State senators bring a unique perspective to the Capitol after meeting Holy Father

Nebraska state senators are in a flurry of activity this time of year, discussing and debating bills in committees and on the floor of the Legislature – amending some measures, advancing some.

As they go about their work, five of the state senators will have a more uniquely Catholic and worldwide view after attending a summer conference in Rome last year organized by the International Catholic Legislators Network.

Those senators – Sens. Rita Sanders of Bellevue, Tony Sorrentino of Elkhorn, Bob Andersen of Gretna, Ben Hansen of Blair and Dan Lonowski of Hastings – gained some valuable lessons and many personal graces when they visited the sites of the Eternal City, talked with Catholic lawmakers from around the world, mingled with cardinals – and even met the pope.

Three of the Nebraska lawmakers talked with the Catholic Voice about their experience and the impact it’s had on them. They were invited to the international conference through the Nebraska Catholic Conference and used their own funding to attend.

COURTESY OF SEN. RITA SANDERS

Family graces

For Sanders, perhaps the greatest fruit of the August conference was personal: seeing her husband, Rick, a former Episcopalian, received into the Catholic Church in Vatican City.

A cardinal heard Rick’s Confession before he received Holy Communion at the main altar of St. Peter’s Basilica.

The Rome conference was the second for Sen. Sanders, who also attended in 2023.

She had planned to go to the 2024 conference, but Rick was critically ill at the time, suffering from cancer and a dangerous bout of sepsis, which nearly claimed his life and almost caused the amputation of his legs.

Sen. Sanders canceled the trip that year, and the attendees in Rome promised to pray for Rick.

“And the prayers literally went from the Vatican City around the world,” Sanders said. “And my husband’s doing much better.”

The once-avid bicyclist still has his legs to pedal a stationary bike, and the couple hopes a doctor visit this spring will show continued or complete remission from the cancer.

At the 2023 conference, Sen. Sanders had the opportunity to meet Pope Francis. So in August, she decided to step back and let others shake hands with Pope Leo XIV.

The conference gathering with Pope Francis was more formal, she said. “He spoke to us as a group … but we each got time to meet him, have a picture, give him our intentions.”

That encounter seemed personal enough, Sanders said, but Pope Leo was even more accessible as he met with the lawmakers and their guests. “He just jumped into the mosh pit,” she said with a laugh.

He addressed and blessed those assembled as a group, then greeted people individually. “It was a little bit more unorganized, but it was fun,” Sanders said.

Variety of views

Sorrentino said he enjoyed hearing the political views of Catholic lawmakers from around the world.

“While we’re different in a lot of ways, we’re the same,” he said. “I saw it as refreshing that many of the legislators from other countries had the same concerns we did, or are battling the same battles we are – maybe handling them in different ways or coming up with different outcomes, but we’re all in this together, and we all have the commonality of our Catholic faith.”

Pope Leo’s 20-minute talk “was really, really well received,” Sorrentino said.

He and his wife, Kate, were able to shake the pope’s hand and say hello, “which was wonderful … very memorable.”

The conference itself was impactful, too, the state senator said.

“The one thing that I was able to take away … is that we have a duty to educate our children in the Catholic faith,” he said.

“I think their faith is more important now than it ever would be. Faith life for a child who’s going to be on this planet for another 75 to 100 years is very necessary, because they’ll be challenged on it,” he said. “There will be tough situations, and to have a faith life is a real leg up in life. We have to continue to educate our young.”

Sorrentino has successfully pushed for changes in NEST 529 plans to allow families to spend money in those accounts on elementary and high school tuition, beginning in 2029.

“The cost of Catholic education, we all know, is going up,” Sorrentino said, “and to be able to afford that education during the formative years of a child is very, very important. I don’t think we can wait until college to start to try to educate them on the fundamentals of their faith. The affordability can be discounted a little bit when we could start using our 529 earlier.”

Opportune time

Though Andersen traveled extensively while in the Air Force and as a defense contractor, he visited Rome for the first time for the conference.

He brought along his wife, Julie, and sons Joe and Jack, and spent extra days sightseeing with them.

While in Vatican City, Julie learned that her second cousin, then-Father Ralph O’Donnell, pastor of St. Margaret Mary Parish in Omaha, had been appointed bishop of the Diocese of Jefferson City, Missouri.

“It was kind of amazing that the announcement came out that day while we were actually in Vatican City, going to the Sistine Chapel, and everything else,” Andersen said.

“So when we did meet the pope, my wife mentioned it to Pope Leo,” who had appointed her relative.

“So it was a pretty cool moment for her, talking with the pope,” Andersen said.

Climbing the Scala Sancta (Holy Stairs) in Rome was another highlight for the family. Andersen and his two adult sons joined other pilgrims in climbing on their knees the 28 steps believed to be those Jesus ascended from the praetorium of Pontius Pilate, during Christ’s Passion in Jerusalem.

Andersen, who was raised as a Presbyterian, said his Catholic faith has become increasingly important to him.

“The older I’ve gotten, the more convinced I am of God’s influence in my life,” he said. “I’m a firm believer that God has a hand in our lives. He’s got a plan for us. And I’ve always prayed to be smart enough to listen when He tells me what to do.”

“It involved a lot of prayer when I decided to run” for state senator, Andersen said. “And to be quite frank with you, the conversation I had with Jesus was that if this is not what He wants … just let me know.”

“Even now,” Andersen said, “I ask for His support, just to help me to be strong and disciplined and kind – and it may sound surprising – but intellectually agile, something people probably don’t think about. But when you’re on the floor and debating a bill, sometimes you need to be quick on your feet. So I ask for His help on that.”

He said the Rome conference was “the chance of a lifetime.”

“It was a great honor to be invited and to be able to attend.”

COURTESY OF SEN. SANDERS

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