You Are Here

Who is Jesus—and why does it matter?After asking who God is in the Trinity, we now ask a question that sits at the very center of our faith:In this episode of You Are Here, we step into the heart of Christology—the study of Christ—and why getting Jesus right is not just theological… it’s essential.Because our understanding of Jesus shapes our understanding of salvation.The early Church wrestled deeply with this:How can Jesus be both fully God and fully human?Why does the incarnation matter?And what they discovered still shapes us today:-Jesus did not become less God to become human.-He became fully human without ceasing to be fully God.“He emptied Himself… not by subtracting—but by adding.”From forgiving sins, to touching the unclean, to calming storms—Jesus doesn’t just represent God.He reveals Him.This is the mystery and beauty of the Gospel:The Creator became the created—so that human life might be restored, redeemed, and made whole.This isn’t abstract theology.This is God coming near.

We live in a world that tells us:👉 define yourself👉 create your own meaning👉 figure it out on your ownBut what if that’s exactly why we feel so anxious, overwhelmed, and alone?In this final episode of our Trinity series, we explore how the reality of the Trinity directly challenges the pressures of a secular age.Because the Christian story offers something radically different:You don’t have to find your way to God.God has already come to you.Through the movement of the Trinity—from the Father, through the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit—we are invited into a life that is not built on performance, but participation.In this episode, we unpack:Why secularism often leads to anxiety, loneliness, and pressureHow the Trinity restores identity, purpose, and belongingThe difference between guilt and shame—and how Christ frees usWhy the Christian life is about participation, not performanceWhat it means that you are already invited into the life of GodThis isn’t just theology.It’s freedom.Because you are not on your own.You are already in.

The Trinity is not just something we believe.It’s how we relate to God.In Part II of this series, we move beyond defining the Trinity and begin asking a deeper question:👉 Why does it actually matter?If God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—then that shapes everything:- how we pray- how we experience God’s presence- how we understand relationship- and how we live our everyday faithScripture gives us a pattern:We come to the Father,through the Son,by the power of the Holy Spirit.This isn’t abstract theology—it’s an invitation.An invitation into a relationship that God Himself initiated.An invitation to know that you are not alone.An invitation to participate in the very life of God.In this episode, we explore:- Why doctrine matters for real life- How the Trinity shapes prayer and worship- What it means that God is not distant- How the Christian life is rooted in relationship, not religionBecause the Trinity isn’t just something to understand—it’s a life you’re invited into.

The Trinity is one of the most central beliefs in Christianity—and one of the most misunderstood. It’s also a doctrine many people dismiss because the word “Trinity” isn’t explicitly found in the Bible.So how did Christians come to believe that God is one essence in three persons?In this episode of You Are Here Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes begin unpacking the language, history, and significance of the Trinity. For thousands of years, Israel held firmly to monotheism—yet in the New Testament, Jesus appears doing the things only God can do.That reality forced the early Church to ask hard questions: • Who is Jesus? • How does Jesus relate to the Father? • What does it mean that the Spirit ispresent and active? • And why does this matter for our lives today?This conversation explores how the early councils clarified the Church’s understanding, how heresies helped sharpen the language, and why misunderstanding the Trinity often leads to confusion in modern faith.Because the Trinity isn’t just theological vocabulary.It’s the foundation for understanding who God is—and what life with God is meant to be

Lent is Over, Easter has come. There has been a space made at the table for you, for me….So… now what?In this new series of You Are Here, we begin exploring one of the most important questions we face as modern Christians:👉 Why does any of this actually matter today?After walking through the story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, we now turn to the foundations of our faith—what we believe, why we believe it, and how it shapes the way we live.Together, we’ll explore:Who is the Trinity—and can we actually trust God?Who is Jesus, and why does His Lordship matter in daily life?What does obedience and surrender really look like?Who is the Holy Spirit, and how does He work in us?What is the Church, and why does it matter today?Why doctrine and the historic creeds still matter in a secular worldThis isn’t just about knowledge.It’s about building a theological foundation that actually transforms your life.Because the apostles didn’t just tell people what to do—they showed them what is true, and how what they believed directly corresponds to the way they lived their life. And what is true… changes everything.Welcome to the Table.

This is it.We have arrived at the most sacred moment of the Christian story—the Great Triduum: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday.In this final episode of our Lent focused series, we don’t rush ahead to Easter Sunday.We slow down. We stay. We walk with Jesus through the last hours before the resurrection.From the table where love is poured out…to the cross where love is proven…to the silence of the tomb where hope feels hidden…These are the days that reveal the fullness of Christ’s love—a love that goes all the way to the end.In a culture that avoids suffering and fills every silence, the Triduum invites us to do something different:to embody the story, not just think about it.This episode will guide you through:The meaning of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy SaturdayHow the early Church marked these daysPractical ways to participate and reflect in real timeHow to sit in the tension of “not yet” while holding onto hopeDon’t skip ahead.Stay with Him.

Holy Week (Mon–Wed): What Jesus Confronts in UsHoly Week is not meant to be rushed.In this bonus episode, we slow down and walk through the first three days of Holy Week—Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday—not just to understand them, but to experience them.Because these are not just the days leading up to the cross.They are the days where Jesus begins to confront what is broken within us.While Good Friday shows us what Christ has done for us, these early days of Holy Week reveal what He wants to address in us.On Holy Monday, Jesus cleanses the Temple and curses the fig tree—challenging fruitless faith and empty religion.On Holy Tuesday, Jesus teaches through parables of judgment, calling us to wakefulness, readiness, and true devotion.On Spy Wednesday, we face the reality of betrayal through Judas—and the uncomfortable truth that faithfulness can erode slowly over time.Through Scripture, the Church Fathers, and intentional practices, this episode invites you to ask:Where is my faith fruitless?Am I spiritually awake?Where have I compromised?Because Holy Week is not just about remembering what happened.It is about preparing the heart to receive what Christ is about to do.

After five weeks of preparation through Lent, the Church now enters Holy Week—the most significant week in the Christian calendar, where everything in Scripture moves toward fulfillment.In this episode of You Are Here, we explore the tension at the heart of this day.It is the only Sunday of the year with two Gospel movements:The triumphal entry into Jerusalem (“Hosanna!”)The beginning of the Passion narrativeThe Church doesn’t just remember this moment—it re-enacts it.From the earliest centuries, believers gathered outside, holding palm branches, and processed into the city, walking with Christ into Jerusalem. This tradition, recorded as early as the 4th century, invites us to do more than observe the story.It invites us to enter it.Because Holy Week is not simply something we think about.It is something we participate in.The Gospel writers make this clear—devoting nearly a third of their accounts to this single week. Everything—from Genesis to this moment—has been leading here.This is the week.The week of:RejectionSufferingCrucifixionAnd ultimately, resurrectionBut first, we must walk through the tension.Drawing from Scripture, the Church Fathers, and the deep traditions of the Church, this episode explores how we engage Holy Week not just intellectually, but spiritually and physically—through practices, reflection, and the sacraments.Through art like Michelangelo’s Pietà and music like Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, we see the same truth echoed:You cannot reach resurrection without first passing through death.This Holy Week, the invitation is simple:Don’t just observe the story.Walk it.

Lent is a journey—and in week five, everything shifts.Up until now, the focus has been inward: self-examination, discipline, and transformation. But this week—often called Foretaste Sunday—the Church turns our attention toward Holy Week and the suffering of Christ.The Gospel readings begin to center on both death and the life that will come through it.​In John 11, Jesus raises Lazarus—and yet still weeps.​In John 12, we hear: “The hour has come.”​In Luke 20, the parable of the tenants points to the Father sending the Son to be rejected.The invitation of this week is clear:To walk with Christ toward the cross.Through voices like Dietrich Bonhoeffer—“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die”—and the early Church Fathers, we explore a deeply countercultural truth:Suffering is not meaningless. It can be transformative.In a culture that avoids pain, Lent teaches us something different:​There is a redemptive quality to suffering​We are formed in the valleys, not just the victories​And we cannot get to resurrection without first walking through the crossThrough Scripture, theology, and stories from culture—including Silence, Gran Torino, and C.S. Lewis’ The Problem of Pain—this episode invites us to ask:What might God be doing in the middle of our suffering?Because following Christ doesn’t mean avoiding the cross.It means walking it—with Him.

This week on ‘You Are Here’ Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes introduce us to the fourth week of Lent. A week that pauses for Joy. Week four—often called Rose Sunday—introduces a surprising theme: joy.Through ancient liturgical symbols, like the extinguishing of candles throughout Lent, the Church visually reminds us that the story is moving toward a moment when darkness seems to take over. Yet this week reminds us that the journey of repentance is never meant to be endless sorrow. It is moving toward grace, restoration, and renewal.The readings for this week focus on spiritual light and healing. John 9, Jesus heals a man born blind. John 6, Jesus is the true bread that brings healing. Luke 15, The story of the prodigal son The Church Fathers saw this week as a moment to remember that repentance ultimately leads to joy. Along the way, we reflect on how this theme appears in art and culture—from Rembrandt’s painting of the Prodigal Son to the powerful story of forgiveness in the film The Mission.Because Lent is not simply about sorrow.It is about being restored to the image of God.And that restoration leads to joy.

Lent is a six-week journey.But what happens as the journey continues?Week Three of the Lent journey focuses on Spiritual Thirst.The readings this week center around water.Exodus 17, Israel is wandering in the wilderness and begins to thirst. In desperation they cry out to Moses, and God provides water from the rock. A rock the Apostle Paul will point back to and claim is Christ. (1 Corinthians 10)  Psalm 95, a retelling of the Exodus 17 story.  John 4, Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well.John draws on an Old Testament style of storytelling to reveal something deeper: the woman’s physical thirst points to a deeper thirst, one Jesus reveals that only He can satisfy. The Church Fathers reflected deeply on this theme of conversion.These were the leaders and theologians of the early Church — the ones who helped articulate and defend the faith passed down from the apostles.For them, conversion was not simply a moment. It was a lifelong process.Lent is a season that helps us focus on that transformation.This week the invitation is to look beneath our actions and ask deeper questions: What am I truly thirsty for?To close the episode, Dr. Mark Masucci helps bridge the gap between the Church’s story and our cultural imagination, reflecting on Caravaggio’s Doubting Thomas and the film Good Will Hunting as examples of the deep human longing for inner transformation.Because beneath every human longing lies the same truth:Only Christ ultimately satisfies.

In the second week of Lent the conversation shifts from self examination to self denial.Last week was the call to examine our desiresThis week, we confront them.Lent begins with self-examination — naming the loves that shape us, the habits that form us, the desires that may have become disordered. But awareness alone is not transformation.Now comes the narrow door.In this episode, Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes explore why the Church gives us the spiritual discipline of fasting after we have taken inventory of our hearts. Fasting is not punishment. It is not spiritual dieting. It is a way of bringing our loves back into order.James reminds us that we are tempted by what we love. And often, we are trapped not by evil things — but by lesser things we have learned to cling to for satisfaction.Fasting creates space. Fasting exposes attachments.Fasting loosens the grip of earthly desires that quietly rule us.It is how we practice freedom.And right in the middle of this call to repentance, the Church gives us the Transfiguration — the moment Jesus reveals His glory to Peter, James, and John. For a brief moment, the veil is pulled back. The disciples see who He truly is.What would happen if we saw Christ like that?We would realize He is what our souls have been reaching for all along.The world offers highs that fade by Monday morning. But on the mountain, we glimpse the glory that actually satisfies.So after naming our disordered desires, we begin to deny them — not to lose something, but to be freed from loving lesser things.Because the goal of Lent is not deprivation.It is transformation.It is renewal.It is learning to love God with all our [email protected]

Lent is a six-week journey.But what are we actually meant to do in week one?In this episode of You Are Here, join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes to explore the Church’s focus for the first week of Lent: Temptation and Self-examination.The Gospel reading traditionally centers on Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:9-13; Luke 4:1-13  — Jesus in the wilderness, tempted by the devil. But this is not simply a story about Jesus resisting sin. It is about Christ taking on our weakness. As Hebrews reminds us, we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with us. He has taken on human nature. He understands temptation from the inside.The first week of Lent invites us to confront our own wilderness:Where am I weak?What patterns of desire are disordered?What in me needs transformation?Because of Adam, we are no longer the kind of beings we were meant to be. Lent begins by naming that reality honestly.We join Jesus in the wilderness as He fights His first battle — not only as an example, but as the faithful Adam who resists where humanity failed.And yes, we end with a cultural reference to The Godfather — one of the classic films that reminds us of the dangers of an unexamined lifeIn short: Don’t be like Mike.Participate in Lent.Start with self-examination.Step into the wilderness with Christ.

What is Ash Wednesday — and why do Christians put ashes on their foreheads?In this episode, Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes explore the meaning, symbolism, and origins of Ash Wednesday. From Genesis — “You are dust, and to dust you shall return” — to the early Church’s understanding of repentance, ashes mark the beginning of Lent with honesty and hope.Topics discussed: - Why Ash Wednesday falls on Wednesday? - The biblical meaning of ashes as repentance and turning (Genesis, Job, Jonah) - How external practice shape our internal lives- Why Ash Wednesday pushes back against secularism Ash Wednesday confronts us with death — and prepares us for [email protected]

What is Lent - and why do Christians still practice it? In this episode Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes explore the meaning, origins, and purpose of Lent. Far from legalism, Lent is a preparation for Easter - a season of prayer, fasting and repentance that reshapes our interior world. In this episode Dr. Mark and Nathan explore: - The Origins of Lent in the early Church - Why the season of Lent is 40 days long - The significance of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (Matthew 6) - Why Lent is not legalism, but preparation - How fasting shapes the interior life- Why Lent pushes back against secular autonomy and materialism [email protected]

We all measure time by something — semesters, deadlines, sports seasons, algorithms, achievement. But the Church has kept time differently for centuries.In this opening episode of our Lenten season, Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes introduce the Church Calendar — the sacred rhythm that tells the story of Christ from Advent to Easter and beyond.Because the way you measure time shapes the person you become.So what story is your calendar telling?You Are [email protected]

“C” for this week - Cue and CravingComing off last week’s episode where it was discussed that we are primarily lovers and not thinkers. The next question then is, how do we change our loves? Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they discuss how loves form us so we are called to form our loves. Dive deeper through research and personal testimony, as the discussion unfolds on how to habitually form those loves. What is the habit loop and how do we change our habits, thus our loves? Listen in this week to find out!Points within:- How do we practically love God? - Romans 6-8- Book: Atomic Habits, James Clear- What is the Habit Loop and how does it relate to your loves?- Book: You are what you Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit. James K.A. [email protected]

Who are we as people and what causes us to do what we do? Why do we feel a tension as we are trying to Follow Jesus? What are your “loves?”Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they discuss what causes us to do what we do. They will unpack an early Church Father, Augustine, and what he said about who we are as people. And how this actually clashes with Enlightenment thinking and Secularism. So, what does Augustine have to say to Secularism and the conversation of Christianity and Culture today? Listen in to find out!Points within:- Augustine: “You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”- Why do you sin? - Enlightenment and Romantacism - who are we?- Where is Truth found? - Do our feelings matter? - Rightly ordered [email protected]

The third “C” for this week is conflict drawn from Jesus calling people to “follow him.” Christianity, Culture and Conflict. How does this clash with the narrative and values of our secular culture and how does it create conflict? Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they explore this topic and show how Jesus not only creates conflict with our current culture, but also created conflict as he called the disciples. Points within:- What does “follow me” mean?- How does Jesus create conflict with his disciples? - The Gospels- How to do evangelism?- What is authenticity within [email protected]

The third “C” for this week is Creeds or Confessions. What is a Creed? How many are there? Why is it important that we know them? And how does this relate to “Am I on the right Track?”Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they converse with this and demonstrate how knowing the Creeds will help us in our secular Culture today. Topics within:- What is a Creed?- How do they relate to Ecumenical Councils? (What is an ecumenical council?)- What are the main/important ones? - How do you know you are in a cult?- How does the Apostles Creed relate to the Bible?- How do Creeds bring a rootedness to your [email protected]

People today are asking the question“Am I on the right track,” which then begs the question, what actually is The track?Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they establish what “the Track” is. Moving from Jesus, to the Apostles, to the Early Church, they will discuss how The Truth and The Faith were established. Looking at passages in Paul’s letters and elsewhere in the New Testament, they will demonstrate how very early on The Church sent Christianity on a specific trajectory. This trajectory is The Track we are looking for. Topics within:- What is the track?- What is “the Faith” and “the Truth”?- What trajectory did the Apostles and Early Church send us?- What is Dogma? What is Doctrine? How do we know the difference [email protected]

Join hosts Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes as they begin their 6 part series on a “Am I on the Right Track?” As they gathered research, this was a question which came up repeatedly, asked in different ways. In this first episode of the series, they will discuss why we are even asking this question in the first place. Why does the intersection of Christianity and Culture cause us to ask this question today? With Mark’s extensive research on Secularism over the past 6+ years for his PhD, along with statistical trends happening amongst Christianity and religion in America today, they will answer this question of why we are asking this question. Join us, for Conversation about Christianity and Culture and why You Are Here today. Points discussed:- What is Secularism? - Book: A Secular Age, Charles Taylor- How did we end up here?- How does Secularism relate to asking the question “Am I on the right track?”- Biggest religious shift in America since the Great Awakenings.- Book: The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why they are Leaving, and What will it take to bring them back. Jim Davis, Micheal Graham, Ryan [email protected]

Where is here and why does it matter that You Are Here?Join Dr. Mark Masucci and Nathan Hughes in this inaugural episode as they discuss the intersection of Christianity and Culture and explain where here is and why you need to know. Conversations about Christianity and Culture. [email protected]