What's up Theology Nerds! Today on the podcast I'm joined by my brilliant friend Diana Butler Bass for another edition of "Ruining Dinner" as we mark the first 100 days of Trump's second administration. We dive into some fascinating new data on religion and politics in America that just dropped, examining everything from unexpected consensus on religious liberty (a rare bright spot!) to disturbing trends in support for political violence among Christian nationalist adherents. Diana shares her recent adventures lighting the Old North Church green for Bill McKibben's "Sunday" climate initiative, while I update her on my site visit to St. Paul (not Minneapolis!) for Theology Beer Camp and my new life as a chicken dad. We explore how competing narratives of discrimination reveal deep divides in American Christianity, unpack the dangers of executive overreach, and discuss what Lindsey Graham's papal nomination trolling reveals about our political moment. This conversation was originally for our Substack members, but we're sharing a portion with all of you – join us at The Process This or The Cottage to catch future episodes live!
Diana Butler Bass, Ph.D., is an award-winning author, popular speaker, inspiring preacher, and one of America’s most trusted commentators on religion and contemporary spirituality.
- The Interlocking Crises of Religion & Democracy
- Faith in a Toxic Public Square
- The Resurrection of Jesus
- 2024: The Sequel
- The Christology Ladder
- The Indictment Edition of Ruining Dinner
- American Saints in a Cynical Age
- Ruining Dinner… and Date Nights
- Welcome to the Post-Christian Century
- Ruining Christmas Dinner
- Ruining Election Night Dinner
- The Over-Rated Genie God
- Bad Blood, Civil War, and other Soothing Topics
- Shall the Fundies (Keep) Winning?, Abortion, and Black Holes
- Theology and Spirituality in a Time of Rupture
- White Evangelical Theopolitics, John Shelby Spong, & Jesus
- 20 Years of Religious Decline
- Jesus After Religion and Beyond Fear
- Ruining Dinner with Diana Butler Bass and Robyn Henderson-Espinoza
- Evangelical Decline, the Supreme Court, and the Horizon of Possibility
- Debating, Praying, and Living with Tyrants
- Religion, Politics, & the Elephant in the Room
ONLINE CLASS ANNOUNCEMENT: The Many Faces of Christ Today
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Hang with 40+ Scholars & Podcasts and 600 people at Theology Beer Camp 2025 (Oct. 16-18) in St. Paul, MN.
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Theology Beer Camp | St. Paul, MN | October 16-18, 2025
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