Episodes

Every year on December 12, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She is the patron saint of Mexico and dear to the Mexican people, but also the patron of the Americas. Her story, miracle, and relic is astounding and hard to believe for Protestants. Greg and Ed explain. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Every year, the Catholic Church celebrates the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Ed asks what this doctrine means and why it matters so very much. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Every year at this time, the Church celebrates the Feast of Christ the King. What is this celebration, and why did the Church adopt it only 100 years ago? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Catholics talk about the "Sacred Heart of Jesus." There are images, paintings, and devotional prayers dedicated to it, and Pope Francis just released a 30,000 word encyclical about it. To Protestants or American Evangelicals, the language and images feel kind of weird. But what is it? Greg and Cory unpack the concept, imagery, history, and practices. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail...

The most sobering and somber subject in Christianity is Hell. Greg and Ed discuss what it is and why some souls end up there. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

The Catholic Church teaches that in addition to Heaven and Hell, there is a third possible destination for a soul upon death: Purgatory. Protestants reject this, but most don't really understand what Purgatory is and why it is vital to God's justice and the soul's journey toward full communion with Him. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

In this first of three episodes on the "Last Things," Greg and Ed explore what heaven is, and is probably not, like. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Ed asks Greg how the Catholic liturgy evolved. Was the worship of the early Church more informal and unstructured? When did all the complex parts and pieces of the mass get added? Greg explains that the premise of the question is problematic, and that the worship of the early Church probably resembled a Catholic mass more than it did a non-denominational "worship gathering." Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: con...

Recently, Ed went to a Protestant Evangelical funeral, which was more of a "celebration of life." He asks Greg if Catholic funerals are different. Why and how? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

For secular folks this is Halloween, for Catholics it's the eve of All Saints Day, but for Protestants it's Reformation Day, when Martin Luther nailed his complaints against the Catholic Church to a cathedral door in Germany. Today, Protestants celebrate what they imagine is a heroic and prophetic scene. But as Greg explains in this snapshot, it's nothing to celebrate. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideri...

Last year, Greg and Ed talked about Halloween. Since it's coming up, we thought it's worth revisiting the conversation. Can Christians participate? Are its origins really in the Catholic Church incorporating pagan Celtic rituals? And has the Church adopted pagan rituals throughout history, including Easter celebrations? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

If, as we say in the Nicene Creed, the Catholic Church is the "one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church," what about those outside of it? Can they be saved and go to heaven? Greg and Cory explain what the Church teaches. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Recently, Pope Francis made some headlines by saying that religions are like languages, each trying to express something about God in its own way. A lot of people, including many of our listeners, were confused and asked what he meant. Greg and Cory try to explain. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

One of the Catholic Church's seven sacraments is Anointing of the Sick. It used to be called "last rites" or "extreme unction," but the new name more accurately describes the sacrament. What is it? What's does it accomplish? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

When it comes to theological errors, there's nothing new under the sun. There are only so many ways to fall off the tightrope of orthodox Catholic doctrines, and in every era the same mistakes get repeated under new names by new false teachers. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Protestantism is built upon "Five Solas." "Sola" is Latin for "alone," and so the battle cry of the Reformation became: Sola Scriptura ("Scripture Alone"), Sola Fide ("Faith Alone"), Sola Gratia ("Grace Alone"), Solus Christus ("Christ Alone"), Soli Deo Gloria ("Glory to God Alone"). The Reformers intended these to be a refutation of Catholicism, and Protestant apologists today think of them as Kryptonite to the Catholic Church. But in this conversation from a few years ago, Greg and Cory take t...

Several years ago, one of the first conversations between Greg and Ed the Protestant was about the Catholic sacrament of Confession (or Reconciliation as the Church calls it). We've had a lot of listeners asking about confession lately, so it seems a good time to pull this one out of the vault. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

Greg and Ed continue their conversation about those who say they are spiritual but not religious. What exactly does that mean? And why does Greg say that he's religious because he's spiritual? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com

It's popular to say, "I'm spiritual, not religious" as a reason for not attending church or participating in organized religion. Where did this idea come from, and what does it mean? Part 1 of Greg and Ed's discussion. Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com Follow Greg on X/Twitter: https://x.com/ConsideringCath

We should read the Bible (of course), and devotional literature, and catechetical and apologetics. But what about stories, literature, novels? Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Website: https://www.consideringcatholicism.com/ Email: consideringcatholicism@gmail.com Follow Greg on X/Twitter: https://x.com/ConsideringCath

For the last 43 years, Catholics have been going on pilgrimages to a town in Bosnia and Herzegovina called Medjugorje, where a group of "visionaries" or "seers" claim that the Blessed Virgin Mary has been appearing to them everyday. Under three successive popes, the Vatican has investigated these claims. Last week, it released a report on its findings. Greg and Cory discuss what the Vatican found and its recommendations to the faithful who visit there. Support this ministry so more people can co...

A common objection to religious faith or belief in anything supernatural is that "Science" has disproved that there is anything outside of the material universe. This objection is often delivered with mockery and condescension for those ignorant fools clinging to religion. In this episode, Greg says, "Wait a minute? Is that actually true? How could the natural sciences disprove, or even tell us anything about, the supernatural?" Support this ministry so more people can consider Catholicism! Webs...