Kresta in the Afternoon

Were the Founding Fathers agnostic? Deist? Or something else? One thing we know is that their writings were heavily influenced by Scripture. Al looks at the religious lives of the founding fathers as we prepare to talk with Thomas Kidd.

A recent challenge facing our approach to public discourse has been a changing understanding to the meaning of Knowledge. What we can “know” has become limited to what we can scientifically verify. But that leaves a lot of gaps in our understanding of the world. Al discusses.

168 people were killed on April 19, 1995, when Timothy McVeigh blew up the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Anyone who knows the story knows McVeigh’s name, but few know the stories of his victims and their families – Bud Welch, who reached out to McVeigh’s father to find forgiveness and healing. Jeanne Bishop, who has seen her own family torn by violence, joins us with their story...

The question of the historicity of Jesus' resurrection has been repeatedly probed, investigated and debated. And the results have varied widely. Michael Licona joins us with his historiographical approach to the evidence for the Resurrection.

This weekend we will celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday. Al takes a look at this unique feast and its importance in such difficult times with a special focus on what John Paul II said about Divine Mercy.

Kresta Comments

Today would have been the 99th Birthday of Mother Angelica, who died on Easter Sunday, March 27, 2016. It was so fitting that she was called home on the same day the Apostles discovered the empty tomb. We look back on a conversation honoring her memory with Deacon Keith Fournier.

Mother Angelica's legacy lives on. Her years of illness made her a prime example of redemptive suffering and wrote extensively on the subject. We'll look at her teachings with Fr Joseph Mary Wolfe.

Unless there is a court intervention, Melissa Lucio will be executed on April 27. Prosecutors say she is responsible for the 2007 death of her 2-year-old daughter, who fell down a flight of stairs. During her time in jail, she has come to know Jesus and now has a deep relationship with him. We talk with her advisor, Fr. Harry Dean, about her story and his work in prison ministry.

On this day in 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered 12 students and a teacher at Columbine High School. In his journal, Harris wrote "My belief is that if I say something, it goes. I am the law, if you don't like it, you die." Al looks at his beliefs and how they led to such a tragedy.

At a recent conference, Italian Archbishop Bruno Forte claimed that in order to ensure Judaic-Christian relations are free of antisemitism, Christians should let go of the idea that Jews must accept faith in Christ as normative for salvation. This would have been news to the Apostles, who saw the Risen Christ and shared the news with their own Jewish communities. Peter Herbeck joins us.

We've been talking a lot about how the German bishops have been openly defying Church teaching on sexuality and marriage. Thankfully, many in the clergy are not keeping silent. Fr. Philip Bochanski recently sent an open letter to Cardinal Hollerich and Cardinal Marx, advising them of the confusion they are causing and reminding them of the vows all priests take at ordination. He joins us today.

Mega-billionaire Elon Musk made headlines on Thursday when he announced he would attempt to purchase Twitter, offering more than $54 per share for a total of nearly $43 billion. In response, Twitter announced a “poison pill” plan that would make Musk’s plan more expensive. What would happen if Musk were to succeed in purchasing the social media giant? Rachel Bovard joins us.

Today marks the anniversary of two dark moments in our history: the FBI raid on the Branch Davidian compound, and the subsequent bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Al shares some thoughts on what we can learn.

The Resurrection is the single greatest event in human history. Without it, Christianity loses all meaning. Even among skeptics and those who reject Christianity, there are elements of Jesus’ life and Resurrection that are beyond dispute. We’ll talk about it with Justin Bass.

As Catholics, we honor the dead in our Liturgy through the Rite of Christian burial because when Christ took on flesh for the salvation of our souls he also bestowed great dignity on our bodies. Our bodies have been made by a God who loves us. Even in death, those bodies point to the mystery of our salvation. As we celebrate the great mystery of the Resurrection, we talk with Scott Hahn.

On Holy Thursday we commemorate the first Mass, recognizing Jesus as our Great High Priest. But did Jesus intend for the priesthood to continue, or was it merely a feature of the Old Covenant? John Bergsma joins us with a look at the roots of the priesthood.

When Jesus died on the cross, nobody thought him a hero. His movement was over. Nothing had changed. This was what Rome did best. Caesar was still on his throne and death once again had the last word. Except in this case it didn't. Jesus' followers came up with the shocking claim that his death had launched a revolution. They believed that God had suddenly put into operation His plan for the rescu...

Christ’s Passion was much more than a tragic Roman execution. It was the fulfilment of ancient Jewish prophecies of a wedding, when the God of the universe would wed himself to humankind in an everlasting nuptial covenant. Christ becomes the Bridegroom to his Bride, the Church. We dive into Holy Week and Jewish Tradition with Brant Pitre.

Leadership problems from our bishops is not a new challenge for the Church – it can be traced all the way back to the writings of St Paul. And yet, the Church has prevailed. Why? Al discusses.

We all know the story of Christ’s Passion. But have we ever really stopped to think about the people and places that appear in the story? What did they look like? What is the significance of details we hear about the Agony in the Garden or the trial before Pilate? We take a virtual tour of Christ’s Passion with Steve Ray.

As Mel Gibson was filming the Passion, Fr John Bartunek had a special role: he was on-set to provide spiritual support and theological insights for the development of the film. He joins us today with his thoughts on the film and reflections on how we can grow closer to Christ this Holy Week

In 1997, a study found that a vast majority of Catholic catechetical materials in the United States were doctrinally deficient. It’s a symptom of what Pope Emeritus Benedict has called the “Catastrophic Collapse of Catechesis.” But there have been improvements. And today more than 70 bishops from all over the world released a letter directed at the German bishops, warning them of the harmful effec...

Christ’s triumphal entry in Jerusalem is much more than a matter of getting Jesus from Point A to Point B. It’s a prophetic event of deep theological significance that anticipates the coming of God’s kingdom. Fr. Thomas Weinandy explains how.

Why are some Christians skeptical of the “institutional” nature of the Church? If we read St Paul, we see the Graces he refers to are only available to those who are members of Christ’s body. As we approach Holy Thursday and the Institution of the Eucharist, Al discusses the absolute necessity of the Church.