Today on Kresta - June 23, 2011

Talking about the "things that matter most" on June 23

4:00 – The Man Who Rebuilt Steubenville and Inspired a New Orthodoxy in US Catholic Higher Education
Father Michael Scanlan’s name has become so closely linked to Steubenville, Ohio, that it’s a bit surprising to learn that he grew up in midtown Manhattan. The Third Order Regular Franciscan has spent 42 of his 47 years as a priest at Franciscan University of Steubenville and played a large part in bringing the college back from near death. This summer, though, Father Scanlan, 79, is retiring from his post as chancellor, a position he has held for the past 11 years. Before that, he spent 26 years as the university’s president. We talk with Fr. Scanlan about his 42 years at the school known simply as Steubie-U.

4:40 – Kresta Comments


5:00 – Solzhenitsyn: A Soul in Exile
When 1999 turned into 2000, a lot of people asked, “Who was the Man of the Century?” And many answered, “Solzhenitsyn.” That was a very solid choice. Born in 1918, Alezander Solzhenitsyn became the voice and conscience of the Russian people. There was no greater or more effective foe of Communism, or of totalitarianism in general. His Gulag Archipelago was a crushing blow to the Soviet Union — after its publication in the mid-1970s, the USSR had no standing, morally. The book was effective because it was true. He passed away in 2008 at age 89. We talk with his biographer, Joseph Pearce, who has just updated and re-released Solzhenitsyn: A Soul in Exile