Confronting Christianity with Rebecca McLaughlin

Rebecca McLaughlin is joined by Sherelle Ducksworth to talk about the holiday Juneteenth.Questions Covered in This Episode:How did you become a Christian?What is systematic theology?What is Juneteenth?Can you help us understand anthropological distortions?How would you respond to someone who looks at history and say that how Christians treated black people shows that Christianity isn’t true?How do Christians typically view or treat injustice?How can Christians be different than the culture in loving ways?How do we think about Juneteenth as an opportunity to point to Jesus?Guest Bio:Sherelle Ducksworth serves as a Christian Studies professor at Anderson University. She holds M.S in sociology with a concentration on social stratification from Mississippi State University and a M.A. in theology from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. She is currently working on a Ph.D. In systematic theology from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Resources Mentioned:Acts 8:26-40, Isaiah 61:1What Is Juneteenth, And Why Should We Celebrate It? By Sherelle DucksworthFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin talk about how Confronting Christianity has evolved over time, why Kyle will be stepping away from the podcast, and what to expect in the fall!Questions Covered in This Episode:Why did we start this podcast?How have we experienced hosting this podcast?Kyle, why are you leaving the podcast?Are you excited about the future of the show?What are some future topics we can expect?Resources Mentioned:Training the ChurchStarting PlaceTiny Theologians PodcastFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Rebecca McLaughlin is joined by Rachel Gilson and JD Greear to answer the question, what does someone do when they become a Christian and they are married to someone of the same sex?Questions Covered in This Episode:Rachel, can you share a little of your story?Why do you think it's important for people to hear from people like Rachel on this topic?How would you respond to someone who would think that the Bible is wrong on this one because they can’t believe that God wouldn’t want someone to not be happy?JD, why would you choose to address this issue in your book?What about somebody that becomes a Christian and they are married to someone of the same sex? Isn’t it worse for them to get a divorce?How do we help and care for people in this specific situation?What can be helpful and unhelpful in this conversation?Guest Bio:Rachel Gilson is on the leadership team for theological development and culture for Cru. She is the author of Born Again This Way: Coming Out, Coming to Faith, and What Comes Next. Rachel has a Master of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is pursuing a Ph.D. from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. She is married to Andrew and has a daughter.J.D. Greear is the pastor of The Summit Church, in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. Pastor J.D. Greear has authored several books, including but not limited to; Essential Christianity, What Are You Going to Do with Your Life?, Gaining by Losing, Stop Asking Jesus into Your Heart. Pastor J.D. completed his Ph.D. in Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors of Chick-fil-A since January 2022 and recently served as the 62nd president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Pastor J.D. and his wife Veronica are raising four awesome kids: Kharis, Alethia, Ryah, and Adon.Resources Mentioned:1 Corinthians 7:12–13, Matthew 19:1-12, Ephesians 5:22-33, Matthew 13:44-46“Mere Christianity” by C.S. Lewis“Essential Christianity” by JD GreerFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin are joined by Esau McCaulley to have a conversation about Easter and why it is important. Questions Covered in This Episode:What is your new book, “Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal” about?What would you say to someone who does not fully understand what Lent is?Is Easter Sunday just another Sunday? Isn’t every Sunday an opportunity to celebrate the risen Lord? What’s so special about Easter?What difference does it make that Jesus rose from the dead?What about the resurrection of the body?A number of years ago, in a wonderful article for the New York Times, you talked about the unsettling power of Easter and you said: “Easter is a frightening prospect. For the women, the only thing more terrifying than a world with Jesus dead was one in which he was alive.” What do you mean by that?What does the resurrection mean for us?What do you make of Judas?Guest Bio:Dr. Esau McCaulley is associate professor of New Testament at Wheaton College and theologian in residence at Progressive Baptist Church, a historically Black congregation in Chicago. He is the author of the award-winning book Reading While Black and the children’s book Josey Johnson’s Hair and the Holy Spirit. He is a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. His writings have also appeared in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, and Christianity Today.Resources Mentioned:Mark 16, John 6:25-58, John 13:1-30“Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal” by Esau McCaulley‘What Good Friday and Easter Mean for Black Americans Like Me” by Esau McCaulley“The Unsettling Power of Easter” by Esau McCaulleyFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our  Patreon Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin answer questions submitted by listeners! Questions Covered in This Episode:How would you counsel a Christian who is invited to the gay wedding of a close relative or friend?How should Christians understand God's sovereignty and the image of God in the case of a person born with a physical and/or mental disability? Is disability a product of the Fall that God allows to remain in us, as in the case of other diseases that develop over our lifetimes? Are we "knit together in our mother's womb" with a disability, just as the Lord creates us male or female?What are some resources that may be helpful to me as I seek to learn more about critical race theory?Would love your insight on how to connect with people at church.Why do you believe the resurrection actually happened?Resources Mentioned:John 9, Romans 8:28“Biblical Critical Theory” by Christopher WatkinJoni & Friends“Reading While Black” by Esau McCaulleyThe Inner Ring by CS LewisFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin are joined by Sarah Irving Stonebraker to discuss the history of ideas around human rights, where Christians find the foundation for human rights, and where we are today.Questions Covered in This Episode:Sarah, what is your story, how did you become a Christian?What is the idea that universal human equality is Christian fiction? How does the history of ideas point to this idea?When we say “human rights,” what are we walking about?Has there been an attempt to disguise the Judeo-Christian origins of human rights?Does it matter that we don’t have a shared sense of values and principles? Where are we at in the global west when we are talking about human rights?Is it hard for people to see how strongly human rights are tied to Judeo-Christian origins?People can say that Christians have a terrible track record with human rights, how do we grapple with that?What would you say is the one thing you found most attractive about Jesus?Helpful Definitions:Human Rights: The idea that there are certain entitlements or rights that belong to all human beings regardless of their religion, sexuality, gender, etc., and regardless if laws recognize those rights.Guest Bio:Sarah Irving-Stonebraker is an Australian-based academic, focusing on the history of Britain and the colonial world and especially the intersection of religion, science, and politics. Her first book, Natural Science and the Origins of the British Empire, investigates the way that England’s colonial empire became tied to the Protestant redemptive project of restoring humanity's original dominion over nature.  Sarah and her husband, Johnathan, have three children, Madeleine, Charlotte, and James.Resources Mentioned:Genesis 1:26-28“Mere Christianity” by C.S. LewisUnited Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights“Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World” by Tom Holland“After Virtue” by Alasdair MacIntyre“The Abolition of Man” by C.S. LewisFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin explore the question, does hypocrisy among Christians discredit Christianity?Questions Covered in This Episode:What is hypocrisy? What are we talking about?Do you think people are leaving the faith because of some level of hypocrisy?How does the Bible help us to think about this?Has social media created a stronger gap between the witness of the church and hypocrisy or has it just magnified the gap that already exists?How do we engage with people who accuse Christians of hypocrisy?Does Christian obedience matter?What would you tell someone who said: “I don’t want to be in a community with Christians, because they are all hypocrites?”Helpful Definitions: Hypocrisy: A level of inconsistency in what someone says they are, or what they believe, or what they think is right to do; and what they actually do.Resources Mentioned:1 John 2:1, 1 Peter 2:9-15, Luke 8:9-14Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin have a conversation about what it looks like for Christians to argue ideas.Questions Covered in This Episode:Ideas matter, right?Can Christians argue about ideas?Does it matter how we argue?What does it mean to argue with gentleness and respect?What does a good process look like to engage in these conversations?What is the danger in categorizing people?Is it okay to acknowledge when we don’t know the answer?What is the conversation that Christians have the opportunity to disagree with well?Resources Mentioned:1 Peter 3:15“Confronting Christianity” by Rebecca McLaughlin“Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World” by Tom HollandThe Rest Is History PodcastFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin are joined by Praveen Sethupathy to talk about what science is and if it can dictate our identity.Questions Covered in This Episode:How did your first few years at Cornell change you?Why did you land on Christianity?When you went back to your family and told them you were a Christian, what did that look like?Have you scientific pursuits pulled you away from Christianity?When we are talking about science, what are we talking about?If science has explained what we are as human beings then why do we need a religious understanding of what we are as human beings?How as a scientist do you think about miracles?If we have a scientific explanation for the beginning of the world and the origin of humans, why would we be interested in Genesis 1-2?Guest Bio:Dr. Praveen Setupathy is Professor of Physiological Genomics in the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Director of the Center for Vertebrate Genomics at Cornell University, where he leads a research lab focused on genomic approaches to understand physiology and human disease. He received his BA degree from Cornell University and his PhD in Genomics from the University of Pennsylvania.Helpful Definitions:Science: A human endeavor, a set of tools that we use incorporating logic and mathematics the tools and precepts and theories from other sciences that human beings have developed through our faculties to make sense of the world. What are natural explanations for the things we see in the natural world.Scientific Knowledge: A body of knowledge and truth.Resources Mentioned:1 Thessalonians 5:21, Genesis 1-2, Ephesians 3:10“The Myth of Certainty” by Daniel TaylorFollow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin faithfully explore the question, is Christianity exclusive?Questions Covered in This Episode:Is Christianity exclusive? What does that mean?Isn’t it arrogant to say there is only one true religion?When we say Christianity is exclusive and that Jesus is the only way, are we saying that there is no truth to be found in other religions?Can we find true things and engage in goodness and beauty outside of this?How do we love and engage with those who hold other beliefs?Resources Mentioned:John 14:6Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting PlaceConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Follow Us:Instagram | TwitterOur Sister Shows:Knowing Faith | The Family Discipleship Podcast | Starting Place | Tiny TheologiansConfronting Christianity is a podcast of Training the Church. For ad-free episodes and more content check out our Patreon. Produced by⁠⁠⁠⁠ The Good Podcast Co.⁠⁠⁠⁠