The Best of the Week

What is the real difference between the violent movies of the past and the video games children encounter today? On The Patrick Madrid Show , Patrick Madrid began with an important distinction: Age matters. Patrick explained that he would not give the same advice to both an 11-year-old child and a mature adult. A child’s imagination and emotional life are still forming, and exposure to graph...

At the Pool of Bethesda, Jesus meets a man who has been waiting for healing and He does what no one else could do. He heals him: “Rise, take up your mat and walk.” On Father Simon Says , Father Richard Simon reflects on this miracle from Chapter 5 of John's Gospel, and shows that it's about more than physical healing. It is also about learning to see Scripture as it is, not as we imagi...

On The Inner Life , Patrick Conley welcomed Father Dave Heney to continue the Lenten series on the Seven Last Words of Jesus. This time, the focus was Christ’s poignant words from the Cross: “I thirst.” Father Dave drew a striking connection between Calvary and the Gospel story of the woman at the well. In both moments, Jesus asks for water. In both, He reveals something deeper t...

What happens when a wife avoids intimacy in marriage and doesn't know how to explain why? On Marriage Unhindered , Doug Hinderer and guest Nathan Bartell responded to this tough marital question. The caller, Mary, shared that she often pulls away from her husband and struggles to embrace intimacy with her husband in a healthy way. She also revealed something beautiful: before intimacy, she and her...

Sometimes the most beautiful moments on Family Rosary Across America are the simplest ones. Kim called in from Houston, Texas, with a heart full of gratitude. She thanked God for her husband James’ birthday, for their 30th wedding anniversary this past November, and for the gift of praying the Rosary each day with Relevant Radio. What began during a long drive home through Houston traffic ha...

Tim Glemkowski, host of the new Relevant Radio show  The Tim Glemkowski Show , knows what it is like to grow up Catholic and still feel distant from God. Raised in a faithful family, he admits he was the “black sheep,” more interested in football and trouble than holiness. But near the end of high school, everything changed when he had a powerful encounter with Jesus in the E...

Some lines in Scripture are repeated because God wants us to stop and listen. For Fr. Richard Simon, one of those lines is Psalm 118:22: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” On Father Simon Says , he reflects on how this verse echoes throughout the Bible, appearing again and again in the Gospels, Acts, and the letters of St. Peter. That repetition is no ac...

Fasting has always been part of the Christian life, especially during Lent. But on The Drew Mariani Show , Drew Mariani looked at this timeless practice from another angle: What if fasting is not only spiritually fruitful, but physically beneficial too? Drew pointed out that for most of human history, people did not eat constantly. Periods without food were a normal part of life. Today, however, m...

A thoughtful call on The Patrick Madrid Show turned into a moving reflection on one of Christianity’s deepest wounds: the division between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Lyal, a Greek Orthodox listener from San Diego, asked a simple but powerful question. She explained that Roman Catholics and Greek Orthodox celebrating Easter on different dates causes confusion, especially in...

As Lent unfolds, many Catholics give something up, but not every sacrifice leads to lasting change. On Morning Air , Father Robert Ryan offered a simple but striking reminder: “Fasting without prayer is just dieting.” Lent is not about surviving 40 days without chocolate or social media. It is about returning to the Lord with a whole heart. Father Ryan rooted that call in Scripture. Fr...

What happens when someone stops trying to carry everything alone and places it all in God’s hands? On The Inner Life , Bishop Donald Hying reflected on the power of surrender, and one caller’s testimony showed just how life-changing that surrender can be. Marissa called in from Springfield, Illinois, and shared that during Lent in 2025, she was struggling with alcohol and using it &ldq...

When a marriage is wounded, couples often look for practical solutions first. But on Marriage Unhindered , Doug Hinderer offered a deeper starting point: confession. Doug said one of the most powerful things a couple can do for healing is to “get into the confessional and make a good confession.” He shared how some couples, away from the sacrament for 20 or even 30 years, returned with...

On Family Rosary Across America , the week’s highlight began with a beautiful thanksgiving. Susan from Spartanburg, South Carolina, shared that just two days after asking for prayers to find a nursing home for her 91-year-old mother, an opening became available, despite being told it would not happen. It was the third time she had sent in a prayer request, and the third time she received an...

On Trending with Timmerie , Timmerie and Sarah Hernholm take on a question many women quietly carry: Can you really have it all, or do some choices close doors you hoped would stay open? Sarah’s story is honest and refreshing. She shares that she did desire marriage in her 20s and 30s, but she came to see that her dating choices did not always reflect that desire. Looking back, she admits sh...

There’s more going on in our tech habits than most of us want to admit. Timmerie warned that the biggest battle for platforms like TikTok and X isn’t just over marketshare. They're battling for influence. These systems aren’t neutral. They're fighting for your attention. They’re designed to keep you scrolling, keep you agitated, keep you hooked, and over time they can shape...

Drew Mariani opened a segment of  The Drew Mariani Show with a sobering image of chaos: cartel violence in Jalisco, Mexico—“a multi-headed snake” that keeps rearing its ugly head, resulting in buildings burnt down, cars engulfed in flame, and bullets flying through the streets. In the middle of that fear, one priest did something that stopped Drew in his tracks. Drew explain...

Omar from Ceres, California, called The Patrick Madrid Show with a concern many parents have. His 5-year-old daughter had watched a Disney movie featuring a “magician,” and he wasn’t sure to what extent he should let her indulge in movies that featured magic or spells. Patrick first helped Omar sort out an important distinction. Not all “magic” is the same. A stage pe...

Father Ryan Brady never expected an email reply from the new Holy Father. But after Pope Leo XIV was elected, Fr. Brady took “a shot in the dark” and wrote to him, simply to share his joy and his promise of prayers. To his surprise, the Pope responded kindly, personally, and generously, and even arranged a ticket for Fr. Brady to greet him after the general audience on Feb. 11. Fr. Bra...

Most of us have at some point walked away from a conversation thinking, Wait… did we just cross a line? On Morning Air , John Morales welcomed Father Michael Rennier to help us look at gossip through a Catholic lens this Lent, when the Lord invites us to purify not only our actions, but our speech. Father Rennier admitted he once excused gossip by hiding behind facts. “It took me a lo...

Some Christians point to Jesus’ words in Matthew 23 as a reason to avoid calling priests “Father.” "Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven." (Matthew 23:9) On Father Simon Says , Father Richard Simon explains why that reading misses the point. Father Simon starts with a practical question: if you took the phrase literally, “what are you going to...

Religious anxiety can hide in plain sight, and it often wears a familiar name: scrupulosity. In a conversation on Marriage Unhindered , Doug and Dr. Beth Plachetka describe how it can show up in ordinary devotions like the rosary. For example, a person might feel haunted by the fear that it didn’t “count” because it wasn’t done perfectly, so it has to be repeated again and...

Some praise reports don’t come with fireworks. They come with small, steady faithfulness. On Family Rosary Across America , Fr. Rocky and Maggie heard from Cynthia in Newburgh, New York, who shared how prayer has been changing her home. Her husband always went to church with her, but, as she put it, he “was not a big rosary person.” Then, when she began praying with Relevant Radi...

On Family Rosary Across America , Fr. Rocky greeted Macklin, a young listener. They quickly discovered a sweet connection: Fr. Rocky had met Macklin’s grandmother at the Walk to Mary in 2025, and the family hoped to see him again at this year’s pilgrimage. But the moment took a deeper turn when Fr. Rocky asked for Macklin’s prayer intention. Macklin explained it wasn’t real...

Nathan from Santa Margarita, California, called The Patrick Madrid Show with a very real family question. He and his wife have four little kids aged nine, six, three, and one, and like many parents, they sometimes find themselves outside the nave during Mass, doing their best to keep the peace. Before asking his question, Nathan shared a joyful gratitude: “You and your show are personally re...

NOTE: This article features some sensitive topics that may not be suitable for younger readers. Please use discretion. A listener named Diane called into Marriage Unhindered to share the kind of pain that takes your breath away. Nearly a year ago, on March 8, 2025, she lost her 28-year-old son unexpectedly. As she described the moment, her husband walked across the street to their son's home to le...