Articles by Jonah McKeown
Advocates lament exclusion of those with criminal records from business loan program
Apr 19, 2020 / 14:01 pmAfter receiving more than 1.6 million applications, a key part of the US government’s economic response to the coronavirus pandemic, known as the Paycheck Protection Program, ran out of money Thursday and will no longer be accepting new applications.
St. Camillus de Lellis: Patron saint of hospitals, nurses, and the sick
Apr 18, 2020 / 11:00 amSt. Camillus de Lellis turned from a life as a soldier and gambler to become a priest and the founder of an order dedicated to caring for the sick. He is now the patron saint of hospitals, nurses, and the sick.
Waiting for Conversion
Apr 16, 2020 / 00:00 amJD Flynn interviews his mother about her conversion. Then, many RCIA candidates and catechumens are waiting much longer than they anticipated for their sacraments because of the coronavirus pandemic. We talk with a couple people who were affected by the delays.
'Troubadours' look to inject Chesterton’s joy, humor into a coronavirus-hit country
Apr 9, 2020 / 02:01 amA group of five friends, and scholars of the Catholic writer G.K. Chesterton, are launching an online lecture series with the hopes of sparking interest in Chesterton’s work, and infusing joy and humor into a country reeling from the coronavirus pandemic.
Team of young Chicago priests answer the call to anoint COVID-19 patients
Apr 8, 2020 / 15:33 pmThe Archdiocese of Chicago has assembled a team of 24 priest volunteers— all under age 60, and without pre-existing medical conditions— to administer sacramental anointing of the sick to Catholics with COVID-19 during the coronavirus pandemic.
Keep Palm and Carry On
Apr 6, 2020 / 00:00 amMillions of people were affected - in some way or another - by the coronavirus pandemic this Palm Sunday. We talk with a palm supplier in Florida about the impact of the coronavirus on his business. Then, a priest in Maine shares his creative alternative to palms for this year's Palm Sunday. Producer Jonah McKeown shares about the Palm Sunday Mass he attended at a parish for deaf Catholics in Maryland.
Palm supplier sees business halved by coronavirus cancelations
Apr 3, 2020 / 22:55 pmThomas Sowell and his wife own Southeast Palm and Foliage in Astor, Florida, in the middle of the state, about 40 miles west of Daytona Beach.
Coronavirus keeps volunteers away, but Arkansas Catholic Charities plans help for tornado victims
Mar 31, 2020 / 18:01 pmAn EF3 tornado blew through Jonesboro, Arkansas, this week, and although no deaths have been reported, Catholic Charities of Arkansas is gearing up to help those whose livelihoods will be affected by the disaster.
Listen at Your Leisure
Mar 30, 2020 / 00:00 amWe hear from a couple in Ohio who write fiction; Princeton professor Robbie George talks about why he plays the banjo; artist Katrina Harrington shares her plans to start a Mary Garden; a longtime FOCUS missionary talks about her new relationship with leisure; and a musician uses her leisure time to write personalized songs for people during this pandemic.
How CRS is helping refugees amid coronavirus
Mar 27, 2020 / 15:11 pmThere are nearly 700,000 refugees living in close quarters in the world's largest refugee settlements in Bangladesh, making them vulnerable as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic spreads.
Can't go to confession during coronavirus? Consider an 'act of perfect contrition'
Mar 27, 2020 / 04:00 amWhat is an act of perfect contrition, and how does it work? A CNA Explainer.
Food pantries ramp up distribution, take precautions
Mar 26, 2020 / 02:01 amDespite the closure of churches and lockdowns in place in many areas of the United States due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, many social service agencies are ramping up their efforts to feed the poor, while at the same time taking unprecedented precautions to avoid getting their guests sick.
‘Stay the course’ - Keeping the faith, keeping a restaurant, and helping employees amid coronavirus
Mar 25, 2020 / 03:00 amFavazza’s Restaurant has been an institution in St. Louis for over four decades. It’s located on The Hill, an Italian neighborhood well-known for its cuisine.
Coronavirus Comes to America
Mar 24, 2020 / 00:00 amWe talk with priests who are navigating Mass cancellations; a homeless shelter in Washington D.C. that continues its life-saving ministry to the poor; the coronavirus' impact on 12-step recovery programs; and the time Mary protected a St. Louis school from a cholera epidemic.
Prison chaplains adapt as coronavirus limits their ministry
Mar 23, 2020 / 14:01 pmThe worldwide outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) is beginning to touch one of the populations in the United States most vulnerable to disease: the incarcerated.
Former Swiss Guard: the elderly are 'united in prayer' in coronavirus hit-Italy
Mar 23, 2020 / 12:01 pmMario Enzler’s mother always wanted a big family.
Italy in the time of coronavirus
Mar 23, 2020 / 00:00 amRome correspondents Hannah Brockhaus and Courtney Mares share personal essays of their experience living under lockdown in Rome. A former member of the Swiss Guard tells us about how his elderly parents are faring in the Italian city of Bergamo— one of the hardest hit cities in Italy.
A Franciscan friar and deacon is DC’s first known coronavirus fatality
Mar 21, 2020 / 15:07 pmA Franciscan friar is the first person known to have died as a result of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the District of Columbia.
How could a market downturn affect Catholic giving? A look at the data
Mar 20, 2020 / 02:01 amHow might the market downturn affect how much US Catholics give to their parish and other Catholic causes?
Fort Worth diocese will distribute Communion outside after Masses
Mar 18, 2020 / 17:00 pmBishop Michael Olson of Fort Worth issued a pastoral letter March 18 detailing directives for the celebration of Mass during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.