Kresta in the Afternoon

When Elvis Gutierrez was growing up in New York City, his father was often absent for long periods of time. He was enamored by hip-hop culture and his friends ranged everywhere from honors students to drug dealers. He joins us sharing his long journey to the faith, which included working as an EMT on 9/11 and losing a close friend to cancer.

Catholics have heard the call to embrace the New Evangelization – but why is it necessary in the first place? Where did we go wrong, and why did we fail to properly preach the Gospel and make disciples? Brian Pedraza presents a Catechesis for the New Evangelization.

This week we celebrated the Feast of St John XXIII. The anniversary of his death is in June, but his feast is on October 11 to mark the anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. Most Catholics today can't remember the way the world and Church was on that day in 1962. It is tempting to think that, had the Council Fathers been more foresighted – more critical of modernity and less eb...

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of Pope John XXIII. Known as “good Pope John,” he has also been called one of the most misunderstood popes in history. Why? We talk about it with William Doino.

The loss of a child may be the greatest pain a parent can endure, regardless of the age of the child. 1 out of 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage, but these, and other types of pregnancy and reproductive losses, are often underestimated or ignored in our culture. In recognition of that, Friday October 15 is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day. Michaelene Fredenburg joins us with tips and resourc...

A visit to the ICU is a sudden, harrowing experience that can alter families and leave both physical and emotional scars for years to come. Dr. Wes Ely set out to fix that problem. He takes us on a journey into the ICU to share how he found hope and healing.

In today’s First Reading, St. Paul tells the Romans that he is not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the Power of God for the salvation of all who believe. What happens when we put our Hope in the Gospel – in the truth of the Resurrection – rather than in the weaknesses of Man? Al discusses.

October 9 was the Feast of St. Abraham – and yes, it’s the Abraham you’re thinking of. How did a many of the early Old Testament come to be a saint? What do we know about his life? We’ll talk with Steve Ray.

Last week Pope Francis announced that he will name St. Irenaeus a Doctor of the Church, with the title of a “doctor of unity” in recognition of his work to unite Christians in the East and West. We’ll learn more about him with Fr. John Cush.

Despite a decrease in participation in organized religion, many Americans still find themselves interested in things supernatural or spiritual – especially in this “Halloween” time of year. The new Netflix series Midnight Mass attempts to explore these themes. Does it succeed? Steven Greydanus joins us.

In the Gospel yesterday we heard of the rich young man who asked Christ what he must do to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. We take a closer look with guest host Tom Nash

October is the Month of the Rosary – what better time to get to know Fr Patrick Peyton? Known as the Rosary Priest, Fr Peyton devoted his life to sharing the blessings of the Rosary with everyone he met and he coined the phrase “the family that prays together, stays together.”

October has some outstanding feast days, and tomorrow is no exception. It's the Feast of John Henry Newman. Newman was the founder of the Oxford Movement and one of the most profound thinkers of his time. We get to know him with Fr. Juan Velez

You’ve probably seen thsirts or posters emblazoned with the face of Che Guevara, one of the leading figures of the Cuban revolution. For decades he’s been a darling of the Counterculture movement and certain parts of the Political left. But in reality he was a bloodthirsty executioner who persecuted religious and racial minorities. Humberto Fontova joins us to expose the real Che Guevara.

We have heard from some Catholics who think the French sex abuse report was artificially inflated by activists who were determined to put the Church in a bad light. Should Catholics automatically go on the defensive when the sin of others harms the witness of the Church? Al discusses.

Teresa of Avila, whose feast we celebrate next week, was the inspiration for what St. John Paul II called a new way of praying the Rosary. Known as the Contemplative Rosary, it unites vocal prayer and meditation to transform the prayers of the Rosary into a contemplative meeting with our Lord. Dan Burke explains how it works.

An assembly of the German Synodal Way ended unexpectedly on Saturday following a vote in favor of a text that endorses same-sex blessings. Matthew Bunson tells us what happened. We’ll also look at an abuse trial in the Vatican and the declaration of St. Irenaeus as a Doctor of the Church.

It’s the feast of our Lady of the Rosary and the anniversary of the Battle of Lepanto, one of the most important Naval battles in Western history. Through the power of the Rosary, the Holy League Navy defeated the Ottoman Turks and preserved Christianity in the West. We look at the history of the Battle and its lasting impacts with Dr Thomas Madden

A stunning report in France found that for than 216,000 people were abused by French clerics between 1950 and 2020. Al looks at what we know about the report, how it compares to the crisis in the US, and how the laity can respond

In the United States, more than 16 million adults are diagnosed with some form of depression every year. And those are only the ones who seek help. According to one study by Harvard Medical School, only 1 in 5 depressed adults pursue treatment for depression. That means, in any given year, there could be as many as 80 million people in the U.S. who are experiencing some form of depression with 64...

In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is to Love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Following this commandment is the foundation of becoming a missionary disciple. Fr John Bartunek joins us looking at what it truly means to be in Christ and how you can equip yourself to love God and neighbor as a missionary discipl...

What is Christian conversion? What leads a soul to return to God, reject sin and accept God’s Divine Mercy? And is there a “second conversion” that happens after the original decision to repent? We’ll look at the phenomenon of Christian conversion with Fr. Donald Haggerty.

A clichéd view of the scriptures portrays the God of the New Testament as loving and forgiving, and the God of the Old Testament as jealous, petty and vengeful. But in the Old Testament we find the word “mercy” roughly 250 times, making it the fourth most-used noun in the Old Testament. God’s Mercy and justice are intimately woven into both testaments. We’ll take a look with Fr Daniel Moloney.

Last month theologians, bishops, priests and laity gathered in Budapest for the international Eucharistic congress. Among them was Mary Healy, who spoke on living a Eucharistic life. The experience of receiving communion at Mass should make us “living tabernacles” of God’s presence, bringing him into the world through our lives. Mary joins us.

October is celebrated as Down Syndrome Awareness month. In some European countries, nearly 100% of unborn children diagnosed with Down Syndrome are aborted and even in the US the rate is around 70%. We’re aware of the chromosomal causes of Down Syndrome thanks to the Venerable Jerome Lejeune, a French scientist who was strongly pro-life. He’s the subject of a new film by Dan Johnson, who sees hims...