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"We need to do a better job as Christians of talking about the body in ways that valorize creation—not just criticizing people who want to do things we think are morally wrong, but helping them understand what God made right.”

So says professor, author, and theologian Michael Horton on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. He and Moore discuss Horton’s new book, Shaman and Sage: The Roots of “Spiritual but Not Religious” in Antiquity. Their conversation explores the growing cultural attraction to Wicca, why people long for a connection to the mystical, and the goodness of our created flesh.

They talk about technological advances that attempt to transcend the body, how we arrived in a cultural moment where people are spiritual but not religious, and what it looks like to engage with people who don’t believe there are any answers to the universe.

Tune in for an episode that encourages Christians to understand how the goodness of the gospel transforms our entire beings—body and soul alike.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

• Michael Horton
• Sola Media
• White Horse Inn
• Shaman and Sage: The Roots of Spiritual but Not Religious in Antiquity by Michael Horton
• The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey with Carole C. Carlson
• The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology by Ray Kurzweil
• The Singularity Is Nearer: When We Merge with AI by Ray Kurzweil
• Transcendent ManYuval Noah Harari

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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“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

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This episode was recorded before the attempted assassination of former President Trump.

What is it that binds Americans together as a nation? 

That’s the question that Russell Moore and his guest, sociologist and professor James Davison Hunter, address on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. With political violence on the rise in America and around the world, Hunter helps us understand the roots of the crisis. They discuss the differences between consensus and solidarity while pondering how humans tend to come alive in times of disaster yet the COVID-19 pandemic produced opposite effects. Their conversation spans history, politics, and religion as Moore and Hunter observe the current state of affairs within Evangelicalism. 

Hunter and Moore talk about the lineage of culture wars and shifts in Christian presence in higher education. Hunter explains why he talks about culture in terms of weather and climate as the two consider hotly contested social issues such as homosexuality, marijuana, and abortion. 

Tune in for an episode that asks deep questions, navigates complex answers, and finds reason to hope.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

• Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America’s Political Crisis by James Davison Hunter
• Culture Wars: The Struggle To Control The Family, Art, Education, Law, And Politics In America by James Davison Hunter 
• To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World by James Davison Hunter
• Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture
• “Trump’s Would-Be Assassin and the Twisted Quest for Human Glory”

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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“Probably doomed and perplexingly merry.”

That’s how Leif Enger describes one of the characters in his new novel, I Cheerfully Refuse. While the story brings words like dystopian and apocalyptic to mind, it bears witness to a deep sense of hope and even optimism. How and why? That’s the topic of this episode of The Russell Moore Show featuring Enger. 

Moore and Enger talk about what inspired I Cheerfully Refuse, including classic tales like The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. They talk about how Enger explores despair in fiction and the real world, the nuances of suicidal behavior, and how to combat the unbearable overwhelm caused by a 24-hour news cycle. They discuss Enger’s writing process, how religion emerges in his life and books, and where the two differ in their understanding of evangelism.

Tune in for a gracious, rich episode that turns our eyes toward the light that the darkness will not overcome.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

• I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
• Leif Enger
• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
• “A Weird, Wonderful Conversation with Kim Stanley Robinson”
• “The Story of Orpheus and Eurydice”
• Walker Percy
• Garrison Keillor
• David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
• Zero at the Bone: Fifty Entries Against Despair by Christian Wiman
• “Clergy on the Rocks”
• The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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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 [email protected].

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

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“There is so much grace.” 

That’s what Melissa B. Kruger, Bible teacher, author of several books including Parenting with Hope, and vice president of discipleship programming at The Gospel Coalition wants families with teens to know. Not only that, it's what she hopes all who care about the next generation will bear in mind.

On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Kruger shares insights gained from her years of raising three now-adult children. She talks about the importance of emphasizing relationships with Jesus and one another over a formulaic approach to faith or parenting. Moore and Kruger discuss practical issues in teen life, including mental health concerns, smartphone usage, and how families may be unintentionally raising young people to be “curated…rather than dearly beloved.” 

Kruger and Moore offer hope for families that are struggling and encourage parents to think about preparing their children to encounter risks in the real world with wisdom and hope.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

• Melissa B. Kruger
• The Gospel Coalition
• Parenting with Hope: Raising Teens for Christ in a Secular Age by Melissa B. Kruger
• “Jonathan Haidt’s Way Forward for an Anxious Generation” 
• "An Update to The Anxious Generation with Jonathan Haidt"
• Reformed Theological Seminary
• The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids by Madeline Levine, Ph.D. 
• The Gift of Good Land: Further Essays Cultural and Agricultural by Wendell Berry 

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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“That is one nutty hospital.”

So says Bill Murray’s character, Jeff Slater, in the 1982 film Tootsie—and, effectively, so say many listeners of The Russell Moore Show when they reach out with questions or comments about the state of society and politics today. America is trying to recover from the physical, emotional, and economic effects of COVID-19 while simultaneously barreling toward an election season that is particularly rife with discord. 

On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, we’re bringing together clips from four past episodes that provide, as Moore puts it, “some counsel of sanity in really crazy times.” Listeners hear from Jen Wilkin on unfair pay for women in churches and Beth Moore on how abuse has affected her view of God as a father. Yuval Levin speaks to what we can do as the institutions around us crumble and the late Tim Keller reminds us that we can both claim the power of forgiveness and seek justice.

Tune in for an episode that offers focus, encouragement, and hope for weathering the days to come.

This episode features clips from the following episodes of The Russell Moore Show:

• “Beth Moore Speaks Out”
• “Jen Wilkin on Women in the Church”
• “Yuval Levin on What Christians Can Learn from Religious Minorities”
• “Tim Keller Says Forgiveness Is Key to Christian Witness”

Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

• Tootsie
• “Honor Thy Church Mother—with Wages”
• The Westminster Confession of Faith
• All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir by Beth Moore
• American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation―and Could Again by Yuval Levin
• Exclusion and Embrace, Revised and Updated: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation by Miroslav Volf
• A Timbered Choir: The Sabbath Poems, 1979-1997 by Wendell Berry
• The Diary of a Country Priest: A Novel by Georges Bernanos

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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“In this season of my life, I’m not concerned with ego. I’m just trying to figure out how to serve and how to do the right things.”

So says four-time Grammy-award-winning rapper Lecrae on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. This lack of concern with ego hasn’t always been easy. Lecrae, whose two most recent Grammy wins occurred this year, shares that he had to spend a lot of time learning that God is the one who determines who he is. He and Moore discuss imposter syndrome, performance, and comparison. Their conversation covers anxiety, depression, and how God enters into our dark moments.

Lecrae and Moore talk about what deconstructing really means. They also consider how Western exceptionalism arises in Christian spaces, including a reckoning with lauded historical theologians who were slaveholders. They also talk about how Lecrae views the music industry, the importance of close friends when fame is part of your life, and what it looks like to live as though death has no power over us.

Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

• Lecrae
• Church Clothes 4
• “Your Power”
• I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
• God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music by Leah Payne
• “W.W. Jay-Z?” 
• “Underneath the Door”

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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Carolyn Weber didn’t have a dependable earthly father, so she had no intention of trusting a heavenly one. As a hardworking, intellectual agnostic, she decided to read the Bible from front to back so she could show her Christian friends how ridiculous their beliefs were. Instead, she found that the Bible made sense to her. Not only that, but it drew her to the person of Jesus. 

On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Weber talks about her personal story of conversion and how it led to her memoir, Surprised by Oxford, and the resulting film. She and Moore talk about the influence of C.S. Lewis on both Weber and modern Christianity, the power of literature, and how fiction can help us develop a moral imagination. They discuss poetry, philosophy, and prayer, considering the many beautiful ways God reveals himself to us.

Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

• Carolyn Weber
• Surprised by Oxford: A Memoir by Carolyn Weber
• Surprised by Oxford (film)
• Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis
• The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis
• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
• Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
• The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
• Life Is a Miracle: An Essay Against Modern Superstition by Wendell Berry
• “Surprised by Joy” by William Wordsworth
• The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin by Beatrix Potter

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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Every day is full of small decisions, and rarely do we think of them as having great consequences. But if you ask today’s guest, Brian Klaas, they very well might.

On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Moore invites Klass—a political scientist, contributing writer at The Atlantic, and associate professor—to tell him where he is wrong on the nature of the universe. Klaas explains why he is a determinist and how that belief system has both similarities and differences to believing in a personal God. The two discuss the high level of pop culture interest in science fiction and the concept of a multiverse. Their conversation covers politics and power, physics and free will, and what reforming broken systems may look like.

Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

• Brian Klaas
• Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters by Brian Klaas
• Power Corrupts 
• Peter Kreeft
• Dark Matter: A Novel by Blake Crouch
• Dark Matter
• Frederick Buechner
• Corruptible: Who Gets Power and How It Changes Us by Brian Klaas

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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What will the next several decades of American Christianity look like? Are the factors that led to the decline of mainline church attendance the same as those leading to decreased interest in evangelical congregations? Why are Gen Z women leaving religion at higher rates than their male counterparts? 

These are the questions that Russell Moore and Ryan Burge—author, professor, and writer of Graphs about Religion Substack—address in this episode. They consider shifts in the Southern Baptist Convention, the relationship of politics to religious participation, and whether or not churches are expected to close by the thousands in the years to come. And they remind listeners of what it looks like not only to speak the gospel but to live it as members of a community that welcomes others, volunteers in meaningful ways, and embodies the beauty of what the church can be.

Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

• The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going by Ryan Burge
• Graphs about Religion
• Billy Graham 
• Dobbs v. Jackson
• Obergefell
• “Young Women Are Leaving Church in Unprecedented Numbers”
• “Religion Has Become a Luxury Good”
• Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert D. Putnam
• Asbury University

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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“You have a bunch of callings, and they’re just natural, ordinary things that God uses to accomplish spiritual and natural things. Have fun. Flourish in those. And do good in the world.”

So says Grammy-nominated and Dove-winning hip-hop artist Flame on this episode of The Russell Moore Show, which features a conversation about music, theology, and journeying with Jesus. Moore explains that while this isn’t a “tell me where I’m wrong” episode, he hopes it will provide a helpful angle to the “deconstruction” discussion—one that considers whether changing our minds about theological beliefs can be an act of faithfulness.

They consider spirituality and stability, connection and community, and tendencies among theological tribes. Flame explains what happens when we reduce Christianity to a “moral improvement program,” highlights the power of forgiveness, and considers the role of confession and absolution in the life of the believer.

From thoughts on baptism and Communion to rap albums and biographies, this episode has something for all who want to understand who they are in Christ and what it looks like to worship him.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

• Flame / Extra Nos Academy
• Freedom Lessons
• Forward 
• Our World Redeemed
• Extra Nos: Discovering Grace Outside Myself by Flame
• “Scattered Tulips”
• Commentary on Romans (Luther Classic Commentaries) by Martin Luther
• Concordia Seminary

Song lyrics used with permission of the artist.

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to [email protected].

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

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