Kresta in the Afternoon

Pope Francis has recognized a miracle attributed to the intercession of Blessed Carlo Acutis, paving the way for him to become the first millennial saint. Matthew Bunson joins us with more on this and other Church news.

This Sunday we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Trinity. We unpack what the Catechism says about this mystery with Peggy Stanton.

In 1965, the Church published the document Dei Verbum – the Dogmatic Constitution on Scripture. Marcus reflects on what it has to teach us.

Bland sameness afflicts much of life today. Wherever one turns these days, it is hard to miss some institution proclaiming its commitment to diversity. Businesses, the military, churches, and, especially, universities all claim to be diverse places. But behind these identical claims to difference there is a rush towards sameness, a rush that is particularly acute at the university level. Terrence Sweeney joins us with more.

How much worse off we would all be without physical pain! As counterintuitive as it sounds, pain is your friend. Pain is a mechanism to warn you that something is wrong. Twenty years ago, it was pain that made Robert Kloska go see a doctor – who was able to catch his growing cancer before it was too late. Robert shares more on why he is grateful for pain.

The Second Vatican Council, in its document Gaudium et Spes, teaches us that only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light, that Christ fully reveals man to himself. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit were first realized in Christ’s own humanity, and then shared with us. We talk more with Tyler Pellegrin.

The United Kingdom’s Department of Education intends to prohibit the promotion of gender ideology within public schools, set age-based guidelines for sex education, and protect parental rights, according to proposed guidance for schools. Tyler Arnold has the story.

There are seven sacraments administered in the Catholic Church. What are they, and what do they do? Why do human beings require sacramentalized, visible realities to seal their confession of faith in Jesus Christ? Why does the Catholic Church administer the sacraments in the way that it does? Fr. Romanus Cessario joins us to unpack the mysteries of the sacraments.

While Catholics regularly gather for liturgical celebrations and for devotions such as the Rosary and Stations of the Cross, we also pray in all sorts of settings and for many reasons where we aren’t quite sure what to say. Justin McClain joins us with prayers for all occasions.

Joseph Pearce has spent decades studying both the public and private lives of JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis. So he was surprised recently to discover an old letter by their friend that taught him something new about Tolkien. He joins us.