Podcasts by You Have Permission
So many of us have been given bad answers to good questions -- questions about God, suffering, prayer, fate, science, justice, and more -- often by people with pure intentions. But we needn't stop with those pat answers. You have permission to take both Christianity and the modern world very seriously, and this podcast will introduce you to people from across the Christian spectrum engaging these timeless and difficult questions in various ways.
Further podcasts by Dan Koch
Podcast on the topic Religion und Spiritualität
All episodes
Denying & Embracing Emotions (#144) from 2022-02-07T13:00:25
Today Becky Castle Miller joins me to discuss the emotionality of Jesus and how emotions are understood in Evangelicalism. Becky has a master's in New Testament (Northern Seminary), and her books i...
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Patreon Teaser: Gospel of Matthew with Trans Regret Snoopy from 2022-01-31T13:00:15
This is a clip from the first of 4 patron-exclusive episodes with Ariel of Trans Regret Snoopy Presents the Bible. To hear the full episode, as well as the upcoming 3 episodes, become a patron!
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The Church of the Future? (#143) from 2022-01-24T13:00:34
Today my guest, Dr. Elaine Heath, joins me to discuss her five principles of 'What the Church of the Future Needs to Contain". Dr. Heath was the first woman dean of Duke Divinity School and is an a...
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A Theology of Mental Illness (#142) from 2022-01-10T13:00:22
Today I am joined by Dr. Marsha Webb, Professor at Seattle Pacific University and author of “Toward a Theology of Psychological Disorder.” Well suited for the show, Dr. Webb’s work focuses on the i...
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Evangelicalism is Deconstructing Itself (#141) from 2021-12-27T13:00:12
I’m joined today by Dr. David P. Gushee (University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University) to discuss the emerging scholarship coming from within Evangelicalism. We focus our conversat...
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The Virgin Birth (#140) from 2021-12-13T13:00:20
Today I’m joined by Kyle Roberts (United Seminary) to talk about his book “A Complicated Pregnancy: Whether Mary Was a Virgin and Why it Matters”. We talk about Kyle’s research around virginal conc...
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Christian Heavy Music: Theology, Attachment, Power (#139) from 2021-11-29T13:00:24
Today I’m joined by Matt Carter and Krispin Mayfield to talk about the culture and psycology of Christian heavy music. Our conversation dissects the lyrics and theologies portrayed in an evangelica...
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Reading Christian Fiction (#138) from 2021-11-15T13:00:41
This week I speak with Christianity Today's news editor Daniel Silliman about his new book “Reading Evangelicals”. This book deep dives into five top-selling evangelical novels. We had a fascinatin...
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Anger & Forgiveness (#137) from 2021-11-01T12:00:24
This week I speak with professor and research psychologist Dr. Lindsey Root Luna. Along with teaching at Hope College, she conducts her own research on anger and forgiveness. This is an interesting...
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What Can We Learn from Kierkegaard? (#136) from 2021-10-18T12:00:20
Today my guest J. Aaron Simmons joins me to discuss Danish philosopher and theologian, Soren Kierkegaard. Dr. Simmons is an author, Professor of Philosophy at Furman University, and the current pre...
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Worries About Progressive Christianity - O. Alan Noble (#135) from 2021-10-11T11:00:27
In the second installment of the series “Worries About Progressive Christianity”, I speak with author and professor O. Alan Noble. Both insightful and humorous, we hit the topics of suffering & the...
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What is Theopoetics? (#134) from 2021-09-27T13:46:08
This week, I spoke with author Callid Keefe-Perry on the concept of Theopoetics. Along with his book “Way to Water: A Theopoetics Primer”, we discuss the issue of justice, following Jesus and livin...
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Joshua Harris, Celebrity & "Gurus" (#133) from 2021-09-13T12:00:37
In our first installment of the “Healthy Egos” repeating segment (a knowing nod to the fact that both Tony Jones and I have at least a little narcissism running through us), Tony and I are joined b...
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Integrating Theology & Psychology; Christian Existentialism (#132) from 2021-08-30T16:04:39
Dr. Brad Strawn (Fuller) joins me today for essentially a two-parter. First, we talk about the integration of psychology and theology broadly, including Brad’s own story of coming to that work in p...
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Scheduling Announcement from 2021-08-23T17:16:56
You Have Permission will be going to an "every other week" schedule for the time being.
Some personal favorite older episodes to check out in between new episodes:
Why I Am (Still) A C...
How Free Is Our Will? (#131) from 2021-08-16T12:00:36
I'm joined by absolute neuroscience all-star William Newsome (Stanford, NIH BRAIN Project) to discuss the ways in which our will is both free and constrained. What counts as free will? Are the Sam ...
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Responding to "The Rise & Fall of Mars Hill" (#130) from 2021-08-09T12:00:05
This week, you're getting a sneak peek into the kind of exclusive episodes that patrons of this show received twice per month. Multiple-time guest Tony Jones joins me to break down and respond to t...
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Religion, Virtue & Human Thriving (#129) from 2021-08-02T12:00:14
I spoke with the multi-talented Dr. Pamela King (Fuller Seminary, Thrive Center for Human Development). She is a researcher in developmental psychology whose passion is human thriving. We talk abou...
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"Christian Music": Jon Guerra (#128) from 2021-07-26T12:00:31
I'm joined by one of my favorite Christian recording artists, Jon Guerra. His latest album "Keeper of Days" is phenomenal, and there is so much depth lurking just behind its carefully-constructed s...
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I Don't Believe in That God: Luke Barnett (#127) from 2021-07-19T12:00:40
Actor and filmmaker Luke Barnett joins me for another installment of "I Don't Believe in That God." These are conversations with people who do not identify as Christian, but they are not debates. R...
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Celibate Gay Christian Bridget Eileen Rivera (#126) from 2021-07-12T12:00:32
I'm joined by Bridget Eileen Rivera, a sociologist completing her Ph.D. at the City University of New York Graduate Center. A homeschool graduate and alum of Patrick Henry College, Rivera has becom...
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From Conservative Presbyterian to Episcopal Priest (#125) from 2021-07-05T12:00:30
Rev. Greg Farrand joins me to talk through his journey from high school burnout to PCA minister to Episcopal priest to his current gig as the executive director of Second Breath, an organization th...
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Abortion & Polyamory (#124) from 2021-06-28T12:00:23
A frank discussion about two highly contentious issues in one episode -- what could possibly go wrong? I'm grateful to be joined by my dear friend, theologian Sarah Lane Ritchie, a person who share...
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"Bible Truths," "Sanctified Common Sense," & "Evangelical Insta-Trust" (#123) from 2021-06-21T12:00:39
Today I am joined by emerging scholar Heather Griffin to talk through some language of hers that I have found *so* helpful in understanding white Evangelical culture. Terms of hers like "Bible trut...
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Authoritative vs. Nurturant Religion (#122) from 2021-06-14T12:00:43
John Sanders joins me to drop one of the single most helpful distinctions I have ever heard in discussions of religion and culture. His identification and explanation of Nurturant and Authoritative...
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The Story Behind My New Album from 2021-06-11T13:00:43
I know that most of you are definitively *not here* for my musical chops or compositions, and I'm OK with that! But I did release an album today under the moniker Havana Swim Club, and I am really ...
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A Closer Look at the Black Church (#121) from 2021-06-07T12:00:01
I'm joined by PEW Research's Besheer Mohamed to discuss their recent fabulous deep-dive into the religious lives of Black Americans. We discuss why they decided on the topic, what was known previou...
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A Massive Evangelical Sex Survey (#120) from 2021-05-31T12:00:13
This week, I spoke with Joanna Daigle Sawatsky and Rebecca Lindenbach about their incredible research work for the new book by Sheila Wray Gregoire (their boss) "The Great Sex Rescue." This researc...
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Church Is Good For You (#119) from 2021-05-24T12:00:30
I am re-joined by YHP all star guest Greg Cootsona (California State University, Chico) to talk through what we know from all the social science research on whether and how religiosity and church i...
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I Don't Believe in that God: Joey Holman (Man on Man) (#118) from 2021-05-17T12:00:36
Another installment of one of my favorite types of episodes, where I chat with people who don't identify as Christian. Often times, I also don't believe in the God that they don't believe in. Joey ...
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The Most & Least Plausible Christian Claims (#117) from 2021-05-10T12:00:20
I'm joined by Lillian Daniel and Tony Jones to play a kind of a podcast game with simple rules: we take turns going through some of the MOST and LEAST PLAUSIBLE Christian claims we were told growin...
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All About Homeschooling (#116) from 2021-05-03T12:00:32
My guest is Robert Kunzman, managing Director of the International Center for Home Education Research. He is a professor at Indiana University, where he teaches courses in curriculum, pedagogy, and...
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The Opposite of Spiritual Abuse (#115) from 2021-04-26T12:00:31
I had the immense privilege of speaking with Dr. Lisa Oakley, one of the leading researchers in the field of spiritual abuse. We talk about many aspects of SA, and then we move on to some of her ne...
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Worries About Progressive Christianity: Brad Jones (#114) from 2021-04-19T12:00:29
In the first of what I hope are many conversations with those more conservative than myself about progressive Christianity, Brad Jones shares his worries and concerns, both personal and theological...
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A Trans Christian & Her Bible (Podcast) (#113) from 2021-04-12T12:00:46
This is a delightful conversation with the anonymous Twitter personality and podcaster known as Trans Regret Snoopy whose podcast Trans Regret Snoopy Presents the Bible is one of the best-named rel...
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When I Almost Became Catholic (#112) from 2021-04-05T12:00:30
Listener, patron, and Roman Catholic convert Jack Huber interviews me about my history with Catholicism in all its forms and the time that I got very close to becoming a Catholic.
Follow D...
Global Violence Against Women (#111) from 2021-03-29T12:00:30
A difficult (but not as difficult to listen to as you might think!) conversation with philosopher, sociologist, and theologian Elaine Storkey about the state of woman-directed violence worldwide in...
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"Christian Music": The Civil Wars' Joy Williams (#110) from 2021-03-22T12:00:49
Continuing the series with those who have had experience in "Christian music," I speak with Joy Williams, known for both her solo career and her work with The Civil Wars. We talk about her upbring...
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Republican Christianity & a Data-Fueled Center-Left Lovefest (#109) from 2021-03-15T12:00:48
Politics. Identity. Tribalism. Woke culture. Partisanship perceptions. Racial resentment. "Holding their nose" for Trump. Immigration Rural/urban divide. All of these are more are touched upon in t...
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Certainty with Pete Enns (#108) from 2021-03-08T13:00:38
I'm joined by author and Old Testament scholar Pete Enns to talk about certainty: why we want it, what it does for us psychologically, how he got interested in writing about it, what it has to do w...
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Ravi Zacharias, Religious Abuser (#107) from 2021-03-01T13:00:42
I'm re-joined by Dr. Paula Swindle to go through the details of Ravi Zacharias's various abuses of power throughout his career as a Christian apologist. Specifically, Paula and I focus on these fin...
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A Compassionate Progressive Response to Alisa Childers (#106) from 2021-02-26T00:26:32
My first act of peaceful engagement and deescalation in the budding culture war between conservative/traditional and progressive/deconstructing Christians. May we be humble and kind peacemakers eve...
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Deep Magic & Death Anxiety (#105) from 2021-02-22T13:00:38
Sarah Lane Ritchie joins me for our regular chat to talk through two related topics: (1) a longing for the "deep magic" that used to move our Evangelical souls in tales like the Chronicles of Narni...
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Christian Nationalism: Diagnosis & Treatment (#104) from 2021-02-15T13:00:32
** Please take my Varieties of Church Experience Survey, and share with friends and family (especially more conservative ones!): https://northwestupsych.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3r3jgp1f2oqDJN...
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Religious Disorientation & Growth (#103) from 2021-02-08T13:00:48
** Please take my Varieties of Church Experience Survey, and share with friends and family (especially more conservative ones!): https://northwestupsych.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3r3jgp1f2oqDJN...
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Two Feminists & their Bible (and Saints) (#102) from 2021-02-01T13:00:27
Please take my Varieties of Church Experience survey, and share with friends and family: https://northwestupsych.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cXX09dWdzBtxtOe
I'm joined by Luci and Jordan...
Is the Enneagram Real? (#101) from 2021-01-25T13:00:39
To celebrate 100 episodes -- that is, 101 episodes -- my friends join me to talk about a subject that everyone else seems to love a lot more than I do: the Enneagram! The 5 of us, 4 short of the ho...
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A History of Conspiracy Theories & Evangelicals (#100) from 2021-01-18T13:00:29
I’m joined by Dr. Sam Perry to discuss the tangled historical web of White Evangelicals in the US and their use of and affiliation for various conspiracy theories, starting in the 1950 around “outs...
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I Don't Believe in that God: Natalie Schepman (Joseph) (#99) from 2021-01-11T13:00:40
Natalie Schepman of the band Joseph joins Dan for the latest in the “I Don’t Believe In That God” series, where Dan talks with folks do not consider themselves to be theists/Christians with the aim...
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Emergency Pod: Processing the Capitol Insurrection with John Van Deusen from 2021-01-08T02:47:58
John and I were scheduled to record a patron-exclusive episode today, a follow-up to our previous episode. We didn’t feel that that conversation was possible to have, given our strong feelings and ...
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How Do Autistic Christians Relate to God? (#98) from 2021-01-04T13:00:44
Budding autistic theologian Erin Burnett joins Dan to talk about her undergraduate thesis (Europe is slightly different, and Dan misspoke in the episode calling it a master’s thesis), which looked ...
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From Addict to Addictions Counselor (#97) from 2020-12-29T17:43:37
Jed Payne, host of the Church & Other Drugs Podcast, shares his story of serious lifelong drug addiction, how he ended up an addictions counselor, as well as some of the psychological tactics those...
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Spiritual Trauma & Scriptural Metaphors (#96) from 2020-12-21T13:00:48
Ashley Davis Gavila does "trauma-informed life coaching & spiritual care” with clients who have often suffered religious or spiritual abuse. She is not a therapist, and her work is therefore distin...
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The Surprising Value of Megachurches (#95) from 2020-12-17T13:00:10
I know, I know, I know. Megachurches are so often panned and criticized that it is hard to consider whether or not or in what ways they might actually be good for people. But here is some serious p...
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"Christian Music": John Van Deusen (#94) from 2020-12-14T18:25:18
The first in a series of conversations with musicians who have had some experiences with “Christian Music,” whatever that ultimately means. John Van Deusen is one of my absolute favorite recording ...
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So, You're Deconstructing... (Dot Com) (#93) from 2020-12-07T13:00:35
Today we are celebrating the launch of Sarey Martin Concepcion and I’s web resource soyouredeconstructing.com! To do so, our entire little friend group has gathered around some microphones to tell ...
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Church Failure, Church Future (#92) from 2020-11-30T13:00:22
Dan talks with Tony Jones about the failures of the Emerging Church movement, of which he was a central part, and what’s going on today with churches in America. How might they thrive in the future...
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So You Want a Bible Podcast: Jared Byas & The Bible for Normal People (#91) from 2020-11-23T13:00:32
This is the first in a series of episodes where I interview hosts of podcasts that focus primarily on the Bible itself, since it is now clear to me that You Have Permission will never quite be one ...
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The Varieties of Religious & Spiritual Abuse (#90) from 2020-11-16T14:00:21
My guest is Dr. Paula Swindle, one of the only people in the world currently doing peer-reviewed research on the topic of spiritual and religious abuse. She is also on my dissertation committee (st...
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The Catholic Clergy Abuse Crisis (#89) from 2020-11-09T16:16:08
I chat with Karna Lozoya, host of the Crisis Podcast, chronicling the largely sexual clergy abuse scandal in the Catholic church, with a special focus on the last couple years.
Crisis Podc...
Election Special: Persecuted Christians, Mask-less Worship Gatherings & QAnon from 2020-11-02T12:00:24
...in which in lieu of a new YHP episode, we feature friend of the podcast Jon Ward and his *fantastic* conversation with WORLD Magazine contributors Mindy & Emily Belz. Jon's show notes are below....
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Secular Therapy's Religion Blind Spot (#88) from 2020-10-26T11:00:36
My guest is Dr. Kirk Honda, psychologist, professor, and co-host of the fantastic Psychology in Seattle Podcast. We talk about what the psychological research says about the role of faith in people...
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Everybody Now: Climate Emergency & Sacred Duty (#87) from 2020-10-19T11:00:34
We’ve caused a turning point in the Earth’s natural history. Everybody Now is a podcast about what it means to be human on the threshold of a global climate emergency, in a time of systemic injusti...
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The Christian Movie Industry (#86) from 2020-10-12T11:00:35
I spoke with Luke Barnett and Vince Masciale, the guys behind the new indy comedy Faith Based, about a pair of misfit buddies who try and make a quick buck by directing a Christian movie and sellin...
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Infertility, Babies & a Fresh Experience of God (#85) from 2020-10-05T11:00:17
Dr. Sarah Lane Ritchie joins for her inaugural regular guest spot on YHP to discuss her and Dan’s shared recent experience of having their first children. They each tell their respective stories of...
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Hell & Universalism in a Global Context (#84) from 2020-09-28T11:00:44
When Dr. Greg Cootsona (California State University, Chico) heard a recent episode that touched on the questions of Hell and Universal Salvation, he emailed me almost immediately and mentioned that...
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Habit, Virtue, Prayer & Science (#83) from 2020-09-21T11:00:28
Bradley Wright is a Protestant professor of sociology at the University of Connecticut where he studies American Christianity, spirituality, and well-being. Sofia Corozza is a Catholic phd student ...
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Who Are the "Spiritual But Not Religious"? (#82) from 2020-09-14T11:00:33
If you spend any significant time reading or listening to scholars of religion, looking at polling of religious groups, or anything like that, then you have probably heard the term Spiritual But No...
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Pastors, Therapist Referrals & Mental Health in the Church (#81) from 2020-09-07T11:00:20
Short interviews with three pastors in different traditions (Foursquare, Episcopal, and Presbyterian-PCA) about their process of referring congregants to therapists in their area. This is a topic t...
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Myron is a Demon Skeptic (#80) from 2020-08-31T11:00:37
My guest (and dear friend) philosopher Myron A. Penner joins me to talk about demons. His position is as follows:
1. Not ruling out their existence
2. Quite skeptical what we could rea...
Short-term Missions & Amy Peterson's Story (#79) from 2020-08-24T11:00:37
This is a wonderful and wide-ranging conversation with the author of one of my favorite books I’ve read in a long time. We talk about Amy Peterson’s missionary story and the Christian soil in which...
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End Times Popularity: Part 2 (#78) from 2020-08-17T11:00:25
Part 2 of a series that addresses the question “Why was End Times/Left Behind/Rapture theology *so popular* by the time we grew up in the 90s and 2000s?” Please start with Part 1, last week’s episo...
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End Times Popularity: Part 1 (#77) from 2020-08-10T11:00:32
Earlier this year, I released a 4-part series called End Times Anxiety, chronicling mental health and related challenges of younger folks who had been adversely affected by Left Behind and similar ...
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When Spiritual Heroes are Sexual Predators (Jean Vanier) (#76) from 2020-08-03T11:00:26
Many of you heard the news about Jean Vanier, founder of L’Arche International and one of my own lifetime spiritual heroes, when it came to light in February that he had sexually abused multiple wo...
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I Don't Believe in that God: Hawk Nelson's Jon Steingard (#75) from 2020-07-27T11:00:29
Jon Steingard, singer of Contemporary Christian rock band Hawk Nelson, made quite a splash in some Christian circles a couple months back when he announced that he was no longer a Christian and did...
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Conspiracy Theories, Evangelicals, Media & More (#74) from 2020-07-20T11:00:30
This week, we have a pretty wide-ranging conversation with Yahoo News reporter Jon Ward. Eventually, we get around to my initial goal of talking about conspiracy theories and Evangelical subculture...
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Testimonies (#73) from 2020-07-13T11:00:44
We hear four stories of white Christians coming to see the reality of systemic racial injustice in American society: a Republican corporate attorney and member of the Federalist Society, a pastor’s...
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Miroslav Volf: Flourishing, Theology & Psychology (#72) from 2020-07-06T11:00:51
I’m joined by titan of modern theology Mirosalv Volf to talk about human flourishing and its relationship with theology and psychology. Which field gives us direction, and which fills out the mecha...
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LGBTQ, Hell, Science & Scripture in Youth Work (#71) from 2020-06-29T22:35:19
What are the big questions that high schoolers and young adults are asking in their faith communities? I asked Josh Patterson, co-host of the (Re)Thinking Faith Podcast, about his own experience as...
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The Quagmire of Modern Missions (#70) from 2020-06-22T11:00:32
I interview Jim and Breanna Randall, missionaries (if you want to call them that) in Myanmar. We talk about the various pitfalls that are present in modern day missions work (bad actors, psychologi...
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What Comes After a Racial Awakening? (#69) from 2020-06-15T17:00:10
One thing that I am really encouraged by amidst all the protest and civil unrest is how many white people seem to have genuinely woken up to the presence of systemic racism in American society. But...
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Listening (#68) from 2020-06-08T11:00:38
Black Americans and other people of color are understandably exhausted right now, so what better time to pull something out of the vault that speaks to our current moment? In 2017, on my old Depola...
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Bonus: "I Am Not Your Negro" Film Response (Re-broadcast) from 2020-06-04T18:21:31
*This was recorded before I knew the proper pronunciation of Ta-Nehisi Coates and Jonathan Haidt's names*
Back in 2017, my history buff good friend Ryan Downs and I recorded a short reacti...
Sexual Shame (#67) from 2020-06-01T11:00:57
Dan is joined by author and podcaster Matthias Roberts to talk about his new book Beyond Shame and the topic of sexual shame more broadly. His own story sheds interesting light on this topic becaus...
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Young Americans’ Views on Science & Faith (#66) from 2020-05-25T11:00:33
What do younger Americans (18-30 year olds) think about science, faith, and the relationship between them? Which issues “count” as “science/faith” issues? You might be surprised at some of the answ...
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The Prosperity Gospel of Health (#65) from 2020-05-18T11:00:23
Many of us are aware of what is meant by the “wealth” part of the “Health and Wealth” prosperity gospel: donate to this to ministry and receive tenfold back from God; God wants you to be successful...
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The Hell Anxiety Scale (#64) from 2020-05-11T11:00:54
This week, I speak with two sociologists of religion, Joseph Leman and Stephen Cranney, about the Hell Anxiety Scale that they developed, as well as the academic study of the overlap of psychology ...
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Islam: Truth Over Fear (#63) from 2020-05-04T11:00:49
I talk a lot about religious pluralism on this podcast, and therefore really appreciated this opportunity to talk with the Rev. Dr. Charles Kimball about his book Truth Over Fear and his lifetime o...
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Exvangelical or Post-Evangelical? (#62) from 2020-04-27T11:00:48
My guest Jessica Knippel is a PhD student in Women & Religion at Claremont Graduate School, and has been researching the Exvangelical / Post-Evangelical world. I was curious to talk with her about ...
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Fine-Tuning & the Multiverse (#61) from 2020-04-20T11:00:43
Dan is joined by Methodist minister and astrophysicist David Wilkinson, professor of theology at Durham University and member of the Royal Astronomical Society. They talk about the so-called “fine-...
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Why I Am (Still) a Christian (#60) from 2020-04-13T11:00:43
I’m joined by my dear friend Ben Bishop, who is both a fantastic interviewer in his own right and a former patron-only episode guest. I asked Ben to interview me on the topic of why I am (still) a ...
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Coronavirus & The Problem of Evil (#59) from 2020-04-06T11:00:33
Dan is joined by philosopher Myron Penner (Trinity Western University) and theologian Sarah Lane Ritchie (University of Edinburgh) to talk through all things Coronavirus and the Problem of Evil (mo...
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The Cosmic / Universal Christ (#58) from 2020-03-23T11:00:40
This somewhat winding conversation with Dr. Tripp Fuller (Homebrewed Christianity Podcast) swirls around the concept of the Cosmic Christ, also known as the Universal Christ. Tripp and I attempt to...
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We Are Italy: Coronavirus & Science-Informed Faith from 2020-03-17T11:00:48
I took a break from my every-other-week break with our newborn to have a conversation with one of the smartest people I know, Robbie Evans, a strategic director at a medical diagnostics company in ...
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Wrapping Our Faith in Doubt (#57) from 2020-03-09T11:00:10
We often think of our doubts as counting *against* our faith: if we have enough reasons to believe in the “faith” column, then that will be enough to discount all the problems in the “doubts” colum...
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Liberal Christianity's Origin Story (#56) from 2020-02-24T12:00
it isn't as nerdy as it sounds, but... I spoke with Reverend Doctor Catherine Kelsey about the beginnings of what today we would call liberal Christianity, through the work of the theologian Friedr...
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I Don't Believe In That God (Patron Exclusive) (#55) from 2020-02-17T12:00:10
Since the baby has not arrived yet, I was able to put a little something together in between formal episodes! This originally aired as a patron-exclusive episode, and was received so well that I th...
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Evil, Hell, & Evidence for God at a Christian College (#54) from 2020-02-10T12:00:30
Dan sits down with friend and philosopher Matthew Benton (Seattle Pacific University) to talk through five common questions that come up commonly with undergraduate students at his Christian univer...
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End Times Anxiety: Part 4 (#53) from 2020-02-03T12:00:10
The final chapter of our 4-part series on the End Times and mental health concerns. Today, we hear three shorter stories that each circle around the issue of family, and how family relationships an...
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Emergency Pod: The Good Place Finale from 2020-02-02T06:32:55
After being personally wrecked by the series finale of The Good Place, I needed to process this with some friends. Those friends are D.L. (Danielle) Mayfield and her husband Krispin. This is the re...
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End Times Anxiety: Part 3 (#52) from 2020-01-27T12:00:10
Part 3 of 4 (it is very much recommended to start with Part 1!) of a series on the so-called End Times and mental health issues. Today, we hear from 15 of the 20 interviews I conducted in August of...
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End Times Anxiety: Part 2 (#51) from 2020-01-20T12:00
Part 2 of 4 (it is very much recommended to start with Part 1!) of a series on the so-called End Times and mental health issues. Today, we hear two longer stories: Samantha, who followed a self-pro...
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End Times Anxiety: Part 1 (#50) from 2020-01-13T12:00:46
What better way to celebrate 50 episodes of YHP than to kick off a 4-part series on so-called “End Times” teaching/theology and mental health? As part of early research toward my doctoral dissertat...
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Do Muslims, Jews & Christians Worship the Same God? (#49) from 2020-01-06T12:00:53
Plus: a working definition of “Process Theology and “Robust Christian Pluralism." Dr. Wm. Andrew Schwartz (Claremont School of Theology) walks us through four possible answers to the question of wh...
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The Psychology of Religious Fundamentalism (Re-broadcast) from 2019-12-30T12:00:33
During the holiday break, I'm choosing two lesser-downloaded or well-timed episodes for re-airing. Many of us are still, or have just been, spending time with family members who are fundamentalists...
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Is Everything Within God? (Re-broadcast) from 2019-12-23T12:00:23
During the holiday break, I'm choosing two lesser-downloaded episodes for re-airing. This conversation with Philip Clayton about Panentheism (and a few other things) was fantastic, but I think mayb...
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The Cave: A Gift That Keeps On Giving (#48) from 2019-12-16T12:00:43
Dan discusses the all-time most famous passage in western philosophy, Plato’s Cave Analogy, with Catholic philosopher Patrick McDonald (Seattle Pacific University). The Cave is a gift that keeps on...
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Who’s Afraid of Evolutionary Psychology? (#47) from 2019-12-09T12:00:13
As it turns out, both conservatives AND liberals, depending who you talk to. But is it a valid field of research, and what do we learn about human nature from evolutionary psychology? Dan also talk...
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Looking for God in the Future, Not the Past (#46) from 2019-11-25T12:00:03
Dan is joined by philosopher John Haught (Georgetown University), who argues that many people think we should look to the past, the deep past, for ultimate answers. This includes certain scientists...
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"Toxic Christianity" & Its Damaging Claims (#45) from 2019-11-18T12:00:23
“Human beings are primarily intrinsically sinful and evil.”
“God’s truth can only be found in the Biblical text.”
“The body and its desires are inherently wicked.”
“Emoti...
Christian Naturalism / Physicalism (#44) from 2019-11-11T12:00:34
Can Christians believe that people are only “physical”? Must we have “souls” in order to be saved, to have relationships with God, to be God’s image-bearers in the world? My two guests today are ...
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The Argument for Universal Salvation (#43) from 2019-11-04T12:00:42
This is the episode that some of you have been waiting 40-some episodes for. Many of you know that I identify as a universalist, meaning that I believe that everyone will be saved in the end, whate...
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Is the “Supernatural” Actually Just Natural? (#42) from 2019-10-28T11:00:42
Just in time for Halloween (not on purpose actually!)... What exactly is the "supernatural"? When God does something in the natural world, is that the same thing as saying that God broke the laws o...
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Cognitive Science & Religious Belief (For Beginners) (#41) from 2019-10-21T11:00:32
Philosopher Myron Penner (Trinity Western University) helps Dan think through some interesting but complicated and challenging findings from cognitive science (the study of the mind, not the study ...
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Faith Changes & Marriage, Family, Kids, Divorce and Dating (#40) from 2019-10-14T11:00:34
How do we parent our kids after faith deconstruction? What if only one half of a couple is going through faith changes? Can people of different faith traditions have healthy marriages? How do I ...
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Psychedelics & Other "Spiritual Technologies" (#39) from 2019-10-07T11:00:44
Why is everyone suddenly talking about psychedelic drugs again? What do we know about them, and what is their relationship to more “ordinary” religious experiences? Is taking a psychedelic as par...
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To Trust Your Experience (Dustin Kensrue) (#38) from 2019-09-30T11:00:24
Is experience potentially a direct pathway to the God of the universe? Or is it simply “the heart [being] deceitful above all things”? Can we trust our spiritual experience, and if so, which experi...
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What Comes After Purity Culture? (#37) from 2019-09-23T11:00:35
What exactly is “purity culture,” and why is everyone talking about it? Was it really so harmful? Isn’t it pretty straightforward to not have sex until marriage? Today’s guest Linda Key Klein ha...
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Evolution Myths & Long Lifespans in Genesis (#36) from 2019-09-16T11:00:46
Darwin’s theory of evolution by common descent is so widely agreed upon by scientists that it is either the best explanation we have for the origins of life on this planet, or else it is a massive ...
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Trump, Evangelicals & Faith in Politics (#35) from 2019-09-09T11:00:25
Today’s guest is Peter Wehner -- Vice President and Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, contributing opinion writer for the New York Times, and a contributing editor for The Atlan...
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The Psychology of Religious Fundamentalism (#34) from 2019-09-03T11:00:06
“Fundamentalist” has become a theological swear word. But how does it work psychologically? Why hasn’t it “gone away”? How do religious fundamentalists make sense of their world and find meaning...
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To Deny a Historical Adam & Eve (#33) from 2019-08-26T18:30:15
The question of whether or not Adam and Eve were historical figures is a hotly debated topic in some circles of Christianity -- especially more Reformed and/or conservative circles -- and completel...
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To Give Reformed Theology a Fair Hearing (#32) from 2019-08-19T10:00:55
A lot of us have been pretty burned in Reformed Christian communities, which might go by names like Presbyterian, Bible Church, Baptist, and more, all of which stem in one way or another from the t...
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What Counts as Prayer? (#31) from 2019-08-05T10:00:45
Can silent meditation be prayer? Is prayer always in some sense bodily and physical, or is it only a spiritual thing? When did prayer first enter the story of humanity — millions of years ago, or...
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To Question the Canaanite Conquest & Divine Violence (#30) from 2019-07-22T10:00:24
Did God really command the complete slaughter of everyone living in the Promised Land (men, women and children)? Would a loving God ever allow Israelite soldiers to take on additional wives as war...
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To Be Egalitarian / Ordain Women (#29) from 2019-07-08T10:00:14
One of the most divisive questions in the modern church is whether or not biological sex plays a role in who should be allowed to preach (and there are other issues wrapped up in this one, like whe...
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To Trust Science (#28) from 2019-07-01T10:00:39
Why is there a (perceived) conflict between science and religion, and has it always been that way? How does science actually get done, and is the scientific method and community set up in such a w...
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To Embrace Uncertainty (#27) from 2019-06-24T10:00:29
Is it possible to be certain about anything in one’s Christian faith? Is it possible to be certain about anything at all, like math, science, or the love of a spouse? Why does it often seem mores...
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To Acknowledge Your Feelings Around Race (#26) from 2019-06-17T10:00:29
Dan is joined for a long afternoon of somewhat experimental podcasting by Christopher Carter and Seth Schoen, who together have developed a very interesting group/individual practice (and they teac...
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To Stay In Your Church/Denomination (#25) from 2019-06-10T10:00:45
While of course there are times when it makes sense to leave one’s religious institution, today Dan and sociologist of religion Dr. Tricia Bruce make the case for staying. What is lost when people...
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To Go To Therapy (#24) from 2019-06-03T19:28:03
Should Christians go to "regular" therapists, or is "Biblical Counseling" the only option available to a Christian? Do therapists encourage Christian couples to divorce unnecessarily? Is it shame...
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To Be a Postmodern Christian (#23) from 2019-05-27T10:00:17
...and still love the Bible! Thomas Jay Oord joins Dan to discuss the issue of postmodernism and the Bible (through the lens of a fantastic article by Old Testament scholar Terence Fretheim, which...
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To Critique Purity Culture (#22) from 2019-05-20T10:00:29
Seattle's own Dr. Tina Shermer Sellers (psychologist and sex therapist) joins Dan for a fascinating conversation about what is known as Purity Culture, that near-ubiquitous set of sexual-moral clai...
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To Consider Inerrancy, Infallibility & Inspiration (#21) from 2019-05-13T10:00:39
Dan is re-joined by Bonnie Kristian (author of "A Flexible Faith") to talk through the various ways that Christians think about Biblical inspiration (and just what kind of "errors" might be in ther...
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Why "Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin" Is Psychologically Impossible (#20) from 2019-05-06T10:00:19
Richard Beck is a psychologist, professor, speaker and author of many books, right in what I consider to be the sweet spot: the overlap of psychology and Christian faith/theology. This is more or l...
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To Cut Your “Technological Umbilical Cord” (#19) from 2019-04-29T10:00:49
Many of us know the psychological costs of our addiction to all our electronic devices (do we really?), but have we considered the spiritual costs (and are those actually distinct)? Do we really u...
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To Seek Christ through Buddhist Meditation (#18) from 2019-04-22T10:00:14
Mark Vernon is a psychotherapist and author/speaker with degrees in physics and theology. He speaks with Dan about his regular practice of seeking the Christian God through "Buddhism Light" medita...
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To Embrace the Four Divergent Jesuses of the Gospels (#17) from 2019-04-15T10:00:34
Dan is joined by NT scholar Dale B. Martin to consider what it means that the four Gospels present four at-least-somewhat divergent accounts of both Jesus's life and his character. Dale argues tha...
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To Escape "Culture War Christianity" (#16) from 2019-04-08T10:30:02
There is a kind of “religious humidity” in some parts of our country, such that the dominant form of Evangelicalism puts a kind of constant and uniform pressure on anyone who lives there. This aff...
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To Believe in a God Who Suffers (#15) from 2019-04-01T10:00:22
Bethany’s book “God, Evolution and Animal Suffering”: https://www.routledge.com/God-Evolution-and-Animal-Suffering-Theodicy-without-a-Fall-1st-Edition/Sollereder/p/book/9781138608474
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To Acknowledge Evangelicalism's Racial Blindspot (#14) from 2019-03-25T10:00:49
This one is a doozy! And it's both here and in the Depolarize! Podcast feed because it's just that good. Sociologist Michael O. Emerson breaks down his and Christian Smith's argument as to why Wh...
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To Change Your Mind: Christlikeness (Reese Roper) (#13) from 2019-03-18T10:30:09
Reese Roper is the singer of Christian ska-punk band Five Iron Frenzy. We hear how his understanding of what it means to be Christlike has changed -- or more accurately, has been nuanced -- over t...
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To Consider Quakerism & Panentheism (God = Universe + Something) (#12) from 2019-03-11T10:30:08
Our guest today is Dr. Philip Clayton (Claremont School of Theology), giving us his personal faith story from a secular household, through conservative Evangelicalism, and ultimately into Quakerism...
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To Resist the Mob (on the Left and Right) (#11) from 2019-03-04T11:30:03
(This episode is appearing on both the You Have Permission and Depolarize! Podcast feeds.) How do we know that we aren't caught up in a "mob mentality" on social, political, or theological issues? ...
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To Be Gay Affirming (#10) from 2019-02-25T11:00:16
This is a tricky one, especially for those who have a genuine desire to take the Bible seriously. The argument for inclusion that J. R. Daniel Kirk presents, however, is one that I find convincing...
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To Think Seriously About (Biblical) Patriarchy (#9) from 2019-02-18T12:00:15
Does the Bible teach a soft, "kind" version of patriarchy, or was patriarchy the unquestioned cultural backdrop of the Biblical text? Does God proscribe a loving patriarchal system, or is God agai...
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To Be Theologically Progressive (#8) from 2019-02-11T12:00:35
This week (partly since I will be out of town next weekend) we are getting a doozy of an episode with Dr. Kyle Roberts (Dean of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities) about progressive Chr...
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To Change Your Mind: Healing Prayer (Thomas Jay Oord) (#7) from 2019-02-04T11:00:15
The first in an ongoing occasional "to change your mind" series. Thomas Jay Oord is one of the leading theologians in the world of Open & Relational Theology (which includes Open Theism, Process T...
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To Consider *ALL* the Atonement Theories (#6) from 2019-01-28T12:30:03
*How exactly* does Christ's death and resurrection make people right with God? Author and journalist Bonnie Kristian walks Dan through 5 of the most popular and historic answers to that question. ...
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To Wonder If "Unreached Peoples" Should Be Reached (the John Chau Incident) (#5) from 2019-01-21T11:00:15
John Chau was a 26 year old American missionary who managed to get himself smuggled to North Sentinel Island, an island in the Bay of Bengal, between India and Mayanmar, home of somewhere between 2...
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To Reject Predestination (An Alternative to TULIP) (#4) from 2019-01-14T12:30:05
Many Christians have been taught that in order to truly submit to God's sovereignty and God's word, it is necessary to believe that God predetermines who will go to Heaven, and who will to Hell, be...
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To Think Theologically About Aliens (Seriously) (#3) from 2019-01-14T12:20:05
Astrophysicists discover new planets almost daily; might there be intelligent life on one of these planets? Even if not, the number of planets that must exist universe-wide is probably in the bill...
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To Accept Theistic Evolution (#2) from 2019-01-14T12:10:05
Many Christians are erroneously taught that either 1) Darwinian Evolution is true or 2) the Bible / the Gospel is true, but not both. In fact, thousands of respected scientists are committed Chris...
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To Believe Some Non-Christians Are Saved (#1) from 2019-01-14T12:00:15
Many great evangelists, theologians, and Christian thinkers over the millennia have believed that God will save many people who do not confess Christ while they are alive, including Billy Graham, C...
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Introducing "You Have Permission" from 2018-12-28T01:46:15
Welcome to You Have Permission, a brand new podcast from Dan Koch (Reconstruct, Depolarize!). So many of us have been given bad answers to good and difficult questions -- questions about God, suff...
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