In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss how much things have changed culturally when it comes to reasons for belief (or unbelief) in God. The conversation was sparked by an article in The Atlantic written by Elizabeth Bruenig titled “The Evidence That God Exists.” The article has a very interesting subtitle - “Searching for scientific proof for faith misunderstands faith” - which explains some of the challenges facing apologetics in our world today.

Dr. White mentioned how a functional atheism has invaded our culture and has played a significant role in the rise of the “nones” - those claiming no religious affiliation. Dr. White even wrote a book called The Rise of the Nones, which you can find on Amazon HERE. He and Alexis discussed how, when presented with evidence for belief in the Christian faith, many people in today's culture will respond by asking, “So what?” Dr. White tried to address a number of these questions through another book he wrote titled Christianity for People Who Aren't Christians: Uncommon Answers to Common Questions, which you can find on Amazon HERE.

Dr. White talked about the importance of addressing these questions for people who are open to exploring the Christian faith. There are a number of series that Dr. White has given over the years at Mecklenburg Community Church that would fall into this category. You can find those messages in both .mp3 and .pdf formats under the banners “Evangelism & Apologetics” and “Exploring Christianity” on the Church & Culture website.

There does seem to be renewed interest in science proving the existence of God. Alexis mentioned a book that was included in The Atlantic article above. That book is God, the Science, the Evidence written by Michel-Yves Bollore and Olivier Bonnassies, and you can find that resource on Amazon HERE.

And finally, the story that Dr. White shared toward the end of the episode about C.S. Lewis is one that you can find (among many others) in his book titled A Traveler's Guide to the Kingdom, which you can find as an eBook on Church & Culture HERE.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.

In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss some recent major court decisions that put parental authority and responsibility in the spotlight. The first was a Supreme Court ruling that California schools must notify the parents if a student expresses their desire to change their gender. The second was a case in Georgia, where a father was found guilty of murder and manslaughter for the crime committed by his son; guilty because he failed to heed clear warning signs in his son's behavior.

Dr. White wrote a recent blog on this topic titled, “Parental Rights and Responsibilities,” which you can read HERE. He also referenced another blog that he wrote called “The New Attack on Parenting,” which you can read HERE. And then here are two recent headlines that you can read for more information about both court cases referenced above:

James Romoser, “Supreme Court Says California Schools Should Notify Parents About Student Gender Changes,” The Wall Street Journal.

Rick Rojas and Johnny Kauffman, “Father's Murder Conviction in School Attack Puts New Onus on Parents,” The New York Times.

Another recent case from the Supreme Court awarded parents $1.5M over LGBTQ books saying that parents should have “the final say” on their children's education. You can read the article titled “Religious parents awarded $1.5M after Supreme Court win in LGBTQ+ books case“ HERE.

Dr. White spoke of the importance of the role of parents in the lives of their children; specifically, that they need to be involved, informed and in charge. He has incredibly helpful messages that he's given at Mecklenburg Community Church under the banner of “Marriage and Family,” which you can find HERE. It would also be helpful to listen to the installments of a series simply titled, “Gender.”

Finally, if you've missed past podcast episodes related to parents and children, we'd encourage you to go back and listen to these episodes: CCP176: On Parents and Grandparents, CCP170: On Teens and Their Online World, CCP161: On “Adolescence”, CCP98: On Generation Alpha and CCP60: On Gentle Parenting.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.

In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss the war with Iran, which the U.S. entered into on February 28. The attacks resulted in the assassination of Israel's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and several other officials. And in response, Iran has launched missiles at various targets in Israel and US military bases. Today's conversation hopefully sheds some light on the history of the tension in the Middle East, as well as whether war can ever be just.

At the top of the podcast, Dr. White suggested a helpful resource for understanding more of the world's political order. Written by Richard Haass, you can find The World: A Brief Introduction at The Grounds Bookstore HERE. He also mentioned a past podcast episode that we highly suggest you go back and listen to for more of an understanding of Israel and their engagement with both Palestine and Iran: CCP80: On the War in Israel. This episode will help you understand why Jerusalem is such a flashpoint. There is another past episode that we'd recommend for understanding the differences between Christianity and Islam: CCP86: On Islam.

Alexis mentioned the article written by Russell Moore in Christianity Today titled “What the Iran War Could Do to Your Soul,” which you can find HERE. It really challenges people to think about the why behind their support or opposition to the war. And when it comes to whether the church should engage this current conflict, it would be helpful to go back to our recent episode: CCP185: On Bad Bunny, Monks and Immigration.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.