284 episodes

Listen in as Russell Moore, director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project and Editor-in-Chief, talks about the latest books, cultural conversations and pressing ethical questions that point us toward the kingdom of Christ.

The Russell Moore Show Christianity Today

    • Religion & Spirituality
    • 4.7 • 788 Ratings

Listen in as Russell Moore, director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project and Editor-in-Chief, talks about the latest books, cultural conversations and pressing ethical questions that point us toward the kingdom of Christ.

    Marilynne Robinson Reads Genesis as a Story of Grace

    Marilynne Robinson Reads Genesis as a Story of Grace

    Author Marilynne Robinson has long brought layered characters and powerful plots to the page. It is perhaps no wonder, then, that she is looking to a book of Scripture that abounds with both. 
    On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Moore welcomes Marilynne for a discussion of her new release, Reading Genesis. They talk about what drew Robinson to Genesis and the Mesopotamian and Babylonian myths that are often compared to it. They consider how various disciplines—from science and physics to philosophy and theology—emerge in the text. They ponder the current cultural interest in multiverse stories, what makes a narrative compelling, and the likability (or lack thereof) of Biblical figures. 
    Tune in for a rich conversation on justice and mercy, secularization, and how God reveals his character both in Scripture and in our lives today.
    Books by Marilynne Robinson mentioned in this episode include:

    Reading Genesis

    Gilead

    Home

    Lila

    Jack

    Housekeeping

    
    Resources mentioned in this episode include:

    Wendell Berry

    Walker Percy

    Frederick Buechner

    Jonathan Haidt


    Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.
    Special offer for listeners: 
    Russell Moore will join friends David French and Curtis Chang in Washington, DC for The After Party LIVE! on April 19. As a faithful listener to the podcast, we'd love for you to join us. The After Party is a free six-part video curriculum designed for people & pastors alike, and offers "a better way" for Christians to engage in politics. Learn more and buy tickets here — we've saved a seat for you! Use code RM SHOW for $20 off, just for listeners! Use code RM SHOW for $20 off, just for listeners.
    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

    • 53 min
    Q+A: Reasons for Christian Hope in an Election Year

    Q+A: Reasons for Christian Hope in an Election Year

    Is the term evangelical worth holding on to anymore? Is it imperative that Christians participate in elections? What is the way forward for families that have been fractured by political disagreements?
    These are some of the listener questions that Russell and producer Ashley Hales address on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. Tune in for a discussion that digs deep into the political dynamics of modern American life while sharing universal truths for living Christianly in a broken world.
    Questions addressed during this episode include:

    Does Russell read every book that shows up in his newsletter?

    What are some tips for reading more regularly?

    Is it okay for Christians not to participate in voting for president?

    How can Christians whose families are divided over politics prioritize God and one another

    What does the evangelical support of Donald Trump do to the term evangelical and its reputation?

    How can believers deal with Christian nationalism in their relationships?

    What is Christian nationalism?

    How might the upcoming election affect local churches?

    What hope is there for Christians discouraged by American politics?


    Resources mentioned in this episode include:


    Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches by Russell Moore

    Russell’s newsletter

    “Should Christians Vote for the Lesser of Two Evils?” by Russell Moore

    “Incurvatus in Se”

    “C. S. Lewis on Chronological Snobbery”


    Do you have a question for Russell Moore?
    Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.
    Special offer for listeners:
    Russell Moore will join friends David French and Curtis Chang in Washington, DC, for The After Party LIVE! on April 19. As a faithful listener to the podcast, we’d love for you to join us and use this 20% off offer just for listeners! The After Party is a free six-part video curriculum designed for people & pastors alike, and offers “a better way” for Christians to engage in politics. Learn more and buy tickets here—we’ve saved a seat for you!
    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

    • 38 min
    Jennie Allen’s Help For Tangled Emotions

    Jennie Allen’s Help For Tangled Emotions

    If Russell Moore’s inbox is any indication, listeners of this podcast want to talk about emotions. If you’re among them, this episode with Bible teacher, bestselling author, and founder of IF: Gathering Jennie Allen is for you. 
    Moore and Allen discuss what she learned while writing her new book, Untangle Your Emotions: Naming Your Emotions and Knowing What to Do about Them. They talk about healthy and unhealthy ways to view emotions, how the COVID-19 pandemic affected emotional well-being, and how our brains try to protect us in traumatic situations. They talk about how God meets us in grief and suffering, how emotions show up in the body, and how honesty about emotions can lead to deeper relationships and family connections. 
    Their conversation covers the power of memories, what the Bible has to say about emotions, and what it looks like to honor our emotions without letting them lead our lives.
    Resources mentioned in this episode include:

    IF: Gathering


    Untangle Your Emotions: Naming Your Emotions and Knowing What to Do about Them by Jennie Allen

    Asbury Revival

    Auburn baptisms


    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

    • 50 min
    Bonus Episode: Should You Watch 'The Chosen'?

    Bonus Episode: Should You Watch 'The Chosen'?

    Welcome to a special bonus episode of The Russell Moore Show!
    Peter Wehner returns for a conversation about the television drama The Chosen, which began its fourth season on February 1, 2024. Wehner expounds on his recent article in The Atlantic, sharing how the series pleasantly surprised him as someone who historically avoided on-screen depictions of Jesus. He describes the ways that Jesus (played by Jonathan Roumie) in The Chosen has a fully-formed personality, displays emotion, and shows how intimately Jesus understood human nature—all elements that have led Wehner to love the show. 
    Moore and Wehner discuss how The Chosen sheds light on Jewish life under Roman occupation and the role of the Pharisees. They talk about another Christian media phenomenon—the He Gets Us campaign—and consider the wide range of responses to it. Their discussion covers political division, the relationship between the intellect and the heart in belief, and what it means for Christians to be called to faithfulness rather than success.
    Resources mentioned in this episode include:

    The Chosen

    “Jesus on the Small Screen” by Peter Wehner

    Peter Wehner

    The Trinity Forum

    Navigating Friendship and Loss with Peter Wehner


    The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

    Jesus of Nazareth 


    He Gets Us campaign

    E.Y. Mullins

    Further Up and Further In


    Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis


    The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis


    The Jesus Way by Eugene H. Peterson


    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

    • 32 min
    Michael Wear's Solution to Political Captivity

    Michael Wear's Solution to Political Captivity

    After all of the arguments and severed relationships that resulted from the elections of 2016 and 2020, here we are, doing it all over again. For all who are weary of the modern political climate, today’s episode with Michael Wear is for you.
    Wear is the founder, president, and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life, a nonpartisan, nonprofit institution based in the nation’s capital. A former White House and presidential campaign staffer, Wear has intimate knowledge of the political process and how Christians might engage it with hope.
    On this episode, Wear and Moore discuss Wear’s new book, The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life. They consider what a positive, spiritually formed vision for political engagement might be. Their conversation includes how to understand why Christians land on opposing sides of political issues. They explore what the Bible has to say about the government and talk about the role of pastors in politics. And they consider how the truth of the gospel can shape political participation in a broken world.
    Resources mentioned in this episode include:

    Michael Wear

    The Center for Christianity and Public Life


    The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life by Michael Wear


    Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned in the Obama White House About the Future of Faith in America by Michael Wear

    “College-Educated Voters Are Ruining American Politics” by Eitan Harsh


    Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers by Christian Smith

    “Spiritual Formation: What It Is, and How It Is Done” by Dallas Willard


    The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life In God by Dallas Willard


    Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Christian Community by Dietrich Bonhoeffer


    Awaiting the King: Reforming Public Theology by James K. A. Smith


    Craft and Character:"The Spirit of Politics With Michael Wear" with Steve Carter


    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

    • 50 min
    Seth Kaplan's Answer to Our Collective Problem

    Seth Kaplan's Answer to Our Collective Problem

    As Seth Kaplan has worked in 35 countries around the world, one thing has made itself clear: healthy relationships are the key to community stability.
    “When I go to any place, whether it’s a neighborhood or country,” says Kaplan on this episode of The Russell Moore Show, “the thing I’m most interested in finding out is how well people are treating each other on so many levels.”
    In conversation with Moore, Kaplan—author of Fragile Neighborhoods, lecturer, and consultant—explains the reasons Americans feel vulnerable, alienated, and angry. He describes the opportunities people have to do something about those negative feelings and experiences by engaging in local activities that bond them to their neighbors.
    Moore and Kaplan discuss the necessity of institutions, identify organizations that are strengthening relationships, and consider the importance of marriage. Their conversation covers how children are being socialized, the effects of social media and digital play, and how to build a local ecosystem. Kaplan also describes his family’s practice of Shabbat and encourages his Christian friends to prioritize Sabbath rest.
    Tune in for an episode that gives concrete, creative advice for cultivating flourishing neighborhoods that resist the division of our times.
    Resources mentioned in this episode include:

    Institute for Integrated Transitions


    Fragile Neighborhoods: Repairing American Society One Zip Code at A Time by Seth D. Kaplan


    American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us by Robert D. Putnam and David E. Campbell

    Communio

    Jonathan Haidt


    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

    • 52 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
788 Ratings

788 Ratings

AZTune ,

Christian Topics with a Twist of Clarity

Thank You Russel for sharing your insights and for interviewing so many great guests.

LewLHIV ,

Appreciate the perspective

I don’t always agree with Russell but I appreciate his heart and viewpoints and willingness to see things from a different perspective. He has paid professionally and personally for what he believes and yet doesn’t back away for personal benefit. His latest book is also worth the read!

Robbiepolitico ,

German church book

What was the name of the book referenced about German churchgoers and their changing viewpoints? You could put the answer on Threads or Twitter.

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