In the May 2013 episode of The 15th Station, James, Helen, Don and Gavin talk about the latest statistics that show the Catholic Church is growing faster than the rate of population growth, and the number of seminarians, priests and bishops is growing with it. Another thing that’s growing is the number of relationships New Zealanders can consider marriage, with the passage of legislation allowing same-sex marriage. Some of the arguments against such moves are outlined in this piece, What is Marriage?, which Don mentions in the show. The panel also discusses Pope Francis’s upcoming trip to South America, the Church’s view on economic matters and the story that’s gone viral — a three-year-old Colombian boy who celebrates Mass.

It’s been just over a month since Pope Francis took the helm of the Barque of Peter as leader of the Catholic Church. In this month’s episode, papal musings dominate the show, with Helen, James, Don and Gavin talking about his first Easter Triduum, his first discussion of the sexual abuse crisis and also the Argentinian connection — tenuous as it may be — between Pope Francis and Diego Maradona. The panel also chats about the likely passage of same-sex marriage legislation in New Zealand. Could anything stop it from becoming law?

There’s really only one story to talk about this month, and it’s the election of Pope Francis. What a momentous occasion for the Church and what great interest it received from around the world. James, Marcus, Shannon and Gavin talk about the announcement, the man himself, the name he chose, their (very) early reactions, the big priorities he faces and even find some time to mention a light story, with a US TV show seeking to demonstrate the ignorance of the average Joe or Joanne on the street asking what they thought of the new Pope — days before he was announced. Enjoy the show, and tell your friends

To cover possibly the biggest story in the history of The 15th Station, we had to think big. So we went even more international than normal, with Lucy in Asia and Gavin in Australia joining studio-bound James and Brendan to discuss the Pope’s surprise announcement, start a bit of crystal-ball gazing and reflect a little on Benedict’s papacy. The Los Angeles archbishop’s decision to relieve his predecessor of his duties, a milestone Mass in New Zealand and an unusual Catholic school oath also fill a bumper episode — complete with technical difficulties.

The panel kicks off the new year with a debate on the ongoing process of the expected canonisation of Blessed John Paul II. Is it happening too fast? How do we judge that? And what’s the purpose of sainthood? The billboard deemed not to have caused “widespread offence” is also discussed, along with the new reproductive health bill in the Philippines, passed against the Catholic bishops’ wishes. The Catholic ethos of Les Miserables and a wacky petition to have the Catholic Church designated a hate group round of the first show of 2013. Welcome back for the sixth full year of The 15th Station.

It’s been a big month for Pope Benedict — the man himself, and a caricature of him in New Zealand. The panel chats in this Christmas episode of The 15th Station about the Pope’s new book on Jesus, Benedict featuring in an ad for a power company that seems to promote gay marriage (and the reaction from the Church to that), as well as his new document looking at Catholic identity. There’s also reflection on a New Zealand Anglican bishop getting a new post at the Vatican and a new take on the New Evangelisation.

In this month’s episode, James and Gavin discuss the big news out of Australia: the establishment of a Royal Commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse, with the Catholic Church currently public enemy #1 in the country. There’s even a question over the possibility of a similar New Zealand inquiry. What has happened in New Zealand, though, is the “quiet” opening of a new abortion clinic. There wasn’t much quiet in the northern hemisphere, though, with the canonisation of seven new saints and the US bishops speaking on moral issues making a fair amount of noise. Meanwhile, in Malaysia, is this an apparition of Our Lady?

Brendan and Gavin perform a verbal autopsy on last week’s presidential election, looking at the impact of Hurricane Sandy, the campaigns each candidate ran, the changing demographics of the electorate, the economy, the role of the media and so much more. Where does the conservative movement and the Republican Party go from here? Was this a disaster for the party? Was this a ringing endorsement of President Obama and the progressive agenda? With the election now in the rear-view mirror, we’re also having a think about the future of The View from Down Here and we’d love to hear from you about what you’d like. We’re leaning towards a monthly show with an ongoing focus on US culture, religion and politics from a Kiwi perspective. Email us on podcast at station15 dot co dot nz and let us know if that sounds good, or if you have other thoughts.

After months and months of anticipation and expectation, we’re now less than 48 hours away from the first polls closing as the US elects its next president. Three New Zealanders try to read the tea leaves from thousands of miles away, looking at the state of the race at this late stage, analysing how last-minute events can — or did — change the race and finally making a prediction on who will win. Join Brendan, Tim and Gavin as they break it all down with a distinctly New Zealand flavour. And if you think some Catholic leaders are being tough on the Democratic Party and its policies, watch this video we mentioned in the show. Enjoy the election, y’all. Whatever the outcome, we’ll be back to analyse it next week and see who was right and who was wrong.

With under two weeks to go until the presidential election, that naturally dominates this week’s show, covering the story from many angles — the final debate, the polls, the campaigning, the reaction in swing states and the Al Smith Dinner, to name but a few. But Brendan and Gavin also find time to talk about a couple of other important stories, including an analysis of the “War on Religion” in the US and the canonisation of the first Native American saint (see awesome photo) and another woman whose ministry to lepers in Hawaii laid the path for her canonisation. Enjoy the show, and check back next week for another View from Down Here.

Another week, another debate (or two) and another show packed with a couple of New Zealanders’ views on what is unfolding in the US presidential election. Did Obama win the second debate? Was Biden’s performance forceful or overly aggressive? And what to make of the bishops’ rebuttal of Biden’s comments on the contraception mandate? Those stories and much more in this week’s show as Brendan and Gavin chew the fat. If you want some analysis on one of the second presidential debate’s most contentious moments — the moderator’s on-the-run fact checking of Obama’s use of the phrase act of terror — click here. Or if you want to have some fun with the electoral map and see how the race might pan out, click here. Less than three weeks till the election and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

The magic of the Internet brings Don, James and Gavin together for this month’s episode of The 15th Station, in which the papal butler’s conviction, the sale of a Catholic school to a Muslim education trust and the German bishops’ ruling that Catholics who stop paying a Church tax can’t receive the sacraments all get a run. That story has us a bit stumped, so this blog post (or this one) can offer a more learned exposition of the situation. We also chat about the changing religious landscape in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, and revisit the evolving story of the fresco restoration fail.

The presidential campaign had a possibly game-changing moment last week with challenger Mitt Romney almost universally declared the winner of the first presidential debate and seeing his poll numbers take a nice jump. But will it last? What do the new unemployment figures mean? Will the vice-presidential debate be meaningful? And why is David Letterman calling Romney a felon? Brendan and Gavin also find time to talk about a soon-to-be-canonised American religious sister and declining birth rates. Thanks for listener feedback, too. We’d love to hear from more of you out there.

It’s a pretty heavy show this week, with talk the Pope and bishops giving clear instructions on the role of Christians in politics. Brendan and Gavin also talk about the polls and the Catholic vote, the religion of past presidents and the state of the presidential race. The ongoing saga of the Libyan consulate attack and murder of four Americans also gets some attention, especially the administration’s poor handling of the situation, possibly bordering on telling falsehoods to the American public. There is a little light relief after all that; here’s the clip Brendan referenced from Bill Bailey.

Same-sex marriage continues to dominate Catholic discussion in New Zealand and leads this month’s episode of The 15th Station. With our studio out of action, James and Gavin talk across the oceans about that story, including a sporting analogy that was devised to demonstrate how redefining words is a dangerous precedent. The guys also talk about the tributes for Cardinal Carlo Martini, the possibility of a joint Anglican-Catholic cathedral in Christchurch and the place of Catholicism in the upcoming US election. They end with the story that went around the world — the fresco fiasco. Thanks for listening and we’d love to get your feedback.

With about 10 weeks till the presidential election, The View from Down Here returns with a typically busy show, with discussion of a poll formula that’s predicted the past eight elections, the choice of Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s VP candidate, a couple of convention controversies, a couple of foot-in-mouth situations and efforts to hold the campaigns accountable for spreading falsehoods. Included in the discussions is this exchange between CNN’s Anderson Cooper and DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Enjoy the show.

As we mark the Feast of the Assumption, the patronal feast of New Zealand, The 15th Station celebrates our fifth birthday with a typically full show. Dunedin Bishop Colin Campbell’s strong letter denouncing the proposed opening of an abortion clinic leads the show, but other heavy issues like the Egyptian election, same-sex legislation in New Zealand and the mass shootings at a Sikh temple and a Colorado movie theatre. A big thank you to all our listeners over the past five years, during which time tens of thousands of shows have been downloaded. The show will go on

In Sesame Street style, this month’s episode of The 15th Station is brought to you by the word “repeal”, as we discuss the near repeal of President Obama’s health care legislation, the attempted repeal of the affiliation of a university pro-life club and the possible future repeal of refugees’ rights in New Zealand. Rest assured, though, there have been no attempts to repeal the 15th Station — enjoy the show.

After illness and travel commitment, The View from Down Here returns with a full slate of stories that range from the downright scary to the ridiculous. In the former category is the controversial treatment of Attorney General Eric Holder regarding a policy that saw guns put in the hands of Mexican criminals — guns that were later used to kill an American man. Now, President Obama is using executive privilege to protect Holder. President Obama is also using his executive pen to allow young illegal immigrants to stay in the United States if they’ve been making a contribution to the country. Firmly in the ridiculous category is an Obama campaign suggestion that people use their wedding registry to help bankroll his re-election campaign. And there are plenty of stories between those extremes. Thanks for listening, and we’d love to get your feedback.

The big international stories of the month fell on either sides of Atlantic, with Catholic organisations in the US sue the Obama administration over aspects of its health care reforms while, across in Rome, the Vatican was dealing with a series of documents allegedly leaked by the papal butler. In the Antipodes, Budgets and the ongoing debate about same-sex marriage grabbed headlines. But fear not, we’ve also got our trademark light story for the month.