Upon This Rock
Father Don Farnan and guests explore spirituality and faith in all aspects of life and how they inspire, support, and strengthen your relationship with God and your union with others. Learn more at farnanspiritualitycenter.com. Read Father Don's Blog at fatherdonfarnan.com. #farnanspiritualitycenter
Episodes
37 episodes since 2023
#37 - Football & Scripture: Student Mentoring & Bible Study To Help Younger Co-Eds
Malik Ashford is a graduate student at Avila University and two-time captain of the Eagles football team, where he is known as “preacher.” Growing up in Detroit, he gained a good work ethic and learned perseverance from his parents. Moving to t...
September 12, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 37
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30:18
#36 - The Angel Fund: Helping Families In Need
Donnie Welsh & Vince Hodes are part of a men’s group that challenges members in ways of faith and acts together to help people in need. Years ago, they established an “angel fund” to support families in difficult situations that are trying ...
September 05, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 36
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23:06
#35: Sisters of Saint Joseph: Passing Along The Gift of Faith
Sister Marie Joan Harris, CSJ, has served the Catholic Church in a broad capacity—much of her adult life in Kansas City. She shares stories about how her faith was shaped by her Lutheran mother and Catholic father, as well as educators wh...
August 29, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 35
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38:38
#34 – Church Couple: A Life Filled With Adventure and International Intrigue
Denis and Jenny Greene are an unlikely couple to be thought of through a stereotypic church lens. His life has been filled with adventure and international intrigue. Hers was altered when, as a young girl, she fell from a ladder and was caught ...
August 21, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 34
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39:46
#33 - Literature: Discovering Messaging and Spiritual Levels of God’s Presence
Keith (Bullhead) Allen, a longtime local high school literature professor, facilitates a book discussion group for men at the Farnan Spirituality Center. We read classical novels as well as modern and local authors.Through discussion, w...
August 14, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 34
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24:48
#32 - Miracle of Innocence: Helping To Free The Innocent
Darryl Burton was unjustly accused of murder in 1984 and served twenty-four years in prison, suffering torture and solitary confinement before he was exonerated for the crime he didn’t commit. Susie Roling, the long-time staff member of Journey...
August 06, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 32
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51:01
#31 - Mystical Experiences: Embracing This Intangible Grace
At a very early age, Marilyn Gibson realized that she had a different sense of faith and reality than most people. As an empath, she possessed a keen sense of others’ feelings and spiritual matters. Both a curse and blessing, she embraces the i...
August 01, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 31
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34:36
#30 - Kansas City Irish Fest: Celebrating A Strong Relationship With The Emerald Isle
Pat O’Neill, whose father was co-founder of the Kansas City Saint Patrick’s Day Parade in the early 1970s, along with his daughter, Keli Wenzel, is the founder of the annual Labor Day Irish Fest at Crown Center.Father and daughter speak...
July 25, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 30
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31:59
#29 – St. Francis Xavier Parish: Transitioning From Jesuit To Diocesan Presbyteral Leadership
Since 2014, Ann Sheridan has served as the Director of Work at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic Church (SFX), located at 52nd and Troost, between the college campuses of Rockhurst and UMKC universities. “Director of Work” is a Jesuit phrase referr...
July 17, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 29
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26:15
#28 - Mixing Fun With Faith: Teaching Athletes About Life Through Sports
Shawn Summe grew up in South Bend, Indiana, in the happy atmosphere of the Catholic faith, with a good education and Notre Dame football. An athlete deeply rooted in religious history, he played college baseball and was greatly influenced by co...
July 11, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 28
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38:47
Episode #27 - Shannon Connell Fisher: Yoked In Faith
Shannon Connell Fisher grew up in south Kansas City, where the Catholic faith deeply shaped her family. As a kula yogi instructor, she reminds people of ways in which the physical and spiritual overlap and interconnect as Jesus taught us ...
July 03, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 27
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36:35
Episode #26 - Mary Mooney Burns & Pasquale Trozollo: Communication & Communion
Pasquale Trozollo and Mary Mooney Burns follow up on the Ignatian Conversation and how it applies to real life. In an Upon This Rock episode two months earlier, Mary explained how the spiritual style of conversation that impacts Rockhurst Unive...
June 26, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 26
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41:06
Episode #25 - Connie Fahey: From Life To Life Beyond
Connie Connell Fahey grew up with three brothers to whom she credits her touch of toughness. She has always faced challenges head-on. Drawn to nursing from a young age, she now, as a wife, mother, and grandmother, continues to serve in the heal...
June 18, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 25
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38:10
Episode #24 - The Grimaldi’s: Using Life Foundations To Help Their Children Make A Positive Impact
Gerard & Julie Grimaldi are rooted in academics, architecture, law, politics, family values, and faith. Once parents of four children under four years old, their kids are now adults, each discovering their unique way in a complex world of c...
June 12, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 24
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24:02
Episode #23 - Neighborhood Justice Center: Legal Assistance For Inner-City Families
Tom Bradshaw has served over half a century in the legal profession in Kansas City. Educated at Saint Louis U High, Rockhurst College, and UMKC Law School, he heads an urban ministry called The Neighborhood Justice Center that assists residents...
June 06, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 23
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22:51
Episode #22 - Being Catholic: Reflections, Hopes & Fears From A Mother And Son
Mary Ann Welsh and her son, Eddie, sit down with Father Don to reflect upon being Catholic in Kansas City, how their lives have been shaped by local religious culture, and how they would like to pass along a solid faith to their descendants. Ma...
May 30, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 22
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28:46
Episode #21 - Catholic Church Rebound: Recovery From Legal and Moral Crises
Kansas City lawyers Theresa Crayon and Patrick McInerney deliberate over how the Catholic Church is rebounding from decades of embarrassing, disheartening, and destructive behavior. The sexual abuse crisis that came to light over the past quart...
May 22, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 21
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38:50
Episode #20 - Psychology & Faith: Touching The Soul & Impacting Our Psyche
Dr. Gina Staves, a professor of psychology at Avila University, sits down with Fr. Don to discuss how religion touches the soul of humanity and impacts our psyche. A native of Kansas City, Gina grew up in an Italian Catholic family. Gina gives ...
May 16, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 20
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28:30
#19 - Motherhood: It’s Blessings, Joys & Sorrows
Linda Neenan and her daughter, Louisa Weinrich, reflect on motherhood's incredible blessings and deep sorrows. Linda grew up in central Missouri and was enriched by her Baptist community of faith and her family of origin, especially her u...
May 09, 2024
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48:24
#18 – First Year of College: Independence, Opportunities & Challenges
Sophia Giorgio and Hadley Price reflect on their first year at Avila University in Kansas City, Missouri. Student-athletes from South Dakota and Southeast Kansas came to Kansas City knowing no one while embracing a new world of responsibility a...
May 01, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 18
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26:16
Episode #17 - Mary Mooney Burns: A Conversation About Conversations
Mary Mooney Burns joins Father Don to talk about Ignatian Conversation and how it can guide healthy discussions, debates, dialogue, disagreements, and discernment. Saint Ignatius of Loyola, in the 16th Century, was called upon by the pope to he...
April 25, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 17
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37:48
#16: The Reardon Family: Passing Along Faith Through Generations
Jerry and Joann (Hilbolt) Reardon and their daughter, Megan, talk about the blessings they received from their parents and other ancestors and traditions within their Catholic roots. They recount how their faith journey led them to seek more sc...
April 17, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 16
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31:29
#15 - Mark & Peter McGilley: Helping Families Celebrate The Lives Of Loved Ones Who Die
Mark McGilley and his son Peter, from McGilley Funeral Homes, talk about four generations of family serving Kansas Citians through death and dying for over a hundred years. The business has been around since the 19th Century. Mark’s grandfather...
April 10, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 15
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26:17
Episode #14 - The Whitaker Sisters: Blessings Of A Solid Faith & Family Foundation
The Whitaker sisters, Amy Hodes, Wendy Zoog, and Francie Bradley, speak with Barbie Farnan about the blessings of having a solid family foundation. Each sister, four years apart in age, offers a different perspective on their similar upbringing...
April 04, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 14
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34:38
Episode #13 – Big People Band: Reflections on Music’s Impact On Our Connection To God And Others
Musicians John Ammatelli, Josh Batz, and John Legg from the band Big People join Father Don in discussing the value music plays in spiritual revelations. Now in their fifties, they reminisce about music in their homes while growing up, joining ...
March 27, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 13
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32:43