Skip links

Kresta in the Afternoon – September 6, 2022 – Hour 1

We celebrated the feasts of two remarkable saints this weekend – Gregory the Great and Mother Teresa. We look at their lives today.


Mother Teresa – Cult Leader?!?

Over the last several years and especially since the murder of George Floyd we have seen an increased effort to “re-examine” the heroes of the past, with statues of everyone from Columbus to Abraham Lincoln being torn down or vandalized. But surely someone like Mother Teresa is exempt from such reckonings, right? Not so, as the New York Times recently published a piece asking if the saint was really a Cult leader. We’ll talk about it with Clemente Lisi.

Links for this segment

Follow Clemente on Twitter

In Defense Of Mother Teresa: Why She Is A Saint, Not A ‘Cult Leader’

Catholic Bishops Vote To Draft Communion Guidelines: What Happens Next?

Clemente Lisi is a senior editor and regular contributor to Religion Unplugged. He is the former deputy head of news at the New York Daily News and teaches journalism at The King’s College in New York City. Follow him on Twitter @ClementeLisi.

Listen to this Segment


What Made Gregory so Great?  

Pope Gregory the Great wrote more prolifically than any of his predecessors, so much so that he is known in the East as St Gregory the Dialogist. He was the first pope to come from a Monastic background and did immense work to improve the welfare of the people of Rome. March 12 used to be his Feast Day, but it was moved to September 3 – the day his Papacy began. Bill Cook joins us.

Links for this segment

St. Gregory the Great: the Doctor of Desire

William Cook is Professor Emeritus of History at State University of New York – Genesceo, where he taught on Medieval and Renaissance Europe and Church History. He is the president of the Bill Cook Foundation, which helps poor children in 29 countries go to school. Visit billcookfoundation.org. He is the author of several books including “The Medieval World View: An Introduction” and has hosted nine Great Courses lecture series, including one called “The Cathedral.”

Listen to this Segment


Share with Friends: