The Mockingcast

In which Dave, Sarah, and RJ talk 50 year old aspirations, middle school peers, and knitting purity spirals. Also, Rev. Condon takes us on a tour of that frightening place known as "Secular Sarah Hell." Click here to read Jennifer Weiner's article "I Feel Personally Judged by J.Lo's Body" Click here to read Lydia Denworth's article on The Outsize Influence of Your Middle School Friends in The Atlantic. Click here to read Gavin Haynes' article on "How Knitters Got Knotted in a Purity Spiral". Click here to read David Brooks' piece, "Jesus Is a Jew."

In which RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk advanced status games, gracious cheerleaders, deathrow mercies, and anti-institutional performancism. Also, Ken F promises to let them all cut in line. Click here to read Agnes Callard's article "Who Wants to Play the Status Game?" Click here to read Todd Brewer's piece "Netflix’s 'Cheer': Law and Grace in Action." Click here to read Christianity Today's interview with Bryan Stevenson. Click here to read Philip Jenkins' post "The Decline of Us-ness: Bowling Alone and Dying Alone."

In the first new episode of 2020, RJ, Sarah, and Dave talk Parkinson's Law, algorithmic decades, and neonatal epiphanies. Also, Dave sees Little Women, Sarah preps for Twin Day, and things stop going according to RJ's plan. Click here to read The Atlantic's explanation of Why You Have No Time Click here to read Katherine Miller's essay on how The 2010's Broke Our Sense of Time Click here to listen to the interview with Ada Calhoun about Gen X judgements Click here to read Lonnie Lacy's sermon What We Hold

In which Sarah, RJ, and Dave talk sassy mom merch, overrated advents, and the theology of foster care. They also share their favorites from 2019. Oh and RJ sings... a lot. Click here to read Jia Tolentino's article on "The Quiet Protests of Sassy Mom Merch." Click here to read Tish Harrison Warren's NY Times column about Advent. Click here to read Ben Maddison's "Mary Definitely Knew." Click here to respond to the invitation at the beginning and support 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 about the OK boomer meme. Click here to read Batya Ungar-Sargon's "A Tale of Two Churches" in the NY Review of Books. Click here to read about the Ahlan Simsim children's show. Click here to read Sarah Condon's piece "When Jesus Tells a Boob Joke".

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". Click here to read Christine Emba's column "Why Millennials Are Skipping Church and Not Coming Back". Click here to read Ross Douthat's piece "The Overstated Collapse of American Christianity".

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 about Beth Moore, go here.

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 to love the doctrine of total depravity."

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,_ Dominion_. Go here to learn more about StoryMakers.

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 column "Taylor Swift, Philosopher of Forgiveness." Click here to read Ross Douthat's essay "The Age of American Despair."