Kresta in the Afternoon

The Dead Sea Scrolls were first discovered in 1947 and are some of the most well-preserved ancient documents, and a new study at MIT examined how they were written and why they have been preserved for so long. What is written on these ancient texts? What does it reveal about the Jewish roots of Christianity? We talk with John Bergsma.

Scripture and history are full of stories of people who experienced radical transformations after encountering the power of Christ's healing love. And it's encounters like this that can help transform our broken and suffering world. Bob Schuchts joins us to look at how we can find spiritual, emotional and physical healing through the power of the Holy Spirit and the Sacraments.

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.

Without Genesis, the rest of the Bible is incomprehensible. It’s the foundation upon which the rest of our faith is built. But it can also be a difficult book to understand. Who wrote the book? Is the seven-day account of creation meant to be taken literally? Steve Ray joins us for a deep dive.

Ali Ghaffari’s story is an all-American one. His Muslim father named him Ali, which means “champion.” But he would grow to be a different sort of titleholder. Outcast. Scholar. Warrior. Teacher. Servant. And now, champion for Christ. He shares his story.

July 25 marks the 55th anniversary of the promulgation of Humane Vitae. The teachings that were scorned at the time have since proven to be prophetic, and Pope Paul VI understood that the quality of marital and parental love has social consequences. We talk more with John Grabowski.

The U.S. medical establishment has gone all in supporting gender ideology, including puberty-blocking drugs and surgeries for adolescents. But medical experts in the field have pushed back against the Endocrine Society’s embrace of “gender-affirming care” in the Wall Street Journal.

We’re continuing our celebration of the Eucharist as we approach the Eucharistic Revival next year, and Teresa Tomeo has another great opportunity for you. You can join her in Italy this fall for a journey that will be very Eucharistic, including a visit to the tomb of Carlo Acutis and Orvieto, where the Feast of Corpus Christi is based. Teresa joins us.

Earlier this month, Catholic bishops in India called for nationwide protests to highlight the persecution of Christians in the country. In its annual report earlier this year, the US State Department ranked India among the world’s worst violators of religious liberty. Chad Bauman joins us with more.

Pope Leo XIII died on this day in 1903. We look back on his legacy, including Rerum Novarum, with Matthew Bunson, who also discusses other Church news.

Jesus uses several examples in this weekend’s Gospel to illustrate the meaning of the Kingdom of Heaven, including the separation of the wheat and the weeds. We talk about its meaning with Peggy Stanton.

St. Paul testifies to the relationship between the Eucharist and the Church in his letter to the Corinthians: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.” We talk more about the Unity of...

Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, has unleashed the Catholic Church’s strongest form of diplomacy: the steadfast concern of a bishop for his people, even when his very life is at stake. He refuses to abandon his spiritual sons and daughters in Nicaragua, and he is in jail because of it. We talk more with Andrea Picciotti-Bayer.

One of the great distinctions between the modern and ancient worlds is the absence of sacrifice. Ritual sacrifices were a part of everyday life to the Romans and other ancient civilizations, but are almost nowhere to be found today. But we cannot forget the importance of sacrifice when it comes to the Eucharist. Tyler Graham joins us with more.

The anti-trafficking film Sound of Freedom continues to succeed, and came in second at the Box Office this weekend behind the new Mission: Impossible film. It brings attention to one of the supreme evils in our modern world, but does it get the issue right? Emily Belz has talked with several experts who work in anti-trafficking ministries; she shares their impressions.

Edmund Miller was recently reviewing the files of women in crisis pregnancies who have come to him and Alicia Wong, the Guadalupe Workers, for assistance. He noticed that almost all of them were struggling with homelessness or needed help with housing. As he and Alicia have met with these women, they have come to realize one thing – love, or lack thereof, is always at the Heart of the problem. The...

Today is the 700th anniversary of the canonization of St. Thomas Aquinas. As a prominent member of the Order of Preachers, one would think his own preaching would be fairly well-known, but many of his sermons have garnered little attention. What lessons do his sermons hold for us today? Randall Smith joins us.

Since the election of Pope Francis, there’s been a lot of discussion about what it means to be “pastoral.” Pope Francis gave us an insight into his own understanding of the word last year, when he advised us to look to St. Augustine’s treatise De Pastoribus. Terence Sweeney joins us to discuss what St. Augustine would have told us about being pastoral.

Today is the feast of the Blessed Carmelites of Compiègne, who were guillotined on this day in 1794, just a day after the feast of their patron. Their conduct in the face of death has become stuff of legend – Stephanie Mann has their story.

One year from today, we will be gathering with thousands of Catholics in Indianapolis for the National Eucharistic Congress. Tim Glemkowski helps us get ready as we discuss the meaning of the Eucharist in our lives.

Stephen Rasche has dedicated his life to documenting the lives of Christians living in some of the world’s most hostile places to Christianity. His newest project gives faces to the forgotten, faceless victims of persecution in Nigeria and Iraq. Steve joins us.

Earlier this week, Portuguese Bishop Américo Aguiar reportedly said that at World Youth Day, we “Don’t want to convert people to Christ.” He later clarified his statements, but it did get us thinking on the meaning and purpose of conversion and evangelization. We talk with Peter Herbeck.

Today the French are celebrating Bastille Day, which marks the start of a revolution very different from the American one. Remnants of the corruption of the revolution can still be found in Paris, but when Paul Kengor visited recently he sought something else – the Incorrupt St. Catherine Labouré. Paul has more.

Rene de Chateaubriand’s masterpiece The Genius of Christianity was first published in 1802 as a response to the anti-Catholic philosophies of the French Revolution. It’s a classic piece of work that is sadly not well-known today, but with its recent republication we look back on its influence. Jerry Salyer joins us.

Pope Francis has announced he will create 21 new cardinals at a consistory on September 30. We get to know them with Matthew Bunson, who also discusses other church news.