Kresta in the Afternoon

A new university was recently launched in Texas, hoping to provide students with an alternative to the censorship that has become commonplace on mainstream universities. A reporter asked representatives from Ave Maria University to weigh in on the story, since they also work for a relatively young institution. The discussion leads us to an important distinction – how does a secular pursuit of truth differ from one that knows the Fount of all truth? We talk with Roger Nutt.

As America moves away from Christianity, it increases its focus on new social and political religions. Archbishop José Gomez reflected on this in a recent talk, and Al weighs in.

From the radical feminism of the 60s to the 2015 Obergefell v Hodges and now the transgender movement, society has become obsessed with Identity. We tend to think of the Sexual revolution as a root cause of these issues, but what if it was actually a symptom of something else? We look at the human search for identity with Carl Trueman.

After the Jacob Blake shooting last summer, we spoke with his mother’s pastor, James Ward, who is becoming an important voice for greater racial justice and healing. As he has pointed out, we have a “sin problem, not a skin problem,” that stops us from achieving peace. He joins us again to discuss his work and what it means to have a “zero victim” mentality.

In the first four chapters of the Book of Revelation, John speaks of four churches and the challenges they were facing. What parallels can we draw between these chapters and the current crises in our Church? Peter Herbeck joins us.

How did we get to a point where Catholics had to “choose” between being concerned over social justice issues and concerned over the Right to Life? Al discusses.

China’s president Xi Jinping wants to dominate his country’s future – and he’s doing it by putting a spin on its past. Last week the Communist Part adopted a resolution that elevates Xi to a position previously only held by national heroes Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping. Xi has and will continue to heap praise on Mao and his legacy – a legacy that is stained with the blood of millions. Who was the real Mao? We talk with Vejas Liulevicius.

It is estimated that 1 in 4 people will experience the unbelievable pain of losing a child. But only about 5% will receive the appropriate counseling. Ryan and Kelly Breaux experienced this in 2005; their son Talon died 15 days after birth, and his twin sister Emma Grace joined him in heaven three years later. This journey led Kelly and Ryan to found Red Bird Ministries, which has just been named a winner of the OSV Challenge. Kelly joins us to share their work.

It is well-documented that the prevalence of homosexuality among Catholic priests is higher than the general population. Figures, however, have varied widely and recent statistics show they may be on the decline. Mark Regnerus joins us with more.

As the USCCB continues to meet in Baltimore, it must vote on who will replace Msgr. Jeffrey Burrill as General Secretary. Burrill resigned in disgrace last summer after a Pillar investigation found he was using the gay hookup app Grindr. Matthew Bunson reports from Baltimore.