Jim and Meghan Schubert Provide Community Support and Compelling Stories with Modern Catholic Family Podcast

For Jim and Meghan Schubert, the idea for their podcast Modern Catholic Family emerged in the midst of struggle. They just received a call from their daughter Marin that she wanted to be picked up early from her confirmation retreat. The longtime parishioners of St. Brigid and parents of three recently had to navigate mental health struggles with their children. Their eldest son had decided not to make his confirmation. It seemed like their second child was also moving away from the faith. As he drove to the retreat camp, Jim was at a loss for what to do. 

“I’m just having this one-sided argument with God. ‘Why are we going through this? Why are you doing this to us? We’re about to have a child leave the faith, and I feel like we did everything right.”

-Jim Schubert, Founder and Host of Modern Catholic Family 

As he walked into the camp center, he heard one of the Life Teen leaders say to the attendees: “Never let a struggle go to waste.” 

Jim realized this was the answer he was looking for. Surrendering to God, he opened up to Marin about his own faith journey growing up in the Episcopal Church and converting to Catholicism A conversion occurred. The Schuberts went to Mass as a family that Sunday night, and the idea of creating a podcast discussing the joys and struggles of Catholic families was ignited.   

“We were feeling like, ‘Not only are we lost, but [we] don’t talk about it.’ That’s when the idea came. Why don’t we create this community where people know that it’s okay to say, ‘Yes, my kid didn’t make their confirmation, and here’s what we did’ or ‘We were on the brink, and here is what we did to help our child come back.’ Sharing our story and then interviewing other people and letting them share their stories will create a community for any situation.”

-Meghan Schubert, Founder and Host of Modern Catholic Family 

Whereas other Catholic family podcasts feature the hosts in conversation just with one another, episodes of Modern Catholic Family feature a new guest each week. Jim and Meghan have produced over 25 episodes since April, and guests have included parents, grandparents, teens, clergy, and ministry leaders. Topics discussed include raising children with special needs, whether to attend Mass while on vacation, how to build Catholic community, and so much more. Modern Catholic Family aims to uplift and empower those raising their families in the rich tradition of the Catholic faith while navigating the complexities of the modern world.  

Jim and Meghan have found that sharing the joys and struggles of faith and family life resonates with listeners around the world. The podcast has a listening audience in 26 different countries and 370 different cities. They repeatedly receive reviews and messages sharing just how needed this platform is. Plus, the stories and insights they have helped share are striking a chord with Catholic and non-Catholic listeners alike.   

“One friend reached out to me. She sent our podcast to a non-Catholic friend of hers and just said, ‘You should take a listen. I think this could really help,” and her friend wrote back and said, ‘This is so good. Thank you for sharing. I’ll share it with some other friends.’”  – Meghan Schubert 

 “I got a video message from a person I met once [through a work conference] …he said, ‘Jim, I just listened to your first episode. I actually grew up Catholic. I’m not practicing now, but my wife was just diagnosed with cancer. And the podcast really meant a lot to me. It was exactly what we needed to hear right now in our lives.’” -Jim Schubert

Jim and Meghan plan to develop Modern Catholic Family and its community impact even further. Currently, the podcast is completely self-funded. They hope to monetize and then give the majority of the funds raised to Catholic organizations that support families in need. They aim to develop a community membership that would provide additional educational resources and a regular online prayer group. Jim and Meghan are always on the lookout for new guests to interview, and they would especially love to feature more clergy and religious. More than anything, they hope they can reach families who might be struggling and seeking support.  

“It’s a community for families to lean into each other. To empower them to anchor in the fullness of Catholic living.” -Jim Schubert 

“My prayer every day when I pray about Modern Catholic Family is that we can be like a lighthouse. We can be the glass through which Christ can shine his light. We can be a resource for families who need help, saying, ‘You’re not alone. We’re here.’” -Meghan Schubert 

This Changed Everything For Our Modern Catholic Family Life 

You can click here to learn more about Modern Catholic Family, and you can listen to all episodes on all podcast streaming services.