Bonus Points

Do you know what animal is mentioned most in the Bible? Or where to start reading your Bible in the first place? This installment of Question & Astle includes a little bit of everything, from the existence of the multiverse to the end of the world.

On this episode, we discuss:

A note from Mr. Astle: I haven't been making episodes consistently for the last few weeks - sorry! The end of our grading period (always a busy time) coincided with oral surgery that kept me from speaking for a few days. Now that things are settling down (and mouths are healing) we should be back to normal.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Thanks to Nativity sets and Christmas cards, you probably have a pretty clear mental image of Christ's birth. Amid the shepherds and animals, we often imagine three lavishly-dressed travelers bearing gifts. Each January, the Catholic Church celebrates the arrival of the Magi, but how much do you really know about these wise guys? In this episode of Bonus Points, we're talking about the Magi: who they were, where they came from, and what prompted them to traverse afar.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Every year around Christmas time, we hear claims that Jesus was not actually born on December 25th. Headlines, articles, and youtube videos tell us that the date was chosen to coincide with a Roman pagan holiday, like Saturnalia or Sol Invictus. What should we make of these claims? Does the Bible tell us when Jesus was born? If not, where does the December 25th date come from? On this episode of Bonus Points, we're putting out into the deep waters of biblical chronology to answer those questions and more.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

The Advent season is more than just pre-Christmas, or even the first season of the Catholic liturgical calendar. Rather, it is an opportunity to focus on what St. Bernard of Clairvaux called the "three comings of Christ". During Advent, we commemorate the First Coming (the Nativity), we prepare for the Second Coming at the end of time, and we open our hearts for Christ's coming here and now through grace. On this episode of Bonus Points, I'm joined by author and speaker Mike Pacer so that we can talk about living Advent well.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Catholics are known for good fish fries and loving Mary a whole lot. In this episode, we're talking about the latter. While more can always be said about Marian devotion, this week on Bonus Points, we're talking about what it means to call Mary a Queen, a Mother, and the Model of discipleship. I'll also give a little bit of my own experience with devotion to Mary, and how we can all be more like Our Lady.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

The Rosary is a powerful spiritual sword, wielded by the Church since it was given to St. Dominic by Our Lady in 1208. It has been recommended by saints, popes, and millions of ordinary Catholics, but is often misunderstood. In this episode of Bonus Points, we'll talk about the history of the Rosary, why I personally came to love this devotion, and how to pray it well.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Many people mistakenly think that the saints are boring. They imagine the saints as a uniformly dull group of "nice" people. In reality, the saints represent the vibrancy and diversity of humanity itself. A stunning example of this is St. Olga of Kiev. She may have brought Christianity to the Kievan Rus, but nobody would have ever called her "nice." Find out more about this warrior woman of a saint on today's episode of Bonus Points.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Anna Camacho knew that she wanted to work with her hands, but had no idea where to go from there. She asked St. Joseph, the patron of workers, to intercede for her, and CORDA Candles was born. Today, Anna creates handcrafted candles with scents inspired by saints and the faith. In today's guest speaker episode of Bonus Points, we talk about devotion to Saint Joseph, starting a candle company, and trusting God's plan for our lives.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Many Christians are hesitant to celebrate Halloween because of its supposedly pagan origins. But in reality, Halloween is a Catholic holiday! In this episode of Bonus Points, we'll talk about Halloween's origin as "All Hallow's Eve," the vigil of All Saints' Day. We'll also talk about how Halloween came to be associated with death and all things spooky, where various Halloween traditions come from, and how to celebrate an authentically Catholic Halloween.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com

Since its release in 1999, The Matrix has become an icon of the science fiction genre. It brought talking about "the Matrix" into the common vocabulary, and raised questions about society, technology, and the nature of reality itself. The movie is dense with Catholic themes, and we try to unpack some of them in this week's episode of Bonus Points.

Website: https://www.BonusPointsPodcast.com