Ave Maria in the Afternoon Full Hours

Segment 1: The Most Critical Factor in Children Keeping the Faith

A new study examining how parents can most effectively foster faith in their children found that the family home is the single most critical factor in determining whether a child retains their faith into adulthood. Greg Popcak has more.

Segment 2: Newman Conference Celebrates Leaders in Catholic Education

The Cardinal Newman Society is hosting their 2026 Newman Guide Leaders Summit this week at Catholic University of America. Kevin Murphy joins us to talk about the conference and the future of Catholic education.

Segment 3...

Segment 1: Vatican II’s Misunderstood Message on Unity

Critics of the Second Vatican say that the post-Vatican II church has compromised truth for the sake of unity with non-Catholics. But despite the efforts and actions of some Church members over the last several decades, the Council never taught that this unity should be achieved through doctrinal compromise. The Council never proposed that the truth of the Catholic Church be softened for the sake of dialogue. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: The Euthanasia Battle Resumes in England

The Prime Minister of England has allowed a “deat...

Segment 1: The Legacy of Magna Carta

On this day in 1215, on the fields of Runnymeade, the English King John signed one of the most important documents in Western Civilization – the Magna Carta. Marcus looks at its legacy.

Segment 2: Americans Are of Two Minds About the ‘Moral Acceptability’ of Suicide

A new Gallup poll reveals some striking insights into how Americans feel about assisted suicide. 49% of respondents answered that committing suicide with a doctor’s help is morally acceptable, buy only 21% find suicide in general to be morally acceptable. We look at the disparity in suppo...

Segment 1: Lessons From Naboth’s Murder

Today’s First Reading tells the story of the murder of Naboth. And in the Gospel, Jesus gives us the famous command to turn the other cheek. Marcus unpacks the readings and examines how they are connected.

Segment 2: What do we know about the Iran deal?

President Trump announced yesterday that the United States and Iran have reached a deal, opening the Straight of Hormuz and ending the US blockade of Iranian ports. Alberto Fernandez has more.

Segment 3: Chesterton’s Everlasting Wisdom

Yesterday marked...

Segment 1: “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” (2 segments)

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus proclaims that “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” It is a call for all of us to preach the Gospel. Rob Corzine unpacks the readings.

Segment 2: Technology and the Fragmentation of Society (2 segments)

Does digital technology make it more difficult to be a Christian? Colin Miller argues that it is not possible anymore to use technology without it using us: tool use always habituates us into being particular kinds of people. And technology use shapes...

Segment 1: America’s consecration to the Sacred Heart

On the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, Dr. Marcus Peter reflects on America’s consecration to Christ by linking Deuteronomy, 1 John, Matthew, and St. Bonaventure to the pierced Heart of Jesus, the covenant love of God, and the urgent call for national repentance, personal conversion, and renewed Christian witness.

Segment 2: Do Smartphones Deepen the Divide?

Schools across the country are increasingly limiting students’ access to smartphones, or banning them altogether, as studies show the negative impacts phones have on mental health and classroom performance. But there...

In Defense of Magnifica Humanitas

Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas received tremendous criticism from numerous factions online as soon as the document was released, which prompted Marcus to consider if the people critiquing him had even read the document. Marcus took some time to read the document and to consider it before commenting on it and he shares his thoughts about the background and context that makes this document brilliant and timely.

How the Rejection of God Degrades Our Humanity

As church attendance falls, suicide rates climb, and birth rates plummet, Ch...

Why Millennial Women Like Me Are Rethinking the Pill

It doesn’t take a medical degree to hypothesize that women’s healthcare has gone terribly wrong. It is almost entirely structured around either suppressing or bypassing the female reproductive system altogether. And it’s why women like Katelyn Shelton are rejecting hormonal birth control. She joins us with more.

The Shocking Logic of the Incarnation

The doctrine of the Eucharist is one of the biggest divisions between Catholics and Protestants. But we can begin a dialogue using a belief that is common to all Ch...

Segment 1: The Theology of Presence

Andrea Picciotti-Bayer’s preteen daughter has recently developed a close friendship with another family’s toddler-aged children. This can serve as a model for Catholic living. She joins us.

Segment 2: The Sacred and Immaculate Hearts (3 segments)

We dive into this month’s celebration of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts with Steve Ray.

Segment 1: “How long will you straddle the issue?”

Today’s readings begin with the great confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel. The entire narrative is a challenge to all of us that we ought not have divided hearts when it comes to our life in covenant with the Lord. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: What is Life Worth? Advice from the Ancients (2 segments)

Why are so many developed countries seeing a “birth dearth?” Why are the week and the ill considered burdens to be disposed of? It’s because our society...

Segment 1: The Lifelong Effects of Childhood Discipline

Have you ever seen an adult behaving badly and wondered if they were ever disciplined as a kid? Childhood discipline has lifelong effects – and not just on how we behave. It also predicts the way we resolve conflicts as adults. We discuss Discipleship Discipline with Dr Greg Popcak.

Segment 2: “The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry”

In today’s First Reading, Elijah meets a widow who is near starving and asks her to make him a meal. He promises...

Segment 1: The Death and Rebirth of Dialogue

Social media, the internet and other technologies give us an access to communication and information that our ancestors never could have dreamed of. And yet, we communicate worse than ever. Marcus reflects.

Segment 2: An Invitation to Augustine’s “City of God”

No work of Christian theology has left such an impact on the world and biblical interpretation and understanding as St. Augustine’s “City of God.” We who read the Bible do so, often unknowingly, through the eyes of the bishop of Hippo. Paul Krause joins us with more...

Blessed are They

Marcus shares some reflections on today’s readings and the Beatitudes.

Genesis through the Eyes of the Church (3 segments)

The book of Genesis is a deeply mysterious work, introducing the entire story of salvation history. Dr Mary Healy joins us to dive into its meaning.

Segment 1: Orwell’s Prophetic 1984

On June the 8th of 1949, George Orwell published 1984. Nearly eight decades later, the book is still unpleasantly fresh. It’s a diagnosis that was given before our society was even willing to admit it’s sick, and much of what he said turned out to be true. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: Forgotten Heroes of Catholicism – The Other French Resistance

Many people will have heard of the French Resistance, the name given to the various underground organizations that fought against the Nazis during the German occupation of France in World War II...

Segment 1: The Living Bread that Comes Down from Heaven (2 segments)

This Sunday we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Jesus. Jesus declares that He is the living bread come down from Heaven, causing quarreling and confusion among the Jewish leaders. We unpack the readings with Rob Corzine.

Segment 2: Understanding the Psalms (2 segments)

The psalter is the true prayerbook and hymnal of the people of God. Throughout the centuries, its words have ever been on the lips of the faithful. The fathers rightly called it the treasury of David, for...

Segment 1: Baptism, Rebirth, Death, and Grief

Today is the anniversary of two significant events in Marcus’ life: his baptism into the church, and the death of his unborn daughter Cora. He share some reflections on death, rebirth and grief.

Segment 2: Blessed are those who “yearn?”

We live in a culture that spent the past 60 years telling women marriage is slavery, motherhood is social death, homemaking is wasted talent, and sexuality should not be restrained. But in recent fiction we are seeing a strange popularity of men who serve, protect, wait, and sacrifice for a woma...

Segment 1: Archdiocese of Washington removes Msgr. Rossetti from Exorcist role (2 segments)

Washington archbishop Cardinal Robert McElroy has removed Msgr. Stephen Rossetti from his role as the Archdiocese exorcist following comments Rossetti made linking alleged UFO sightings to demonic activity. Matthew Bunson has more on this and other Church news.

Segment 2: The Rule of the Sacred Heart (2 segments)

God created us with restless hearts. We want more than this world can give us –we desire a love that will not fail, a peace that passes all understanding, and a home that cannot be taken fr...

Segment 1: 800 Languages, One Truth

Wycliffe Bible Translators recently announced that they have translated the Bible into its 800th language, as translations increase at an exponential rate. In the last five years, more than half a billion people have gained access to the Scriptures in their native language. And no matter the language, God’s truth remains constant. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: Sacred Buildings can Illustrate the Gospel

Catholics who sometimes worry that the Church is no longer sufficiently bold in its preaching of the Gospel might at least derive some comfort from its bu...

Segment 1: Clinging To Gender Ideology Mandates Is A Losing Strategy

In a May 20 settlement that should send shockwaves through every child welfare agency still clinging to gender ideology mandates, the state’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families agreed to a permanent injunction barring officials from denying or restricting foster care licenses based on applicants’ religious beliefs about marriage, gender, or sexual relationships. Andrea Picciotti-Bayer has more.

Segment 2: Young People Are Taking their Grief Online

Social media has once again managed to do what nearly every modern invention eventually does – it has turned an anc...

Segment 1: Let’s Lift our Eyes to the Enthroned Lord

In today’s First Reading, Paul writes to Timothy from the edge of death with the authority of an apostle. His life has already been placed upon the altar of Jesus Christ. Every line of his letter is the voice of a prisoner who knows what the Gospel demands of us. Marcus unpacks today’s readings.

Segment 2: How Catholic colleges aim to navigate the demographic cliff

Whatever else they’re thinking about, every college president in the U.S. has one common concern right no...

Segment 1: What Parents have been trained to get wrong

Most people think of parenting as a set of techniques that we use on kids make them behave. But St. John Bosco encourages us to instead approach parenting as a mentoring and discipleship relationship we have with our children. Dr. Greg Popcak has more.

Segment 2: What is Morally Responsible Investing?

As Catholics, we are called to use the resources God has given us in a morally responsible way. We talk about it with James Peregoy.

Segment 3: Graduates Rebel against AI: What is...

Segment 1: The Psalmist Confronts our Pride

The proud man’s first temptation is not necessarily open rebellion against God. It is slower and more subtle, as man thinks his own will to manage his life is sufficient. The Psalms give us the anatomy of this temptation, and look at how pride poisons our entire world – and offer an antidote. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: Smart Answers from AI Should Spark Smart Questions in our Consciences

AI’s biggest contributions to human wisdom may be the questions it poses, not the answers it generates. Humanity needs...

Segment 1: Justin Martyr’s Saintly Example

Today is the Feast of St Justin Martyr, and his life poses a challenging question: are we ready for the same thing? In the first reading, St. Peter tells us that divine power has already given us everything we need for a life of devotion. We are already equipped to live the full Christian life. How will we respond? Marcus has more.

Segment 2: How Abortion Drug Sellers Are Violating Federal Rules Designed to Protect Women

Most abortion drug sellers are flouting a federal rule that protects women fr...

Segment 1: California universities dropped Standardized Testing - Now they say their students aren’t prepared

Six years ago, the two largest university systems in the country announced they would no longer consider an applicant’s SAT or ACT scores. DEI advocates applauded the decision, claiming that the use of standardized testing was a “racist metric” and a method of “illegal wealth and race discrimination.” Now, data shows a stunning lack of academic preparedness in students and hundreds of professors are asking for the policy to be abandoned.

Segment 2: Why we’re still drawn to Rome

As Peter...

Segment 1: What the Trinity Reveals (2 segments)

This Sunday we celebrate the Trinity, one of the great mysteries of our faith. We unpack the Sunday readings with Rob Corzine.

Segment 2: Hey NYT: There is more to the Church than “Pelvic Theology” (2 segments)

Following the publication of Pope Leo’s new encyclical, the New York Times claimed that the teaching on artificial intelligence was a shift from the Church’s “fixation” on “pelvic theology.” This betrays a profound misunderstanding of the Church’s teaching on sexuality and its relationship to Catholic social doctrine. Noelle Mering has more.

Segment 1: Whose Approval Governs our Soul?

Gregory the Great gives us an important exhortation in today’s Office of the Readings: Whose approval governs the soul when we are mocked? Do we do things for the love of God, or because we desire our own praise and adulation? If we aren’t careful, praise can very quickly become a drug to the soul and it can turn the soul away from the altar of God. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: Fundraiser Dinner for Lebanon

The Church continues to suffer persecution in Lebanon. Fr. Roger Chik...

Segment 1: Society of St. Pius X names priests to be consecrated bishops (2 segments)

The Society of St. Pius X has announced the names of four priests who will be consecrated as bishops on July 1 without the permission of Pope Leo XIV. We talk more about this and other Church news with Matthew Bunson.

Segment 2: The Church learns something new from Newman (2 segments)

St John Henry Newman taught the Church a whole host of things, ranging from the development of doctrine to the primacy of truth to the nature of conscience. But Matthew Walz...

Segment 1: No Longer Beggars

Today’s readings are united by a covenantal theme - we are no longer beggars and now belong to the family of God through the sacrifice of Christ. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: Life Lessons from Dante’s Inferno (2 segments)

Despite its linguistic beauty and political intrigue, Dante’s “Divine Comedy” is a work of profound theological depth. It reflects the coherence and richness of Medieval Christian philosophy and theology and has much to say about the nature and effects of sin. Mike Schramm has more.

Segment 3: When the Intern...

Segment 1: Religious Expression in Public Life on the Rise

Something is happening in the country that is being misread as politics. People of faith are reasserting their place in American public life, the law is increasingly vindicating them and the secular establishment has not figured out what to do about it. Andrea Picciotti-Bayer has more.

Segment 2: Why the Pope should talk about AI

Pope Leo’s encyclical had barely been released before some critics began complaining that the Pope should address other matters rather than something like AI, accusing him of modernism and ot...

Segment 1: We have been Ransomed by Christ

Today’s Mass readings are woven together by the theme of Redemption. We have been ransomed as a people, bought by Christ’s blood in order to live inside the peace of Zion through humble service to God. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: The Virgin Mary’s Message to Nigeria

Nigeria is among the worst countries in the world for the persecution of Christians, with attacks on villages and kidnappings of priests happening on a regular basis. This persecution was foretold by the Blessed Virgin Mary in a chur...

Segment 1: Microsoft AI expert weighs in on new encyclical (2 segments)

In his new encyclical, Pope Leo writes that AI has ‘Even Greater Consequences’ than the Industrial Revolution. Brendan Newell, a Catholic expert on the ethics of Al, weighs in.

Segment 2: How to start praying with your spouse

Prayer is an essential part of a Catholic marriage – and not just praying on your own, but praying together for each other and the family. Dr Greg Popcak has tips on how to get started and how to take the next step.

Segment 3: What makes...

Segment 1: Does our success seduce our souls?

St. Peter begins today’s readings by taking us into the memory of Israel. The salvation announced in Jesus Christ arrived through God working through salvation history. The prophets searched the divine promises and discovered that the Spirit of Christ was already bearing witness within Israel’s sacred history. What does this mean for us? Have we, as Peter says in the Gospel, given up everything to follow Christ? Marcus shares some thoughts.

Segment 2: “Never has humanity had such power over itself.”

In his new encyclical Magnific...

No Greater Love

There is an irony to Memorial Day. Many Americans see it as a three-day weekend that “unofficially” kicks off summer and some stores seem to think it’s simply another cheap excuse to host sales on furniture and televisions. The phrase “Memorial Day” simply doesn’t do the day justice. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: An American Hero: One Man’s Legacy of Fatherhood and Faith

Jimmy Davis was a World War II whose resilience, integrity, and unwavering faith forged a life-giving legacy that transformed not only his family but also countless live...

Segment 1: Himmler’s Hate and Höss’ Hope

On May 23, 1945, Heinrich Himmler – the mastermind behind the Holocaust and one of the top men in Nazi Germany – swallowed a cyanide pill rather than face justice for his crimes against humanity. His life is a cautionary example of what happens when a man casts aside the divine and enthrones himself. Conversely, Auschwitz Commandant Rudolf Höss felt remorse at the end of his life and asked for a priest to hear his confession. Marcus compares their lives.

Segment 2: A Vaccine for the Pandemic of Lunacy (3 segments)What is happeni...

Segment 1: “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit” (2 segments)

There are different readings for the Pentecost Vigil and Sunday Masses this weekend, but they all come together to illuminate the Feast of Pentecost. We unpack the readings with Rob Corzine.

Segment 2: The Spirit Elevates the Apostles (2 segments)

Near the end of Luke’s Gospel, Jesus instructs His apostles to not leave Jerusalem “until you are clothed with the power on high.” That is the event we celebrate this weekend. Adam van Wart joins us to talk about how the Apostles were changed by the Spi...

Segment 1: Is Pentecost the Birthday of the Church?

It’s a commonly touted line that Pentecost is the Birthday of the Church. But there’s no real root for that sentiment in the Church documents or the Scriptures. So where does it come from? And when is the Church’s birthday? The answer lies is understanding the nature and purpose of the Church’s existence. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: When the Spirit Comes in Power (3 segments)

The entire Easter and Lenten season presupposes that we are on a journey culminating with this moment – the Feast...

Segment 1: US Bishops plan Sacred Heart consecration (2 segments)The USCCB will consecrate the country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in June, as America prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary. We talk more about this and other Church news with Matthew Bunson. Segment 2: Synod Report: The Abuse of Language leads to the Abuse of Power (2 segments)

Reading the documents from the recent Synod on Synodality, you may find yourself wondering who the intended audience is. They certainly don’t seem to be written to the “people in the pew.” The jargon is so thick that the only possib...

Segment 1: Living as one who has encountered Christ

In today’s readings, Paul is dragged into the old courtroom of Israel, Jesus prays within the eternal communion of the Father, and in the psalms the voice of every covenant servant who has learned that God himself is our portion. The readings converge upon one urgent truth: the Church is born from the resurrection and sent into this public conflict of the world. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: New Jersey moves towards euthanasia

New Jersey is considering a bill that could open the door to in...

Segment 1: The Revival of the HHS Conscience Division is a win for religious freedom This week, the Trump administration took a decisive step to safeguard religious freedom by reviving the Conscience and Religious Freedom Division at HHS — a federal watchdog tasked with defending healthcare workers and patients whose faith is increasingly under siege in American medicine. Andrea Picciotti-Bayer tells us more. Segment 2: How I Encountered the Living Christ

Marcus awoke on May 20, 2008 as a radical atheist who hated the idea of God. He went to bed as a Christian who finally understood that God loved him. On th...

Segment 1: My Fair Lady: How Christ redeems the whole person.

Fans of the musical “My Fair Lady” may recognize May 20 as “Eliza Doolittle Day.” The musical is build on the premise that our manners, speech, and actions reveal something about our soul. The Catechism teaches that human dignity requires education and virtue, because education and virtue teach self-mastery. Marcus has more.

Segment 2: UK Renews Push for Assisted Suicide

A new public campaign is beginning in Great Britain, where some members of Parliament are attempting to pass a bill legalizing assisted suicide. Joanna Bogle has the...