Kresta in the Afternoon

Jesus uses several examples in this weekend’s Gospel to illustrate the meaning of the Kingdom of Heaven, including the separation of the wheat and the weeds. We talk about its meaning with Peggy Stanton.

St. Paul testifies to the relationship between the Eucharist and the Church in his letter to the Corinthians: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.” We talk more about the Unity of the Eucharist with Owen Vyner.

Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, has unleashed the Catholic Church’s strongest form of diplomacy: the steadfast concern of a bishop for his people, even when his very life is at stake. He refuses to abandon his spiritual sons and daughters in Nicaragua, and he is in jail because of it. We talk more with Andrea Picciotti-Bayer.

One of the great distinctions between the modern and ancient worlds is the absence of sacrifice. Ritual sacrifices were a part of everyday life to the Romans and other ancient civilizations, but are almost nowhere to be found today. But we cannot forget the importance of sacrifice when it comes to the Eucharist. Tyler Graham joins us with more.

The anti-trafficking film Sound of Freedom continues to succeed, and came in second at the Box Office this weekend behind the new Mission: Impossible film. It brings attention to one of the supreme evils in our modern world, but does it get the issue right? Emily Belz has talked with several experts who work in anti-trafficking ministries; she shares their impressions.

Edmund Miller was recently reviewing the files of women in crisis pregnancies who have come to him and Alicia Wong, the Guadalupe Workers, for assistance. He noticed that almost all of them were struggling with homelessness or needed help with housing. As he and Alicia have met with these women, they have come to realize one thing – love, or lack thereof, is always at the Heart of the problem. They join us with more.

Today is the 700th anniversary of the canonization of St. Thomas Aquinas. As a prominent member of the Order of Preachers, one would think his own preaching would be fairly well-known, but many of his sermons have garnered little attention. What lessons do his sermons hold for us today? Randall Smith joins us.

Since the election of Pope Francis, there’s been a lot of discussion about what it means to be “pastoral.” Pope Francis gave us an insight into his own understanding of the word last year, when he advised us to look to St. Augustine’s treatise De Pastoribus. Terence Sweeney joins us to discuss what St. Augustine would have told us about being pastoral.

Today is the feast of the Blessed Carmelites of Compiègne, who were guillotined on this day in 1794, just a day after the feast of their patron. Their conduct in the face of death has become stuff of legend – Stephanie Mann has their story.

One year from today, we will be gathering with thousands of Catholics in Indianapolis for the National Eucharistic Congress. Tim Glemkowski helps us get ready as we discuss the meaning of the Eucharist in our lives.