By Jessica Easthope
Dec. 12 marks the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Hundreds packed the Co-Cathedral of Saint Joseph to honor the Blessed Mother.
The celebration, broken up into two Masses to accommodate crowds, opened with a dance by performers in traditional Aztec dress and is concluding with the light of torches leading processions back to their parishes.
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Alex Simpson wasn’t expected to live past infancy — but she just turned 20. Her parents sat down with Currents News to share the extraordinary journey of raising a daughter born without cerebral hemispheres, and why they continue to choose love despite public criticism and debate.
By Jessica Easthope and Jessica Meditz
HOUSTON — When former Tablet journalist Melissa Enaje Rappa learned her unborn daughter had a rare genetic condition in early 2024, doctors warned the baby might not survive. Instead of giving up hope, she chose to trust in God’s plan.
That faith — and the two months she spent with her daughter Isabella — carried her through the most extraordinary journey of her life.
Enaje Rappa, 38, received the news at the end of her first trimester. Routine bloodwork showed a high risk for Trisomy 18, also known as Edwards Syndrome — a rare chromosomal condition that can cause severe developmental delays and life-threatening complications in infancy.
“I just remember bawling,” she said. “I was still trying to process being pregnant for the first time, and now I was processing this. But I kept telling myself, ‘God will have the final word.’ ”
Although physicians explained that many babies with the condition do not survive and that some parents outside of her home state of Texas (where abortion is illegal) may consider termination, Rappa said her Catholic faith made her decision clear.
“I couldn’t play God,” she said. “I just knew I had to surrender and trust that whatever happened, it would be his will. I wanted Isabella to write her own story.”
Despite the uncertainty surrounding Isabella’s condition, Enaje Rappa said she approached each day of pregnancy as a blessing — celebrating every checkup and every day that went by as a milestone.
She also drew strength from the sacraments. Attending Mass became a profound source of hope — especially when receiving the Eucharist.
“Every time I received the Eucharist, I prayed, ‘Lord, let this nourish Isabella too,’ ” she said. “The Eucharist is what sustained her. His body and blood were feeding her through me.”
On Oct. 20, 2024, she was induced at Texas Children’s Hospital. After a long labor, doctors decided a cesarean section would be the safest delivery option.
When Isabella finally entered the world, there was silence for a moment — and then a cry.
“That’s all I prayed for,” Enaje Rappa said. “Just to hear her cry. In that moment, I knew I had witnessed a miracle.”
Her husband, Anthony Rappa, stood by her side every step of the way.
She said her husband’s strength, humility, and protection remind her so much of her favorite saint, St. Joseph.
“My husband is such a soldier,” she said. “He watched the whole thing — he didn’t hide behind the curtain. It was a miracle to see her, and he was right there with me.”
St. Joseph’s intercession has been a constant source of hope throughout Enaje Rappa’s life. Her devotion to him began years ago, when she started asking the saint for help in finding her spouse.
She later met Rappa, and the two were married at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, where she worked as a journalist for The Tablet.
“I used to tell people, ‘That’s my boy, St. Joseph,’ ” she said with a laugh. “I prayed to him for years, and he led me straight to my husband.”
After the birth, the couple spent the next several weeks at Texas Children’s Hospital, where Isabella received care in the neonatal intensive care unit.
For Enaje Rappa, those days were sacred.
“Having your baby in the NICU is a whole different experience,” she said. “You grieve normalcy. You grieve joy. But [the NICU] was my lifeline to mothering her.”
Each day brought a small but meaningful routine: pumping milk, visiting Isabella at her bedside, and cherishing the moments when she could hold or feed her. She credits the doctors, nurses, and volunteers — especially a photographer who came every Thursday to take pictures of families — for helping her preserve the memories of her daughter’s life.
Enaje Rappa found purpose in providing breast milk for her daughter, seeing it as a natural extension of her motherhood.
Isabella lived in the NICU for two precious months before she passed away on Christmas Day.
“The best way I can describe it is that she went from my loving arms to the arms of Our Father,” Enaje Rappa said. “There was peace in knowing she’s with Jesus.”
She continued to pump for more than six months, donating her milk to other mothers and babies in need through the Mothers’ Milk Bank of North Texas. Through that process, she found healing and purpose — channeling her grief into giving.
“So many women thanked me because their babies needed donor milk. I just felt like this was the most natural thing for me to do,” she said. “When that journey ended, it felt like another part of my motherhood was gone forever. But Isabella taught my body something that is never going to go away.”
Enaje Rappa formed a close bond with the Mothers’ Milk Bank community, and the group shared her and Isabella’s story in a tribute Facebook post for Isabella’s first heavenly birthday.
She decorated her last donation box in memory of her daughter, marking the end of her milk donation journey, which totaled 2,631 ounces.
As she grieved, Enaje Rappa began writing again — returning to her blog, The M Report, which she originally launched in college. What started as a creative outlet became a safe haven to process the highs and lows of her pregnancy, honor her daughter’s life, and spread awareness for Edwards Syndrome.
She also worked on her book, “You Got This: How Your Greatest Test Will Become Your Greatest Testimony, One Woman’s Short, Faith-Filled Memoir of Navigating High-Risk Pregnancy and Not Losing Hope,” which she has already completed and plans to publish by Christmas.
“I wanted to be for other women what I didn’t have for myself,” she said. “If the Lord chose me to walk through this, then I’m going to use Isabella’s story to help bring hope to others.”
Enaje Rappa’s faith and devotion to St. Joseph were further cemented after Isabella’s passing. When her home parish in Texas couldn’t host the funeral Mass due to unforeseen circumstances, another church could: St. Joseph Catholic Church.
Isabella’s nameplate at her final resting place bears a butterfly — a symbol of new life — and an image of St. Joseph holding the baby Jesus.
“It says ‘From hero, to angel,’ because she is our hero forever,” Enaje Rappa said. “She showed me what strength, courage, and resilience look like in that tiny, little body.”
The miracle of her daughter’s brief but powerful life continues to guide her forward.
“With God, nothing is impossible,” she said. “Motherhood comes in so many forms — and even in sorrow, it’s still sacred. That’s the creative mercy of God.”
By Katie Vasquez
EAST FLATBUSH, Brooklyn — Walking down Snyder Avenue from Ralph Avenue to Flatbush, Christopher Burke follows a route he has never taken before — and that is exactly the point.
The St. Dominic Church parishioner has made it his mission to walk every block in Brooklyn, turning an ordinary exercise routine into a multi-year journey through the borough’s neighborhoods, history and architecture.
Burke began the project in 2019 after growing bored with his usual walking routes and decided to challenge himself to explore unfamiliar streets.
“I saw the Williamsburg Bank Building, and instead of taking two bridges to get back to Brooklyn, I said, maybe I’ll try walking that,” Burke said. “It turned out getting from Williamsburg to Atlantic Avenue was only about a 45-minute walk.”
What started as a single detour quickly grew into an ambitious goal. Burke now plans each walk carefully, documenting every new route and milestone on his personal blog. He estimates he is about halfway through completing his borough-wide trek.
“Next thing you know, I’m moving my way south and moving my way east,” he said.
Along the way, Burke said he has gained a deeper appreciation for Brooklyn’s layered architecture — from historic homes and monuments to streets where century-old houses sit beside modern buildings like pieces of a patchwork quilt.
A Brooklyn native who grew up in Park Slope, Burke said many of the neighborhoods he passes through stir memories of his childhood.
“Anytime I walk down a tree-lined block with slate slabs instead of concrete, it reminds me of my old block,” he said.
For Burke, the journey is also a spiritual one. As a practicing Catholic, he frequently stops to photograph churches, drawn to their design and craftsmanship.
“I stop and take pictures of almost every church because the architecture is beautiful,” he said.
He also said the walks have sharpened his appreciation for Brooklyn’s green spaces — especially in contrast to dense areas dominated by concrete and high-rise buildings.
“You gotta love the nature that’s in Brooklyn,” Burke said. “I appreciate the green spaces a lot more.”
Despite the scale of his goal, Burke insists he is not trying to set records or outpace others who have completed similar challenges.
“I’m not trying to be that guy,” he said. “I’m just trying to be someone who’s out getting exercise, enjoying it. And if I see all of Brooklyn, that’s great.”
If you would like to keep up with his journey, you can check out his website.
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A parishioner of St. Dominic Church is walking every block of Brooklyn — documenting the borough’s beauty, history, and faith landmarks.
By Jessica Easthope
When former Tablet journalist Melissa Enaje Rappa learned her unborn daughter had a rare genetic condition in early 2024, doctors warned the baby might not survive. Instead of giving up hope, she chose to trust in God’s plan.
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Students at Immaculate Conception Catholic Academy in Queens used their annual tree lighting to collect diapers, wipes, baby supplies, and other essentials for The Bridge to Life. Teaming up with the Knights of Columbus’ Columbian Squires and the Junior Ladies of Charity, the students brought Christmas cheer to families who need it most.
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Matt Maher and Sarah Kroger stopped in Brooklyn on their national “Cathedrals” tour, celebrating the season with music inside the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. Their performance also raised funds for Futures in Education to support Catholic school students in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
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Bishop Robert Brennan celebrated Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James, marking the Feast of the Immaculate Conception with a message about Mary’s purity and what it means for Catholics today.
By Katie Vasquez and Paula Katinas
SUNSET PARK — Salisa Hudson was looking for the perfect Christmas gifts for her three children, but she wasn’t in a department store. Instead, she was standing in a church hall.
Hudson was one of an estimated 600 people on Dec. 10 who visited the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, where Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens (CCBQ) set up a free “toy shop” filled with everything from dolls to trucks to books and puzzles that parents could pick out to give their children for Christmas.
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“Coming here today, I think I will absolutely be able to accomplish it,” Hudson said of the search for Christmas gifts for her three children, adding that she now feels she can give her family a wonderful Christmas.
The goal of the event, said Debbie Hampson, senior director of community outreach services for CCBQ, is to help parents who might be struggling financially find toys to put under the tree without spending money that might be needed for other things.
“We’ve really seen this past year, especially the last few months, a lot of our families have been struggling,” Hampson said. “People have been coming to us who normally don’t come to us for help.”
Pre-registration, which parents were required to do to participate in the event, filled up “faster than a Taylor Swift concert,” according to Hampson.
According to the Bank of America Institute, one in four families in the U.S. is living paycheck to paycheck — spending 95% of their income on necessities like groceries and rent with almost nothing left over for extras, like vacations or restaurant outings.
CCBQ scheduled a total of four “toy shops” — two in Brooklyn and two in Queens — on Dec. 10, 11, 18, and 19, and the organization expected to help more than 3,000 children have a blessed Christmas because of the four events, Hampson said.
Hudson was grateful for the opportunity.
“I’m having a little bit of a difficult time making ends meet and getting to the next month. So, it means the world,” she said.
CCBQ set up the basilica shop like a toy store, allowing parents to select their own gifts rather than having items handed to them.
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“This way, we’re really empowering the family,” Hampson explained.
Each parent was matched with a “shopper elf,” a volunteer who guided them from table to table to help them pick out gifts.
Susan Galligan, who has volunteered at CCBQ toy shops for 10 years, said she loves it because it reminds her of what Christmas is supposed to be about — “that kids have Christmas.”