Podcasts

Australian film critic Richard Leonard, S.J., reflects on the popularity of “The Dark Knight,” “Wall-E” and other fantasy films from 2008. The fantasy genre has been big since the early 1970s, Leonard argues, and our fascination with superheroes and villains has had a notable impact on our views on politics and even faith. Father Leonard […]

Controversial peace activist and Jesuit priest John Dear talks about his new book, A Persistent Peace: One Man’s Struggle for a Nonviolent World, which chronicles his conversion from a “spoiled frat boy” at Duke University to a crusading opponent of war who has been arrested over 70 times. A frequent traveler who has visited war […]

Tim Reidy visits Symphony Space, a concert hall in New York, for a centennial celebration of the music of Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992), a Catholic composer who, in the words of Father John Coleman, sought to use music to “communicate the mysteries of Christ to non-believers.” The artistic director of Symphony Space, and two of the […]

Therese J. Borchard of the Beliefnet blog “Beyond Blue” talks about battling depression, and the spiritual resources she turns to in times of need. Listen to this episode.

To celebrate the Year of Saint Paul, and in conjunction with America‘s special issue on Paul’s legacy, Tim Reidy visits with Father Gilbert Martinez at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Manhattan, the motherhouse of the Paulist Fathers. Father Martinez explains how worshippers can obtain a plenary indulgence at St. Paul’s, in honor of the […]

From the podcast archives, an interview with Jesuit John W. O’Malley about his book, What Happened at Vatican II, which was recently published by Harvard University Press. Father O’Malley also discusses an series on art and religion he is editing for Saint Joseph’s University Press. Listen to this episode

Fighting against religious oppression in Mexico and reporting on Irish rebels in Dublin; railing against Prohibition and championing the Civil Rights movement–these are among the many issues covered by America over the years. James T. Keane, S.J., talks about the early history of the magazine, and three of America‘s most influential editors. Listen to this […]

Associate editor Matt Malone, S.J., and America blogger Michael Sean Winters analyze the first presidential debate and look forward to the vice presidential contest on October 2. Winters is the author of >Left at the Altar: How the Democrats Lost the Catholics and How the Catholics Can Save the Democrats.