Episode 514: How Politics Poisoned the Evangelical Church with Drew Dyck & David Kinnaman
Release Date: 06/22/2022
696: Transcending Our Political Divisions & Labels with Andy Beshear
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Mike Erre joins Phil and Skye to discuss a New York Times column by David Brooks. He says America’s divisions will only heal when we abandon shallow labels and war metaphors, and instead see one another as fellow pilgrims on a journey. America’s Catholic bishops issue a stern rebuke of the Trump administration’s dehumanizing rhetoric and policies, which makes Phil wonder why evangelical leaders can’t do the same. Then, Skye talks to Kentucky’s Democratic governor, Andy Beshear, about why he’s so popular in a state that Donald Trump won by 30 points, and how his party can begin to...
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695: Analyzing the Blue Wave & Why the Church Still Matters with Carmen Joy Imes
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The Democratic Party swept the off-cycle elections last week, but this isn’t the first blue wave we’ve seen in the Trump era. Phil, Skye, and Kaitlyn discuss what it means and the significance of New York City electing a Muslim, democratic socialist as mayor. Does Mamdani represent the death of New York, and possibly America, as one Baptist leader claims? Old Testament scholar Carmen Imes is back to discuss why she hasn’t given up on the church, and we shouldn’t either. Her new book is “Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters.” Also this week—how social media is...
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French Friday: The Nazi Rot on the Right
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Open Nazi rhetoric is gaining traction on the right, and the response from conservative institutions has been inconsistent at best. Skye and David trace the roots of the problem, the incentives that fueled it, and the late-breaking backlash that may signal a tipping point. They also look at ICE’s increasingly aggressive “Kavanaugh stops,” the risks of expanding executive power, and why election integrity could be threatened when extremism and state authority begin to reinforce each other. Want the full episode? Go to The SkyePod feed to hear it now!
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694: Why Don’t We Take Church Unity Seriously? with N.T. Wright
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A new survey finds that moderately religious Americans are the most likely to say that they see dead people. Which raises a question—why are the non-religious and the very religious less likely to report encounters with the departed? New York Times columnist Ezra Klein says that by over-emphasizing inclusivity, the Democratic Party has ironically become less inclusive. And Ryan Burge looks at the numbers behind the party’s growing “God problem.” Will the Democrats ever figure out how to compete against MAGA? New Testament scholar N.T. Wright is back to discuss his latest book, “The...
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693: Holy Post LIVE from Chicago 2025
The Holy Post
This week is Halloween, and on this special episode recorded with a live audience, the Holy Post hosts discuss why our culture isn’t afraid of monsters and demons anymore. How did all of our pop culture heroes and villains become morally ambiguous? Also, would communal living solve our loneliness epidemic? Kaitlyn is all for it, but Skye isn’t so sure. Also this week—audience Q&A, Phil, Skye, Kaitlyn, and Esau play a game of true confessions, and Phil’s favorite news segment comes full circle. Holy Post Plus: Ad-Free Version of this Episode: Bonus Question: 0:00 -...
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692: Vertical vs. Horizontal Morality & Rediscovering Confession with Jamin Goggin
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A recent article tries to explain why so many politically active Christians behave unchristianly in the public square by differentiating “vertical” and “horizontal” sources of morality. The Holy Post crew examines the argument and finds it weak. Has MAGA ignited a revival in the U.S.? David French says we may be confusing a political revolution for a spiritual revival. Jamin Goggin joins Skye to discuss recovering the practice of confession in our churches. Goggin says it should start with pastors. Also this week—man does not live by 1200-year-old bread alone. 0:00 - Show...
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691: The Antichrist, Illiberalism, & Why Gen Z Accepts Political Violence with Elizabeth Neumann
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In a series of invitation-only, off-the-record lectures about Christianity, technology billionaire Peter Thiel said the antichrist is trying to regulate technology and billionaires. Which raises the question—Why do we always remake Christ in our image and the antichrist in our enemies’? Gen Z is making conservative Christianity more angry, intolerant, and illiberal. What’s fueling the younger generation's interest in religious fundamentalism? Counter-terrorism expert Elizabeth Neumann is back to discuss the rising acceptance of political violence among young adults and why she expects...
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690: Flying Bishops, Evangelical Ignorance, & Slow Theology with A.J. Swoboda & Nijay Gupta
The Holy Post
For the first time ever, the U.K. has appointed a woman as the Archbishop of Canterbury to lead the global Anglican Communion. Kaitlyn, Skye, and Mike Erre discuss the implications of appointment and how Anglicans use “flying bishops” to maintain unity over divisive theological issues. Are there lessons here for other divided Christian communities? The latest “State of Theology” report shows a shocking number of evangelicals hold contradictory beliefs. Why are evangelical churches so bad at teaching the Bible and theology? Kaitlyn talks with A.J. Swoboda and Nijay Gupta, co-authors of...
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689: The Rapture, Repentance, & Redefining the Good Life with Grace Hamman
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After a South African pastor claimed that Christ would come for his church on September 23, TikTok became rapture obsessed. Mike Erre joins Skye and Kaitlyn to discuss our ongoing fixation with this bad theology, why people get caught up in rapture predictions, and how it damages the credibility of the faith. Kaitlyn talks to Medieval scholar, Grace Hamman, about her new book, “Asks of Old Paths.” Hamman says Medieval literature is rich in wisdom for modern Christians on how to define a good life, using the language of virtues and vices. Also this week—a secular writer examines the...
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688: The MAGA Contradiction & Educational Injustice with Terence Lester
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The memorial service for Charlie Kirk revealed a deep contradiction with the MAGA movement. Kirk’s widow was cheered when she forgave his assassin and modeled Jesus’ command to love your enemies. But the crowd also cheered when Stephen Miller and President Trump dehumanized their opponents and expressed hatred for their enemies. Esau McCaulley joins Phil and Skye to discuss the tension between Christian love and pagan power. Also this week, Dr. Terence Lester tells his inspiring story in his new book, “From Dropout to Doctorate,” and how he’s working both spiritually and systemically...
info_outlineA recent article in the Atlantic reveals how the political polarization in the United States is now tearing evangelical churches apart. And Marvin Olasky, the former editor of World Magazine, writes about the dramatic change he witnessed among evangelicals over his long career. Drawing from thousands of letters he received, Olasky concludes, “The Republican party platform has become more important than the gospel for many who identify as evangelicals.” Special guest co-host Drew Dyck joins Phil and Skye to discuss the articles. Then, president of Barna research, David Kinnaman, is back with more stats to unpack. With a record number of pastors thinking seriously about quitting, and political polarization listed among the top reasons, Kinnaman says the church is facing a crisis of discipleship. He believes we need a political theology that’s rooted in the gospel rather than partisanship. But is it too late? Also this week, fear over climate change is making progressives question the morality of having kids. And, South Korean college students are flush with cash.
News Segment
0:00 - Intro
4:24 - News of the Butt
9:54 - Climate change and having kids
20:15 - How politics poisoned the evangelical church
30:47 - Evangelical Christianity in the age of Trump
Sponsors
57:08 - World Relief
worldrelief.org/holypost
59:04 - Faithful Counseling
faithfulcounseling.com/holypost
Barna Brief with David Kinnaman
1:00:14 - Barna Brief intro
1:01:32 - Data on pastors considering quitting
1:04:23 - Reason 1: Stress of job
1:06:20 - Reason 2: Loneliness
1:09:54 - Reason 3: Political division
1:21:05 - Good news in this data?
1:29:42 - Credits
Barna Brief links:
Barna Group, Faith Leadership in a Divided Culture
https://shop.barna.com/products/faith-leadership-in-a-divided-culture
Resilient Pastor Cohort (discount code is HOLYPOST15): barna.com/cohort
“The Resilient Pastor” by Glenn Packiam - https://amzn.to/3HK2f4R
News segment links:
“South Korean Toilet Allows Students to Pay With Their Poop” - https://interestingengineering.com/south-korean-toilet-allows-students-to-pay-with-their-poop
“Your Kids are Not Doomed” by Ezra Klein (NYT Opinion) -https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/05/opinion/climate-change-should-you-have-kids.html
Andrew Walker tweet - https://twitter.com/andrewtwalk/status/1534136018269614081?s=20&t=Hvg_G52SvOYW0k8HIoNQRQ
“How Politics Poisoned the Evangelical Church” by Tim Alberta (The Atlantic) - https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/06/evangelical-church-pastors-political-radicalization/629631/
“The Sixty Years’ War: Evangelical Christianity in the Age of Trump” by Marvin Olasky (National Review) - https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2022/06/27/the-sixty-years-war-evangelical-christianity-in-the-age-of-trump/
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