Ave Explores

Everyday Faith for Everyday Catholics

About the show

A project of Ave Maria Press, Ave Explores helps you discover and learn about aspects of the Catholic faith from a variety of different angles, looking at topics relevant to the spiritual life in a fresh, engaging, and practical way.

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Episodes

  • Art Draws Us In with Liz Lev

    April 22nd, 2020  |  Season 4  |  29 mins 53 secs
    architecture, art, art history, ave maria press, catholicism, katie prejean mcgrady, liz lev, rome

    Elizabeth Lev, an art historian, author, tour guide, and college professor living in Rome, shares how art—especially the art of the Church—is the ultimate path to understanding what we believe and helps us see the continuity of the faith throughout history. Lev explains how art ultimately invites us to be drawn into its beauty and to contemplation of the divine.

  • Thriving as a Family with Tommy Tighe

    April 20th, 2020  |  Season 2  |  18 mins 16 secs
    ave maria press, catholic, coronavirus, covid-10, family, katie prejean mcgrady, quarantine, shelter in place, the catholic hipster, tommy tighe

    Catholic counselor Tommy Tighe shares ways we can help our children cope with the current crisis and how couples and families can continue to thrive with routine, prayer, and facing their feelings of uncertainty together.

  • The Stuff of our Faith with Mike Aquilina

    April 15th, 2020  |  Season 4  |  31 mins 20 secs
    architecture, art, ave maria press, catholicism, history, katie prejean mcgrady, mike aquilina

    Mike Aquilina, bestselling and award-winning author of A History of the Church in 100 Objects, relates how Catholics are a sacramental people, and objects such as the chains of St. Peter and the dome of the basilica named for him are significant to our understanding of faith. Aquilina also shares how ancient locations central to Christianity’s early development have helped him grow his love for the Lord.

  • Addiction and Recovery with Scott Weeman

    April 13th, 2020  |  Season 2  |  21 mins 21 secs
    addiction, ave maria press, catholic, catholic in recovery, coronavirus, katie prejean mcgrady, pandemic, recovery, scott weeman

    Scott Weeman, founder of Catholic in Recovery, talks with Katie Prejean McGrady about how to help those who struggle with addictions when they are unable to attend support-group meetings in person and are tempted to fall back into old habits as their routine and structure shift.

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    Hold Fast to Hope with Leah Darrow

    April 9th, 2020  |  Season 2  |  28 mins 12 secs
    ave maria press, catholic, coronavirus, hope, katie prejean mcgrady, leah darrow, quarantine

    Leah Darrow, Catholic author, speaker, and founder of Lux U, invites you to look to the Cross for comfort, inspiration, and solace in the middle of COVID-19. She tells Katie Prejean McGrady that hope is the virtue we need most while facing this pandemic.

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    The Way of Beauty with Andrew Petiprin

    April 8th, 2020  |  Season 4  |  36 mins 8 secs
    andrew petiprin, ave explores, ave maria press, katie prejean mcgrady, way of beauty, word on fire

    Andrew Petiprin, fellow of popular culture at the Word on Fire Institute, explains how beauty and Catholic art and architecture can lead us to a deeper faith and understanding of the truth. A convert to Catholicism, Petiprin shares his conversion story, highlighting how the way of beauty ultimately led him to Catholicism and a life committed to evangelization through art, music, film, and pop culture.

  • Holy Week with Fr. John Burns

    April 7th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  1 hr 2 mins
    ave maria press, catholicism, fr. john burns, holy week, katie prejean mcgrady, quarantine, triduum

    How can we more fully enter into the celebration of Triduum and Easter, the holiest days of the Church year? Fr. John Burns, author of Lift Up Your Heart, explains the liturgies for Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday and offers ways we can experience these sacred days at home, even with public masses suspended because of COVID-19.

  • Helping Teens through Quarantine with Roy Petitfils

    April 2nd, 2020  |  Season 2  |  16 mins 56 secs
    ave maria press, balance, catholic, coronavirus, covid-19, faith, katie prejean mcgrady, mental health, pandemic, routine, roy petitfils, stability, teens

    Catholic psychotherapist Roy Petitfils talks with Katie Prejean McGrady about how to help teens find structure and rhythm in the midst of anxiety and uncertainty. As schools shift to online learning, colleges close, and teens and young adults are at home, Petitfils will tell you how to help them process what's happening, live with their anxious feelings, and maintain a sense of normalcy.

  • Suffering goes Hand in Hand with Joy with Mary Lenaburg

    March 31st, 2020  |  Season 3  |  39 mins 38 secs
    ave explores, ave maria press, bravery, catholicism, coronavirus, faith, joy, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, mary lenaburg, suffering

    Mary Lenaburg, author of Be Brave in the Scared: How I Learned to Trust God during the Most Difficult Days of My Life, talks with Katie Prejean McGrady about how suffering and joy go hand-in-hand, especially during Lent. With a heart for hospitality, Lenaburg shares how her family joyfully lives life while always celebrating the memory of her daughter Courtney.

  • Being Honest and Grateful, with Sr. Miriam James Heidland

    March 26th, 2020  |  Season 2  |  13 mins 24 secs
    anxiety, ave maria press, catholic, covid-19, honesty, hope, katie prejean mcgrady, mental health, pandemic, prayer, quarantine, sr. miriam

    Sr. Miriam James Heidland, S.O.L.T., Catholic speaker and author of Loved as I Am, explains that social distancing is an opportunity for us to see that God is inviting us to slow down and be grateful for all the things he has given us. She tells Katie Prejean McGrady that when faced with times of solitude and quiet, we’re called to honestly face our feelings and past hurts.

  • Our Mental Health Reboot

    March 25th, 2020  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 6 secs
    ave maria press, catholic, catholicism, coronavirus, faith, mental health, quarantine, shelter in place

    Ave Maria Press wants to help with a new Ave Explores podcast mini-series that focuses on mental health. Host Katie Prejean McGrady revisits some of our panel of stress, anxiety, and mental health experts to help you cope. Leah Darrow, Roy Petitfils, Tommy Tighe, Scott Weeman, and Sr. Miriam James Heidland, S.O.L.T., will help you end up mentally and spiritually stronger on the other side of the coronavirus pandemic.

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    Our Common Humanity with Joyce Rupp

    March 24th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  32 mins 32 secs
    ave maria press, catholic, catholicism, coronavirus, covid-19, faith, joyce rupp, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, lenten sacrifice, pandemic

    Joyce Rupp, author of Jesus: Friend of My Soul, shares how the season of Lent is an invitation to love other people in more intentional ways, just as Jesus loves us. Rupp also relates how the COVID-19 crisis is a chance to be more aware of our common humanity, seeing Christ in each person we encounter.

  • Lent is a Launchpad with Tommy McGrady

    March 17th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  32 mins 9 secs
    almsgiving, ave maria press, catholic, catholic teens, catholicism, faith, fasting, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, lenten sacrifice, prayer, teenagers, teens, tommy mcgrady

    Tommy McGrady and Katie Prejean McGrady, coauthors of Lent: One Day at a Time for Catholic Teens, discuss how young people can fully invest in the season of Lent. McGrady shares how fasting, prayer, and almsgiving can be the foundation of a fruitful spiritual life for teenagers long after Lent is complete.

  • What God Wants us to Do with Joel Stepanek

    March 10th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  30 mins 23 secs
    ave maria press, catholic, catholicism, faith, humble, humility, joel stepanek, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, life teen, sacrifice

    Joel Stepanek, author of Chasing Humility: 8 Ways to Shape a Christian Heart, joins Katie Prejean McGrady to discuss how Lent can be fruitful if we pay attention to what God wants us to do with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Humility is the golden thread that ties together these Lenten practices.

  • Carrying Your Cross with Emily DeArdo

    March 3rd, 2020  |  Season 3  |  38 mins 4 secs
    ave maria press, catholicism, cystic fibrosis, emily deardo, faith, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, memento mori, stations of the cross, the cross

    Emily DeArdo, author of Living Memento Mori: My Journey through the Stations of the Cross talks with Katie Prejean McGrady about her battle with cystic fibrosis and how it deeply affects her friendships, family life, and faith. Emily shares how carrying this cross helped her gain new insights into how to walk through any desert, especially the forty days of Lent.

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    You Can't Mess Up Lent with Gary Zimak

    February 25th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  25 mins 23 secs
    anxiety, ave maria press, catholic, catholicism, faith, fast, gary zimak, give alms, katie prejean mcgrady, lent, prayer, stress, worry

    Gary Zimak, “worry” expert and author of Give Up Worry for Lent! 40 Days to Finding Peace in Christ, chats with Katie Prejean McGrady about how to avoid becoming over scrupulous and reassures us that we can’t really ruin the forty days of Lent if we keep our priorities straight.