One of my favorite childhood memories is of long summer days, spent reading. We lived on the second floor of a house in the city. The upstairs porch that my mom and dad set up had a roof and shades you could roll down to keep out the sun. There were comfortable lounge chairs, and my brothers and I would load up with all kinds of summer reading materials from the bookmobile that visited our neighborhood. When we weren't out riding bikes or playing ball, we were camped out on the porch, reading. Nowadays, I have to fit in my reading for pleasure—or even for continuing education—around my daily work.

In these summer months, we've designed the American Catholic Radio programs along the lines of those leisurely summer hours spent curled up with a good book. (Or perhaps with your e-book reader, these days!) We have a lineup of guests designed to interest you across the board on a potpourri of Catholic subjects.

It is important to keep learning, not only in my job as priest or educator, but simply as a Christian. And if you're as busy as I am, you probably have to fit your ongoing "faith formation" around your daily activities as well.

We here at American Catholic Radio hope that our weekly summer offerings will find a place in your schedule. We hope to make our programs as comfortable as a cool summer day in an easy chair—but full of information and inspiration to help your faith grow.