Today on Kresta - Sept. 1

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Sept. 1

3:00 – Kresta Comments

3:20 – Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civilization of Love
Today, Our Lady of Guadalupe continues to inspire the devotion of millions. From Canada to Argentina — and even beyond the Americas — one finds great devotion to her, and great appreciation for her message of love, unity and hope. Her shrine in Mexico City, where the miraculous image is housed to this day, is one of the most visited in the world. Carl Anderson is here to trace the history of Our Lady of Guadalupe from the sixteenth century to the present discuss of how her message was and continues to be an important catalyst for religious and cultural transformation. Looking at Our Lady of Guadalupe as a model of the Church and Juan Diego as a model for all Christians who seek to answer Christ's call of conversion and witness, he explores the changing face of the Catholic Church in North, Central, and South America, and shows how Our Lady of Guadalupe's message was not only historically significant, but how it speaks to contemporary issues confronting the American continents and people today.

4:00 – Kresta Comments

4:20 – Who Is My Neighbor?: Personalism And The Foundations Of Human Rights
Over the past half century the language of human rights has gained such dominance in moral, civic, and ecclesiastical discourse that ethical and social questions are increasingly framed in terms of rights. Yet the vast literature dealing with human and civil rights focuses almost exclusively on the juridical and practical ramifications of rights, rather than the philosophical, moral, and foundational aspects. As a result, the proliferation of rights claims and catalogs has not been accompanied by a reasoned case for the existence of human rights or rational criteria for distinguishing true moral entitlement from spurious claims. Fr. Thomas Williams makes an original, compelling case for human rights as moral entitlements grounded in the dignity of the human person.

5:00 – Kresta Comments

5:20 – The New Ecumenism
The last several popes have made the quest for Church unity an item of the highest priority on their agendas. This has been true to perhaps a much greater extent than most Catholics, and indeed most Protestants, have generally realized. John Paul II put more personal time and effort into seeking improved relations with our fellow Christians, than into almost anything else. From the time of his election to the chair of Peter in 2005, Benedict XVI has followed the same pattern. These acted in response to a mandate of the Second Vatican Council which inaugurated a whole new era in ecumenism for the Catholic Church. The subject of ecumenism -- the Church's relations with other Christians, and the search for Christian unity – is our topic with Ken Whitehead.