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PODCAST · religion

Kresta in the Afternoon

by Ave Maria Radio

For decades, Al Kresta captivated listeners with conversations of consequence on the Things That Matter Most. With the New York Times in one hand and the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the other, he helped us to Build the Church and Bless the Nation. Shortly after his death from cancer in June 2024, Ave Maria Radio retired the Kresta in the Afternoon program. The archives of the program are available here. We invite you to tune in daily to our new program, Ave Maria in the Afternoon, with Dr. Marcus Peter.Subscribe to the podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/33WgH5YWSQ7ZmLrevatjJY

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Episodes

  1. The Final Kresta in the Afternoon Segment - James Kresta (12 July, 2024)

    It’s come to this: the final segment of Kresta in the Afternoon. Al’s son James helps us say goodbye, and say hello to our new program.

  2. Direct to My Desk: Al’s Favorite Books (12 July, 2024)

    Al loved taking calls from listeners and one his most popular segments was our annual “Book Recommendation” open line. In these segments, we invite you to call in and share the best book you remember learning about on Kresta in the Afternoon.

  3. Kresta in the Afternoon’s Silent, most important Supporter - Sally Kresta (12 July, 2024)

    If you listened to Kresta in the Afternoon over the years, you know how devoted Al was to his wife, Sally. But you may not know how important she was to the program. Sally gives us a behind-the-scenes look.

  4. Catholic Radio and the power to Evangelize - Peter Herbeck (12 July, 2024)

    For decades, Al and Peter Herbeck worked together to spread the Gospel. Peter shares some memories and discusses how we can use Catholic radio for evangelization.

  5. Marcus Commentary: The Legacy of Kresta in the Afternoon (12 July, 2024)

    Today is the final episode of Kresta in the Afternoon. Marcus shares some thoughts on the legacy of the program, connecting it to George Washington’s farewell address.

  6. Jesus Sends Out the Apostles - Peggy Stanton(11 July 2024)

    In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus sends out the apostles two by two, instructing them to preach, heal the sick, and cast out unclean spirits. Peggy Stanton helps us prepare for the Sunday reading.

  7. Senate Republicans Block Democrat Bill for Abortions Up to Birth Nationwide - Monica Miller(11 July 2024)

    Senate Republicans have blocked legislation to push abortions up to birth nationwide. Monica Miller has the details.

  8. Marcus Commentary: How St. Benedict Saved Western Civilization (11 July 2024)

    Marcus talks about St Benedict of Nursia.

  9. Marcus Commentary: Is Pride month changing? (10 July, 2024)

    Last month a group called “Queers for Palestine” protested a local Pride Parade on the grounds that it was a symbol of oppression. Marcus discusses.

  10. What does the Bible say about Reconciliation - James Prothro(10 July 2024)

    One of Jesus’ most famous parables is the tale of the Prodigal Son, and its message of God’s repentance and forgiveness. This encounter with God’s mercy receives special expression in sacrament of Reconciliation, through which God’s wayward children are forgiven and restored by God’s grace to…

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  11. Republicans and Pro-Life Leaders Look to Find Common Ground - Peter Laffin(10 July 2024)

    For months, the Republican Party and pro-life leaders have been engaged in a public and often acrimonious tussle over abortion policy and how it would diverge from the GOP’s longtime pro-life party platform. Peter Laffin joins us.

  12. Voices of Faith from a Life in the Church - Francis Maier(10 July 2024)

    Over the past decade Rome has been marked with sharp, and often unwarranted, criticism of the Church in the United States and American Catholic life. But very few of the critics have taken the time to talk, systematically, with a wide range of U.S. Catholics to understand their concerns. Francis...

  13. Resounding Truth: A musician's apologetic journey to discover the fullness of the Catholic faith - Chris Bray (9 July, 2024)

    Through his career as a performer in the Christian music industry, Chris Bray’s interactions with non-Catholics helped to answer his doubts about the faith and gave him the apologetic knowledge to defend it. He joins us.

  14. Don't Miss the Good News Conference - John Hale (9 July, 2024)

    The Good News Conference is a conference for individuals, couples, and families who desire to grow closer to Christ through the Good News as preached by the world’s most dynamic evangelists John Hale tells us more about it.

  15. Making Moral Decisions at the End of Life - Bruce Green (9 July, 2024)

    St. Robert Bellarmine writes that a person may be “compelled, when unprepared, oppressed by disease, and scarcely possessed of reason, to give an account of those things on which when in health, he had perhaps never once reflected.” This is the foundation of Bruce Green’s new book: Now and at the...

  16. Marcus Commentary: What do we mean when we say Evil is real? (9 July, 2024)

    The Devil is Real. Evil is Real. Easy things to say, but what does it mean to believe it? Marcus discusses.

  17. The Mystery of the Shroud - Russ Breault (8 July, 2024)

    The Shroud of Turin is the world’s most analyzed artifact, yet it remains an unsolved mystery. Could it be the same cloth that wrapped Jesus in the tomb? Russ Breault joins us.

  18. Marcus Commentary: Problems with Atheism

    Marcus responds to intellectual problems posed by atheism.

  19. Institutional Diversity and Identity in Catholic Education - Terrence Sweeney (8 July, 2024)

    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...

  20. Thank God for Pain - Robert Kloska (8 July, 2024)

    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...

  21. Archbishop Vigano Excommunicated - Matthew Bunson (5 July, 2024)

    The Vatican has officially excommunicated Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, citing his “public statements manifesting his refusal to recognize and submit to the Supreme Pontiff, his rejection of communion with the members of the Church subject to him, and of the legitimacy and magisterial authority…

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  22. Desiring to Desire God - David Fagerberg (5 July, 2024)

    Have you ever found yourself struggling to pray? Or even with wanting to pray? This “wanting to want to pray” is the first touch by God, because even desiring to desire can be an expression of love. David Fagerberg joins us with more.

  23. Marcus Commentary: God Sees your Suffering

    Christians throughout the ages have engaged the problem of Suffering. Why would a loving God allow us to suffer? Marcus examines the issue through the writings of CS Lewis.

  24. Marcus Commentary: The Roots of our Republic (4 July, 2024)

    Marcus reflects on the things that make our nation the blessing that it is.

  25. Religious Liberty and the American Founding - Dr Vincent Phillip Munoz (4 July, 2024)

    Does the First Amendment guarantee us the right to be free from religion in the public square? Does it guarantee religious individuals and institutions the right to be exempt from otherwise valid laws that burden their religious beliefs and practices? Dr. Vincent Phillip Munoz is our guest.

  26. 1619, 1776 and the United States of America - Paul Kengor (4 July, 2024)

    There’s no arguing it: The United States of America, as our founders conceived it, started in 1776. Paul Kengor joins us.

  27. The changing fortunes of Catholic “Founding Father” - Kevin Schmiesing (4 July, 2024)

    As Catholic Americans prepare to mark Independence Day, we naturally look not only to the well-known “founding fathers” such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington but also to our Catholic forbears, including Junipero Serra. We examine his life with Kevin Schmiesing.

  28. Catholic Philosophy: Rejoicing in the Truth - Richard Spinello (3 July, 2024)

    Philosophy is the reflective attempt to illuminate our human experience and integrate it into a unified vision of reality. Catholic philosophy comes in many forms and schools of thought, but it cannot deconstruct the ultimate truths of the faith. We explore the thoughts of four Catholic...

  29. Early Ratzinger on Tradition and Faith

    At the Synod on Synodality last year, Australian theologian Fr Ormond Rush spoke on Joseph Ratzinger’s theology of revelation and faith, in light of his commentary on Dei Verbum. Eduardo Echeverria helps us understand it.

  30. Some Lessons from the Great Pagans - Robert Royal (3 July, 2024)

    There’s been a recent resurgence of interest in ancient Stoicism, because it provides some of the Christian benefits without – so people think – the Christian dogmas. The Stoics, in fact, had their own fundamental dogmas, starting with the benevolence of the Divine Nature. Do many modern Stoics...

  31. Putting Virtue back into Education - Kyle Washut (2 July, 2024)

    Why are American colleges and universities failing to instruct their students in virtue, and what can be done about this issue? Kyle Washut joins us.

  32. The New Catholic Integralism: True or False? - Kevin Vallier (2 July, 2024)

    The idea of Integralism holds that the Catholic Church should have indirect authority over Christian states. We examine what it means with Kevin Vallier.

  33. Navigating the Rising Tide of Political Polarization

    The utopian vision of the left has inspired a shift toward various forms of reactionaryism on the right, not just in America, but across the globe. How does the faithful freedom-lover stay sane and move our conversations forward? Dr. Rachel Ferguson is our guest.

  34. Silent Suffering: Poems of Pain and Purpose - Leslie Corbly (2 July, 2024)

    Each epoch of history brings stories of pain, triumph, oppression, freedom, purpose, suffering, grief, and joy. Leslie Corbly joins us to explore the depths of the human experience through an exploration of the present moment, a time in which postmodern, progressive ideas reign as the societal...

  35. Conscience: What it is and Why we need it - David Deavel (2 July, 2024)

    “Conscience” and “conscience rights” are not terms used as much as they used to be. Yet a notion of conscience is essential to understanding why freedom is necessary and to what it is directed. We talk more with David Deavel.

  36. Catholic Social Teaching and the “Economy of Francis” - Philip Booth (2 July, 2024)

    Pope Francis has made a number of statements on economic matters that have led critics to describe him as "left wing" or even "Marxist". The reality is different. Philip Booth examines Pope Francis’ Catholic social teaching.

  37. Anti-Human Ideologies - Jay Richards (1 July, 2024)

    Three ascendant ideologies distort the truth about human nature, and in the process, become deeply anti-human. All result from failing to capture the fully material and fully spiritual nature of man. Transgenderism and Transhumanism abandon the body. Deep ecology reduces man to a (merely material...

  38. Liberty, Catholics and the American Republic - James Patterson (1 July, 2024)

    American Catholics traditionally do not advocate for authoritarian or "integralist" approaches to politics. Rather, they have advocated for a Catholic interpretation of American constitutional republicanism. The two most important twentieth-century figures in conceptualizing this interpretation...

  39. Classical Education in Uganda - Fr. Joseph Lugalambi (1 July, 2024)

    Our Lady of the Rosary School is a Classical School located in Uganda. Fr. Joseph Lugalambi tells us more about how he is bringing education to one of the poorest parts of the world.

  40. The Christian Vision of a Free Government - Hunter Baker (1 July, 2024)

    Government is fitting to human nature. But political government is subsidiary to the self-government that humans perform within natural communities and associations. God made us to govern ourselves and some part of the world for a common good. We explore what this means with Dr. Hunter Baker.

  41. Christianity and the Enlightenment - Dr Jay Bruce (1 July, 2024)

    Some Christians may hold their noses at the thought of Enlightenment philosophy, believing it to be an exclusively anti-Christian movement. But what we call the Enlightenment included recognizably Christian thinkers in addition to non-Christian ones. We talk more about it with Jay Bruce.

  42. Profiles in Courage: Exceptional Christian Entrepreneurs

    Rev. Charlie Self shares the stories of global entrepreneurs in the 19th-21st centuries that found economic and social success rooted in virtue in the most challenging historical circumstances.

  43. A Catholic View of the first Presidential Debate - Marcus Peter and Bryant Schoenle (28 June, 2024)

    There was a recurring theme we noticed in Thursday night's debate - Donald Trump and Joe Biden frequently failed to address the question they had been asked. Marcus and his producer Bryant Schoenle walk back through debate as Marcus provides Catholic-based responses to the moderator's questions.

  44. The Political Thought of Joseph Ratzinger - Fr. Eamon O'Higgins (28 June, 2024)

    Fr. Eamon O'Higgins gives us a detailed view of Joseph Ratzinger's vision of the role of politics in human society, the purposes and limits of political authority, current inadequacies and defects in political practice, and principles of the renewal of politics.

  45. Understanding the Free Market - Eileen Norcross (28 June, 2024)

    We continue our broadcast from Acton University, explaining the idea of free markets with Eileen Norcross.

  46. Natural Law and Human Flourishing - Sam Gregg(27 June 2024)

    What is Natural law? Why does it matter? What does it mean for a free and virtuous society? Sam Gregg joins us.

  47. Work and the Meaning of Life - David Bahnsen(27 June 2024)

    The faith and work movement requires a theological frameworkthat transcends pietistic impulses and rejects dualism. We talk about itwith David Bahnsen.

  48. Transplanting the Womb: A Catholic Bioethical Analysis - Andrew Kubick(27 June 2024)

    Emergent technologies, especially in the realm of medicine, require new ethical examinations to determine their moral implications. Too often, the march of technological progress well outpaces these examinations, leaving doctors, researchers, and the general public without proper guidance…

    more

  49. How do Debates About the Human Person Shape Educational Policy? - Margaret Clayton(27 June 2024)

    Many American schools and universities have lost their sense of purpose and consequently fail to transmit meaning to the next generation or form responsible citizens. The crisis of American education has led to a reduction of knowledge and a crisis of anxiety and despair plaguing so many young...

  50. Two Years since Dobbs, where do we stand? - Michael Kenney(26 June 2024)

    It’s been two years since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade. Where does the Pro-Life movement stand today? Michael Kenney joins us as we continue from Acton University.

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ABOUT THIS SHOW

For decades, Al Kresta captivated listeners with conversations of consequence on the Things That Matter Most. With the New York Times in one hand and the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the other, he helped us to Build the Church and Bless the Nation. Shortly after his death from cancer in June 2024, Ave Maria Radio retired the Kresta in the Afternoon program. The archives of the program are available here. We invite you to tune in daily to our new program, Ave Maria in the Afternoon, with Dr. Marcus Peter.Subscribe to the podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/33WgH5YWSQ7ZmLrevatjJY

HOSTED BY

Ave Maria Radio

CATEGORIES

religion spirituality

Frequently Asked Questions

How many episodes does Kresta in the Afternoon have?

Kresta in the Afternoon currently has 1000 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.

What is Kresta in the Afternoon about?

For decades, Al Kresta captivated listeners with conversations of consequence on the Things That Matter Most. With the New York Times in one hand and the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the other, he helped us to Build the Church and Bless the Nation. Shortly after his death from cancer in June...

How often does Kresta in the Afternoon release new episodes?

Kresta in the Afternoon releases new episodes frequently with a large back catalog of 1000 episodes. Check the episode list for recent publication dates.

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You can listen to Kresta in the Afternoon on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.

Who hosts Kresta in the Afternoon?

Kresta in the Afternoon is created and hosted by Ave Maria Radio.
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