Feeding Fathers

What do you do when prayer starts feeling like homework? When you’ve said every novena, every rosary, and your kid still won’t talk to you? When church is packed but the way people treat their families doesn’t match the words? When you don’t know the “right” form of prayer, so you just… don’t start?

We get into the prayers that sound impressive and go nowhere, the tiny honest ones that actually do something, the difference between inviting God in and asking Him to do your job for you, and why jumping straight to a holy hour can backfire.

We react to neuroscientist Andrew Huberman’s comments on daily prayer and peace, and emphasize prayer as an authentic reaching beyond oneself toward God, whether through formal prayers like the Our Father or a simple cry for help.

We also settle a very serious question involving Harry Potter, sandwiches, and whether you should panic about every witch in a story.

Next week is episode 100! Drop a question, a favorite moment, or something you’ve always wanted to ask the fathers. Very good chance we’ll read them on the show!

"Chai Chat" on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkQq1cQqNPTDNyXv4JxzflbItqFiDWzID&si=RLsqkle6ZMkFfun4

Featuring: Fr. Simon Esshaki, Fr. Andy Younan, Abbot Ankido Sipo, Fr. Augustine Joseph

–––

00:00 Throwback Content
00:58 Huberman On Prayer
04:02 Authentic Prayer Matters
06:50 Pharisee Vs Tax Collector
09:30 Prayer And Responsibility
14:18 God Initiates Friendship
18:17 Grace Through Practice
21:02 Practical Prayer Tips
24:15 Daily Sacrifices As Prayer
26:42 Guilt And Prayer Burden
28:43 Aquinas On Prayer Time
30:24 Make Prayer Interesting
33:45 Harry Potter Panic
40:36 Start Small Family Prayer
41:03 Episode 100

–––

Some of us wake up and grab the phone before we even know what day it is.

If the notifications aren’t cleared, the brain doesn’t feel settled.

And at a red light, 30 seconds of silence is suddenly too much.

The question underneath all of it isn’t “Am I efficient?” It’s the one Jesus asked Peter on the shore after breakfast: "Do you love me?"

We discuss how phone overuse affects attention, mental health, and spiritual life, starting with morning routines and rules.

We contrast modern sensory overload with older, simpler life rhythms and highlight how constant distraction can weaken silence, emotional processing, and genuine connection.

Fr. Simon also opens up about how he almost became a monk a couple years ago... like WOAH!

And we react to Joe Shmid's conversion to the Catholic Faith and what he believe's are atheists' number one argument against God.

Featuring: Fr. Simon Esshaki, Fr. Christopher Somo, Fr. Dany Shaba, Fr. Augustine Joseph

–––

00:00 Phone Habit Confessions
04:07 Dopamine Notification Fix
08:19 Coffee And Morning News
11:36 Tasks And Spiritual Health
14:43 Depression And Distraction
16:59 Information Overload And Love
19:28 Do You Love Me?
23:26 Silence and Overstimulation
25:34 Instant Gratification Culture
28:21 Doomscrolling Emptiness
29:32 Fr. Simon Almost Became a Monk??
35:06 Acai Bowl Break
37:02 Reacting to Atheism Argument
39:33 Free Will and Animal Suffering

–––

Pope Leo just said something most of us aren’t ready to hear about beauty, aging, and the pressure to stay young forever.

In his homily on the feast of the Assumption, he talked about Mary’s body, the way icons always show her young, and what that has to do with the wrinkles, gray hair, and “signs of love” that show up on the rest of us.

We get into the cultural stuff nobody wants to say out loud: plastic surgery, Botox, Ozempic, balloon faces, filtered photos that make you hate your real face, and the quiet panic that hitting a certain age means you’ve become useless.

This isn’t a lecture. It’s us priests talking honestly about the fear of looking older, the difference between taking care of yourself and trying to outrun death, and why the people we actually want to be loved by aren’t the ones who only notice the surface.

If you’ve ever looked in the mirror and felt the pressure, or watched someone you love chase a version of beauty that doesn’t exist, this one’s for you.

Featuring: Fr. Simon Esshaki, Fr. Andrew Younan, Abbot Ankido Sipo, Fr. Roni Schamoun

–––

00:00 Nose Job
06:34 Plastic Surgery Culture
09:46 Honoring Old Age
12:13 Wisdom Tradition
20:46 Authenticity Over Image
23:47 Marriage Fear and Vanity
27:40 Stop Faking Love
31:34 Plastic Surgery Ethics
34:24 Filters and Fitness Lies
37:18 Beauty Across Life Stages
40:24 Bible Trivia Game

–––

The 2026 Chaldean-Assyrian Youth Convention in Sacramento left more than just trophies: Scorching turf that hit around 170 degrees, feet that still haven’t recovered, antibiotics, and a championship curse finally broken for St. John's.

The theme was "Mary As Our Model," so we reflect on why her obedience cuts against the grain of modern culture. We also react to a viral video claiming Catholics worship statues and invent a different Mary.

We reflect on the residual feeling that still hits after you leave an event like the convention that contains a sense of family, the hope of seeing youth actually love each other, and the reminder that we’re not meant to do this alone.

And then we end things with a wild game of "Saint or Movie Quote!"

Featuring: Fr. Simon Esshaki, Fr. Christopher Somo, Fr. Augustine Joseph, Fr. Tristan Farida

–––

00:00 Post Convention Injuries
01:26 Championship Wins Recap
04:17 Shoutouts to Leaders
06:02 Hope And Community
08:38 Mary Our Model Theme
14:42 Assumption And Marian Glory
19:40 "No Wine" Obedience Lesson
28:22 Modern Freedom Vs Obedience
31:42 Catholics Worship Mary?
34:08 Incarnation and Ark Objections
37:03 Saints as Mediators
45:08 Saint or Movie Quote

–––

We fear we’re forming a whole generation that can defend every dogma online… yet never actually tremble in front of God.

We reacted to a video that argues the point that a religion without mysticism is just philosophy. Then we got honest about the difference between knowing about God and actually encountering Him.

We look to St. John of the Cross, Thomas Aquinas, and the quiet old man who simply looked at Jesus and let Jesus look back. We also explain why some of the most “courageous” online defenders of the faith are just being jerks in the name of orthodoxy.

Featuring: Fr. Simon Esshaki, Fr. Andy Younan, Fr. Augustine Joseph, Fr. Ankido Sipo

–––

00:00 Mysticism vs. Intellect

01:53 Defining Mysticism

05:20 Aquinas And Holy Silence

10:13 Heaven and the Body

13:39 Encounter Depends On God

16:29 Feelings And Retreat Highs

25:47 Beauty That Creates Awe

32:22 Calling Out Heresy Online

36:25 Prodigal Son Lessons

39:56 Joyful Christianity

41:19 Road Trip Story

43:01 Pizza!

44:24 Amazon Price Game