Catholic Answers LIVE
Catholic Answers Live, hosted by Cy Kellett, is a daily, two-hour radio program dedicated to Catholic apologetics and evangelization. According to listener surveys, it is a runaway favorite on Catholic stations across America.
As a call-in program, Catholic Answers Live connects listeners to prominent leaders in the Church today—including scholars, nuns, priests, bishops, and cardinals—and touches on every aspect of our lives as Christians. You'll hear discussions on just about everything relating to the Church: doctrinal controversies, family concerns, social issues, evangelization, ethics…you name it!
Catholic Answers Live airs every Monday through Friday from 6-8 PM Eastern (3-4 PM Pacific) on over 360 AM and FM stations in the United States, Sirius Satellite Radio channel 130, and through the Internet at catholic.com. If you can't listen live, you can subscribe to our podcast or download individual shows from our MP3 archive.
Call in with your question at 1-888-31-TRUTH!
Most Recent Episodes
<p>With evidence of burial rituals and culture, were Neanderthals spiritual beings like us? We explore their place in theology, along with topics like praying in dreams, moral behavior in animals, the nature of heaven, and whether we could ever learn like computers.</p>
<p>Join The <em>CA Live Club</em> Newsletter: <a href="https://wvw.catholic.com/radioclub?email">Click Here</a></p>
<p><strong>Questions Covered:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">01:13 – What physical explanation can parapsychology offer? Because one thing is describing phenomena, another one is explaining it in a physical framework.</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">11:15 – How are we to consider our Neanderthal cousins? They were hominids, close enough to us that we interbred (I have more than the average Neanderthal DNA), they had a culture, and there is evidence that they not only buried their dead, but buried flowers and grave goods with them, hinting at a belief in the afterlife. Yet, they were different from us, and they went extinct millennia before the Incarnation. Theologically, how are they considered? semi-Neanderthal minds want to know!</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">16:31 – Can animals act in ways that are morally good or evil? i.e. the dog that saves the child vs the dog that bites the child. What implications, if any, would that have on the prospect of an animal afterlife?</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">22:44 – If I am asleep and I dream that I am praying, is it possible that God and the saints I ask for intercession hear those prayers? And if I receive a blessing in the context of my dream, is it possible that some minor intercession has occurred?</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">29:15 – If a sincere penitent in the confessional confesses that he has set a bear trap outside the priest’s confessional, set to go off the moment the priest exits the confessional, could the priest require the penitent to remove the bear trap as a part of his penance? Or can the priest not make requirements like that in order to give absolution? (One that I’ve actually gotten from my students!)</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">34:34 – Tell us about your Arkansas accent. It’s coming on pretty thick these days. I assume you lost it when you moved to CA and now that your back you just naturally fell back into it?</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">41:30 – I’ve never heard anyone address this: after the resurrection, we will be reunited with our physical bodies. So is heaven a physical place?</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">44:15 – Growing up I was told that our souls wander about while we sleep as an explanation for Deja vu. I know in the past you’ve attributed Deja vu to remote viewing, how similar are these 2 ideas?</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
<li><span data-contrast="auto">52:45 – The mystery of learning and memory. Why can’t humans learn, store, and recall information in the same way a computer does (i.e. massive storage, data compressibility/extractability, can download and upload information, etc.)? It would seem extremely beneficial if humans could learn via download and share via upload like computers. Just to qualify I mean the speed of data transfer as well. For example, instead of spending years learning a new language, just download it and have perfect fluency (similar to the Matrix and how Neo could learn things).</span><span data-ccp-props="{}"> </span></li>
</ul>
#12139 Is It Suicide or Sacrifice? When Giving Your Life for Others Means Certain Death - Jimmy Akin
Can a kamikaze-style sacrifice ever be morally justified? We explore the ethics of self-sacrifice in sci-fi scenarios and real life, along with deep (and wild) questions about vampires, psychiatric visions, Jesus’ second coming, and even the Rick Astley paradox.
Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here
Questions Covered:
02:23 – If someone were to kill everyone on earth to force Jesus’s second coming, would Jesus come? If the person did it to save everyone so they can all go to heaven, would this make them a good or bad person?
05:00 – Are heaven and hell customized for you and how you lived?
06:55 – If you sacrifice your life for God, do you go to hell for committing suicide?
14:45 – Could a killer whale get a taste for human flesh?
17:55 – I worked as a firefighter/EMT for a while and people prided themselves about having a stiff upper lip and a tough cynical personality. I got to thinking, some people are more docile, and some seem to pride themselves in having a rough edge. When we are perfected in heaven, will we all have the same disposition/temperament and just different talents and interests, or will our different dispositions remain?
22:01 – How will a body not be destroyed when living on earth forever? For example—If you fall off a cliff or get crushed?
28:57 – Can you please comment on the moral implications of the following? In Return of the Jedi, an A wing pilot gets shot down and plows his ship into the bridge of the Executor. Can a space pilot do this if death is a near certainty become a kamikaze? Or, in 2009’s Star Trek movie, Captain Kirk’s father stays behind and navigates the Kelvin on a collision course with the Romulan vessel to protect escaping shuttles. He sacrifices himself and the ship to save his son. Can the captain of a ship stay behind to again be a kamikaze to inflict heavy damage on somebody else and/or save other people if it means certain death?
32:59 – My Mom and sister are both nurses in a psych ward. They have had hundreds of patients who claim to see Angel’s and Demons. Some patients who claim they have seen them also knew personal information they shouldn’t have about Mom and Sister. Do you think these people are actually connected to the spiritual realm in a way we aren’t or is it just a mental illness?
38:08 – If a priest were to become a vampire, would he have to retire?
41:30 – If Santa Claus (not St Nicholas) were to die would he go to heaven?
44:01 – Will we see Wooly Mammoths in our lifetime? Will they really be Wooly Mammoths or something else that looks like them?
48:46 – How does the Rick Astley paradox work? Here’s how it goes: If you ask Rick Astley for a copy of the movie Up he can’t give it to you because he can’t give you Up but if he doesn’t give you Up he lets you down. This has been my hardest question since I heard it. What do you think?
50:54 – Sorry this is kind of a gross one. A few years back, there was a news story about a man who had his leg amputated and then had his friends over for a party where they ate tacos made from his amputated leg. While this is definitely strange, is it necessarily immoral?
<p>Some claim Catholics trust the Church more than Christ—but is that true? We explore this common misunderstanding along with questions on Jesus’ “brothers,” historical temple virgins, and how to reach out to loved ones who feel unwelcome in the Church.</p>
<p>Join The <em>CA Live Club</em> Newsletter: <a href="https://wvw.catholic.com/radioclub?email">Click Here</a></p>
<p><strong>Questions Covered:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>01:55 – I’ve heard that Catholics put more of their faith in the Church over Jesus. What is your response to that?</li>
<li>16:37 – How do we know that the brothers of Jesus were actually cousins?</li>
<li>24:47 – Are there historical sources for Jew temple virgins?</li>
<li>40:52 – Is there anything I can say or do other than pray, to help a loved one soften their hearts on their belief that the Church is unwelcoming?</li>
</ul>
<p>A common misconception is that Mary’s perpetual virginity is optional to believe. We clarify Church teaching and how to explain it respectfully, along with insights on binding and loosing, the birth control pill, and how to talk about pornography and marriage.</p>
<p>Join The <em>CA Live Club</em> Newsletter: <a href="https://wvw.catholic.com/radioclub?email">Click Here</a></p>
<p><strong>Questions Covered:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>06:30 – Does binding and loosing represent the Sensus Fidelium?</li>
<li>13:35 – Why is the pill considered abortifacient?</li>
<li>19:22 – Does God operate based on condition? I can’t wrap my head around the principle of double effect.</li>
<li>30:46 – How do I explain to my daughter in law who’s going to OCIA the perpetual virginity? She learned in class that the Church has never clarified and that her perpetual virginity is optional to believe?</li>
<li>42:54 – We tend to hear in TOB circles that men who are addicted to pornography should be avoided when considering marriage? Would you say the same start can be used for women?</li>
<li>51:27 – How do you avoid making circular arguments for the papacy and magisterium?</li>
</ul>
<p>Romans 8–9 is often cited in support of Calvinist theology—but is that the only way to read it? We explore a Catholic interpretation of these powerful chapters, along with questions about the priesthood, interfaith prayer, and the role of bishops in setting fasting rules.</p>
<p>Join The <em>CA Live Club</em> Newsletter: <a href="https://wvw.catholic.com/radioclub?email">Click Here</a></p>
<p><strong>Questions Covered:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>1:00 – Why does the office of the priesthood deserve reverence and respect and how is it beautiful?</li>
<li>08:23 – What kind of authority does a bishop have over fasting rules?</li>
<li>14:40 – Will there be a new temple built in Jerusalem?</li>
<li>18:52 – How do I read Romans 8-9 without reading Calvinism into it?</li>
<li>29:28 – Pope Francis inaugurated the Abrahamic house. Is it smart to be praying with Muslims?</li>
<li>36:40 – How do I respond when I don’t know the answers?</li>
<li>47:31 – Where do you see the papacy in the Council of Nicaea?</li>
</ul>
