Kresta in the Afternoon

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. For the Hebrew people, the temple was the center of the universe. God revealed Himself through the temple, the priesthood and the covenants. Steven Smith takes us on a deep dive through the Old and New Testaments, exploring the priesthood and God’s covenant with His people.

At first glance, Archbishop Fulton Sheen, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Rev. Jerry Falwell don’t seem to have much in common – but you might be surprised. They were dominant religious figures in different eras of the 20th century and used contemporary media to great effect as they tried to change how Americans understood the nature and purpose of their country and the relationship between religion and public life. We take a closer look with James Patterson.

You can’t have a kingdom of God without citizens. The whole process of discipleship is to render us fit to be disciples of that kingdom. Al takes a look.

A slogan over the doors to a Catholic school in Manhattan bear the words Venite Adoremus Dominum – “Come Let us Adore the Lord.” While this may seem like a slogan better placed in a Church, it in fact captures the very essence of Catholic education. As we celebrate Catholic Schools Week we talk with David Bonagura.

Paragraph 1131 of the Catechism defines the sacraments as efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us.” Finding a metaphor to illustrate this definition can be challenging. David Fagerberg joins us to help understand what the sacraments really are.

Over the last couple weeks, there have been two stories related to LGBT issues in America whose coverage in the press has been telling. One is Pope Francis’ comments to the AP about homosexuality, and the other is the decision by Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov to not participate in his team’s Pride Night. We’ll get some analysis from Terry Mattingly.

A new A.I. Chatbot program called ChatGPT is taking the internet by storm. Users claim it can pass graduate-level tests in business and law programs and some real estate agents say they can’t imagine working without it. What is ChatGPT? What are its possibilities and limits? We “chat” with Jason Thacker.

Last week we commemorated the 50th anniversary of Roe vs Wade. Along with the 1857 Dred Scott ruling, it’s often cited by legal scholars as one of the worst decisions in the history of the Court. What other cases would make the list? John Czarnetzky joins us.

Pro-life activist Mark Houck was found not guilty Monday on federal assault charges stemming from a shoving incident outside a Philadelphia abortion clinic. We’ll talk about the story with Monica Miller, who also invites you to a protest against pharmacies that will begin distributing the abortion pill.

Darrick Taylor is an adult convert to Catholicism who was not raised in a religious home. As a student of history, he was intrigued by Martin Luther’s quest to find the certainty of his own salvation. It was this study that eventually led Darrick to consider the Catholic Church. He shares his story with us.