Podcasts about american christianity

What if one of the most important political symbols in American evangelicalism isn't a campaign slogan, a policy platform, or a charismatic preacher, but a worship song? In this episode of the Straight White American Jesus Sunday Interview, host Leah Payne speaks with Religion News Service journalist Bob Smietana about his reporting on the unexpected political life of Chris Tomlin's worship anthem "How Great Is Our God." Over the past several years, the song has appeared everywhere from the Capitol Riots to ReAwaken America rallies and Sean Feucht events, to the memorial service for Charlie Kirk. Yet unlike overtly political songs such as "God Bless the USA," "How Great Is Our God" contains no explicit political message at all. So why has it become such a powerful soundtrack for conservative Christian activism? Drawing on his reporting for NPR's All Things Considered, and Payne's God Gave Rock and Roll to You: a History of Contemporary Christian Music, Smietana and Payne discuss the rise of “Christian Nashville-ism," the fusion of the worship music industry, suburban evangelical culture, celebrity influence, and political identity. Nashville's Christian music machine has produced a soundtrack so ubiquitous that it now functions as a kind of sacred common language across American Christianity. In an era of political polarization, worship songs provide emotional resonance, spiritual legitimacy, and a sense of collective identity that can easily travel into political spaces. Together, Payne and Smietana explore how contemporary worship music became one of the most influential forms of religious formation in American life. They discuss the rise of Chris Tomlin and the Passion movement, the mainstreaming of charismatic worship practices, the growing overlap between worship culture and conservative politics, and the role of suburban megachurches in shaping modern evangelical identity. The conversation also examines how Christian nationalism often operates less through overt ideology than through atmosphere, familiarity, nostalgia, and music. Why do songs matter so much in political movements? What happens when worship becomes a form of cultural power? And why has a seemingly apolitical worship song become one of the defining sounds of conservative evangelical America? In this episode: Why "How Great Is Our God" has become a fixture at conservative political events The relationship between worship music and conservative activism Nashville's role as a center of evangelical cultural power Chris Tomlin, the Passion movement, and the mainstreaming of charismatic worship How worship music became the dominant language of American Protestantism Charlie Kirk, Sean Feucht, and the politics of sacred music The rise of suburban megachurch culture and its political influence Why contemporary worship songs often succeed where political slogans fail "Comfort food Christian nationalism" and the power of familiarity The overlap between MAGA politics, evangelical identity, and worship culture Links: Bob Smietana's NPR article: “Why an Apolitical Worship Song Has Become Popular With Conservative Activists” Adam Perez: ““It's Your Breath in Our Lungs”: Sean Feucht's Praise and Worship Music Protests and the Theological Problem of Pandemic Response in the U.S.” Worship Leader Research Leah Payne's God Gave Rock and Roll to You: a History of Contemporary Christian Music Bob Smietana Official Website Bob Smietana at Religion News Service Bob Smietana's book, Reorganized Religion: The Reshaping of the American Church and Why It Matters: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Faith, power, and politics have become deeply intertwined in our culture, leaving many Christians asking hard questions:  Is this what following Jesus is meant to look like? And how do we stay faithful when the way of Jesus seems so different from the voices claiming to speak for him? In this episode, Dan Allender and Rachael Clinton Chen welcome Rev. Rob Schenck back to the podcast for an honest conversation about power, discipleship, and the state of American Christianity. Together, they explore the difference between the way of Jesus and the pursuit of control, the cost of discipleship, and why humility, grief, and love matter more than ever. If you've felt confused, discouraged, or unsettled by the intersection of faith and politics, we hope this conversation offers both perspective and hope as we consider what it means to follow Jesus in a complicated time. About the Allender Center Podcast: For over a decade, the Allender Center Podcast has offered honest, thoughtful conversations about the deep work of healing and transformation. Hosted by Dr. Dan Allender and Rachael Clinton Chen, MDiv, this weekly podcast explores the complexities of trauma, abuse recovery, story, relationships, and spiritual formation. Through questions submitted by listeners, stories, interviews, and conversations, we engage the deep places of heartache and hope that are rarely addressed so candidly in our culture today. Join the Allender Center Podcast to uncover meaningful perspectives and support for your path to healing and growth. At the Allender Center, we value thoughtful dialogue across a wide range of voices, stories, and lived experiences. In that spirit, our podcast features guests and hosts who may hold differing perspectives. The perspectives shared on this podcast by guests and hosts reflect their own experiences and viewpoints and do not necessarily represent the views, positions, or endorsements of the Allender Center and/or The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. Stream each episode, plus find transcripts, additional resources, and more at: theallendercenter.org/podcast To become a supporter of the Allender Center Podcast, visit: https://theallendercenter.org/2025/11/podcast-support/

This week we bring you a conversation between Eric Cohen, president and CEO of Tikvah, and the former vice-president of the United States, Mike Pence. The conversation was recorded before a live audience at the Fund for American Studies, and we are grateful to our friends at TFAS for the invitation and for the work they do: forming young leaders in the principles of individual liberty, free markets, and honorable leadership, and sending them out to advance the cause of a free society in their communities and around the world. The conversation opens where so much American reflection on these questions begins, with George Washington's letters to the Jews of Newport and Savannah—the promise of religious liberty on the one hand, and the vision of America as a providential, almost-chosen nation on the other. Those two ideas do not sit together easily, and Cohen and the vice-president think together about what they mean and how they relate: the biblical sources of the founding, the place of Scripture in American education, the case for school choice and the renewal of the universities, and the meaning of federalism in the conservative project. At the heart of this conversation is a fascinating discussion about American expressions of Christianity. Cohen, speaking as a religious Jew, believes that the strengthening of American Christianity is the surest hope for American renewal, and he also warns that a strain of anti-Semitism now gathering strength on the political right would turn that Christianity to perverse ends. To these comments Vice-President Pence adds his reflections about religious culture, and together, Cohen and Pence arrive at a description of a Hebraic Christianity and a Hebraic America—a country that understands the Hebrew Bible not as an atavistic relic, but as the foundation it has in fact always been. This episode of The Tikvah Podcast is generously sponsored by Jessica and PJ Heyer. If you are interested in sponsoring an episode of The Tikvah Podcast, we invite you to join the Tikvah Ideas Circle. Visit tikvah.org/circle to learn more and join.

Truth has never been determined by popularity. Beliefs are constantly being redefined and cultural opinions shift from one generation to the next, many people are asking an important question: Where should we look for truth? The pressure to conform has never been greater. What happens when faith and culture collide? How do believers stay rooted in Scripture while navigating difficult conversations surrounding morality, identity, truth, and the future of the Church?Examine the foundations of your faith, think critically about the influences shaping modern Christianity, and consider what it means to remain anchored in God's Word in an increasingly uncertain world. At the end of the day, culture will continue to change, but God's Word never will. As believers, our foundation cannot be public opinion, political movements, or the spirit of the age. It must be Jesus Christ and the truth revealed in Scripture. The question is not whether the Bible aligns with culture, but whether our lives align with the Bible.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark Driscoll is one of the most documented bullies in modern American Christianity — so why do people keep following him? In this conversation, Amy Hawk and I dig into the pattern: from the collapse of Mars Hill Church to his current Trinity Church in Arizona, and the lawsuit he's now filed against a pastor who walked away. We play the clips and let Driscoll speak for himself — the pulpit rants, the "biblical manhood" that looks a lot more like intimidation than discipleship. Then we ask the harder question: what is it about this brand of domineering, fear-based leadership that still draws crowds, builds platforms, and gets a national stage? We look at the documented behavior, hold it up against the character Scripture actually calls for in a leader, and try to understand why so many Christians mistake cruelty for courage — and control for conviction. If you've ever sat under a leader like this, or watched someone you love get pulled in, this one's for you.

America has produced some of the most influential religious movements in modern history. But what happens when charismatic leaders claim new revelation, unique authority, or exclusive access to God's truth?

Can you keep sinning and still go to heaven? Is it okay to support a friend who just told you she had an abortion? How do you honor a parent who says they're a Christian but doesn't live like one? These are the kinds of questions most people are afraid to ask out loud.In this Fire Away Q&A service, Pastor Brian and Pastor Brandon sit on stage together and answer the questions our congregation texts in live. No script, no preselected questions, no editing. Just real pastoral answers to the things people are actually wrestling with.Pastor Brandon opens with the apologetic question: how do you reach a family member who loves history but is on the fence about the gospel? He points to the historical credibility of the gospel accounts, especially the witness of the women at the resurrection in a culture that did not value women's testimony, 1 Corinthians 15 where Paul says you could still go talk to people who saw the risen Jesus, the work of scholars like Wes Huff and Lee Strobel, and the wild improbability of the disciples inventing a story they would die violent deaths to defend.The conversation gets harder fast with the abortion question. Pastor Brian and Pastor Brandon walk slowly through what it means to love someone who has done something Scripture calls sin without endorsing the sin. Be available. Play the long relational game. Pray that one day God uses you to point them not just to the gravity of what they have done, but to the cross that has already paid for it.On honoring a parent who says they are a Christian but does not live like one, Pastor Brian unpacks the difference between obey and honor, why honor has to transcend even decades of disappointment, why dishonor is just drinking poison and hoping the other person dies, and why the deeper question may not be "how do I confront this person" but "does this person actually need to be born again?"They tackle tattoos (mostly a conscience question for New Testament believers, not the Old Testament Canaanite context many people assume), the best advice for newlyweds (Pastor Brian's encouragement to pray together out loud regularly, and Pastor Brandon's reminder to find a community of other young couples who love Jesus), and they close with one of the most asked questions in modern American Christianity. If I keep sinning, can I lose my salvation?Pastor Brian's answer here is worth the whole service. You did not behave your way into salvation, and you cannot behave your way out of it. But do not play games with God either. The reason you are saved is to be sanctified. If your sin is bothering you, lean into that conviction. A bruised reed Jesus will not break, and a smoldering wick of faith he will not put out (Isaiah 42:3).If you have ever had real questions about heaven, sin, family, marriage, or doubt that nobody around you was answering, this teaching is for you. Skip to the chapter that sounds most like your story, or watch the whole thing.

Preaching: Ben ConachanDuring the long stretch of the Christian year from Advent to Pentecost, we are invited to ponder the mysteries of Christ: incarnation, atonement, resurrection. The remainder of the year, Ordinary Time, turns to the generations of every day saints, the Jesus-followers who keep pushing the Divine Story forward. In an age where American Christianity seems to have lost the plot, we can turn to the stories and examples of mystics and poets, women and outsiders who have kept the way of Jesus alive in times ancient and modern. This series will explore pairs of saints whose lives and writings inspire us to keep moving forward today.This week, St. Francis and Wendell Berry guide us into a different kind of Christian imagination—one where creation isn't a backdrop to human salvation but belongs to it, and where learning to love the world around us turns out to be some of the most ancient and most human work there is.Pearl Church exists to express a sacred story and to extend a common table that animate life by love. A primary expression of our sacred story is the weekly sermon. If our sermons inspire you to ponder the sacred, to consider the mystery and love of God, and to live bountifully, would you consider supporting our work? You can donate easily and securely at our website: pearlchurch.org. Thank you for partnering with us in expressing this sacred story.

20 Minute Takes is back with a new episode featuring Kristin Lee. She's the author of the recently released book: We Mend with Gold: An Immigrant Daughter's Reckoning with American Christianity. In this conversation, she and Nikki Toyama-Szeto discuss the experience of Asian American Christians and how an exilic spirituality informs how Asian American communities can show up today.You can learn more about Kristin and her work here.Follow her on Instagram or Threads.20 Minute Takes is a production of Christians for Social ActionHosted by Nikki Toyama-Szeto Produced by David de LeonEditing and Mixing by Wiloza MediaMusic by Andre Henry

Welcome to Zooming In. I'm Berny Belvedere, senior editor of The UnPopulist. I'm joined today by Raymond Roberts, author of A Democratic and Republican Faith, a theologically serious and hopeful book that recovers what authentic Christian faith actually demands of its adherents, at precisely the moment when so much of American Christianity has lost the plot. Today we discuss what a genuinely God-centered public theology looks like, why MAGA evangelicalism represents a profound departure from it, and what it might take to find our way back. We hope you enjoy.Thanks for checking out The UnPopulist! Subscribe to support our project.© The UnPopulist, 2026Follow us on Bluesky, Threads, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Get full access to The UnPopulist at www.theunpopulist.net/subscribe

In this interview, host Mike Slater sits down with classicist and author Spencer Klavan to explore the origins of American Christianity and the cultural forces that shaped its early development. They discuss how theology, politics, and history intersected in the formation of American religious identity. The conversation challenges common assumptions and uncovers surprising layers of influence behind one of America's most defining traditions.

In this interview, host Mike Slater sits down with classicist and author Spencer Klavan to explore the origins of American Christianity and the cultural forces that shaped its early development. They discuss how theology, politics, and history intersected in the formation of American religious identity. The conversation challenges common assumptions and uncovers surprising layers of influence behind one of America's most defining traditions.

How does a nation build a cult of personality so powerful that it survives for generations? In this episode, I'm joined by Jonathan Cheng, China bureau chief and former Korea bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, to discuss his forthcoming nonfiction book Korean Messiah: Kim Il Sung and the Christian Roots of North Korea's Personality Cult. The book explores one of the most fascinating and unsettling political transformations of the modern era: how the arrival of American Christianity in Korea may have helped shape the quasi-religious cult surrounding Kim Il Sung and the ruling Kim dynasty. This conversation examines history, religion, propaganda, authoritarianism, and the unique political mythology that continues to define North Korea today.

"America was designed to destroy baptism" is a famous quote from Dr. Steven Paulson and his appearance on the Thinking Fellows live show in 2017. Caleb and Scott are joined by Dan van Voorhis to examine the truth behind Dr. Paulson's statement. Together, they explore the rejection of infant baptism in American Protestantism and how this shift has often turned faith and knowledge into meritorious works within Protestant theology. Show Notes: Support 1517 Podcast Network 1517 Podcasts 1517 on Youtube 1517 Podcast Network on Apple Podcasts 1517 Events Schedule 1517 Academy - Free Theological Education What's New from 1517: By Water and the Word by Brian Thomas Being Family by Dr. Scott Keith A Reasoned Defense of the Faith by Adam Francisco Stretched: A Study for Lent and the Entire Christian Life by Dr. Christopher Richmann The Essential Nestingen: Essays on Preaching, Catechism, and the Reformation More from the hosts: Caleb Keith Scott Keith Adam Francisco Bruce Hilman

Whether or not you call yourself religious, there's no denying that religion has an impact on society across the continents. And there is no faith more dominant than Christianity in the United States today. Washington State University professor and historian Matthew A. Sutton can show you just exactly how evangelical Christianity entwines itself with all aspects of the country. Drawing from his book, Chosen Land: How Christianity Made America and Americans Remade Christianity, Sutton chronicles Christians' five-hundred-year endeavor to turn the U.S. into their version of the kingdom of God. In the centuries after Christianity first arrived on American shores, colonizers (and the colonized) practiced many varieties of the faith. Throughout the nation's history, Christianity has maintained influence and power through new and evolving strains of its faith. As U.S. Christianity has fractured and adapted to changing times, the religion has shaped everything from the promise of Manifest Destiny to Ronald Reagan's approach to the Cold War, the rise of the Southern Lost Cause narrative, to the triumphs of the Civil Rights Movement. Through Sutton's research, he explains how faith affects human behavior, which ultimately shapes the world we make. Tracing the faith's major figures and currents, Sutton pinpoints how U.S. Christianity — always both steadfast and precarious — lives at the center of the nation's shared history. Matthew Avery Sutton is the Claudius O. and Mary Johnson Distinguished Professor and department chair in History at Washington State University. He is the author of five other books on the history of American Christianity, including Double Crossed and American Apocalypse, and the recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship. He lives in Pullman, Washington. Bill Radke hosts Week In Review at KUOW. Before that, he created and hosted the NPR humor show Rewind and hosted the Marketplace Morning Report, covering the day's national/international business news. He's been a KUOW reporter, news director, and interview host; also, a stand-up comedian and Seattle P-I newspaper columnist. Buy the Book Chosen Land: How Christianity Made America and Americans Remade Christianity Third Place Books  

A "Concealed Carry Bible Cover" advertised in The Sword of the Lord newspaper stopped me in my tracks. In this episode, we examine the biblical, theological, and cultural issues raised by merging Christianity with tactical and gun culture. What does this reveal about fear, trust, identity, and modern American Christianity?

A "Concealed Carry Bible Cover" advertised in The Sword of the Lord newspaper stopped me in my tracks. In this episode, we examine the biblical, theological, and cultural issues raised by merging Christianity with tactical and gun culture. What does this reveal about fear, trust, identity, and modern American Christianity?

Pastor Jonathan Shelley of Stedfast Baptist Church joins Stew Peters to rip the mask off the Zionist Jewish takeover of Baptist churches and the heretical Israel-worship that's infected American Christianity.

What do non-denominational and Pentecostal churches have in common — and why are they the only two categories of American Christianity consistently growing right now? Brian From digs into new data that points to something deeper than style or structure: a widespread hunger for experiential, Spirit-filled faith in an age where everything feels artificial. Then: Christian nationalism is becoming a household term, and Brian makes the case that the real danger isn't patriotism — it's when Jesus gets used as a lever for political power rather than worshiped as King. A practical word on evangelism that might actually help: forget the clipboard approach and start asking better questions. Three lighter stories — a woman in Alabama who shot her husband for being annoying, a donor who paid off student loans at commencement, and data showing high-powered dads are finally spending more time with their kids. The doctrine of perseverance unpacked: why you'll still be a Christian tomorrow, and it has nothing to do with your strength. And a genuinely clarifying look at what "pray without ceasing" actually means — hint, it's less about bowing your head and more about living in constant communion. Happy birthday, Carrie.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gary Dorrien came to organizing the hard way — canvassing for McGovern in Alma, Michigan in 1972, where people didn't just oppose the candidate, they despised him, and where two doorstep encounters came close enough to violence that he learned the hard way to pair up. He didn't come out of that thinking he'd found his calling. What he found instead was Michael Harrington at a Harvard Divinity School lecture two years later — corduroy jacket, blue work shirt, gently correcting his own introduction — and joined DSOC on the spot. This week's session gave us Gary's full origin story as an organizer: from the McGovern campaign to the Albany years where he co-founded a DSOC chapter, led Central American solidarity work through C-SPACE, and discovered firsthand the cultural chasm between two wings of the left that could barely stand to share a building. Then Aaron took over and introduced three extraordinary guests — Joe Strife,Colleen Wessel-McCoy, and Carolyn Baker — who brought the history of the National Welfare Rights Organization, Beulah Sanders, and the General Baker Institute directly into the room, and turned the question of who should lead into a live theological reckoning. Carolyn did the interview sitting on her mother's childhood porch steps in Dallas, recording oral history from a woman who is still organizing through dementia, which tells you everything you need to know about where this tradition lives and who carries it. If you haven't joined yet, come find us at www.HomebrewedClasses.com — donation-based, including zero. You get Gary's full lecture series, Aaron's supplemental interviews with scholars and organizers, curated readings, discussion guides, and the online community. Next week: James Cone with Charlene Sinclair.  You can WATCH the conversation on YouTube Previous Episodes with Gary or Aaron ⁠the Niebuhr You Thought You Knew⁠ ⁠What Would a New Abolition Be? Gary Dorrien on the Black Social Gospel, Ida B. Wells & Reverdy Ransom⁠ ⁠Social Ethics for This Moment⁠ ⁠What God Do They Worship In There? The Black Social Gospel and the Crisis of American Christianity⁠ ⁠Theological Ethics & Liberal Protestantism⁠ ⁠James Cone and the Emergence of Black Theology⁠ ⁠The Future of Faith & Justice ⁠ ⁠Theology for Action⁠ ⁠The Sacred, The Political, and Why We're All Vulnerable⁠ Come keep thinking with us — ⁠⁠Theology Beer Camp 2026⁠⁠ This is exactly what we will be sitting with at ⁠⁠Theology Beer Camp this October 8–10 in Kansas City⁠⁠. Our theme this year is the God-podcalypse. Cornell West is coming. So are a lot of your favorite theologians and podcasters and six hundred of your soon-to-be-favorite people. We are going to think together about what it means to be a people of faith in catastrophic times — without deodorizing the catastrophe, and without giving despair the last word. Don't wait. → ⁠⁠TheologyBeer.Camp⁠ JOIN ⁠⁠⁠THE CLASS - Theology for Troublemakers: Christian Social Ethics from the Margins⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ This 6-week online course, led by Dr. Gary Dorrien and Dr. Aaron Stauffer, recovers the radical tradition of Christian social ethics — from Reverdy Ransom and Reinhold Niebuhr to James Cone and the Welfare Rights Movement — and asks what faithfulness demands of us right now. Weekly lectures, live Q&A conversations, guest lecturers, and an online community included.

Kim Song Ju, the man who would become Kim Il Sung, was born to devout Presbyterian parents. Billy Graham's wife was born to christian missionaries in China and went to high school in Pyongyang. American protestants once spread the gospel in northwest Korea and found fertile ground for their gospel message. Kim listened, learned, and used those teachings to shape a cult of personality that rules North Korea to this day.On this episode of Angry Planet I'm joined by Wall Street Journal China bureau chief Jonathan Cheng to talk about his new book Korean Messiah. Cheng's work is an exploration of the origins of North Korea and Kim's deep ties to American Christianity.ShareAngry Planet as dress rehearsalBilly Graham in the Hermit Kingdom19th century Protestant missionaries in KoreaPresbyterians in the untamed northwestUntangling the history of a self-made godkingThe Kim Song Ju nativityWomen without namesAttending church during the Fire and Fury periodThe Soviet eraLeading from beyond the graveKim bombs his first public appearanceBuy Korean MessiahSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, the fellas discuss “American” Christianity.

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha moderated a discussion with Jonathan Cheng on how the surprising ties between the Kim dynasty and American Christianity shaped North Korea's leadership, and how power, belief, and narrative intersect in the hermit kingdom, influencing dynamics in Northeast Asia and the broader international landscape.

F. W. Walther is well known in Lutheran circles but less so in other churches. He is important for his insistence on the true gospel - the good news that Christ has done everything that's necessary for our salvation. He is also a good example of facing new challenges with humility and courage. Join Linus, Leia, and Christian as they discuss the importance of C. F. W. Walther with Dr. Larry Rast, president and professor of American Christianity and American Lutheranism at Concordia Theological Seminary in Indiana.

Message by Chris Brown on May 2, 2026. Have you ever noticed it's much easier to call yourself a Christian than to actually live like a follower of Christ? Today we'll look at one of the biggest reasons why, and how it's become a major stumbling block in American Christianity. The topic of willingly laying down our rights for others is a tough one to swallow, but Jesus will show why it is necessary, and how to do it. Video available on YouTube at https://youtu.be/fYAbFdiPnKs?si=5_0563krHmjcB3vn - Live Notes available at https://churchlinkfeeds.blob.core.windows.net/notes/38370/note-266185.html

Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky---Exploring Fyodor Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground, hosts unpack the dangers of self-deception and the challenge of living with integrity as a leader. They analyze how self-awareness without mastery leads to alienation, the importance of matching words with actions, and the societal consequences of habitual lying. The episode weaves Dostoevsky's legacy with real-world leadership, discussing how courage and honest self-examination are vital in modern organizations.Book Title: Notes from UndergroundAuthor: Fyodor DostoevskyGuests: Jesan Sorrells (Host), Dr. Hana Kabele Gala (Guest)---Time Stamped Overview---00:00 The enduring power of truth06:38 Introducing Co-Host Dr. Hana Kabele Gala12:52 Discussing Dostoyevsky's challenging books20:55 Living and writing in Arkansas22:52 Dostoevsky's productivity and inspirations30:58 Dr. Hana Kabele Gala's Internship with Vaclav Havel33:44 Christianity and modern evangelicalism40:04 Dealing with societal challenges48:26 Navigating choices as a leader52:46 Discussing moral courage and context56:37 Struggling with self-identity01:03:10 Discussion on storytelling and conflict01:09:16 Meaningless corporate mission statements01:12:17 AI's impact on middle management01:20:07 Mentoring and coaching team members01:22:51 Putting aside self-righteousness01:29:04 Seeking constructive feedback01:36:46 Money and social status in Russia01:42:45 American perception of wealth and class01:45:33 Comparing serfdom and chattel slavery01:53:27 American Christianity's future challenges01:57:30 Lessons from Dostoevsky's characters---Dr. Hana Kabele Gala Substack, Tough Cookies - https://hanakabelegala.substack.com/ Dr. Hana Kabele Gala LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hanakabelegala/Dr. Hana Kabele Gala Website - https://www.rtncwithhana.com/The Way of Integrity by Martha Beck - https://www.amazon.com/Way-Integrity-Finding-Path-Your/dp/1984881507/On Bullshit by Harry Frankfurt - https://www.amazon.com/Bullshit-Harry-G-Frankfurt/---Opening theme composed by Felipe Sarro - Bach - Silotti - "Air"  from Orchestra Suite No. 3, BWV 1068 Closing theme composed by Brian Sanyshyn of Brian Sanyshyn Music.---Pick up your copy of 12 Rules for Leaders: The Foundation of Intentional Leadership NOW on AMAZON!Check out the Leadership Lessons From the Great Books podcast reading list!---Subscribe to the Leadership Lessons From The Great Books Podcast: https://bit.ly/LLFTGBSubscribeCheck out Leadership ToolBox at: https://leadershiptoolbox.us/ ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

J. P. Moreland starts his book by explaining the loss of the Christian mind in American Christianity and what that has done to the church. NOTE—If you wish to listen to previous podcasts that cover different parts of this book, go to podbean and look at the five choices listed right above the podcasts (Home, Subscribe, Profile, Connect, and the search icon). Click on the search icon and type in the name of the book. Book: Love Your God With All Your Mind by J. P. Moreland Purchase book here   I'm Gary Zacharias, a professor of English, avid reader, and passionate follower of Jesus Christ. This podcast is for anyone curious about the intellectual foundation of the Christian faith. Each episode, I feature a key book on topics like the existence of God, the historical evidence for Jesus, science and Christianity, or the reliability of the Bible. These are the books that have earned a permanent place on my apologetics bookshelf—and I want to share them with you. Contact me: theapologistsbookshelf@gmail.com

In this wide-ranging conversation, Georgetown Professor Joshua Mitchell explains why America remains a deeply Hebraic, covenantal nation — and why the current culture war is best understood as a distorted continuation of the Reformation.From the Plato-Aristotle divide to Luther's turn to history, from Tocqueville's warnings to the spiritual economy of stain and redemption, Mitchell offers a profound diagnosis of where American Christianity stands today. Watch until the end for a hopeful (yet challenging) path forward.CHAPTERS(00:00 Introduction & The Article That Sparked a National Conversation)(04:20 The Great Schism: Plato vs Aristotle & East vs West)(11:45 Why the Catholic Church Chose Aristotle — And Its Consequences)(18:50 The Reformation: Luther's Historical Dialectic vs Calvin's Covenantal Path)(27:15 America as a New Israel — The Hebraic Soul of the Nation)(35:40 Identity Politics as Deformed Puritanism)(44:10 Evangelicals, Conservatives & the Path Forward for Reformation Christians)  JOSHUA MITCHELL LINKS:

What's up, family?! Join us for this Flashback Friday Episode on Christian Nationalism. We think given the times, this episode is very relevant even all these years later. Please don't forget to tap in with us on Patreon.com/SouthsideRabbi for all of your favorite bonus content, special episodes, Discord access, early releases and other great resources! Original Description: We have some important questions to discuss this episode! Namely, has the civic religion of American Christianity become a worthless replica of the original? Does the Big Bicep Curling Machine really give you Schwarzenegger-sized biceps in 15 minutes? Is the English language superior to Spanish? Does "success cover a multitude of sins?" Rock with us and dig through the Scriptures to find out!

Mike Madrid (Author of The Latino Century) joins Host Ron Steslow to examine America's growing crisis of purpose and how that crisis is showing up across politics, technology, corruption, religion, and war They begin with Justice Clarence Thomas's recent speech on the Declaration of Independence, natural rights, progressivism, and the proper role of government. From there, they turn to Palantir CEO Alex Karp's vision of a “technological republic,” Silicon Valley's moral obligations to national defense, and the dangerous temptation to sacrifice individual rights in the name of preserving the West. Next, they examine the normalization of corruption, from tariff refund profiteering and market manipulation to political betting and the broader cultural shift toward “get yours before the system collapses.” Then they discuss President Trump's clash with Pope Leo XIV over the war in Iran, the use of religious language to justify military action, and the battle inside American Christianity over nationalism, moral authority, and political power. In Politicology+, they discuss Virginia as the latest front in America's redistricting wars and what it reveals about the deeper rot in our politics.  POLITICOLOGY+ Not yet a Politicology+ member? Don't miss all the extra episodes on the private, ad-free version of this podcast. Upgrade now at politicology.com/plus. CONTRIBUTE TO POLITICOLOGY politicology.com/donate SPONSORS & PROMO CODES https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8 Send your questions and ideas to podcast@politicology.com or leave a voicemail at ‪(703) 239-3068‬ Follow this week's panel on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/RonSteslow https://x.com/madrid_mike Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The specter of Christian nationalism, and discussion of American Christianity more broadly, has risen to the cultural forefront in recent months. Hegseth and Wilson advocate for a Protestant vision of America in the halls of the military. The majority-Catholic Supreme Court receives both praise and criticism for its handling of religious freedom and gay rights cases. The Trump administration (which has several prominent Catholic members, including the vice president) and the Vatican's rocky relations famously came to a head just weeks ago when the president criticized the pope for opposing the war in Iran. And the rising star of Presbyterian seminarian and staunch progressive James Talarico in Texas has opened new conversations about Christian politics, including debates and divisions among other prominent Christians about how to receive him. In the background of all these recent examples is the ongoing debate about whether American Christianity is undergoing a revival — that is, whether a country that has long been on a decades-long shift away from Christianity is suddenly re-embracing faith.Our nation has a long tradition with Christianity. However, it also has a long tradition of keeping Christianity (or any religion) outside of our government. For a lot of Americans who believe in the principled separation of church and state, Christian nationalism has become a primary concern — particularly among secular or non-Christian Americans. The prominence of Christianity in U.S. politics, and in right-wing politics in particular, is intimidating. That's especially true when the precepts that underlie Christian political activity aren't well understood, and when a wide variety of people claim to be working from the same religious principles but disagree on fundamental issues like abortion and welfare and marriage and immigration. But not all Christian political activity is, in fact, Christian nationalism. Much of it is actually normal political activity, simply based on an underlying Christian worldview — no different from political activity that's based on a secular worldview, or a Muslim worldview, or a Jewish one. In fact, the term Christian nationalism is often ill defined, even among those who use it for themselves — sometimes used as a call for total Christian control of the government and sometimes used simply to describe political figures who speak publicly about their faith.Ad-free podcasts are here!To unlock the rest of this podcast ad-free, and to enjoy our subscriber only premium content, go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. Our Executive Producer is Jon Lall.This podcast Written by: Audrey Moorehead and audio edited and mixed by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Lindsey Knuth, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

**Special note to our listeners**Love the show? Help us keep the conversation going! Become a paid subscriber through our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Substack.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Your contributions help us continue to make content on issues related to the Asian-American, immigrant, modern parent experience.THANK YOU to our super awesome listeners who have already signed up!--------------------------------------We know, we're potentially opening up a can of worms with this new series on Faith & Spirituality. Religion, spirituality, faith, worldview, whatever you might call it - it is usually a very private matter in the United States and one that can be full of judgment. At the same time, it is something that informs our values, our choices and how we parent. So in keeping with our style, we decided to dive headlong into it. We aim to speak honestly from our personal experience, based on the mutual trust we have among the three of us and our listeners. We are not aiming to "convert" anyone to our viewpoint but to give visibility to this intimate but very central part of our lived experience.In this episode, we speak with Kristin Lee, a Chinese-American physician, mom, wife and author of We Mend With Gold- An Immigrant Daughter's Reckoning with American Christianity. She talks about the deep joys as well as the misgivings she experienced growing up in the Asian-American church, and the questions that she wrestled with as a young adult. We also discuss the relationship between the white American church and more marginalized Christian voices and how mending those often fractured relationships can lead to a more healthy, beautiful and authentic faith community.To learn more about Kristin's work, check out:Book: We Mend with GoldIG: @ktlee.writesWebsite: https://kristintlee.com/

Deconstructing Christianity doesn't mean abandoning the faith — it means finally growing into one. In this video, we walk through Brian McLaren's four stages of faith and ask the question the Evangelical Church doesn't want to answer: why does MAGA Christianity keep getting stuck at Stage One? If you've spent years inside evangelical certainty only to find it collapsing under the weight of real questions, this is for you. Drawing on McLaren's Faith After Doubt, we map the journey from Simplicity through Complexity and Perplexity — and into what a mature, reconstructed faith actually looks like on the other side. Whether you're exvangelical, still inside the church but quietly questioning, or an atheist trying to understand why American Christianity went so sideways — this framework explains it all.

In an attempt to make churches more attractive and relevant, over the decades, many pastors effectively stopped preaching and teaching the contents of the Bible, and this has resulted in a significant decrease in basic Bible literacy among Christians across all denominations. Thirty years ago today, a diverse group of leaders and theologians met in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to address this and other challenges, and they produced an important document called The Cambridge Declaration. This program features audio from the 1996 meeting featuring R.C. Sproul, James M. Boice, David Wells, Michael Horton, Gene Veith, W. Robert Godfrey, and others.SHOW NOTESBooksHere We Stand, 2026 edition, Jim Boice & Ben Sasse (editors)No Place for Truth, David WellsGod in the Wasteland, David WellsReaching Out Without Dumbing Down, Marva DawnPeculiar Speech, Peculiar Speech, William WillimonChristless Christianity, Michael HortonThe Christian Mind, Harry BlamiresChristianity & Liberalism, J. Gresham MachenCreed or Chaos? by Dorothy Sayers — FREEArticlesThe Cambridge Declaration (also via PDF download here)Background to The Cambridge Declaration, WikipediaThe Story of Us, Shane RosenthalThe Megachurch Century, Shane RosenthalThe Tower of Babel, Shane RosenthalThe Mormonization of American Christianity, Shane RosenthalFinding Christ in All of Scripture (PDF), Shane RosenthalLiberalism or Christianity?, J. Gresham MachenThe Importance of Christian Scholarship, by J. Gresham MachenTheologically, This Country is in a State of Utter Chaos, Dorothy SayersWhy Johnny Can't Preach, T. David GordonAudioThe Living Church, WHI #317 with Ervin DugganDoctrine, Worship & Life, WHI #323 with Jim BoiceCatechesis, Preaching & Vocation, WHI #317 with Gene VeithThe Courage to Be Protestant, WHI #913 with David WellsGrounded in the Gospel, WHI #986 with J.I. PackerYouth Ministry in Crisis, WHI 1204 with Christian Smith & othersA Debate with Robert Schuller, WHI # 103You Foolish Galatians! WHI #140 includes Shane's street interviewsAn Interview with R.C. Sproul, WHI #909The Preached Word, WHI 972 with William WillimonJacob's Ladder, Humble Skeptic #63Christian Narcissism, Humble Skeptic #67 with J.I. Packer & othersThe Effect of Media & Technology, Humble Skeptic #30VideoBen Sasse on Uncommon Knowledge with Peter RobinsonBen Sasse on Interesting Times with Ross DouthatBen Sasse on Life Cancer & The Gospel, with Mike HortonWe Need Your Help!Consider supporting The Humble Skeptic podcast by making a one-time gift or upgrading to a paid subscription via Substack ($5.95 per month, $59 per year). Use the button below for more information about giving options. Get full access to The Humble Skeptic at www.humbleskeptic.com/subscribe

It's Ruining Dinner with Diana Butler Bass on Tax day! Also, apparently, the day the Vice President told the Pope to stop doing theology. Diana Butler Bass joined me for what was supposed to be a casual religion news roundup and turned into something I didn't entirely expect — a full-on church history seminar about what happens when empire tries to silence the gospel and why it never actually works. We started where everyone started this week: JD Vance, a newly minted Catholic who received what sounds like the Peter Thiel E-Z Pass lane through RCIA, publicly suggesting that the Pope — the Pope — should think more carefully before opining about theology. The same Pope who then responded to a Pentagon threat referencing the Avignon papacy by giving an even stronger anti-war speech. We talked about Trump's Easter posts, the Jesus meme, the "I thought I was a doctor" explanation, and the remarkable spectacle of evangelicals — evangelicals — saying the president might be demon-possessed. But Diana being Diana, she kept pulling the historical threads, and we ended up somewhere genuinely useful: the long story of how American Christianity split the sacred from the secular, why that split is breaking down, what it means for a congregation trying to figure out what to do with the 250th anniversary of a nation that's currently threatening popes and bombing people on Easter Sunday, and why Whitehead's image of the flickering Galilean vision might be the most honest thing you can say right now about where hope lives. We didn't ruin anything. The ruining is, as Diana noted, already adequately covered. Want to hangout with us in person?! ⁠⁠Join 600+ Listeners, 30 theologians, & 30 God-Pods at Theology Beer Camp 2026 this October 8-10 in Kansas City!⁠⁠⁠⁠ This conversation was originally for our Substack members, but we're sharing a portion with all of you – join us at The Process This or The Cottage to catch future episodes live!  Diana Butler Bass, Ph.D., is an award-winning author, popular speaker, inspiring preacher, and one of America's most trusted commentators on religion and contemporary spirituality. a Few Previous Episodes with Diana & Tripp How the Lectionary Kept Me Christian Two Books, One Night: Finding Beauty in What We Can't Control Religious Liberty & Violence – Unpacking the First 100 Days of Trump 2.0 The Interlocking Crises of Religion & Democracy Faith in a Toxic Public Square The Resurrection of Jesus 2024: The Sequel The Christology Ladder The Indictment Edition of Ruining Dinner American Saints in a Cynical Age ⁠You can WATCH the conversation on YouTube⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠UPCOMING ONLINE CLASS - Theology for Troublemakers: Christian Social Ethics from the Margins⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ The injustices we face are immense — but they are not unique. Previous generations confronted the same powers with theological conviction and strategic brilliance. The question is whether we'll learn from them. This 6-week online course, led by Dr. Gary Dorrien and Dr. Aaron Stauffer, recovers the radical tradition of Christian social ethics — from Reverdy Ransom and Reinhold Niebuhr to James Cone and the Welfare Rights Movement — and asks what faithfulness demands of us right now. Weekly lectures, live Q&A conversations, guest lecturers, and an online community included.

Jamie is an Associate Professor of American religions and material culture at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She earned her PhD from Duke University. Her book "Protestant Relics in Early America" examines relic veneration, corpse inspection, and the art of mourning in the early United States. She also studies Bible and relic practices in the American Civil War Era. Jamie is a past fellow at The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon; The Library Company of Philadelphia; Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library; the Filson Historical Society; and the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium.​​In this conversation, I talk with Jamie about the role of Protestant relics and patriotic symbols and the ways Bibles became contested objects during the Civil War. Jamie also reflects on how secularism and evangelicalism have influenced the material expression of Christianity, and how art continues to function as a site for spiritual experience today. Together, we consider the tensions in modern American Christianity, where material and intellectual understandings of faith often coexist in paradoxical ways.

In this part 2 episode of Timeless Wisdom with Dennis Prager, Dennis shares his personal story of growth and evolution. He reflects on his childhood experiences, including a traumatic event that sparked his preoccupation with good and evil. Dennis also discusses his intellectual curiosity, questioning the notion that his generation was the wisest, and his exploration of different faiths. He shares how his experiences led him to become a defender of American Christianity and a believer in the specialness of the United States. This episode is a thought-provoking journey into Dennis's life, revealing his journey towards moral clarity and his ongoing quest for understanding. Follow on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/timeless-wisdom-with-dennis-prager/id1517302239 Follow us on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4SZEYeH4tuLr2FvG4ok1rl Learn more about Dennis Prager: https://pragertopia.com/ Follow Dennis on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DennisPrager Follow Dennis on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedennisprager/ Follow Dennis on X: https://x.com/DennisPrager Learn more about the Salem Podcast Network: https://salempodcastnetwork.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

April 13, 2026 - Join us for a book talk with Jonathan Cheng, author of the new history book Korean Messiah, which explores "the rise of the Kim dynasty and its surprising ties to American Christianity." In the book, Cheng, who is The Wall Street Journal's current China bureau chief and former Korea bureau chief, documents the profusion and lasting impact of Christianity in North Korea's current capital of Pyongyang, which was once described as the "Jerusalem of the East." Based on letters, diaries, and archival materials, his book reveals how the Kim regime's personality cult "traces its roots back to the Christian fervor of post–Civil War America." Barbara Demick, author of Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, joins the conversation as a discussant. She described the book as "provocative and fascinating… Jonathan Cheng shows how this country, more hostile to religion than any in the world, was built on a bedrock of Christianity by its founder Kim Il Sung, who discarded the evangelical faith of his family and harnessed its power to create a cult of personality that has endured into the third generation." The discussion is moderated by policy director Jonathan Corrado, and jointly produced by the Policy and the Arts and Culture teams. This program is made possible by the generous support of the Korea Foundation and our individual and corporate members.   This program is co-hosted by The Center for Korean Research at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University. For more information, please visit the link below: https://koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/2112-korean-messiah

Send us Fan MailSpecial Guest: Kristin T. Lee, Author of We Mend with Gold: An Immigrant Daughter's Reckoning with American ChristianityQuestion of the Week: Immigrant families may (understandably) focus on “fitting in” with the culture, values, or expectations of the country they move to. But what is lost in the process of trying to fit in and “make it” with the new culture in terms of faith and identity?We Mend with Gold: An Immigrant Daughter's Reckoning with American ChristianityFor Listening Guides, click here!Got a question for us? Send them to faithpodcast@pcusa.org! A Matter of Faith website

When you watch a sports game, you see players give very clear displays of faith. How did religion become so entwined with big-time sports in America? On this edition of Equipped with Chris Brooks, Paul Putz will tell the story of how this thriving religious subculture came to be. Whether you’re a sports fan or not, don’t miss the next Equipped. Featured resource:The Spirit of the Game: American Christianity and Big-Time Sports by Paul Putz Also mentioned:Away Game by Brian Smith and Ed Uszynksi April thank you gift:Equipped for Life: A 30-Day Devotional for Living with Courage and Compassion by Chris Brooks Equipped with Chris Brooks is made possible through your support. To donate now, click here. To become 1 in 100 who supports at $1,000 (annually or $83/month), click here.

In this episode, theologian and historian Gary Dorrien opens Theology for Troublemakers by recovering two of the most important — and most forgotten — figures in American Christianity: Ida B. Wells and Reverdy Ransom. Dorrien traces the birth of the Black social gospel out of one excruciating question: what would a new abolition be? From Wells's explosive anti-lynching journalism and her landmark pamphlet Southern Horrors, to Ransom's vision of a cooperative commonwealth and his decades of prophetic ministry inside a church that kept trying to expel him, this lecture shows that the roots of liberation theology run far deeper than the 1960s — and that the tradition's most radical voices were being erased even as they were still speaking. If you want to go deeper, Gary Dorrien is teaching a full six-week course alongside Aaron Staufer and Tripp Fuller — covering Niebuhr, James Cone, the Welfare Rights Movement, and the challenge of Christian nationalism today. It's donation-based, including $0. Join us at HomebrewedClasses.com. You can WATCH the lecture and slides here. UPCOMING ONLINE CLASS - Theology for Troublemakers: Christian Social Ethics from the Margins⁠ The injustices we face are immense — but they are not unique. Previous generations confronted the same powers with theological conviction and strategic brilliance. The question is whether we'll learn from them. This 6-week online course, led by Dr. Gary Dorrien and Dr. Aaron Stauffer, recovers the radical tradition of Christian social ethics — from Reverdy Ransom and Reinhold Niebuhr to James Cone and the Welfare Rights Movement — and asks what faithfulness demands of us right now. Weekly lectures, live Q&A conversations, guest lecturers, and an online community included.

Max Lucado joins Kirk Cameron to examine Biblical tactics for stopping anxious thoughts and winning the battle for your mind. He shares the findings of his book, "Tame Your Thoughts," while also discussing thought management and Biblical examples of defeating anxiety. Don't miss this informative interview on Takeaways with Kirk Cameron on TBN! Missed the last episode? Listen in as John G. West examines how the Stockholm Syndrome phenomenon has infiltrated American Christianity. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠WATCH Takeaways with Kirk Cameron episodes for free on TBN+⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! Each episode of Takeaways with Kirk Cameron features knowledgeable guests having a respectful and thoughtful conversation surrounding topics that are impacting our society every day. Kirk's hope is that you will walk away from this show with practical steps on how to better your family, your community, and your nation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A strange effort has begun to sow division inside American Christianity. Online personalities and influencers are spinning a tale in which Catholic integralists seek to undermine evangelical influence in the hopes of ultimately driving the U.S. away from Israel. Professor Chad Pecknold of Catholic University joins me to discuss. Follow on: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-auron-macintyre-show/id1657770114 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3S6z4LBs8Fi7COupy7YYuM?si=4d9662cb34d148af Substack: https://auronmacintyre.substack.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuronMacintyre Gab: https://gab.com/AuronMacIntyre YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/c/AuronMacIntyre Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-390155 Odysee: https://odysee.com/@AuronMacIntyre:f Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auronmacintyre/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why are so many heroes of the faith faltering and is there anything that we can do to correct it? John G. West joins Kirk Cameron to discuss how the Stockholm Syndrome phenomenon has infiltrated American Christianity, leading to widespread compromise and erosion of our faith. Don't miss this revealing interview on Takeaways with Kirk Cameron on TBN! Missed the last episode? Listen in as Dr. Gary Chapman shares the top 5 traits that build a healthy family. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠WATCH Takeaways with Kirk Cameron episodes for free on TBN+⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! Each episode of Takeaways with Kirk Cameron features knowledgeable guests having a respectful and thoughtful conversation surrounding topics that are impacting our society every day. Kirk's hope is that you will walk away from this show with practical steps on how to better your family, your community, and your nation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a new biopic about the founder of the Shakers entitled, The Testament of Ann Lee. If you've heard of the Shakers it is probably because of their furniture. This week the Pugs respond to a critical review of the new film in The Spectator World by Damian Thompson, entitled, Testament to Ignorance. Chris is quoted in the review because of an article he wrote on the Shakers. He has mixed feelings about them, as he explains in the show. But he suspects there is something going on with liberalism in the US and an attempt by liberals to recover their own version of American Christianity and that the biopic is part of a larger effort. Tune in to see if you agree. Spectator Article: https://spectator.com/article/the-problem-with-the-new-shakers-biopic/?edition=us&fbclid=IwY2xjawQVh6FleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEeqwHZmAt6XJKBJkvbQdfROjImhSiQ2wHHwAmsHTqWX2Lq3wToNKoL8jkb4GY_aem_QRjZgbJghxePthAtHKkYew C.R. Wiley Article: https://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=24-04-017-v&fbclid=IwY2xjawQVh65leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEeSZAAqidPifGEMM67DdHsMUyHSX1J3lmxe6U6qezgNCwHCBs_meovZETbduE_aem_H1EU9hYLJVYqfkOVEJDhgw Ken Burn’s Shakers Documentary: https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/the-shakers/?fbclid=IwY2xjawQViLRleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEe4iQ0JzupT0tqAEgJW7Rwrw4D7P2ut1bHCDS6nHbdEjYmdGsDxT5NdWvjsp8_aem_fZUmGSCxslbsxJAMUZUIKQ Support the Theology Pugcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thetheologypugcast?fbclid=IwAR17UHhfzjphO52C_kkZfursA_C784t0ldFix0wyB4fd-YOJpmOQ3dyqGf8 Learn more about First Pres. Battle Ground: https://www.solochristo.org/ Connect with WileyCraft Productions: https://wileycraftproductions.com/

There is a new biopic about the founder of the Shakers entitled, The Testament of Ann Lee. If you've heard of the Shakers it is probably because of their furniture. This week the Pugs respond to a critical review of the new film in The Spectator World by Damian Thompson, entitled, Testament to Ignorance. Chris is quoted in the review because of an article he wrote on the Shakers. He has mixed feelings about them, as he explains in the show. But he suspects there is something going on with liberalism in the US and an attempt by liberals to recover their own version of American Christianity and that the biopic is part of a larger effort. Tune in to see if you agree.Spectator Article: https://spectator.com/article/the-problem-with-the-new-shakers-biopic/?edition=us&fbclid=IwY2xjawQVh6FleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEeqwHZmAt6XJKBJkvbQdfROjImhSiQ2wHHwAmsHTqWX2Lq3wToNKoL8jkb4GY_aem_QRjZgbJghxePthAtHKkYewC.R. Wiley Article: https://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=24-04-017-v&fbclid=IwY2xjawQVh65leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEeSZAAqidPifGEMM67DdHsMUyHSX1J3lmxe6U6qezgNCwHCBs_meovZETbduE_aem_H1EU9hYLJVYqfkOVEJDhgwKen Burn's Shakers Documentary: https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/the-shakers/?fbclid=IwY2xjawQViLRleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAEwAAEe4iQ0JzupT0tqAEgJW7Rwrw4D7P2ut1bHCDS6nHbdEjYmdGsDxT5NdWvjsp8_aem_fZUmGSCxslbsxJAMUZUIKQSupport the Theology Pugcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thetheologypugcast?fbclid=IwAR17UHhfzjphO52C_kkZfursA_C784t0ldFix0wyB4fd-YOJpmOQ3dyqGf8Learn more about First Pres. Battle Ground: https://www.solochristo.org/Connect with WileyCraft Productions: https://wileycraftproductions.com/

 In this Sunday Interview, Bradley Onishi sits down with historian Matthew Avery Sutton to discuss his sweeping new book Chosen Land. Sutton argues that from the colonial era onward, Americans have pursued a centuries-long project to transform North America into a “holy land” that could usher in God's millennial kingdom. Paradoxically, the founders' decision to create a secular Constitution and protect religious freedom through the First Amendment helped fuel the explosive growth and innovation of American Christianity. Without a state church, religious leaders became entrepreneurs—competing for followers through media, technology, and spectacle—helping make the United States far more publicly religious than many other Western democracies. The conversation explores how a long-standing Protestant cultural dominance shaped American politics and public life, from Abraham Lincoln navigating religious expectations in the 19th century to Barack Obama confronting controversy over Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Sutton also explains the decline of mainline Protestantism, the rise of evangelical branding, and why the very term “evangelical” is largely a modern reinvention rather than a continuous tradition stretching back to figures like Jonathan Edwards. The episode closes with a look at today's Christian nationalism, culture-war politics, and apocalyptic thinking—from debates about Israel to interpretations of global conflict—asking whether the United States is witnessing the last gasp of white Protestant dominance or simply another revival in a long and turbulent religious history. Subscribe for $3.65: ⁠https://axismundi.supercast.com/⁠ Subscribe to our free newsletter: ⁠https://swaj.substack.com/⁠ Order American Caesar by Brad Onishi: ⁠https://static.macmillan.com/static/essentials/american-caesar-9781250427922/⁠ Donate to SWAJ: https://axismundi.supercast.com/donations/new Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Professor of Theology at Wheaton College, Dr. Vincent Bacote joined Latasha Morrison on the Be the Bridge Podcast to talk about the role of the Black Church in American Christianity, the contextualization of theology, the importance of understanding race and ethnicity, the challenges faced by the evangelical identity, and more!Dr. Bacote brings truth, wisdom, and hope to the Be the Bridge community through this conversation!Join in the conversation on our social media pages on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to let us know your thoughts on this episode!Executive Producer - Latasha MorrisonProducer & Editor - Sarah ConnatserMusic from "Bridge" by Ellie Holcomb and used by permission*note: this originally published in February but had to be re-uploaded. Links:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a Recurring Donor of Be the Bridge⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Black + Evangelical DocumentaryConnect with Be the Bridge:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Our Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BTB YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the online community BTB Connect⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect with Dr. Vincent Bacote:WebsiteNot all views expressed in this interview reflect the values and beliefs of Latasha Morrison or the Be the Bridge organization.

Colony House is back with a new album, and they sat down with Emily to reflect on 10 years of making music and what they want the next decade to look like. In RELEVANT Buzz: Papa Roach lead singer Jacoby Shaddix shares his powerful faith journey — from foxhole prayer, to sobriety and a faith that sounds like the real thing. We also bring a story flying under the radar: nearly a million Christians are living inside Iran right now, and we hear directly from believers on the ground to get their thoughts on the war and religious freedom. Plus, the backlash to the Atlanta Hawks announcing "Magic City Night" — a themed game night centered around an infamous Atlanta strip club.Then, pastor Kyle Idleman joins us to talk about how modern American Christianity has slowly turned Jesus into a therapist and self-help guru — and what we've lost in the process. It's a challenge worth sitting with.In Slices: a Turkish soccer player performs CPR on a seagull he accidentally hit mid-game, United Airlines starts banning passengers who refuse headphones, and we close with a Spring Break edition of Would You Rather.01:00 — The crocheting trend taking over 03:48 — The appeal of old stuff10:41 — RELEVANT BUZZ 10:41 — Papa Roach lead singer Jacoby Shaddix shares his Christian testimony. Foxhole prayers, sobriety and millennial rockers finding faith14:25 — Marty's attempt to join the Elk Club for a Newport parking spot22:04 — Iranian Christians: nearly 1 million believers inside Iran28:33 — Atlanta Hawks "Magic City Night"30:42 — Kyle Idleman interview: How American Christianity has missed the real Jesus35:16 — SLICES35:16 — Turkish soccer player performs CPR on a seagull he accidentally hit41:01 — United Airlines bans passengers who won't use headphones45:31 — RELEVANT RECOMMENDS: Colony House — 77 Part 2 50:33 — WOULD YOU RATHER: Spring Break Edition | Pullout couches, photo shoots, emo cruises, bad vibes vs. mediocre food, and Marty's 3am cockfight vacationAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Thomas Jefferson’s 1802 letter to the Danbury Baptists famously described the First Amendment as building a "wall of separation between church and State." This line has been the gold standard for those who point to the secular origins of America and the threat of funding any sort of religious activity. But this idea of America as a secular republic built on Enlightenment ideals misses a critical truth: Christianity has been at the center of American public life since European colonization began 500 years ago. The Constitution didn't create a wall between church and state—it inadvertently created a "free market" for religion that allowed Christian activists to expand their influence in unexpected ways. Today's guest is Matthew Avery Sutton, author of Chosen Land: How Christianity Made America and Americans Remade Christianity. We see the different versions of Christianity imported during European colonization and how the absence of state control unleashed wildly eccentric religious movements that couldn't have happened in Europe. From revivalist preachers like Jonathan Edwards and Peter Cartwright to Billy Graham, and from liberal Congregationalists to twentieth-century mainline denominations, American Christianity constantly evolved. We see this in the story of Abraham Lincoln, whose skepticism toward traditional Christianity in his twenties nearly derailed his political career. In his 1846 race against Methodist circuit rider Peter Cartwright, Lincoln faced accusations of being an infidel after openly rejecting his family's Christian faith. This episode reveals how, contrary to popular belief, America's founding generation allowed religious liberty not out of principle, but pragmatism—they needed to keep a fractious coalition together. To understand what makes America unique, we must account for how Christianity shaped—and was shaped by—every major historical development in U.S. history. From tent revivals to megachurches, from abolition to segregation, Christianity's "free-market" evolution in America created something unlike anywhere else in the world.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.