Today on Kresta in the Afternoon - December 5, 2011

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Dec. 5

The "Best of Kresta in the Afternoon" as we conduct a 3-day urgent membership drive at Ave Maria Radio

4:00 – Bishops Committee Pushing Feds to Protect the Defense of Marriage Act
The Obama Administration’s fight against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as between one man and one woman, will undermine marriage and create a serious breach of Church-State relations, Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, wrote in a September 20 letter to President Barack Obama. The Administration’s assault on DOMA, Archbishop Dolan said, will “precipitate a national conflict between Church and State of enormous proportions and to the detriment of both institutions. We talk to Bishop Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, Chair of the USCCB subcommittee responsible for the protection of DOMA.

4:20 – Servant of God Archbishop Fulton Sheen: His Life and Legacy
In the years since Fulton J. Sheen’s cause for canonization was opened in 2002, the Church has reviewed in depth the teachings of this great preacher and evangelist. Sheen’s reputation for personal sanctity and pastoral zeal is skillfully catalogued here as the author delves into ten areas in which Sheen, through his writings and his talks on radio and TV, has left the world a spiritual legacy of incomparable worth. Thomistic philosopher and professor at the Catholic University of America, prolific writer and pioneer in the use of the media, convert-maker and head of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, and Bishop of Rochester in the aftermath of the Second Vatican Council, Sheen lived in the religious spotlight for most of his life. We talk to Msgr. Stanley Deptula about the life of Servant of God Fulton Sheen.

4:40 – St. Albert the Great, Champion of Faith & Reason
Even while he was still alive, Dominican friar Albert of Cologne was widely called Magnus the Great. His contemporaries said St Albert simply knew all there was to know; he was a scientist, theologian, and philosopher; a teacher, preacher, and negotiator; a shrewd shepherd and an unflinching defender of the Faith. The time has come to re-discover St. Albert’s greatness, and to profit from his prodigious wisdom and virtue as did his famous student, St. Thomas Aquinas. Kevin Vost helps us do just that.

5:00 - Welcome Brothers and Sisters in Christ
The purpose of the Coming Home Network International is to provide fellowship, encouragement, and support to men and women who are considering becoming Catholic and those who have already come home. In particular, the Coming Home Network seeks to assist non-Catholic clergy who often face acute difficulties and struggles during their journeys. Founder and President Marcus Grodi sits down with us to discuss his work throughout the years.

5:40 – From Pope John Paul II to Benedict XVI: An Inside Look at the End of an Era, the Beginning of a New One, and the Future of the Church
April 2005 marked the end of Pope John Paul II's papacy and the beginning of Pope Benedict XVI's. As countless pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square to pray for, and eventually bid farewell to, the pope they had known for 26 years, millions upon millions of Catholics and non Catholics across globe waited for the new pope to be named. Sr. Mary Ann Walsh documents this pivotal moment in Church history and takes us behind the scenes to better understand the life, death, and legacy of John Paul II; the inner workings of the conclave that elected the new pope; the mind and ministry of Benedict XVI; and the challenges he and the Church face into the future.