The Humble Skeptic

Daniel Boyarin is a professor of Talmudic Culture at U.C. Berkeley who argues that many Jews before the time of Jesus were expecting a divine-human Messiah who would suffer on behalf of his people. These ideas are not only found throughout the Hebrew Bible, but we also discover them in a variety of ancient Jewish texts written before the rise of Christianity. On this episode, Shane Rosenthal talks...

On this episode of The Humble Skeptic podcast, Shane talks with Mike Brown, one of the authors of Sacred Bond: Covenant Theology Explored, about common errors to avoid when reading and interpreting Scripture. They also discuss a variety of interpretive tools that will make your study of the Bible more effective. SHOW NOTES Finding Christ in All The Scriptures — A New PDF resource In John 5:39, Jes...

What is a good definition of “culture,” and why is it so effective at conforming us to believe certain things, and to behave in certain ways? How do we protect ourselves and the next generation from the negative influences of our increasingly secular culture? On this episode, Shane Rosenthal discusses these issues and more with Brett Kunkle, founder of Maven , and co-author of A Practical Guide to...

The word “totalitarianism” describes a political system in which the state has total authority over every aspect of life. In regimes of this kind, external conformity is just the first step—what they really want is your soul. According to Rod Dreher, we’re now seeing the rise of a new “soft totalitarianism” which is closer to Huxley’s Brave New World , than Orwell’s 1984 . In soft totalitarianism,...

Fifty years ago, Os Guinness released his book, The Dust of Death , which offered a piercing analysis of the sixties counterculture movement with its revolutionary ideas about human nature and sexual liberation. In his preface to a new edition of this work, Guinness argues that during this tumultuous decade, “many of the seeds of today’s most radical ideas were sown, only to flower more recently i...

As discussed on recent episodes, when it comes to religion and worldview preferences, most people tend to follow their own internal feelings, intuitions, and experiences. But what are the larger social implications of this increasing emphasis on the subjective? According to Carl Trueman, in today’s culture of “expressive individualism,” the idea of conforming to anything external—anything outside...

In his 1923 classic, Christianity & Liberalism , J. Gresham Machen argued that the liberal churches of his day had abandoned everything distinctive about Christianity in favor of a non-redemptive religion that was rooted in moralism and personal experience. According to Michael J. Kruger, contemporary liberal and progressive Churches are making the same crucial mistakes a century later. On this ep...

On this edition of The Humble Skeptic podcast, we’ll contrast popular beliefs about ghosts and the afterlife with the views presented in the Old and New Testaments. Joining Shane to discuss this important topic is Dr. Michael McClymond, who is the professor of Modern Theology at St. Louis University, and the author of numerous books including Familiar Stranger: An Introduction to Jesus of Nazareth...

T. David Gordon served as a professor of Media Ecology at Grove City College for several decades, and as laptops, smartphones, and social media arrived on the scene in successive waves, he and his colleagues began to notice a change in students’ ability to pay attention and to process the various reading assignments. Shane discusses this with Dr. Gordon along with some of the issues he addresses i...

How can we know whether religious experiences are authentic, or just a trick of the brain? And if they really are supernatural, how we be sure that they emanate from the God of the Bible, as opposed to the Koran? Too often we allow our experiences to confirm that which we already believe. On this episode, Shane discusses this with believers from a wide variety of faiths and also airs the second ha...

Mormons know their religion is true because they experience a “burning in the bosom.” Pentecostal Christians believe they have proof of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit because they speak in tongues. So how are we to know which religious experiences are truly authentic? Is experience a proper way to ground faith in the first place? On this episode, Shane talks with Dr. J.R. Miller, co-founder of...

Have you ever noticed that conversations about religion and politics tend to produce more heat than light? Because most of us are aware of this, we tend to avoid conversations relating to our deepest convictions. So how can we discuss our beliefs with others in a way that ends up producing more light than heat? How do we have difficult conversations on controversial topics such as the use of perso...

Have you ever been puzzled by things you read in the Bible? For example, why does the book of Exodus spend so much time walking through all the meticulous details related to the Tabernacle? On this episode, Shane Rosenthal talks with J. Daniel Hays about the Bible’s grand narrative, which helps us to understand all the individual puzzle pieces. Dr. Hays is the senior professor of Old Testament at...

What were some of the notable features of the earliest Christian sermons? What sort of things did they have in common, and how do they compare with the messages we’re likely to hear in Christian circles today? Shane Rosenthal discusses these questions and more with Dr. Dennis Johnson, author of The Message of Acts in the History of Redemption , and Let’s Study Acts . SHOW NOTES• Recommended books...

Is the book of Acts a collection of stories and legends about the lives of the apostles, or is it a trustworthy and reliable history of the earliest days of the church? Is there any external evidence that helps to corroborate its claims? Shane Rosenthal discusses these questions and more with Dr. Lydia McGrew, author of Hidden in Plain View: Undesigned Coincidences in the Gospels and Acts. SHOW NO...

In 1Pet. 3:15, Peter famously says, “Always be ready to give an answer for the hope that lies in you.” In many ways, this has become the standard prooftext for the apologetic enterprise, but have we really understood all that this verse has to teach us? Shane discusses this question and many other related issues with Jeremy Smith, the founder and president of ReThink315 . SHOW NOTES• For more info...

On this episode of The Humble Skeptic , Shane talks with Dr. Adam Duker about his interest in the study of comparative religion, as well as some of his unique experiences teaching this subject at The American University in Cairo . In particular, he relates a story that he was directly involved with a few years ago which became international news. SHOW NOTES• To read news articles related to the in...

On this program, Shane talks with Fikret Bocek who currently serves as the pastor of a Christian church in Izmir, Turkey. Fikret was raised as a Sunni Muslim, and during this episode he tells the story of the time in which he began to question his faith. In this process, he began to explore both the Koran and the Bible, and ultimately this led to his conversion to Christianity. SHOW NOTES• For mor...

On this episode, Shane talks with Sarabeth Kapusta about her experience growing up in a cult that in her words “masqueraded as a Baptist church.” Sarabeth is the host of Reconstructing Your Faith , which is a podcast designed to help those who’ve been affected by various forms of spiritual abuse. SHOW NOTES• For more information about Sarabeth Kapusta’s podcast, click here . To listen to the two e...

Is it okay to question your faith or to express doubts about your religious convictions? On this episode, Shane explores a fascinating scene from Luke 7 in which John the Baptist questions whether Jesus is the promised Messiah. Shane discusses the implications of this passage with Greg Koukl and Alisa Childers, and he also hears from Sarabeth Kapusta of the Reconstructing Your Faith podcast who sh...

On this episode of The Humble Skeptic , Shane talks with Greg Koukl about the way faith is misunderstood in our day. In fact, he argues that the English word “faith” has evolved to such an extent that Christians should probably stop using it altogether. Greg is the founder and president of Stand to Reason and the author of The Story of Reality, Tactics , and Faith is Not Wishing . SHOW NOTES • Rel...

On this bonus edition of  The Humble Skeptic  podcast, Shane reads lessons 9 & 10 of Richard Whately’s  Introduction to Christian Evidences . SHOW NOTES •  Click here  to access an online version of Richard Whately’s  Introduction   to  C hristian Evidences.  If you would like to obtain a paperback reprint,  click here . • Recommended articles by Shane Rosenthal, “ Why Should We Believe The Bible...

Most translations of the New Testament refer to Golgotha as “The Place of the Skull.” But is this correct? On this episode of The Humble Skeptic podcast, Shane Rosenthal talks with Egyptologist David Rohl about a variety of historical and textual clues that help us to better understand, not only the precise location of Golgotha, but also it’s meaning and significance. SHOW NOTES• Recommended artic...

On this episode, Shane continues weaving together various interviews he’s recorded on topics related to the reasons Christians can have confidence in the portrait of Jesus presented in the New Testament Gospels. During this podcast, you’ll hear from Peter J. Williams, Richard Bauckham, John Dickson, D.A. Carson, Craig Blomberg, Lydia McGrew, and Daniel Wallace. SHOW NOTES Related Audio For Part 1...

On this episode, Shane weaves together several interviews he’s recorded over the years on topics related to the Christian view of “faith,” how it’s grounded in the facts of the real world, and why we can be confident that it’s true. So during this podcast, you’ll hear from scholars such as John Lennox, Peter J. Williams, Richard Bauckham, John Dickson, and D.A. Carson. SHOW NOTES Related Audio For...