Kresta in the Afternoon

Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine is more than just a geo-political conflict. The Russian leader believes in the spiritual destiny of a united 'Holy Rus' that goes back to the conversion of Vladimir the Great in 984. Al discusses.

When Sister Deirdre “Dede” Byrne picked up the phone in December 2021, a young man on the other end of the line told her something disturbing — and difficult to believe. “My mother is a doctor. You worked with her more than a decade ago in Afghanistan, at a U.S. camp near Pakistan. And now her life is in grave danger.” Al tells the story

Over the course of a single decade, dozens of students and professors from Southern Evangelical Seminary in North Carolina converted to Catholicism. They came from varied backgrounds and motivations but all came to the same conclusion. What led them to walk away from their education, risking jobs, ministries, and even family and friends? We'll hear their stories from Douglas Beaumont.

Cardinal Clemens August von Galen was the Bishop of Munster, Germany from 1933 to 1946. Known as the "Lion of Munster," he once said that God had placed him in a position where he had a duty to call black, ‘black’ and white, ‘white’. His efforts lead a Gestapo leader to call for his public hanging. Fr. Daniel Utrecht joins us with a definitive look at the man who roared against the Nazis.

Al looks at some stories of Ukrainian Christians and what they can teach us in these turbulent times.

From the Mayans to Martin Luther to doomsday preachers on cable TV, there's a long list of people who have predicated the end of the world - and gotten it wrong. But in the Gospel of Matthew Jesus seems to imply that the end of the world would come within a generation, and it obviously didn't. Was the early Church fooled into expecting the Second Coming in the first century? What did Jesus really...

Thomas Aquinas died on this day in 1274, though we no longer celebrate his Feast Day today. We get a brief introduction to his life and thought with John O’Callaghan.

Poland has had a special place in the history of the last 100 years, from turning back Russian communists at the Miracle on the Vistula in 1920 onward through World War II and the Cold War. The time also gave us some incredible saints, including Faustina – who has a special warning that applies to us today. We’ll talk about it with Paul Kengor.

Next month the Supreme Court is expected to hear the case of Joseph Kennedy, a high-school football coach who lost his job after he refused to stop praying on the field after games. We look at the case with Andrea Picciotti-Bayer.

In this Sunday’s Gospel we heard the story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert. We dive into the story with Carl Olson.

St. John Paul II’s historic diocese in Poland is at the forefront of humanitarian aid for the countless women and children in search of a safe place to stay. We look at this story and the latest in Ukraine with Iwo Bender.

The chairman of the German Catholic bishops’ conference has called for changes to Church teaching on sex outside of marriage and homosexuality. We continue our look at this story with Martin Rothweiler.

We’ve looked before at the “world’s debt to the Catholic Church,” the ways in which Catholicism changed culture for the better and helped advance human flourishing. Jim Papandrea gives us a look at different “revolutions,” started by Christians, that helped save civilization

The former Bishop of Oran, Argentina, has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for the sexual abuse of two former seminarians and a leading bishop in Germany has called for changes to Church teaching on sexuality. But not all is lost. Matthew Bunson explains why, looking at a variety of Church news

When we think of Japan's history, the image of the samurai warriors typically comes to mind. But did you know some of the samurai were Catholic? And one of them, Paulo Uchibori, was tortured and martyred because he refused to renounce his faith. Both he and his sons were killed during the Lenten season. Luke O'Hara tells their story.

Nonie Darwish was raised a devout Muslim in Egypt, but it wasn’t until she immigrated to the US that she realized how completely the Koran had formed her life. Simple things we take for granted - polite apologies, respect for women, encouragement for children - were completely new to her. She flourished in Western society and discovered peace, freedom and human dignity in an entirely new way. Noni...

If you've watched mainstream news over the last week, you've seen coverage of the Russia invasion and very little else - which makes sense. But yet again the press is overlooking a major part of the story - the role religion plays. Dan Philpott joins us with a look at several religious angles to this story and why they matter.

Many of us fail to recognize that obtaining the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential to getting to heaven. We often block their reception through our own faults. We fail to see how they are passed on or strengthened in the sacraments. And, sadly, we forget to petition God in prayer to bestow these gifts upon us. Dr. Kevin Vost joins us with an introduction to the seven gifts and...

In today’s Gospel, Christ tells us to anoint our head and wash our face when fasting, so that only the Father knows what we are doing. Does this contradict the act of putting ashes on our head? Al discusses this and much more in a special Ash Wednesday commentary.

Archbishop Gudziak has returned from Europe and today celebrated an Ash Wednesday Mass with Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington. He joins us with his thoughts on the latest developments in Ukraine.

“There will be a war. Russia will become a godless country. The Ukraine, as a nation, will suffer terribly for eighty years, will have to live through the world wars, but it will be free afterwards.” These were the words heard by twenty-two Ukrainian farmers in the village of Hrushiv in 1914 when they saw the Blessed Mother appear near the Church of the Holy Trinity. We dive into the story with Pe...

President Biden delivered his first State of the Union address last night. He called once again for Unity, but one element of his speech stands in the way of that unity. Al explains.

The Church’s primary formation documents promote a strong, healthy relationship between the spiritual and psychological dimensions of our identities as Christians. We talk with Br. John Mark Falkenhain about this connection and how to address spiritual and mental health challenges.

"How can someone as smart as you believe in something like that?" Most scientists today who are public about their faith in Christ have faced a question along those lines. Ian Hutchinson still remembers when a fellow MIT professors asked him many years ago. The answer is crucial, and it isn't restricted to just scientists. He joins us with more.

The Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the most beautifully-written and theologically-dense books of the New Testament. It shows how the Old Covenant finds its fulfillment in Christ and calls upon its readers to maintain their faith despite persecution. This single epistle contains the basis for several core Catholic beliefs. We'll take a look with Shane Kapler.