Shiny Happy People, a new docuseries documenting the effects of the teachings of Bill Gothard on the Duggars, had the biggest debut of any documentary series ever produced by Amazon.  In this episode of the Good Faith podcast, guest host Nancy French and “founding friend” David French discuss this popular series, the legacy of Bill Gothard, purity culture, and the true hope for those affected by this anti-Biblical ideology. SHOW NOTES:   Shiny Happy People on Amazon Prime   ‘Shiny Happy People,’ Fundamentalism and the Toxic Quest for Certainty by David French, New York Times; June 13, 2023.    ‘They Aren’t Who You Think They Are:’ The inside story of how Kanakuk—one of America’s largest Christian camps—enabled horrific abuse by David French and Nancy French, The Dispatch; Mar 28, 2021 ‘It was just a thing at Kanakuk’: Campers and staff say nudity was part of camp cultureBy Nancy French, Springfield News Leader, May 26, 2022 Survivors, ex-employees say Kanakuk Christian camp 'ministered' to its sexual predators, by Nancy French, USA Today, May 26, 2022 Nancy French’s Tweet Thread on Kanakuk Ties to Bill Gothard Joe White Says Pete Newman’s Wife Should’ve Been His First Layer of Accountability [Deposition Video] Check out the opportunities at George Fox University Check out the opportunities with the Matthew 5:9 Network.

We’ve witnessed story after story about the abuse of power practiced by Christians and Christian institutions. Does that mean that, to quote Lord Acton, that “power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely?” How should followers of Jesus relate to the possibility of wielding power? Cherie Harder, the President of The Trinity Forum, is ideally suited to address these questions. She’s spent a lifetime in the corridors of power and shares a wealth of theological and practical wisdom on this important topic. The Trinity Forum For a helpful theological examination about power, check out Andy Crouch’s Playing God: Redeeming the Gift of Power. Check out the opportunities at George Fox University Check out the opportunities with the Matthew 5:9 Network.  

How can Christian respond to the epidemic of gun violence sweeping our country? Michael Allen and David Dillon join us to share about their inspiring work with Together Chicago. They are an unlikely pair in a racially divided city torn by violence: Michael is a former black pastor and David is a white business executive. Starting with their own friendship, Michael and David have led an innovative and inspiring campaign to counter the evil of gun violence with collaboration and hope.   Find out more about Together Chicago The Unseen Realm by Micahel S. Hesier (recommended by Michael Allen) The Clapham Sect: How Wilberforce's Circle Transformed Britain by Stephen Tomkins (recommended by David Dillon) Evil and the Cross by Henri Blocher (recommended by Curtis Chang on why we ultimately are not called to “make sense” of evil, but rather to combat it). Check out the opportunities at George Fox University Check out the opportunities with the Matthew 5:9 Network.  

This week, Curtis kicks off a two parter on the tough subject of guns in America. Part 1 is a Good Faith Classic where Curtis and David explored the tensions between gun culture and gun control in our hyper-polarized environment. They help us take a step back to think through the “how” of approaching such a complex issue versus just the “what” of our preferred policy outcome. Stay tuned for next week’s Part 2 episode where Good Faith explores what a Christian response to gun violence could look like.   Show Notes:   Rand Corporation - Gun Policy in America  Rand Corporation - How Gun Policies Affect Mass Shootings Malcolm Gladwell (New Yorker) - Thresholds of Violence: How school shootings catch on French Press - Pass and Enforce Red Flag Laws. Now. David French (The Atlantic) - What Critics Don’t Understand About Gun Culture

The Asbury revival of early 2023 garnered a great deal of interest from Christians hungering for signs of hope. What’s happening there now? In the first part, Curtis talks with the President of Asbury University, Kevin Brown, to learn more about the experience itself and how the institution has sought to steward this outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In the second part, “founding friend” David French joins Curtis to reflect more deeply on how God works through revivals, drawing on Asbury, US history, and especially their shared experience of revival at Harvard in the 1990’s.

We examine the phenomena of spiritual abuse with the help of Dan Koch, researcher, therapist, and host of the podcast, You Have Permission. Both Curtis and Dan share how their own lives have been affected by spiritual abuse, and then together address questions such as, “Why can it be difficult to spot? What kind of impact does it leave? What makes spiritual abuse distinct from other kinds of abuse?” The conversation connects important theological insights - including the nature of institutional sin and redemption - with practical advice for victims, their loved ones, and current leaders of Christian organizations.   Dan Koch’s Spiritual Harm and Abuse Scale Clinical Screener   Dan’s You Have Permission Podcast   Escaping the Maze of Spiritual Abuse: Creating Healthy Christian Cultures by Dr. Lisa Oakley   Further resources on spiritual abuse from The Allender Center at the Seattle School  

Longtime friend Andy Crouch joins Curtis to talk about what it means to truly rest the way God intended us to do so. Why is rest so important to creativity? What is the difference between rest and leisure? Is binge watching Netflix actually restful? What are other key mistakes we make in approaching this vital topic? The conversation is Good Faith at its best, combining Biblical theology, cultural analysis, and practical living. Wheaton College Graduate School offers 20 excellent master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs, including flexible learning opportunities. Check out these offerings at: wheaton.edu/goodfaith.   Learn more about how our Christian faith makes sense of life and health in the MedTech world at “The Christian Stake in Bioethics Revisited” - a conference by the Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity. The conference runs from June 22-24 at the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in suburban Chicago. You can attend via in person, online live, or on-demand recording.   Interested in financially sponsoring the Good Faith podcast as an institution or an individual? Read more about how to support Good Faith here at Redeeming Babel.  

David returns from his recent trip to Kyiv to provide an eyewitness account of the war, including what it is like to survive the terror of a hypersonic missile attack by the Russians. He and Curtis discuss the physical, emotional, and spiritual toll of the war on the Ukrainian people. They explore what lessons we all should take from this ongoing, world changing event.   Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War by Drew Gilpin Faust   Human Rights Watch report on Russian war crimes    Learn more about how our Christian faith makes sense of life and health in the MedTech world at “The Christian Stake in Bioethics Revisited” - a conference by the Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity. The conference runs from June 22-24 at the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in suburban Chicago. You can attend via in person, online live, or on-demand recording.

Curtis Chang, the regular host of the Good Faith podcast, takes a turn in the “guest seat” in this special episode in which Nancy French interviews him about his new book, The Anxiety Opportunity: How Worry Is the Doorway to Your Best Self. Curtis, who has suffered from anxiety to the point of losing his job as a senior pastor, offers up hard-earned wisdom that could transform one’s view on parenting, relationships, and even politics. Curtis also talks about the way the church gets anxiety wrong, how Jesus dealt with anxious people, and how grieving is a necessary component of effectively walking through loss.    

It’s the 75th Good Faith episode and we’re celebrating our “diamond” podcast by running back one of our first episodes. First released in November 2021, this episode is a “classic” (in our minds) because we define terms around several key questions that have recurred on Good Faith: “What is an ‘evangelical?’ Is it a set of religious beliefs, a set of cultural beliefs, or a set of political beliefs? How does evangelicalism compare with fundamentalism?” Is “evangelical” a term worth salvaging for Christians?”    Show Notes: The French Press: “Did Donald Trump Make the Church Great Again?” Pew Research Center: “More White Americans adopted than shed evangelical label during Trump presidency, especially his supporters” National Association of Evangelicals: “What is an Evangelical?” (including the Bebbington Quadrilateral) Barna: “Survey Explores Who Qualifies As an Evangelical” (including the 9-point Evangelical) Ryan Burge: “For White Evangelical Republicans, Approval of Trump is About Immigration more than Abortion” Ryan Burge: “Why ‘Evangelical’ is becoming another word for ‘Republican’” The French Press: “The American Crisis of Selective Empathy”