Shameless Popery

Joe Heschmeyer examines the question: Did Jesus Have to Die on the Cross?

Joe Heschmeyer explores the role of works in salvation and Catholic teaching on the Treasury of Merit.

Joe Heschmeyer breaks down Mel Gibson's recent appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, rebutting his schismatic arguments for Sedevacantism.

Joe Heschmeyer examines Cameron Bertuzi's and Gavin Ortlund's recent videos on the problem of the Biblical Canon.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the question "Are Catholics Christian?" and the problem with the typical Catholic response.

Joe Heschmeyer examines striking new evidence that the early Christians did in fact pray to the saints.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the controversial Christmas song, "Mary Did You Know" and it's theological accuracy

Joe Heschmeyer examines many of the Protestant arguments in favor of Sola Scriptura, how it changed over time and why “un-Biblical” doesn’t mean “anti-Biblical.”   Transcript: Joe: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer and today I want to explore seven Bible verses that I’ve heard Protestants use to support the idea of sola script Torah or the Bible alone. And then why I don’t think any of them actually work if you read them in their proper biblical context. Now, before I go any further, I should really quickly clarify what do...

Joe Heschmeyer discusses when someone should consider becoming Catholic and the pitfalls to watch out for. Transcript:   Joe: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer and one of the questions that I get a lot from people is when do I know that it’s time to become a Catholic? It’s not always worded that way, but you kind of know what I’m talking about. I think maybe you’re a Protestant who watches videos like these and you think, wow, I’ve never heard this before. About one after another issue. You find one after another of your objections to...

Joe Heschmeyer debunks the slew of popular myths about Christmas's pagan origins.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the many meanings of anticipating Christ's coming during the season of Advent.

Joe Heschmeyer debunks seven of the most common myths about the Catholic Church.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the hidden meaning of the season of Advent.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the historical factors that enabled Christianity to conquer the Roman Empire (and how we can do it again.)

Joe Heschmeyer responds to Jordan Peterson's insights into Traditional Liturgy.

Joe Heschmeyer explores Sam Harris's logical fallacies and dogmatic atheism.

Joe Heschmeyer takes to Reddit, exploring the violence-inciting conspiracy of mass graves hidden by the Catholic Church.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the Biblical evidence for Baptism's salvific power.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the history of the Queen Mother among Davidic Kings and what it reveals about Mary.

Joe Heschmeyer examines Simulation Theory, it's coherence, and what it reveals about materialistic atheism.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses arguments against the Papacy made from the writings of St. Ignatius of Antioch.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the biblical evidence for bishops and the clerical hierarchy.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses the theological implications of false predictions from the Seventh day Adventists and Jehovah's Witnesses.

Joe Heschmeyer revisits the problem of essential doctrines and why Protestant apologists all fail to answer it.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the biblical evidence in support of confessing your sins to a priest.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the supposed pagan origins of Halloween or "All Hallows Eve" and answers the question: Should Christians boycott Halloween?

Joe Heschmeyer examines the martyrdom of St. Tarcisius and what it reveals about the early church.

Joe Heschmeyer examines mythicist arguments to answer the question: Was Jesus a Myth?

Joe Heschmeyer explores how the Eucharistic Theology of the early church was used to fight the heresy of gnosticism and what widespread denial of Christ's true presence in the blessed sacrament says about modern Christianity.

Joe Heschmeyer examines Protestant critiques of papal authority and the problem of personal interpretation.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the evidence found in Ignatius of Antioch's writings proving that the early church was indeed Catholic.

Joe Heschmeyer reveals how the heresy of Gnostism has permeated Protestant doctrine.

Joe Heschmeyer responds to Dr. Gavin Ortlund's claim that Roman Catholics disagree about the essential doctrines of Christianity as much as Protestants do.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses the way in which we are called to be instruments of salvation in light of Acts 4: 12 "there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved."

Joe Heschmeyer examines the true biblical meaning of "worship," how it relates to the second commandment, and what Evangelical Protestantism is missing.

Joe Heschmeyer exposes one fatal flaws in Protestantism that unravels the whole movement.

Joe Heschmeyer explains why the Catholic doctrine of the papacy isn’t solely based on Matthew 16:18 offering insights from his book, Pope Peter.

Joe Heschmeyer explores the complex theological implications of Judas' betrayal, examining whether Jesus' choice of Judas suggests a deeper, potentially troubling divine plan.

Joe Heschmeyer discusses objections to Mary's perpetual virginity, offering a unique perspective on this Catholic Doctrine in light of Christ's virgin tomb and the biblical meaning of "holiness."

Joe Heschmeyer explores the unique mystery of the Church revealed by Judas, the apostle who betrayed Christ.

Joe Heschmeyer responds to Mike Grendon's recent appearance on Allie Beth Stuckey's podcast "Relatable," addressing his numerous lies about The Roman Catholic Church.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses misinterpretations of the prophecy in Danial 2, while presenting a balanced view of it's relationship to the Catholic Church.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses one of the most common verses cited in arguments against the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses common objections to the Assumption of Mary, showing why they ultimately fail. Transcription: Joe: Welcome back to Shameless Popery; I’m Joe Heschmeyer. So the assumption of Mary, that Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven was not declared a dog bomb the Catholic church until 1950. Some of you watching or listening to this were literally alive when that happened. So I completely understand when Protestants are dubious and say, I don’t think there’s a good biblical or historical case for that dogma. What I want to do today is explore what I think ...

Joe Heschmeyer addresses Christ's use of parables in the Gospels and the contention around apparent biblical ambiguities as they relate to Protestants, Catholics, and non-Christians.

Joe Heschmeyer tackles wide ranging errors about the differences between men and women, revealing the authentic, Catholic view of male/female difference.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the Old and New Testaments in this biblical proof for Christ's real presence in the Eucharist.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the process of in vitro fertilization (IVF), it's many violations of human dignity, and horrifying implications.

Joe Heschmeyer dispels confusion about the subject of female ordination, examining the meaning of priesthood and what it reveals about God.

Joe Heschmeyer responds to Alex O'Connor's claims about Biblical inconsistency in his debate with Dinesh D'Souza.

Joe Heschmeyer addresses theological claims about the Trump assassination attempt and his seemingly miraculous survival.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the evidence of miracles and the case they make for Catholicism's validity.

Joe Heschmeyer responds to the popular "one less God" argument for atheism, showing how it fails on many fronts.

Joe Heschmeyer examines the subject of demonic activity, posession, and exorcism and the case it presents for the truthfulness of Catholicism. Transcription: Demonic possessions, miraculous cures, exorcisms. These things play a pretty big part of the New Testament story as Graham 12 tree points out, the academic dean for the London School of Theology. Of all the activities associated with Jesus in the synoptic gospels, Matthew, mark, and Luke exorcism appears to be the single activity that took the greatest amount of his time. Now, you would not know that listening to the way a lot of modern C...

Joe Heschmeyer responds to the "who created God" argument. Drawing on philosophical insights, he challenges atheists to move beyond this flawed argument and explore more substantial discussions about the existence and nature of God.

In this 4th of July special, Joe Heschmeyer tackles Christian questions about patriotism and how it relates to our life in Christ.

Who decided which books belong in the Bible? How many books did they decide? Do we today as Christians have the right ones? Joe Heschmeyer covers these questions and more in today's episode.

Joe Heschmeyer explores what constituted Sacred Scripture in the time of Jesus. Transcription: Joe: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. What did the Bible look like at the time of Jesus? That’s the question I want to explore today. Did it look more or less like the Bibles that we have carrying around our bone, personal KJV or RSV or ESV or NAB or whatever, or did it look radically different than that? And I think we’re going to find out the answer is it looks radically different and in some ways that are really important for how we make sense of the Bible itself. I want to start by j...

Joe Heschmeyer goes toe to toe with Chat-GPT, rebutting the internet's best large language model's arguments against Catholicism.

Some representatives of the Southern Baptist Convention announced that they're going to push for the SBC to officially adopt the Nicene Creed. Creedsare necessary but can Baptists actually affirm the Nicene Creed in good faith? Joe Heschmeyer addresses this question and more in today's episode of Shameless Popery.

Joe Heschemeyer picks apart a popular 101 video on Martin Luther's revolt, pointing out many painfully common factual inaccuracies.

In this episode, Joe Heschmeyer explores the historical evidence surrounding 2 Kings 19 and the mysterious destruction of the Assyrian armies. Transcription: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Hess Meyer. So I want to start with a strange passage from the Old Testament. It’s Isaiah 37, verse 36, and it says that the angel of the Lord went forth and slew 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when men arose early in the morning, behold these were all dead bodies. Then Rab King of Assyria departed and went home and dwelt at Nineveh. So this is a strange passage for a number...

Protestants sometimes object that we shouldn't (or at least don't need to) ask the Saints and angels for their prayers, since we can go directly to God.

Asking Mary and the Saints to pray for us might seem (at best) inefficient or (at worst) like it undermines the sovereignty of God. But here’s an argument you may not have heard before about how the sovereignty of God is **better** revealed in the intercessory role of the saints and angels. Transcript: Welcome back to Shameless Popery, I’m Joe Heschmeyer. Today, I want to explore what is, at least to me, a new answer or a new argument that I’ve heard to a question that if you are a Catholic, I’m sure you’ve heard many times, “Why pray to Mary, why pray to th...

The Catholic Church is no stranger to controversy and scandal, whether it be the Crusades or the Inquisition or the role of Catholics in the colonization of the New World, or more recent scandals like the sexual abuse scandal. And non-Catholics might hear about all of these things and wonder, “how can you remain Catholic despite these things?” Here are some straightforward tips about what to say in response to that question… and what NOT to say.   Transcript: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer. I want to discuss the issue of responding to scandal today. I’m g...

Modern Christians tend to misunderstand two of Jesus’ most radical teachings: his prohibition against divorce and remarriage, and his teaching about the Church. But what if this isn’t just a coincidence? After all, the biblical texts explaining marriage tend to do so by comparing it to Christ’s relationship with the Church, and vice versa. Does this explain why the Protestant Reformers broke with the earliest Christians (and the New Testament) on both of these doctrines? And also… does getting this wrong open the door to polygamy?   Transcript: Welcome back to Sham...

Jesus’ teaching on marriage (and particularly on divorce and remarriage) is so radical that his stunned disciples respond, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is not expedient to marry” (Matt. 19:10). So what is Jesus’ radical teaching, and why don’t more Christians know about (or follow) that teaching? And is it true that Jesus creates an “exception” for divorce and remarriage in cases of adultery? (Answer: no.) ...

In light of the war between Israel and Palestine, accusations of anti-Semitism in the fight between Ben Shaprio and Candace Owens, and some of your own comments… how SHOULD Christians think of biblical Israel, the Jewish people, and the modern nation-state of Israel? What role, if any, does the Old Covenant play today? And is it heretical to speak of the Jewish people as still the “people of God” in any sense? ...

In Acts 5, when the Apostles are on trial before the Sanhedrin, a Pharisee named Gamaliel (the same Gamaliel that St. Paul studied under) provided a simple test to determine if a religion really came from God or not. So what was his test, and what does it mean for the credibility and legitimacy of Catholicism, Protestantism, Mormonism, and Islam? ...

As Catholics, it’s easy to point out how divided Protestantism is, with all of its different denominations. But what about all of the divisions within Catholicism between “conservative” and “liberal” Catholics, Traditionalists, Charismatics, or a thousand other possible splits? As it turns out, the objection that Catholics are just as divided as Protestants isn’t a new one… and nor is the problem of unity within the one Church. So here’s how St. John Henry Newman, Cardinal Ratzinger, and St. Paul responded to this argument.   Transcript: Wel...

Catholics (and Orthodox) believe that the Church is infallible, whereas Protestants tend to believe that only the Bible is unerring in this way. But which of these approaches looks more like what we see in the Bible itself? Here’s how Jesus’ teachings only work with Infallibility.   Transcript: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer. So I want to do a two-week series this week and next week on the theme of Christian Unity, and I’m purposely syncing this up to tie with next week being holy Thursday in which we have the last Supper because it’s at...

Each year on St. Patrick’s Day, certain Baptists will claim that St. Patrick wasn’t REALLY a Catholic, but was instead a Baptist. But what do we learn from listening to St. Patrick in his own words? And what do we know about the world of St. Patrick from those who lived during his lifetime? As it turns out, Patrick was way more Catholic than you may realize… and he was quite explicit about this fact!   Transcript: Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer. So St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner, which means I’m wearing a green shirt, ...

Christopher Hitchens famously claimed that “religion poisons everything,” and Steven Weinberg argued that “with or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil; but for good people to do evil – that takes religion.” Here are six reasons those are silly arguments. Welcome back to Shameless Popery. I’m Joe Heschmeyer. So about 20 years ago, we saw the rise of what’s sometimes called New Atheism, although it’s not that new anymore. It was kind of the convalescence of a number of authors and thinkers, people like Richard Dawkins, Christopher H...

To a lot of non-Catholics, it seems obvious that Catholics go overboard when it comes to Mary, and a lot of people assume this is just because of traditions or something.

As far back as we have evidence that Matthew, Mark, Luke,and John are the four Gospels, we have evidence that these same Christians believed that the Virgin Mary had a special role to play in the story of our salvation as the “New Eve,” and that  “the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what Eve had bound fast through unbelief, thus did Mary set free through faith.” But is this vision of Mary based on the Bible? and what does it mean for Christianity? Speaker 1: You are listening to Shameless Popery with Joe Heschmeyer. A production of Catholic Answers. ...

With the recent end to the NFL season and the dawn of a political rematch between President Joe Biden and President Donald Trump, it seems timely to ask: is it wrong to root AGAINST the other side, instead of just rooting for your own side? Isn't that the sin of envy? Well... it depends.

Should Christians celebrate Lent? or is Lent an unchristian invention of the Roman Catholic Church?

The Protestant Reformer John Calvin claimed that from all eternity, God has predestined some people to heaven (the elect) and others to hell (the reprobate), and there's nothing anyone can do to go from one category to the other.

While Catholics and Protestants often debate what St. Paul and St. James mean about justification, what if we're missing the sola fide silver bullet?

For the Protestant Reformers, and for many Protestants today, justification by faith alone (sola fide) isn’t just the biggest issue separating Protestants from Catholics. It is “the central, chief article by which the Christian doctrine and the Christian Church stands and falls,” and without this teaching, Luther claimed that “the church of God cannot subsist one hour.” But is any of that true? Or did the Church subsist for 1500 years before the Reformers invented sola fide? Here’s what the finest Protestant scholars have to say about early Christianity̷...