New Persuasive Words

In this Bullgeschichte episode we're joined by Adam Borneman. He's a Presbyterian minister (PCUSA) and the Program Director of Macedonia Ministries. We talk about 19th century theology, the relevance of the Gospel for public life, and a host of other things. Special Guest: Adam Borneman.

In this episode we talk about the parable of The Prodigal Son, found in Luke 15. We consider what roles we play in it at different parts in our public and private lives, and how it speaks to them all.

In this episode we continue to discuss the Mueller Report now that Attorney General Barr's summary of it has been made public.

We recorded this episode a half hour before the release of the summary of the Mueller report by U.S. Attorney General William Barr. We talk about it what it might mean for the country. We also talk about how people generally deal with uncertainty.

In this episode, inspired by a piece published on the site of our friends over at Mockingbird, we talk about the relationship of the person of Christ to principles that we devise and even cherish. You can find the piece we reference, written by Jared Jones, here: https://mbird.com/2019/03/the-living-christ-and-the-principle-of-grace/.

In this episode, inspired by NY Times op-ed piece, we talk about the problem of contemptuousness in our culture. You can find the NY Times piece we discuss here: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/02/opinion/sunday/political-polarization.html.

In this episode, after a few minutes talking news, we turn to the recent controversy about sexuality and LGBT inclusion in the United Methodist Church.

In this episode we talk about the visible and invisible church, and our ideals and the church's realities.

In this episode, inspired by something we read online, we talk about the inability of facts to change minds. If facts are stubborn things, are our minds even more stubborn? Why is this the case? You can find the article we reference here. (https://heleo.com/facts-dont-change-peoples-minds-heres/16242/)

In this episode, inspired by a piece written by Valerie Tarico, we talk about the strange similarities between some types of conservative evangelicals and woke activists. Most people wouldn't see these groups having much in common. But does their particular sort of tribalism make their similarities greater than their differences? You can find Valerie Tarico's piece here: http://new.exchristian.net/2019/02/the-righteousness-and-woke-why.html.

In this episode we talk with friend and always interesting interlocutor David Fitch. Dave is a theologian, pastor and church planter. He's also a self-described "Neo-Anabaptist." He also identifies as an evangelical Christian. We ask him about his Neo-Anabaptist theological vision and how it relates to the evangelical tradition in North America. Special Guest: David Fitch.

In this our 250th episode, we are joined by our friend Matt Milliner. We discuss a host of issues and ideas and do a lot of laughing along the way. Special Guest: Matt Milliner.

In this episode we talk about grace. Specifically, we talk about the term common grace, and how to us grace always seems particular and special.

In this episode we talk about the things that keep us up at night, and the things that don't.

In this episode we consider two different ancient approaches to the meaning of redemption and the role of Jesus in it, and how it shapes our understanding of Christmas.

In this episode we talk about the blessing of Advent and Christmas traditions and the benefits of living in a culture even superficially shaped by the Christian story.

In this episode we interact with a recent piece that appeared on the Gospel Coalition website. The author claims that there is slippery slope (or natural progression?) from progressive evangelical Christianity to atheism. We're less than convinced. You can find the piece, written by Alisa Childers, here: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/3-beliefs-progressive-christians-atheists-share/.

In this episode we talk about how to deal with contentious hot button issues at the holiday dinner table.

In this episode we talk about what happens in the wake of horrific things when we lose the capacity to call them evil in a meaningful way. We referenced two books on the episode: People of the Lie and Evil in Modern Thought. You can find the links below: https://www.amazon.com/People-Lie-Hope-Healing-Human/dp/0684848597 https://www.amazon.com/Evil-Modern-Thought-Alternative-Philosophy/dp/0691168504

This past week we saw 16 people killed in hate crimes in 2 states, one of which was the biggest killing of Jews in American history. We also saw a crazed man send bombs to some of the Democratic party's leadership and key supporters. We try to think about where we go next.