Episode 517: Can the Global Church Save the American Church? with Matthew Soerens
Release Date: 07/13/2022
613: Driscoll, Dawkins, & Political Discipleship with Curtis Chang
The Holy Post
Atheist Richard Dawkins has said he doesn’t believe one word of the Christian faith, but he now considers himself a “cultural Christian” and wants to defend the Christian values of his country against the influence of Islam and immigrants. Does this represent an alignment between the New Atheists and Christian Nationalists? Curtis Chang shares about “The After Party”—the new curriculum he’s developed with David French and Russel Moore to help Christians focus on hope and humility rather than partisanship. Also this week, Mark Driscoll gets booted from a men’s conference. And...
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612: The Religious Vacuum, Politics, & the Powers with N.T. Wright
The Holy Post
This week we’re discussing a series of articles exploring what we’re gaining and losing as fewer Americans are committed to religion and attending church. Even some non-believers are beginning to worry that the decline in religion may not be good for society, but does it also represent a new opportunity for the message of Christianity? Then, N.T. Wright is back to discuss his new book with co-author Michael Bird, “Jesus and the Powers.” While everyone knows mixing faith and politics can be dangerous, Wright says there’s also a danger when we refuse to mix them. He talks to Skye about...
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611: Trump’s Bible, Biden’s Easter, and Climate Change for Christians with Katharine Hayhoe
The Holy Post
The newest Holy Post team member, Esau McCaulley, joins Phil and Skye to discuss two stories that caused outrage from both ends of the political spectrum during Holy Week. Trump is selling an American flag-wrapped Bible, and the Biden administration honored “Transgender Visibility Day” on Easter. And why are Catholic Charities being attacked for helping immigrants? Then Skye talks to atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe about how her evangelical faith led her to become a climate scientist. She says combating global warming is part of our call to love our neighbors and care for the least...
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French Friday: TikTok Ban & Who Should Hold the Reins of Social Media
The Holy Post
A recent bill to ban TikTok was passed in the House with bipartisan support. Skye talks with David French about the arguments for and against the bill, the likelihood of it passing the Senate, and why Trump claims China is America's biggest threat, and yet he still opposes the TikTok ban. Then, Skye and David break down two recent Supreme Court cases about social media content regulation. Should social media companies have complete control over what is posted on their platforms, and is it ok for the government to ask these companies to take down certain posts? Holy Post Plus - Getting Schooled...
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610: Learning to Disagree Respectfully with John Inazu
The Holy Post
Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade almost two years ago, the debate about abortion has taken on new dimensions. Factions within the pro-life camp are now battling each other. Could they break apart the Religious Right? Then, Kaitlyn interviews professor of Law and Religion, John Inazu, about his new book, “Learning to Disagree.” He says our differences don’t have to become divisions, which is a timely message in an election year. Plus, is Indonesia hiding a secret island of Hobbits? And a new documentary asks if Jesus was a vegetarian? Holy Post Plus Getting Schooled -...
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609: Rebounding Pastors, Shifting Evangelicals, & Rethinking Christian Media with Jon Houghton
The Holy Post
After a number of difficult years and dismal statistics, a new report from Barna says pastors are on the mend. Another book about “ex-vangelicals” has been released. Does it have anything new to add to the conversation? And a record number of Latinos in the U.S. are leaving Catholicism to become Pentecostal evangelicals. What does it mean for the future of the church? Then, Holy Post Media’s CEO, Jon Houghton, joins Skye to discuss how he’s leading the organization, why Christian media needs to change, and the new projects launching this year. Plus, Wrinkle the duck, Albert the...
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608: Defining the Gospel & Who’s a “Real” Christian with Matthew Bates
The Holy Post
Earlier this year, John MacArthur said that Martin Luther King Jr. was “a nonbeliever who misrepresented everything about Christ and the gospel.” Last week, Justin Giboney responded with an article in CT explaining why MacArthur was wrong about MLK. This leads Phil, Kaitlyn, and Skye to ask when is it appropriate to define who is, and who is not, a true Christian, and what criteria should we use? Theologian Matthew Bates is back to discuss his new book, “Why the Gospel?” He defines six popular “malformed” gospels, and why bypassing the importance of Jesus’ kingship is dangerous...
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607: The Gift of Disillusionment with Mike Cosper
The Holy Post
CORRECTION - The initial audio file uploaded this morning was missing the last 10 minutes. If your phone automatically downloads the episode, remove the download and then redownload it, and that should take care of the issue. Sorry for the inconvenience! 607: Are you feeling disillusioned about your faith? About your church? You’re definitely not alone. Creator of “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill” podcast, Mike Cosper, is back to talk about his new book, “Land of My Sojourn,” and how he came to embrace disillusionment as a gift. Also this week, Mike Erre joins Phil and Skye to...
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606: Alabama Embryos & Catechizing Kids with Todd Hains & Natasha Kennedy
The Holy Post
Last week the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created for in-vitro fertilization have the legal status of children, essentially ending all IVF treatments in the state. Some are applauding the ruling as both a morally and theologically consistent affirmation of human life. But others, including some Christians, are saying the pro-life movement is taking things too far. Then, how do we teach kids the core doctrines of the Christian faith when most adults in our churches don’t know them either? Kaitlyn interviews the creators of a new series of children’s books designed to...
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French Friday: Biden's Age & MAGA's Violence
The Holy Post
David and Skye discuss the upcoming primary election—if most people agree that Biden is too old to hold office, why hasn’t he stepped down? Would a different vice president give voters more confidence? Pastors, doctors, and politicians are routinely threatened with physical violence by MAGA—is this our fault for not standing up publicly against this behavior? 0:00 - Theme Song 0:18 - Episode Starts 0:40 - Biden’s Age 11:14 - Ezra Klein Suggests Democrats Leave Biden 21:33 - Is It Too Risky to Drop Biden? 30:21 - Sponsor - AG1 - Get your FREE 1...
info_outlineA network of global Christian churches have decided to combat climate change by divesting from gas and oil companies. But why aren’t any Protestant American churches participating, and do climate activists care that efforts to replace fossil fuels disproportionately harm the poor? And a new article by Beth Allison Barr examines the difference between the political pro-life movement and the biblical pro-life ethic.
Then, Matthew Soerens is back to discuss the new book he’s co-authored with Eric Costanzo and Daniel Yang, “Inalienable: How Marginalized Kingdom Voices Can Help Save the American Church.” As white evangelicals lose their grip on cultural and political power in the U.S., Soerens says they may discover how to follow Christ more faithfully from sisters and brothers in the global church who never had power to begin with. Plus, New Zealand taxes bovine burps.
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News Segment
0:00 - Intro and updates
5:04 - Bovine burps
10:39 - Churches combatting climate change
18:08 - Capitalism and poverty
32:03 - Women left behind by the pro-life movement
Sponsors
50:59 - Sponsor: One Collective
Learn more: https://www.onecollective.org/serve/holypost
52:55 - Sponsor: World Relief
Join the Path: https://worldrelief.org/holypost/
Interview with Matthew Soerens
"Inalienable: How Marginalized Kingdom Voices Can Help Save the American Church" by Eric Costanzo, Daniel Yang, and Matthew Soerens - https://amzn.to/3PlS8pB
54:51 - Matthew Soerens interview intro
57:10 - Challenges in the evangelical American church
1:05:56 - Changing the boogeyman
1:11:38 - Looking to the global church
1:16:48 - U.S. immigration and refugee policies
1:22:04 - "What in the World?" Holy Post miniseries
1:24:54 - Credits
Articles referenced in news segment:
"New Zealand announces world-first plan to tax cow and sheep burps" (NPR) - https://www.npr.org/2022/06/09/1104014587/new-zealand-announces-world-first-plan-to-tax-cow-and-sheep-burps
"Global faith institutions announce divestment..." (Operation Noah) - https://operationnoah.org/featured/press-release-global-faith-institutions-announce-d[…]es-threaten-1-5c-climate-goal-with-reckless-expansion-plans/
"MIT Scientists Propose 'Space Bubbles' to Deflect Solar Radiation, Ease Climate Change" (Popular Mechanics) -
https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a40486004/space-bubbles-climate-change/
"The Women Left Behind by the Pro-Life Movement" by Beth Allison Barr (Religion & Politics) - https://religionandpolitics.org/2022/07/11/the-women-left-behind-by-the-pro-life-movement/
Resources mentioned in interview:
"American Evangelicalism: Embattled and Thriving" by Christian Smith - https://amzn.to/3P2zIKZ
Episode 1 of our "What in the World?" miniseries will be out Friday, 7/15 in the regular Holy Post podcast feed!
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