Kresta in the Afternoon

Jailed Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Álvarez is willing to leave Nicaragua and is in rapidly declining health. Matthew Bunson joins us with this and other Church news.

This Sunday’s Gospel takes us to the beginning of the Gospel of Mark. John the Baptist appears in the desert, preparing the way of the Lord and calling on all to repent. Peggy Stanton joins us to discuss more.

It may surprise you to learn that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, one of the most iconic American novels, was actually published in England and Canada before it was available in the US. December 10, 1884 was the day – it wouldn’t hit American stores until February of 1885. Twain begins his novel with a warning: “Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be persecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.” Nevertheless, we try to do that today – looking at Huck Finn’s world with Catholic eyes. LuElla D’Amico joins us.

We have more evidence now than ever before for God, a soul, and life after death. So why do scores of people continue to reject the idea of God because of science? Fr. Robert Spitzer says the answer is simple – they don’t know the science. He joins us with more.

We spoke recently about the election of Javier Milei, a frequent critic of Pope Francis, as President of Argentina. Less than a century ago, Argentina had one of the highest GDPs per capita in the world and Buenos Aires was dubbed the “Paris of South America.” Today, it’s in economic turmoil and is facing triple-digit inflation. Milei was elected on the promise to turn things around and has proposed such radical things as adopting the US dollar as official currency. Robert Whaples gives us his analysis.

Henry Kissinger, who died Wednesday at the age of 100, had many admirers and detractors, but anyone who has studied him would acknowledge his influence on the last century of American foreign policy. In the early years of the Cold War he advocated a policy of détente, accommodating to the Soviet Union. This was later rejected by Ronald Reagan, a strategy that John Paul II supported. But was it the right policy for the right time? Paul Kengor joins us.

On this day in 1791, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died at the age of 35. Considered one of the greatest Western composers, he was a favorite of Pope Benedict XVI. Benedict even contributed to a collection of testimonies about Mozart, sharing his memories of attending a Mozart Mass as a young boy. Al shares the story and discusses why Mozart’s influence remains so strong to this day.

Jesus wants to speak to you—365 days a year. Each day, he meets you right where you are. Through Jesus, you are reminded that God is good, that he provides for you, and that he longs to speak to the deepest desires of your heart. Lucy Scholand joins us with thoughts on how we can meet Jesus every day.

Most of us are familiar with the life story of St. Paul. But what about the men and women who surrounded him, learned from him, and grew to assist in his ministry? We get to know some of them with Al.

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.