Episode 43: Mary Anne Urlakis interviews Sr. Marysia Weber, RSM, on Achieving Hope, Healing & Chastity after Pornography (November 18, 2020)

Sr. Marysia Weber, R.S.M., M.A., D.O., joins WCAT Radio Host, Dr. Mary Anne Urlakis for Episode 43 of “Inter Vitam et Mortem: Between Life and Death: Interviews and Discussion with a Catholic Bioethicist,” to discuss the challenging topic of achieving hope, healing, and chastity after pornography addiction or compulsion.

Sr. Marysia is a board-certified physician, specializing in psychiatry with a fellowship in consulting-liaison psychiatry; she completed her residency and training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Sister earned a Master’s Degree in Theology from Notre Dame. Sr. Marysia Weber practiced psychiatry at her religious institute’s multidisciplinary clinic- Sacred Heart Mercy Health Care Center, in Alma, MI from 1988-2014. In 2014, Sr. Marysia accepted the role of Director of the Office of Consecrated Life for the Archdiocese of St. Louis, where she is also a facilitator for Project Rachel, the Chair of the Board of Directors for MyCatholic Doctor, and an executive board member of the St. Louis Guild of the Catholic Medical Association, and an executive board member for the Institute for Theological Encounter with Science and Technology. Sister also serves as an Adjunct Clinical Instructor in the Dept of Psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine, in St. Louis. Additionally, Sr. Marysia has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and has authored several books -- most recently penning two chapters in the new text on priestly formation: Spiritual Husbands- Spiritual Fathers: Priestly Formation for the 21st Century, edited by Bishop Felipe Estevez and Bishop Andrew Cozzens, published by Holy Apostles College and Seminary’s Enroute Books and Media. Sr. Marysia is a highly sought-after speaker and expert, and has presented to the Roman Curia, at the Vatican in 2002 regarding the Sexual Abuse by Clergy in North American.

In this interview, Sr. Marysia and Dr. Urlakis address the issue of pornography use, compulsion, and addiction. Sr. Marysia shares her expertise, not only discussing the scope of the problem and the neuroscience behind internet pornography addiction, but also revealing effective and authentically Catholic strategies for hope and healing.