The Holy Post

At the age of 20, Michael Wear became one of the youngest White House staffers in history, working in President Obama's office of faith-based initiative.  Michael joins Phil and Skye to talk about life as an evangelical Christian in Obama's White House and his hope for the future of Christians and political engagement.  Plus, Disney ruffles feathers with gay characters.  This week on the podcast!

Why do black and white evangelicals see the world so differently?  Race and religion in the age of Trump, with professor Theon Hill.

Former Christian radio personality Melinda Schmidt joins Phil and Skye to talk about Christian radio, movies, TV, and whether Christian media stunts spiritual growth in the name of retaining an audience.  Plus, The Atlantic writes about evangelicals losing jobs for opposing Trump!

Can a Buddhist follow Jesus and still be a Buddhist?  What about a Muslim?  Fuller Seminary professor William Dyrness joins Phil and Christian to talk about the "insider movement," where people become Jesus followers without leaving their cultures and religious communities behind.

What is "power?"  Is it good, or bad?  Is it worth pursuing?  And what if the evangelical church is going about it all wrong?  Pastor Jamin Goggin and professor Kyle Strobel talk power and their new book, "The Way of the Dragon or the Way of the Lamb."  Plus - horse diapers and religious liberty.  No, really.  This week on the podcast!

It's a potluck podcast as our friend Drew Dyck swings by for a visit and we tackle a bunch of stories!  Could pigs have people parts??  Could there be great Christian movies Christians just won't see??  Would Jesus send refugees packing?  Plus Drew's favorite snack food turns on him!  It's a sign of the apocalypse for sure!

She grew up in London, has African heritage, and now lives in Minnesota!  AND she co-pastors a church in a coffeeshop!  She's Jo Saxton, and she joins us to talk about her life in ministry and her book, "More Than Enchanting" -  the value of female leadership in the world and in the church.  Plus - which religious group is the most committed to their jobs?  You'll be surprised!

Was the apostle Paul sexist?  Racist?  Homophobic?  In other words, a real jerk??  Paul has been accused of many things, so Bible scholar Brandon O'Brien joins us to discuss his new book, "Paul Behaving Badly."  Plus, is a trip to Disney World actually a religious pilgrimage??  This week on the podcast!

How geography, TV shows and voting go hand in hand, how Star Wars got it's mojo back by getting it's religion back, and how Lent can change your life - with Aaron Damiani, author of "The Good of Giving Up: Discovering the Freedom of Lent."  This week on the podcast!   Links: Star Wars -  https://www.firstthings.com/ web-exclusives/2017/01/rogue- one-and-the-return-of- reverence TV Shows -  http://...

What kind of God would send people to Hell?  Judge people?  Call for "holy war?"  Portland, OR Pastor/Author Joshua Ryan Butler joins the podcast for a discussion of some of the more perplexing parts of Christian theology and his appropriately titled book,  The Skeletons in God's Closet .

Muslim imams and evangelical pastors camping together on a dude ranch in Texas?? Some kind of bizarre reality show coming to cable this Fall? Nope! It's the real life work of Texas megachurch pastor Bob Roberts - who joins us on the podcast to describe his unlikely and somewhat controversial role as a bridge between conservative Christian leaders and their Muslim counterparts.

Which religious group is the most educated?  Are Americans more divided than ever before?  When did "self-fulfillment" become our new religion?  Leading Christian pollster David Kinnaman joins us for this year-end podcast to talk about trends shaping the culture and the church.  (Plus his new book,  Barna Trends 2017 .)

Most modern worship songs focus on God or me.  (Or God AND me.)  Is there anything else we should be covering when we worship God?  Former Mars Hill and Willow Creek worship pastor Aaron Niequist joins the podcast to talk about his adventures in seeking a bigger vision of what worship can be.

Podcast co-host Skye Jethani and Josh Lindsay are launching a new podcast about movies, so with Skye off in India, Phil and Christian sit down with Josh to talk movies and the new podcast!

Future grandpa Phil had to skedaddle off to Minnesota... So here's a throwback! Way back! All the way to 2014! Phil and the gang are joined in studio by Aussie historian/theologian/apologist/former rocker John Dickson for a discussion of Christian culture in the US vs Australia and how to effectively engage the mainstream press, plus listeners chime in on the precise physiology of transgenderism!...

Evangelical Pastor/Researcher/Commentator Ed Stetzer drops in for a very lively discussion of the impact of the recent election on the church, what we've learned about evangelical values, and whether the term "evangelical" has - or hasn't - outlived its usefulness.  Fun, fun, fun on the podcast!!

Popular author and preacher Francis Chan walked away from his megachurch to try something completely different - a series of tiny house churches in inner city San Francisco.  Why the change?  And what can we learn from his big experiment in going "small?"  This week on the podcast with Francis Chan - is the future of the church tiny??

We're giving everyone access to the live streaming Q&A the gang did recently to discuss the election and other Patreon subscriber questions. These events happen every month, so sign up at www. Patreon.com/PhilVischer and join in live next month!

Currently 1 out of 5 human beings revere a certain religious book, and it isn't the Bible.  Religious scholar and author Mark Robert Anderson talks us through the Qur'an… what is it?  How do Christian approach it, and why does it matter?  Plus Christian has gone crazy for the Cubbies and everyone is sweating the upcoming election!

Jesus had to "die for our sins," right?  But what does that actually mean?  We mess up, God gets mad, so someone needs to pay for our sin or we can't go to heaven when we die?  But what if our ultimate problem isn't sin, and what if our ultimate goal isn't heaven??  Egads!! World-renowned theologian N.T. Wright joins Phil and Skye to talk about his new book - The Day the Revolution Began: Reconsid...

What really birthed the religious right?  Why have black and white Christians swapped political parties over the last 60 years?  Based on a class he's teaching, co-host Skye Jethani takes us deep into the surprising history of 20th century Christian political involvement.  It's a fascinating journey you won't want to miss!

Why are young people leaving the church and what are some churches doing that is helping them stay?  Is it all about "hipping up" our churches with coffee bars and skinny jeans, or is it something deeper?  Fuller Youth Institute director Kara Powell returns to the podcast to discuss her new book,  Growing Young , and the surprising answers to one of our thorniest problems.

Is the church in America obsessed with success?  Do we sacrifice genuine growth to avoid failure?  Pastor/author J.R. Briggs joins Phil and Skye to discuss the idolatry of success and his own journey in learning how to "fail well."

Does the way we do church effectively make disciples? New research says "not so much." So what do we do? Speaker, author,  and theologian Preston Sprinkle is back on the show to talk about new models for church and why we need them. What could church be? What SHOULD church be? This week on the podcast!

A Bible translation is frozen in time. Modern technology unlocks a scroll. Christian media is more popular than you might think. And a new survey shows Christians are bad at guessing which behaviors make our neighbors uncomfortable. This week on the podcast!