Episode 479: Everything Doesn’t Happen For a Reason with Kate Bowler

The prosperity gospel isn’t just about health and wealth. Historian Kate Bowler says pragmatic values, simple solutions, and the endless quest for self-improvement, have infected most of the church in subtle ways. Kaitlyn Schiess talks to Dr. Bowler about her own battle with cancer, and how it’s helped her move beyond cliches like “Everything happens for a reason,” to embrace the larger mystery of faith.

Also this week, have elite evangelicals sold out to the mainstream media, or have populist evangelicals sold out to Trump voters? Everyone seems to be talking about the divide within evangelicalism, but is it really something new? The Holy Post crew looks at the arguments and how we could be seeing the latest version of a very old divide. Plus, Phil is fascinated by left-handed ghost squirrels.

News Segment:

Traveling with moss [1:38]

Animal Facts [5:34]

The divide within evangelicalism [14:40]

https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/church-state-and-the-future-of-evangelicalism/

https://markgalli.substack.com/p/the-galli-report-100821

https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/evangelical-elites-fighting-each

https://www.firstthings.com/article/2021/11/the-failure-of-evangelical-elites

Interview with Kate Bowler:

Interview Start [52:19] “Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved” - https://amzn.to/3FYKLRj

“No Cure for Being Human: (And Other Truths I Need to Hear)” - https://amzn.to/3C1jyuS

Kate’s Story [55:57]

“Blessed - A History of the American Prosperity Gospel” - https://amzn.to/2Z1aBD2“

No Cure for Being Human” Title [1:00:14]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/14/opinion/sunday/death-the-prosperity-gospel-and-me.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=0

Certainty vs. faith[1:05:31]

American pragmatism and “useful pain” [1:07:32]

Understanding fear and living after crisis [1:11:24]

Response and engagement with these books [1:18:57] https://katebowler.com/podcasts/

The miracle of moments [1:23:35]

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