Merry Mary-Marthas: Chats with Catholic women exemplifying the feminine genius in the world and in the home.
Meet Ellie,
mother, nurse, and Catholic creative
Ellie is a wife, mother and recent convert living in Southern California. She runs the IG
page for @Miraculous_Revival where she posts vintage Catholic medals and things she
learns about Catholicism along the way. Our Blessed Mother played the leading role in
her conversion from “mortal sinner” to “striving saint”. Through this ministry and her own
testimony, she hopes to spark devotion and love for Mother Mary in the hearts of others.
To Jesus through Mary!
Tell us a little bit about yourself – your family, hobbies, experiences, education, etc., basically anything you’d like to share.
My name is Ellie and I am a nurse, wife, and mother of two young girls, living in Southern
California. I was baptized Orthodox as a baby, but strayed far from God as I spent most
of my adult life deep in sinful activities and new age practices. My husband is Jewish,
and I myself converted to Catholicism in 2018 at the request of my mother. But my heart
didn’t actually convert until 2020 when I fell into the role of running the social media page
for our ministry, Miraculous Revival. I have deep love for Our Blessed Mother and hope
to spread devotion to her in any way that I can!
What is your apostolate? How do you bring truth, beauty and goodness to the world? How did your ministry/apostolate begin?
It all started in 2020 when my life was at rock bottom, and my mom gave me a Miraculous Medal. I didn’t know what it was, but I put it on… and never took it off. At the same time, my mom and our good friend Michele had just started “Miraculous Revival,” a ministry dedicated to finding forgotten antique/vintage Catholic medals and giving them new life. They were trying to spread the word of their new shop, so I offered to help them by posting their necklaces to Instagram. I was a non-practicing Catholic at the time and I initially kept the page just about the necklaces… but something interesting happened. The more involved I got in the ministry, the more I started to experience deep conversion. After some time, The Lord asked me to start sharing about my own journey. Now, I love posting not only the necklaces, but also my testimony and things I learn about our faith… especially Our Blessed Mother!
What have you struggled with and how have you managed to balance the interior life of Mary, with the exterior life of Martha? Tell us about your practice of prayer and any special devotions you have, and how this supports/enhances your apostolate.
By nature, I identify most with Martha. I actually struggle with OCD and scrupulosity, which makes it hard for me sometimes to function as a Catholic Creative because I tend to get hung up on the tasks and details. If I am going to do something, I like to focus and give it 100%. But as all moms know, that is impossible to do with small children and a household to run. To do this ministry from the heart, I’ve realized that I need my quiet time with The Lord. The only place I am truly able to find this is at Adoration. I don’t bring books, a Rosary, prayer cards or anything…I just sit. For a busybody like me, it felt uncomfortable at first. But over time, the discomfort has transformed into unfathomable peace. Sitting quietly and listening to The Lord in Adoration is one way that I bring more of a “Mary” balance to my “Martha” lifestyle.
Where can we learn more about you and your apostolate (contact info, website, etc.) and new projects?
You can find our ministry on Instagram @miraculous_revival where we are
always posting new necklaces and things to learn about Catholicism. Our shop link is at
the top of the IG page at miraculousrevival.com.
