New Catholic Comic Book project launched by a couple of Sconnies

August 15, 2017 - Wisconsin Rapids, WI - Writer Philip Kosloski[Sconnie], along with artist Michael LaVoy[Sconnie], launched today a new comic book entitled The Last Monks of Skellig Michael on crowd-funding site Kickstarter. The two have set out to raise $7,500 to complete production of the action packed comic book, making it available to the general public.

The Last Monks of Skellig Michael is a new comic series that explores the radical life and exciting adventures of the ancient monastic community on the island known for its appearance in Star Wars films The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. It follows a young man who is struggling to find his place in the world and who defiantly travels to the distant isle off the coast of Ireland. What happens next is beyond anything he imagined.

“It’s a story about faith, trust and following your ‘gut’ when everyone else is against you,” says writer Philip Kosloski. “The comic also seeks to highlight the spiritual world that is often hidden from our eyes, but on occasion reveals itself in a miraculous fashion. In developing this comic it brought together two passions in my life, Star Wars and the Catholic faith. There are no lightsabers in this story, but let’s just say that the ‘Force' is strong with this one.”

The Last Monks of Skellig Michael Kickstarter campaign will run from August 15 - September 12, 2017.

continue at Kickstarter

Very cool!  Please consider backing this great project!

Green Bay Packers backup center pens article on how football strengthened his faith

Photo via GBP

One NFL rookie is quietly using his new position to encourage others in the Christian faith. Green Bay Packers center Jacob Flores recently wrote an article explaining “3 Ways the NFL Taught Me To Deepen My Faith.”

Flores graduated in the spring from Dartmouth College and “started every game over the last three years, spending his sophomore and junior seasons at left tackle and his senior season at center…[and] In 2015, he was a co-recipient of the Alan Hewitt ’34 and Robert Hewitt ’40 Award, presented to the varsity player who best epitomizes athletic performance with academic achievement.”

His athletic ability paved the way for quarterback Dalyn Williams to set new Dartmouth records and Flores was chosen to be a suitable backup for the Green Bay Packers, eventually being tapped to protect the Packers’ most valuable player, Aaron Rodgers.

He graduated with a Religion major and participated in a FOCUS (The Fellowship of Catholic University Students) mission trip over spring break, where, among other service projects, he played American football with children in Ecuador.

continue at Aleteia

FYI, Flores got put on the IR but I haven't seen what the injury was.

Kosloski: Brett Favre’s Catholic faith carries him to the Hall of Fame

This weekend Brett Favre, one of the greatest NFL players of all time, will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. On Thursday he was presented with the prestigious “gold jacket,” the highest honor a player can get in the NFL.

What is unique about the event is that his wife Deanna presented him with the jacket and will formally introduce him at Saturday’s induction ceremony. She is only the second wife of a football player to do so.

Favre said about the decision to have his wife participate, “Deanna is the best teammate I’ve ever had…She has been by my side throughout this journey and I’m so excited that she gets to play such an important role for me.”

- Continue at: http://aleteia.org/2016/08/06/brett-favres-catholic-faith-carries-him-to-the-hall-of-fame/#sthash.yJhallbK.dpuf

Saint John Paul II scales silo wearing full cassock in Portage County, WI, BONUS: 1976 video of the visit

I thought fo show I posted this already!

Get the book!  The following took place in 1976 on the soon to be pope's visit to Wisconsin.

Matt JK: JPII scales silo wearing cassock in portage county, great story! (my emphasis)

Portage County is generally known as a flat area with little change in elevation. It is often referred to as a plains area and is a mixture of agricultural fields and thick forests. Wojtyła had a knack for finding the highest place in a given area in order to survey it. As a result, when he noticed that the highest point on the farm was the silo, he naturally asked if he could scale it. The Zdroiks, especially the boys of the farm, were quite surprised by the request and at the same time impressed. They had never seen a Catholic priest, much less a cardinal dressed in his black cassock with a golden pectoral cross hanging around his neck, scale a silo. Yet, his clerical garb did not deter him, and Cardinal Wojtyła climbed the vertical ladder with relative ease, reached the top of the tower, and gazed over the vast plains below. He wanted to see the “green of America,” and that is exactly what he saw.33

Wisconsin farmland

AAAnnnnddd BONUS coverage today here on The Badger Catholic! Cardinal Karol Wojtyla's (Pope John Paul II) Visit to Stevens Point, WI, 23 August 1976

Lots of footage, media interviews
1:08:30 - Speech at UW Stevens Point(or I think UW Stevens Point rejected hosting the event, this is maybe at the public high school?)

In the Footsteps of a Saint: New Book on John Paul II’s Visit to Wisconsin

This is the story about a man who inspired millions and millions of people around the world and who continues to have a profound impact on society ten years after his death. His sanctity and attractive personality were well known throughout his life, but few people know about a very personal and intimate visit he made in the middle of Wisconsin two years before he was elected pope. It was a visit that greatly impacted all who were present and continues to be an inspiration to the people who live there, but more importantly it was a visit that was never supposed to happen.

The Visit That Was Never Supposed To Happen

In 1975, the United States media outlets were abuzz with the announcement that the next International Eucharistic Congress would be held in Philadelphia. When Dr. Waclaw Soroka, professor of Russian and East European history at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, heard it was going to be in the United States, he immediately sought to discover who would attend from his native Poland. At first, he wasn’t sure who would come, but it was understood that a large delegation of Polish priests and bishops would travel to Philadelphia. Not only would these Poles be present for the conferences in Philadelphia, but it was made clear that they desired to travel to various communities of Polish descent. Dr. Soroka knew what he had to do: he needed to invite Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski to Wisconsin.

On account of Cardinal Wyszynski’s position as Primate of Poland, as well as his unwavering resistance to communism, Dr. Soroka sought to invite him to central Wisconsin to give a talk at a newly established organization called the Annual Lectures on Poland. Dr. Soroka knew “Father” Wyszynski well, as both had been active at the University of Lublin during the Nazi occupation.

Unfortunately, the Primate was not attending the congress in Philadelphia and could not accept the invitation. Cardinal Wyszynski had another idea: invite a close colleague of his, whom he called the “other Polish cardinal” — Cardinal Karol Wojtyła, the young archbishop of Krakow. While Cardinal Wojtyła was not his first choice, Dr. Soroka decided to ask him to be the keynote speaker at the event in central Wisconsin.

He accepted.

Little did anyone know at the time that they would be welcoming a future pope (John Paul II) and a living saint.

continue at Philip Koslowski

And check this out: “In the Footsteps of a Saint” Book Giveaway!

Also Phil is doing a book signing in Stevens Point on April 4th.

I just bought on Kindle.

"Karol Wojtyla’s Visit to Wisconsin" book to chronicle Stevens Point visit by Pope John Paul II

Philip Kosloski said his interest in Pope John Paul II’s visit to Portage County in 1976 came during his own pursuit of the Catholic priesthood. Kosloski ultimately didn’t follow that path, but his interest in the late pontiff, who will be canonized as a saint in the Catholic Church in April, is leading him to write a book “The Other Polish Cardinal: Karol Wojtyla’s Visit to Wisconsin.”
Kosloski, now the director of Adult Formation and Sacred Liturgy at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Wisconsin Rapids, will spend the next year researching then writing the 100-page book, and is looking to self-publish the book sometime in 2015.
Kosloski said he is looking to raise about $8,000 to publish 500 copies in the initial printing. Portage County Historical Society President Tim Siebert said he is excited about the book, and that it will fill the lack of material about the visit available to the public.“The (University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point) Archives do have some materials, but there isn’t a whole lot more, and, unfortunately, a lot of the people who were a big part of that event locally have passed away,” Siebert said.

continue at Stevens Point Journal 

You can get details here.  Also, there is a Kickstarter.