Kresta in the Afternoon

Five cardinals have sent a set of questions to Pope Francis to express their concerns and seek clarification on points of doctrine and discipline ahead of this week’s opening of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican. Matthew Bunson has the details on this rather complicated story.

Pope Benedict will be remembered as one of the great pontiffs of the modern era. Dr. Richard DeClue joins us to remember his influence.

It’s a sad fact that the 21st century is full of hotspots of religious persecution. This is not something we can ignore or pass over with pious platitudes. Defending the persecuted and promoting religious freedom isn’t a political project; there’s nothing optional about respecting an inviolable right of the human person and the common good of society. Andrea Picciotti-Bayer joins us to discuss it...

This Sundays’ Gospel features another parable – the man who asked his two sons to go work in his vineyard and received two very different responses. Peggy Stanton joins us with her insights.

As the universal Church prepares for the first portion of a two-part Synod on Synodality, significant attention has been paid to new kinds of participants in a Synod of Bishops, particularly the inclusion of a sizable contingent of non-bishops among the voting members. Shannon Mullen joins us to discuss more on the Synod and other Church news.

Raised in a loving home, Claire Culwell always knew she had been adopted and when she reached adulthood she decided to meet her birth mother. And that’s when she got the shock of her life. Claire learned that she was a survivor of a botched abortion. Not only that, she had an unborn twin whose life was terminated that day. And the story doesn’t end there. She joins us.

George Orwell once observed that “At any given moment there is an orthodoxy, a body of ideas of which it is assumed that all right-thinking people will accept without question.” What does this “orthodoxy” look like today? What so-called truths are we all supposed to accept? Al discusses.

Colonial Catholics were viewed with great suspicion. Many thinkers of the time doubted Catholics’ ability to separate country from pope, and thus declared them to be “dangerous until proven loyal.” Yet Catholics went on to sign the Declaration of Independence and helped draft the First Amendment. We talk with Michael Breidenbach about how those colonial Catholics transformed the idea of liberty.

JRR Tolkien fans observe September 22 as “Hobbit Day,” the day that Bilbo and Frodo Baggins celebrate their birthdays. Tolkien was a devout Catholic, and his theology is expressed throughout the world of Middle-Earth. We talk more about it with Austin Freeman.

Shortly after the turn of the century, a new style of Atheism started to gain popularity. Dubbed the “New Atheism” and championed by figures like Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris, this position asserted that religion was actually harmful to society and was not to be merely tolerated – it should be eradicated. But this New Atheism cannot answer the basic questions about why we are here. We talk more...

In their years of sidewalk counseling, Alicia Wong and Edmund Miller have met many women who have chosen life, and many who have not. The situation often seems hopeless, but they keep going back. They join us to discuss their work and an upcoming event that Al will be speaking at.

Everywhere you look, the culture is twisting truth into lies and lies into truth. How did we get to this bizarre point in history? More importantly, how can we fight the tide of insanity and win reality back? Gary Michuta joins us.

The Vatican announced yesterday that two bishops from mainland China have been added as official delegates for the Synod on Synodality. Matthew Bunson joins us with the details of this story and a variety of other Church news.

The Heart of Christ Clinic, based in Detroit, is following in the footsteps of Christ by serving, healing and empowering the most vulnerable members of the community. Mike O’Dea joins us to discuss their work and an upcoming gala.

Between September 15 and October 1 of this year, the Jewish people celebrate three “High Holidays” – Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot – the Feast of Tabernacles. Like the Spring High Holidays, these feasts foretell the coming of Messiah. We talk more about it with Andre Villeneuve.

We are approaching the beginning of the Synod on Synodality. Al reviews some comments Pope Francis has made about synodality over the years and his vision for the coming meetings.

Al continues our celebration of St. Matthew by discussion what we know about the tax collector who became a disciple of Jesus.

In his Gospel, Matthew references the Old Testament more than 100 times. How did he read the Hebrew Scriptures and how did they influence his Gospel? Dr. Ed Sri joins us.

Last week a federal appeals court ruled that a Catholic healthcare group in Michigan is allowed to display the Stations of the Cross and other religious emblems on its property, despite efforts from the local township to block the project. Robert Muise, who defended the group in court, is here to explain what happened and also weighs in on the Hose Judiciary hearings on anti-Catholic bias in the D...

In this Sunday’s Gospel Jesus tells us the story of a landowner who hired several laborers throughout the day to work in his fields. At the end of the day, the laborers who had worked the entire day were outraged to learn they had received the same wages as those who were hired later. What is Jesus trying to teach us? Peggy Stanton joins us.

Ethnic Armenians have agreed to lay down their arms and dissolve their military forces following a short but intense Azerbaijan offensive. Mark Movsesian returns with the latest.

Today is the Feast of St. Matthew. He begins his Gospel with an in-depth review of Jesus’ entire genealogy beginning with Abraham. It’s not the most exciting passage in Scripture, and many of us probably skim over it when we read Matthew’s Gospel. But to the people of first-century Palestine, the details of this passage were tremendously important. Al discusses.

A letter discovered in the Vatican archives suggests that Pope Pius XII was informed about the Holocaust as early as 1942. The letter game from a German Jesuit who was active in the Resistance movement and was made public last week with the encouragement of Holy See officials. What did Pius know, when did he know it, and how did he respond? Ron Rychlak joins us.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew Kim and more than 100 other Korean martyrs who gave their lives for the sake of the Gospel. Evangelization is a key part of our walk with Christ. St. Paul Street Evangelization invites you to their fall Gala on October 7th, the Feast of the Holy Rosary. We talk more with Lea Wojciechowski-Ross.

On September 14, 1998, Pope St. John Paul II issued his encyclical Fides et ratio, which addressed the crucial relationship between Faith and Reason. He describes Faith and Reason as “Two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of Truth.” We take a closer look with Dr. Michael Dauphinais.