Archbishop Robert J. Carlson, Diocese of St. Louis
Archbishop Robert J. Carlson was Enthroned June 10, 2009. Archbishop Carlson
is the ninth and current Archbishop of St. Louis. He previously served as Auxiliary Bishop
of St. Paul and Minneapolis (1983-1994), Bishop of Sioux Falls (1995-2004), and Bishop of
Saginaw (2004-2009). During high school, he studied under the Christian Brothers, studied
at St. Paul Seminary, from where he obtained a Bachelor's degree in philosophy in 1966.
Archbishop Carlson was ordained to the priesthood on May 23, 1970. He earned a
Master's in Divinity from St. Paul Seminary in 1976, and a Licentiate of Canon Law from
the Catholic University of America in 1979. He served as a pastor, a judge on the
archdiocesan tribunal, director of the Office of Vocations, and chancellor of the curia in
the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. He selected as his episcopal motto:
Ante Crucem Nihil Defensionis, that is, "Before the Cross There is No Defense."
Bishop Robert J. Hermann, DD, Diocese of St. Louis
The Most Reverend Robert J. Hermann has served the Archdiocese of St. Louis as Auxiliary Bishop-emeritus
since 2010, having served as Auxiliary Bishop since 2002. Bishop Hermann is in residence at the Saint Louis Cathedral Basilica rectory.
He continues to write a popular weekly column for
The St. Louis Review, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese.
Bishop Thomas J. Paprocki, Diocese of Springfield, Illinois
Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of the Springfield, IL diocese, is both a canon lawyer and a civil lawyer.
He has studied law at DePaul University College of Law and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
He has served as chancellor of the Archdiocese of Chicago from 1992-2000, and has since served as a pastor,
an adjunct professor of law at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, the Episcopal Vicar of Vicariate IV,
and the president of the Chicago Legal Clinic, a non-profit dedicated to providing legal services to the poor.
He enjoys reading, playing hockey, and last year ran his 18th marathon in Kansas City in support of pro-life ministries in the Springfield diocese.
Father Ralph Wright, O.S.B.
An accomplished athlete, linguist, hymn-writer and preacher, Father Ralph experiences life with all the passion of a true poet. However, the purity of heart for which he is so well loved carries a price: he feels in a uniquely personal way the tragic implications of America's "culture of death." Not content to sit by in idle grief, Father Ralph has worked tirelessly on behalf of pro-life efforts across the country. Yet as much as Father Ralph is regarded as a pillar of the pro-life community, he is just as highly regarded in the literary community. With five books of poetry, a number of academic articles, dozens of published hymns, and the world's only translation of Madeleine Delbrêl's
The Joy Of Believing to his name, this poet is no amateur when it comes to writing. Father Ralph also serves as the Vocations Director for the abbey and head Tennis coach in the school. Above all, however, Father Ralph is a man of prayer, and even a passing familiarity with him will show that this life of prayer is the source and summit of his work.
Click here to view Fr. Ralph's notes from his talk "Hope - The Unborn Child", as well as some of his Marian poetry.
Deacon Alex Jones
Alex Jones was an "on-fire" Pentecostal minister in Detroit who was a completely dedicated shepherd of his flock.
He greatly loved his people and they loved him. In seeking to give his flock the most genuine experience of the early
Church prayer and worship services, he carefully read Scripture, the Fathers of the Church and writings of the early saints.
The more he read, the more Alex came to the startling conclusion that the present day Catholic Church - and the Holy Mass -
is the same exact "worship service " from the very early Church. Alex began to share his findings with his parish, and eventually Alex,
and most of his parish, joined the Catholic Church. Today he preaches with his usual passion about Christ - as a Catholic deacon!
Carolyn King
Carolyn King is a Catholic speaker, teacher and convert from Lutheranism. At the peak of her successful business career as
an investment consultant, she was featured in the Wall Street Journal and was interviewed on Tom Brokaw's NBC Nightly News
in a story called How successful women balance work and family. King began her speaking ministry in 2001 with St. Joseph's
Communications, and served as a CCD teacher and taught in a Catholic woman's prayer group in her own diocese for four years.
In 2004 she was a guest on EWTN's The Journey Home. She is deeply devoted to the sacraments, the Blessed Mother and the saints.
She believes that the challenging times people live in today are no match for the transforming grace of God.
Fr. David Meconi, SJ
Fr. David Vincent Meconi, S.J., is professor of patristic theology at St. Louis University,
where he teaches courses on Trinitarian theology, Christology and soteriology in the early Church,
the history of Christian deification, and St. Augustine of Hippo. He recently marked his first year as editor of
Homiletic & Pastoral Review.
Melissa Ohden
Melissa Ohden is the survivor of a failed saline infusion abortion in 1977. Despite the initial concerns regarding Melissa's future
after surviving the attempt to end her life and being born alive at approximately seven months gestation, she has not only survived
but thrived. With a Master's Degree in Social Work, she has worked in the fields of substance abuse, mental health, domestic
violence/sexual assault counseling, and child welfare. Melissa and her husband Ryan have a daughter, Olivia, whose birth at the
same hospital where Melissa's life was supposed to end has significantly shaped Melissa's ministry.
Fr. Mitch Pacwa, SJ
Father Mitchell C. Pacwa, S.J., Senior Fellow of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, is a Jesuit priest
and President and Founder of Ignatius Productions, world renowned lecturer, spiritual director for over fifty
Holy Land pilgrimages, and EWTN host of television and radio shows. An accomplished biblical scholar and apologist, Father Pacwa,
S.J. earned his Ph.D. in Old Testament from Vanderbilt University. He also holds a Master of Divinity and S.T.B. from the Jesuit
School of Theology at Loyola University. He speaks 12 languages, including Arabic, Aramaic, Hebrew, and Koine Greek.
Father Charles Becker
Fr. Charles Becker is a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Three years after his ordination in 1986 he was invited to go to Medjugorje. Upon his return he was introduced to the prayer group format of the Marian Movement of Priests based on Our Lady's messages to Fr. Stefano Gobbi of Milan, Italy. These experiences coupled with his Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in October 1990 began to change Father's whole perspective on his life as a priest, of the Church and of the world. He began to develop Cenacles of the Marian Movement of Priests and other Marian Rosary Groups throughout the Archdiocese in response to Our Lady's call to prayer in order to assist others who had similar experiences. Father has assisted approximately 2 to 3 trips to Medjugorje yearly since 1990 and has participated in the annual International Marian Movement of Priest Retreat in Italy since 1997. Father has been a guest homilist on EWTN. For more information please visit,
www.olpgchicago.org or
www.medjugorjechicago.org.
Msgr. John J. Hickel
Msgr. John J. Hickel is pastor of St. Paul's Church in St. Paul, Missouri and is the
official representative at the Conference for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Msgr. Hickel sets
the guidelines for the Conference, oversees the liturgies used at the Conference and insures
the integrity of the handling of the Blessed Sacrament at this facility. Without the support
of Msgr. Hickel we would not be able to bring you this Marian Conference.
