The Mockingcast

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk generational warfare ("OK boomer"), Sunday morning racial reconciliation, refugee puppetry, and America's favorite Dolly. Also, Sarah gets beeped for the first time--but probably not the last. Throughout it all, hope abounds. Oh and to take RJ up on his offer, visit [ www.mbird.com/support](www.mbird.com/support) . Click here to read Aja Romano's article in Vox ab...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk cancel culture, aging taboos, and the church-pocalypse. Also, Sarah goes shopping for jeans. Click here to read John McDermott's article "Those People We Cancelled? They're All Hanging Out Together". Click here to read Arthur Krystal's "Why We Can't Tell the Truth About Aging". Click here to read Sarah's article "When People Tell Me It's Hard to Find a Church". Cl...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk procrastination, child-ing, and going home with Beth Moore. Also, RJ's three-year-old wakes up with a song in his heart. To read Tim Kreider's article about procrastination, click here . To read Agnes Callard's article about panic and parenting, click here . To read Wesley Hill's article about unnecessary gifts, click here . And to read Sarah Condon's article abou...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk about noonday demons, divine surprises, and the doctrine that rhymes with schmotal decavity. Also, RJ comes clean about why he watches SEC football. Click here to read Jonathan Malesic's essay "The Noonday Demon." Click here to read "Rigorous Grace: A Conversation Between Leslie Jamison and Kaveh Akbar." Click here to read Heidi Haverkamp's article "How I learned...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk about raising boys, surviving Instagram, and grasping the moral legacy of the Christian revolution. Also, Marshall Heijmen scales the roof while Neil Condon takes us to Danger World. Click here to read Sarah's article about boys. Click here to read Tavi Gevinson's (long) article about Instagram. Click here to read John Gray's review of Tom Holland's new book,_ Dom...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk about the temptations/lessons of nostalgia, Taylor Swift's doctrine of forgiveness, and the "Age of American Despair." Also, RJ recites the full lineup of the 86 Mets. This episode is dedicated to Emily and Alex Large. Click here to read Joel's Stein article "I Toured the ‘Brady Bunch’ House and It Did Not Go As Planned." Click here to read Scott Hershovitz's colu...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk hard seltzer, early NFL retirements, and the (non)virtue of niceness. Also, Sarah shares her recipe for meat water. Click here to read Amanda Mull's article "White Claw Is What Happens When Being Cool Becomes Exhausting." Click here to read Nate Jackson's column "Football Doesn't Let You Leave." Click here to read Sharon Hodde Miller's take on "Why Niceness Weaken...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave return from their summer break to talk school stress, ideal women, millennial nuns, and the gift God gave Stephen Colbert. Also, Sarah reveals her favorite film franchise. Click here to read the article "We Have Ruined Childhood by Kim Brooks Click here to read "The Tyranny of the Ideal Woman" by Jia Tolentino Click here to read "Behold, The Millennial Nuns" by Eve Fai...

In this, the third of three special summer mini-sodes, RJ, Sarah, and Dave converse on the subject of hope (and why it is not the same thing as optimism). Dedicated to the memory of James Harte.

In this special episode of The Mockingcast, Ethan Richardson takes us on a tour of The Family Issue of The Mockingbird magazine, featuring interviews with education expert Alfie Kohn and Silver Linings Playbook creator Matthew Quick. Oh, and Carrie Willard explains why our family lives are like those moldy leftovers in your refrigerator. Order your copy of The Family Issue here .

In this, the second of three special summer mini-sodes, Sarah, RJ, and Dave try to put words to the Holy Spirit. Also, RJ totally loses it in Denny's.

In this, the first of three special summer mini-sodes, RJ, Sarah, and Dave discuss what's meant by "the bondage of the will," and why it's not a bad thing. Also, Annie Condon has a good cry.

In which Sarah, Dave, and RJ talk diabolical mirrors, marital submission, and contingent self-esteem. Also, RJ eats a whopper (but keeps his balance). The articles discussed include: "The Devil Lives in the Mirror" by Jessica Hooten Wilson via Christianity Today "Stop Blaming the Devil" by Sarah Condon "Is Marriage Obsolete?" by Heather Havrilesky via The Cut "The Pursuit of High Self-Esteem Is Ma...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk summer expectations, arrival fallacies, and the most American heresy of all. With rocks. The articles discussed include: " The Tyranny of Summer Expectations " by Carrie Willard via Mbird.com " You Accomplished Something Great " by A.C. Shilton via New York Times " If I Only Understood the Arrival Fallacy I'd be Happy " by David Zahl via Mbird.com " The Age of Pel...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk sleep technology, reckless generosity, and back row churches. Also, Sarah would like an epidural, all the time. Oh and to take RJ up on his offer, visit [ www.mbird.com/support](www.mbird.com/support) . The articles discussed include: " Sleepless in Silicon Valley " via The Economist " Morehouse College Grads are Suprised " by Eliott C. McLaughlin via CNN " Is Thi...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave reunite to talk pop culture homework, judging other people's relationships, and the lives and deaths of Rachel Held Evans and Jean Vanier. Please note: this is not the episode where Sarah cries the whole time. Articles discussed include: " When Did Pop Culture Become Homework? " by Soraya Roberts via Longreads " Let's Face It, We All Judge Other People's Relationships...

In which Sarah, Dave, and guest co-host Aaron Zimmerman talk shifting Instagram aesthetics, fashionable funerals, and Easter hope. Also, Sarah inherits some QVC jewelry. Articles discussed include: " The Instagram Aesthetic is Over " by Taylor Lorenz via The Atlantic " The Funeral as We Know it is Becoming a Relic " by Karen Heller via The Washington Post " What Happened in Church on Sunday, I Thi...

Recorded live at the 2019 Mbird Tyler Conference, in which Sarah and Dave are joined by Aaron Zimmerman and Matt Magill to talk text etiquette, grown-up dreams, and ladders to the sky. Also, Matt sings (better than RJ). Articles discussed include: " Texting Means Never Having to Say Goodbye " by Jane Hu via Slate " Stop Asking Kids What They Want to Be When They Grow Up " by Adam Grant via The New...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk college admissions, 1st century charity, and the benefits of preaching as "a dying man to dying men." Also, RJ lives the solution. Articles discussed include: " Kids, Don't Become Success Robots " by Peggy Noonan via The Wall Street Journal " How the Poor Became Blessed " by Pieter van der Horst via Aeon " Things We Cannot Say " by Conner Gwyn via Mbird.com

In this special episode, editor Ethan Richardson takes us through the new issue of The Mockingbird print magazine! Featuring interviews with existentialist boxing guru Gordon Marino, reconstructed Mbird contributor Connor Gwin, and legendary children's author Sally Lloyd-Jones. Order your copy at [magazine.mbird.com](magazine.mbird.com).

In which RJ, Sarah, and DZ discuss Hollis-mania, intuitive eating, and useless awards. Also, RJ sucks on a rock. Articles discussed include: " Girl, Follow Jesus " by Jen Oshman via The Gospel Coalition " 'Girl, Wash Your Face' is a Massive Best Seller With a Dark Message " by Laura Turner via Buzzfeed " Intuitive Eating: The Latest Diet Trend is not Dieting " by Amanda Mull via The Atlantic " Lov...

In which Dave, Sarah, and RJ discuss millennial evangelism, how to talk to someone who's grieving, and what depression can teach us about the human condition (and God). Thankfully, Sarah cracks a bunch of jokes too. Articles discussed include: " Half of Millennial Christians Say It's Wrong to Evangelize " by Kate Shellnut via Christianity Today " What to Say (and What Not to Say) to Someone Who's...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk punk-rock piety, fake meat, and hungry children. Also, in Texas queso counts as a protein. Articles discussed include: " The Moral Indecency of the Away Message " by David Brooks via the New York Times " Objects of Despair: Fake Meat " by Meghan O’Gieblyn via The Paris Review " I’m a Little Too Fat, a Little Too Giving. I Think I Know Why. " by Kristine Levine via...

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave try to make sense of familial estrangement, millennial burnout, and recovering musicians. Also, Sarah gets real at the bus stop. Articles discussed include: " I Cut Off All Contact With My Mother. It Made My Life Much Better. " by Harriet Brown via The Washington Post " How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation " by Anne Helen Petersen via Buzzfeed " Are You Burned...

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave kick off the new year by throwing out their boundaries and sitting at the feet of an incarcerated preacher. Also, RJ almost gets a hug. Articles discussed include: " Prison Was My First Pulpit " by Morgan Lee via Christianity Today