I am a flawed man.
I love to listen to Catholic apologetics. I listen to apologetics CDs, I read apologetic books, and I love to listen to apologetics on the radio. I suspect my reason for listening to apologetics on the radio is different from most people; at least I hope it is.
I think I read once that NASCAR is the biggest spectator sport in the United States. Being a northerner, I am sure that I miss many of the appealing aspects of NASCAR, but I think I know why most people watch it. They want to see the crashes. That is why I listen to apologetics on the radio, particularly Catholic Answers. I want to be around when the crash happens.
January 26, 2010 at 5:04 pm
You don't understand Nascar. Sure crashes are exciting but you're missing the finer points of the sport. There's so much going on, from fuel and tire management, to the performance of the car on that day, trying to outsmart the other drivers and crew chiefs, etc. People that don't like soccer don't understand it, people that don't like hockey don't understand it, etc, etc. Nascar is no different.
January 26, 2010 at 8:10 pm
I don't like Catholic Answers. They are very luke-warm on liturgical abuse and have a very America-first attitude to Catholicism. I listen to Catholic radio and their apologetics program gets aired daily for about 2 hours. I will say before listening to them I never knew of all the New Age heresies that are out there. They do a good job "defending" Catholicism from them, but for me it's like, "DUH! Who would have ever believed that tripe anyway???"
January 26, 2010 at 9:09 pm
I think there is one area where NASCAR is like apologetics. In NASCAR everybody always tries to see who can cheat and get away with it. In apologetics, it's who gets to use proof texts. AnneG in NC
January 26, 2010 at 10:56 pm
Catholic Answers was a factor in my conversion to the Catholic Church, in 1999. Another major influence was the Catechism; of course, overshadowing all was the grace of God's calling, which I was neither seeking, nor anticipating. It's the best thing that could ever happen to me.
January 26, 2010 at 11:54 pm
Anonymous – welcome home. I guess I'm coming at Catholic Answers from a craddle Catholic stance. It is a GREAT place for Protestants and New Agers to slowly get weened away from their more wayward beliefs and gently into the Catholic church in a sort of "see? We're pretty much the same when you look at it" way. But I see (and have experienced) them as a continuation of the watered down Post Vatican II Americath phenomenon. Catholic in marketing, definitely; in the traditional and cultural sense…not so much.
January 27, 2010 at 1:04 am
Thank you, Early Riser. I think very highly of Karl Keating, however, they do have a diverse group of guests, and even I sometimes blink twice at some of the content with a little confusion, but overall, I believe God is using them for His purposes. From the of view of liturgy and Vat. II, I'm peddling as fast as I can, but I don't know how even cradle Catholics can be well informed on all subjects, there's so much to learn…maybe in heaven. Personally, I've figured out Novus Ordo, and what Traddies means 🙂 And I LOVE the Latin mass — I'm certain it's natural law 🙂 and would attend it always if I had the opportunity (but with the readings in English please).