around the game of basketball my whole life. My dad was a college coach when I was born. Growing up in my early life I was the typical cradle Catholic. But after college I found myself learning more about the faith. 

I realized that the stuff I learned on the court could be applied to my faith life. That I should approach my faith life with excellence like I did on the court. Another aspect that made me revert to the faith was the concept that if I wanted to achieve my goals in sports that it was really hard. Only later when I was reinvestigating the faith that I realized it was hard. The Catholic Church challenges you. It wouldn’t make sense if this journey was easy. Christ is challenging us to holiness and greatness. This is the same mentality that any great athlete pursues. 

I love the word “strive”. It’s very connected to the title of my book: Fill Your Cup. My dad brought out three different sized cups to represent different types of athletes. And his message was that success was filling your cup (that you were given). True success in God’s eyes is to realize your potential and strive to fulfill your vocation and potential. It is so freeing to not worry about what anyone else is doing. That’s true success and sounds like the virtue of magnanimity. 

Your dual identity as both a basketball coach and Catholic evangelizer is unique. How do you find these two callings complement each other, and what strategies from coaching translate most effectively to spiritual guidance?

I think my faith and vocation as a coach go hand and hand. Your Catholic faith should be intertwined with your life. It is simple for me to connect the two. When your faith is the most important part of your life it’s this mindset to not limit it to Sunday. To pray unceasingly. There’s certainly challenges: to a referee that’s annoying you or when players aren’t playing to their potential. But my faith helps me in these situations.

When I became a head coach, I thought I would get a lot more time to work on my Xs and Os and the gamplans. But what I learned was that I also focused on helping my players get in the right mindset and the idea of motivating my players for greatness was really the main role as a coach. The biggest crossover from being a college coach and my ministry is helping motivate and inspire people to that greatness, that sainthood and that desire to pursue it. 

As a former player who excelled at both high school and college levels, how does your competitive background influence the way you approach challenges in your faith life and family leadership?

I think competitiveness is a great attribute. Like all good things, it can be skewed in the wrong direction. Competitiveness is so important in the athletic field and life in general. It comes back to this idea of pursuing greatness. It is not necessarily competitiveness against someone else, it is more so being the best I can be and challenging myself to the limits. That competitive fire as a player has never died as a coach. But when I realized that being Catholic is hard, the competitiveness translated to the spiritual life to drive me. 

I have used the term crossover often, I don’t think I have paid attention to it. 

Many Catholics struggle with bringing their faith into public spaces. As someone who moves between the athletic and faith worlds, what advice would you give to those looking to authentically integrate their Catholic identity into their professional lives?

I think that’s challenging. Most of us separate the two. On Sundays I go to Mass and on Mondays I go to work. During my reversion, I had a fascination with Jesus the person. I was thinking how he could be at peace all the time. What made him different? I grasped this idea that Jesus was always aware and connected with God’s Presence. This point hit home when I wrote this book. Constant awareness of God’s presence in your life is transformational. When I started to practice this, my life started to all become one (coaching, family life, and life).

So my suggestion is to be constantly aware of God’s presence. Three triggers helped me to be reminded of God’s presence: 

  1. Nature
  2. Other people 
  3. Struggles, annoyances

These triggers helped to remind myself to practice being aware of God’s Presence. When you practice you form habits. And when you have habits you will start to blend Sunday into Monday. 

About four or five years ago I hung a Rosary on my hip and I grabbed my Rosary to help center myself and remind me of God’s Will during stressful moments during a game. 

With the intense schedule of basketball season and raising five children, how do you maintain spiritual disciplines and prayer life during particularly busy seasons?

It’s challenging for sure. I have always been a routine based guy. I think most athletes are similar. I have about five to six simple morning prayers. I read the Gospel each day. Anytime I am driving to and from work I pray the Rosary and I try to go to Mass throughout the week (4-5 times).

During the season, I find it easier to be more focused on the Lord. My habits during the stressful times I have the habit of running to the Lord. It’s interesting that in the off season I find it tougher to stick to my routine and be aggressive in my prayer life. 

As a basketball enthusiast myself: If you could compare your Catholic faith journey to any current NBA player’s career trajectory or playing style, who would it be and why?

I’d probably say Kobe Bryant. Early on in my faith life I had a lot of youthfulness and excitement. About halfway through that downfall (during Kobe’s career) I had a type of low-point before my reversion. After that low-point it seemed that Kobe grew as a father and basketball player. It is at the low point that we are the most aware of God. 

About Kramer: 

First time author, Kramer Soderberg, is a devoted husband to his wife, Andrea, and father to his five children with a sixth on the way due in September 2025. Son of long time college basketball coach, Brad Soderberg, Kramer grew up in Saint Charles, Missouri where he excelled on the basketball court at both the high school and college levels. He is the head coach at Millikin for the past four years.

Outside of coaching, Kramer devotes much of his free time to growing in his Catholic faith and spreading his love of Jesus to others through speaking opportunities and personal interactions throughout his community.

Thank you for sharing!