In this episode of the Catholic in Recovery podcast, hosts Scott Weeman and Father Sean Kilcawley discuss the interconnected themes of gratitude and service, especially as they relate to the recovery journey around Thanksgiving. They delve into how service acts as the greatest expression of gratitude, sharing personal reflections on the dangers of idle time as a trigger and the importance of allowing others to love you. They emphasize that service is a critical, life-saving requirement for sobriety and a path to feeling a beneficial part of a fellowship.

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I. Introduction

• Welcome and Topic Introduction: Scott Weeman and Father Sean Kilcawley welcome listeners to the Catholic in Recovery podcast, noting their one-year anniversary, and introduce the topic: Gratitude and Service in recovery, especially around Thanksgiving. Scott states that service is the greatest manifestation of gratitude.
• Music and Production Credits: Scott thanks I.B. Jacob (Bassanova) and Aisling Fuller for the intro and outro music.
• Opening Question: Scott asks Father Sean, "What's really going on today?"

II. Personal Check-ins and Holiday Preparations

• Father Sean Kilcawley's Update: Discusses the end of the seminary semester and the need for "self-scouting." He reflects on the danger of idle time as a trigger and how a plan to "bookend" empty time with calls to a connected person is a valuable recovery tool. He shares his Thanksgiving plans to fly home to be with his two younger sisters for the first time since high school and his new tradition of smoking a turkey after watching the Lions game.
• Scott Weeman's Update: Shares about his recent trip to Florida (Catholic in Recovery retreat in Jensen Beach, beach time, Universal Studios). He relates to the struggle with idle time, noting he has a long, unplanned Thanksgiving weekend and is both craving rest and feeling anxious about the empty schedule. He mentions the Green Bay Packers/Detroit Lions game and a friendly wager.

III. The Role of Gratitude and Service in Recovery

• Gratitude: Father Sean introduces gratitude as a reminder that "we can't live life on our own" and a gift to be received, not owed (citing a Rocky III quote). He notes the transition to sincerely saying, "I am a grateful recovering..."
• Scott's Gratitude Transition: Scott shares his personal turning point, around 80 days sober, realizing that the consequences of his past actually led to a better life than he had initially planned.
• Service as Action: Scott discusses his past service tradition of a Thanksgiving "friendsgiving" and serving food to the homeless as an action that expresses gratitude. He expresses his current struggle to prioritize family while still finding ways to perform service.
• The Life-Saving Promise of Service: Scott highlights a key promise from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous (pages 14-15) about the necessity of "work and self-sacrifice for others" as a requirement for spiritual life and sustained sobriety.
• Helping the Still-Suffering Addict: Scott shares the story of a man 10 days sober who sought his help when Scott was 30 days sober, which immediately gave Scott a new sense of purpose and was an act of service.
• The Fruit of Service: Father Sean discusses how service helps individuals feel like "a part of something," noting the fruitfulness of guys getting a service position like "literature guy." He also shares the story of starting a large, closed online meeting for priests by simply being willing to show up and sit alone in the beginning.
• Formal and Informal Service: The hosts discuss various service opportunities, including formal roles (meeting secretary, ushering, area representative) and informal acts (showing up, hospitality, offering a phone number). Father Sean suggests the Church can learn from the recovery spirit of service by encouraging people to simply "be available" to others.

IV. Final Gratitude Sharing

• Father Sean's Gratitude: Expresses thanks for waking up, hearing confessions, the restoration of his relationship with his sisters, and even the dysfunctional people in his life who drew him closer to Jesus.
• Scott's Gratitude: Expresses thanks for the gift of life, his wife and children (the fruits of his recovery), his sobriety, and mercy. He concludes that gratitude is a crucial counter to his default of self-pity and entitlement, and that writing it down or sharing it can foster greater gratitude.

V. Conclusion

• Final Farewell and Blessings: The hosts offer a final blessing and say goodbye. Scott adds, "Happy Thanksgiving. Go Pack Go." Father Sean replies, "Go pack go. All right, God bless."