The Russell Moore Show – Details, episodes & analysis

Science should be a quest to discover truth. Christian faith means following the one who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This pair of facts defines the life and work of this episode’s guest, former director of the National Institutes of Health, Francis Collins. He and Moore discuss COVID-19, conspiracies, and the creator God. Their conversation draws upon Collins’ new book, The Road to Wisdom, and highlights Christian hope for perspective amidst polarization. Collins and Moore also talk about Artificial Intelligence, the power of the Sermon on the Mount, and their common friend, the late Tim Keller. Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest(s) include: BioLogos Human Genome Project The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust by Francis Collins The Singularity Is Nearer: When We Merge with AI by Ray Kurzweil Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis  Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis by James Davison Hunter The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate by John H. Walton The Advancement of Learning by Francis Bacon The Resurrection of the Son of God by N.T. Wright Promised Land Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How can Christians act with integrity, fortitude, and gospel hope in a volatile political season? That’s the question that David French, Curtis Chang, Ashley Hales, and Russell Moore consider on this special episode. Recorded live at a spring The After Party event in Washington, DC, the first half of the episode features a live panel discussion. In the second half, Moore, Chang, and French consider audience questions on practical engagement for Christians. Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest(s) include: The After Party David French Curtis Chang Ashley Hales “Firm Centers and Soft Edges” The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There's an unintentional thread that runs through this quarterly books episode: apocalyptic themes. "That probably tells you what my headspace is right now,” says Russell Moore. Later, he adds, “There is a reckoning in these books.”  On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Moore and producer Ashley Hales talk about books, authors, and storytelling. They discuss what draws readers to fateful accounts and trace such tales from the Psalms up to new releases. Their reads span from poetry to prose and sermons to songs. Tune in for an episode that is as honest about the darkness as it is certain of the light. Books and resources mentioned in this episode include: I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger The Faithful Spy, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and the Plot to Kill Hitler by John Hendricks The Crisis of Narration by Byung-Chul Han The Doors of the Sea: Where Was God in the Tsunami? by David Bentley Hart The Message in the Bottle: How Queer Man Is, How Queer Language Is, and What One Has to Do with the Other by Walker Percy Wrestling with God: The Meditations of Richard Marius edited by Nancy Grisham Anderson Praying with the Psalms: A Year of Daily Prayers and Reflections on the Words of David by Eugene Peterson The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky “The Working of the Spirit”  “God Is Always Doing 10,000 Things in Your Life”  Martin Luther: The Christian between God and Death by Richard Marius Richard Mouw “Dr. Russell Moore on the Power of Prayer” “Eugene Peterson – Answering God” The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms by Timothy Keller Mariner: A Voyage with Samuel Taylor Coleridge by Malcolm Guite The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Other Poems by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Aegypt by John Crowley Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com. Click here for a trial membership at Christianity Today. “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Executive Producers: Erik Petrik, Russell Moore, and Mike Cosper Host: Russell Moore Producer: Ashley Hales Associate Producers: Abby Perry and McKenzie Hill Director of Operations for CT Media: Matt Stevens Audio engineering by Dan Phelps Video producer: Abby Egan Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When people think of Bill McKibben, they likely think of issues like environmentalism and climate change. As Russell Moore points out in this episode, it may seem like a surprise that McKibben’s latest book is titled The Flag, the Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened. But, as Moore points out, McKibben has long been pondering the cultural influences that shape suburbia and those who grew up within it. And if there’s ever been a time to talk about the ways that the individualism that’s highly prized in suburbia affects Christians in America, it’s now. Tune into this episode for a discussion between two men who do not always agree yet respect each other’s intellectual positions and work. McKibben and Moore discuss the influence of the past on the present, how comfortability affects Christian formation, and the importance of solidarity. Their discussion touches on history, science, philosophy, theology, and politics—and how the gospel affects it all. “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How can pro-life Christians engage in meaningful conversations about abortion with their pro-choice friends? Is attending church online equivalent to sitting in the sanctuary on a Sunday morning? And what is Russell Moore’s new book about? Russell Moore responds to all of these questions and more on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. Listen in for nuanced answers to listener inquiries such as: How should pro-life Christians respond when pro-choice friends say the pro-life position is only religious and therefore shouldn’t be imposed on anyone else? What can women who have had abortions, or men who have empowered them, do if they are struggling with an ongoing sense of guilt? How should Christians act when a coworker exhibits narcissistic behaviors? What are the differences between Calvinism and Arminianism, and how important are they? Is it okay for introverts who are drained by the work week to watch church online instead of attending in person? Future listener question episodes will include topics like grandparenting, retirement, and heaven. Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.“The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On this special episode of The Russell Moore Show, author and professor Stephen Prothero discusses the overturn of Roe v. Wade and what it may mean for the United States. Moore and Prothero talk about potential implications for other legislation like Obergefell. They consider the potential effects of the Roe v. Wade overturn on America’s culture wars. Listeners may appreciate their conversation on talking about abortion with someone who holds a different opinion, and what it may look like to have a reasoned, productive dialogue on the subject. “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Author and pastor Scott Sauls knows what it’s like to be his own worst critic. “Even if we’re being unfairly critiqued, there’s usually at least a kernel of truth in there somewhere that gets under our skin and bothers us,” Sauls says on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. Those kernels of truth can lead to guilt and shame. And, as Sauls says, “We have done things that render us guilty.” But we also have a victorious Savior who “accomplished a satisfactory victory” for us. Sauls and Moore talk about regrets, grace, seasons of suffering, and clinging to the gospel. They discuss the range of the human experience—everything from freedom and joy to guilt, shame, anxiety, and depression—and the God who draws near to us. Sauls’ new book is called Beautiful People Don't Just Happen: How God Redeems Regret, Hurt, and Fear in the Making of Better Humans. Sauls and Moore reference “The Catastrophe of Success” by Tennessee Williams, Moore’s recent episode with Arthur Brooks, and “Learning in War-time” by C. S. Lewis.Quotations mentioned in this episode include:“People may spend their whole lives climbing the ladder of success only to find, once they reach the top, that the ladder is leaning against the wrong wall.” - Allen Raine, though often attributed to Thomas Merton “[Envy] consists in seeing things never in themselves, but only in their relations. … If you desire glory, you may envy Napoleon, but Napoleon envied Caesar, Caesar envied Alexander, and Alexander, I daresay, envied Hercules, who never existed.” – Bertrand Russell “Preach the gospel to yourself.” – concept by Martin Luther, quote by Jerry Bridges “The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.” – Roy and Jane Nichols in Death: The Final Stage of Growth, compiled by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Humans are into rituals. Birth rituals, marriage rituals, naming rituals—each of these and more are integral to the lives of most people. One type of ritual, perhaps, is most common of all: death rituals. On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, author and professor Stephen Prothero joins Moore to discuss a sweeping change in death rituals: cremation's rapid rise in popularity. They talk about the theological and cultural implications of cremation, important questions to consider about how bodies are treated after death, and the role of the resurrection. “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today  Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik  Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore  Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper  Production Assistance: CoreMedia  Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort  Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu  Associate Producer: Abby Perry  Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

"Happiness requires a lot of unhappy when you finally confront life in all of its complexities." Dr. Moore and Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor and author of the book From Strength to Strength, discuss how if you're spending all of your time and energy trying to avoid unhappy, you will paradoxically avoid your own happiness by cutting the purpose and sacredness out of your life. Addressing loneliness, mental health, relationship building and the struggles this current generation is facing, Brooks shares his ultimate hope for a new day for Christian evangelicalism and the way that Gen Z is going to save America by rebelling against the culture war, lead by love, not hate.  “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The following episode was recorded on May 13, 2022. “Having grown up just down the road, the son of the senior pastor at another church in town, I’ve spent my life watching evangelicalism morph from a spiritual disposition into a political identity,” Tim Alberta recently wrote at The Atlantic. “It’s heartbreaking.” On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Alberta and Moore discuss the shift in evangelical life that has taken place over the past several years. They share honest, insightful stories about the grief of unwillingly losing relationships over political differences—stories that many listeners may find familiar. They talk about changes in politics, namely the culture of high-energy political passion we see today, and what it looks like for Christians to live as people of truth in a chaotic age. “The Russell Moore Show” is a production of Christianity Today Chief Creative Officer: Erik Petrik Executive Producer and Host: Russell Moore Director of Podcasts: Mike Cosper Production Assistance: CoreMedia Coordinator: Beth Grabenkort Producer and Audio Mixing: Kevin Duthu Associate Producer: Abby Perry Theme Song: “Dusty Delta Day” by Lennon Hutton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices