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.

Further Reading

The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach

Guest Info

Michael Licona is associate professor of theology at Houston Baptist University and the author of The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach.

Did Jesus really die on the cross? If so, what became of his body? Is the resurrection a cleverly devised plot to found a new religion? Did the disciples of Jesus hallucinate? As Christians, we need to be ready to answer these questions. Dr David Anders joins us.

Further Reading

The Bedrock of Christianity: The Unalterable Facts of Jesus’ Death and Resurrection

Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead?

The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus

Guest Info

Dr. David Anders is a Catholic catechist, speaker, and writer living in Birmingham, Alabama. He also hosts the EWTN Radio Program Called to Communion.

If Christ had not been raised, then all our efforts in this life are pointless. It is the most important, earth-shattering event in human history. Marcus has more.

Why does God allow pain and suffering? Why did he allow his Son to suffer on the cross for us? We discuss pain, suffering and redemption with Dr. Stephen Doran.

Further Reading

Pain, Suffering, and Redemption: Where Faith and Reason Mingle

Guest Info

Stephen Doran, M.D., a board-certified neurosurgeon with over twenty-five years of experience, is an ordained permanent deacon and serves as the bioethicist for the Archdiocese of Omaha. His writings in bioethics, neurosurgery, and gene therapy for brain disorders have been widely published in national media outlets, academic journals, and neurosurgery textbooks. Along with his wife, Sharon, he is the co-founder of Seeking Truth Catholic Bible Study. He is the author of “To Die Well: A Catholic Neurosurgeon’s Guide to the End of Life” (Ignatius Press).

It’s late afternoon on Good Friday. Jesus’ task has been accomplished. Mary has wept at the foot of the cross, and now weeps as Jesus lies in the tomb – and we weep with her. But we also must not stop there. For beyond the cross of Good Friday is Christ’s Resurrection on Easter morning. Randall Smith joins us.

Further Reading

Good Friday, Death, and Christian Life

Guest Info

Dr. Randall B. Smith is Professor of Theology at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas, where he teaches courses on Moral Theology, History of Theology, Faith and Science, and Faith and Culture. His books include Reading the Sermons of Thomas Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide (Emmaus), Aquinas, Bonaventure, and the Scholastic Culture of Medieval Paris (Cambridge), and From Here to Eternity: Reflections on Death, Immortality, and the Resurrection of the Body (Emmaus), due out in October 2022. He is also co-author of Why Believe? Volume 2: Answers to Life's Questions (Augustine Institute). Prof. Smith is the author of numerous articles in academic journals, but he also publishes a regular bi-weekly column for "The Catholic Thing."

The Stabat Mater is a Marian hymn that portrays the suffering of the Blessed Mother during Jesus’ Crucifixion. It dates back to the 13th century, and in the 1950s French composer Francis Poulenc wrote his own musical setting of the piece. In this special commentary, Marcus plays the music with his own comments and reflections.

Although the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life,” many Catholics are unfamiliar with its rich Old Testament and Jewish background. We explore the Eucharist in its Jewish context with Andre Villeneuve.

Further Reading

The Eucharist in its Jewish Context

Guest Info

Dr. André Villeneuve is a Catholic theologian, biblical scholar, and Associate Professor of Old Testament and Biblical Languages at Sacred Heart Major Seminary

Tonight’s Holy Thursday Mass includes some special rituals not seen on an ordinary Sunday. We discuss them with Matthew Bunson.

St. John tells us that as Jesus initiated his Last Supper with his disciples, he was fully aware of what he was doing, fully aware of what this meal anticipated and made sacramentally present, fully aware of it was going to cost him. We talk more about how love was manifested at the Last Supper with Msgr. Michael Heintz.

Further Reading

Holy Thursday: When Love Enters a Cosmos Turned in on Itself

Guest Info

Msgr. Michael Heintz, PhD, a priest of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, is Academic Dean of Mount St. Mary’s Seminary and Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology.

Is there anything in the New Testament about the need for priests in the Church? Was the priesthood found in the Old Testament simply a feature of the Old Covenant, undone by Christ? That’s not what we believe as Catholics. John Bergsma joins us with more.

Further Reading

Jesus and the Old Testament Roots of the Priesthood

Guest Info

John Bergsma is professor of Theology at the Franciscan University of Steubenville and a Senior Fellow at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Twice voted Faculty of the Year by graduating classes at Franciscan University, he is a popular teacher whose love of scripture inspires his students. He earned Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees and served as a Protestant pastor for four years before converting to Catholicism in 2001 while working on his doctorate in theology at the University of Notre Dame. He specialized in Old Testament and the Dead Sea Scrolls, graduating with high honors in 2004. His articles, some coauthored with Scott Hahn, have appeared in the Journal of Biblical Literature and other academic and popular periodicals. A frequent speaker at conferences and parishes, Dr. Bergsma has appeared as a guest on Franciscan University Presents, EWTN’s The Journey Home, and Relevant Radio’s Drew Mariani Show. He and his wife Dawn live with their eight children in Steubenville, Ohio.