Dan Darling joins me in welcoming Congressman Diane Black (TN-6) to the podcast. Black discusses the Health Care Conscience Protection Act, supporting persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East, and her journey from registered nurse to seasoned elected official from the Volunteer State.

* Bio, Rep. Diane Black

* @RepDianeBlack

* Health Care Conscience Protection Act

* ERLC 2015 Legislative Agenda

* Resolution Condemning Persecution of Religious Minorities

* Position still vacant: Special Envoy to Promote Religious Freedom of Religious Minorities in the Near East and South Central Asia.

* Washington Post, Aug 2014

Daniel Darling (@dandarling) is the ERLC’s Vice President for Communications. He is a contributor to Leadership Journal, Homelife, Crosswalk.com, Stand Firm,” and a variety of other evangelical publications. He has written several books, including his latest, Activist Faith. He blogs and podcasts at danieldarling.com.

Matt Hawkins interviews Brian Grim, president and founder of Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF). Brian answers the question, “What has religious freedom to do with business?” Brian is a sociologist by trade and, while at the Pew Forum, built the research project that has become the standard for global religious freedom research.

* Religious Freedom and Business Foundation

* Bio: Brian Grim, PhD

* Brian blogs at The Weekly Number

* Follow Brian on Twitter @brianjgrim, and @RFBF_US

* Essay: Seven Reasons Why Religious Freedom is Good for Business

* Brian’s TEDx Talk at the Vatican: Religious Freedom by the Numbers (YouTube). Text highlights.

* Via @FirstThingsMag: What Christianity Contributes to China’s Economic Rise

Brian J. Grim, Ph. D., is President of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation and a leading expert on the socio-economic impact of restrictions on religious freedom and international religious demography. Brian is a member of the World Economic Forum’s council on the role of faith. He is an associate scholar at the Religious Liberty Project at Georgetown University and an affiliated scholar at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion & World Affairs (see full CV). Prior to becoming the Foundation’s president in 2014, Brian directed the largest social science effort to collect and analyze global data on religion at the Pew Research Center. He also worked for two decades as an educator in the former Soviet Union, China, Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Brian holds a doctorate in sociology from the Pennsylvania State University and is author of numerous articles and books including The Price of Freedom Denied (Cambridge Univ. Press).

Matthew Hawkins (@mthawk) serves as Coalitions Director for the ERLC, working with other groups in Washington, D.C. to achieve common objectives. He is presently studying ethics and public affairs at George Mason University.

Matt Hawkins interviews Brent McBurney, President and CEO of Advocates International. Matt and Brent talk about what the advocacy for religious freedom looks like in different places around the globe and how local professionals, particularly attorneys, play a role in facilitating freedom of religion or belief. Also, why Sabbath is so important for law students and attorneys.

* Advocates International

* Bio (PDF) of Brent McBurney, President and CEO of AI

* Follow Brent on Twitter @AIPrez.

Brent McBurney serves as President and CEO of Advocates International (“AI”). Prior to joining AI, he served the Body of Christ through the Christian Legal Society (“CLS”) where he was Director of Legal Aid Ministries, Director of Attorney Ministries and Editor-in-Chief of The Christian Lawyer magazine. Brent served for a number of years as a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington.

Brent grew up in Marble, Colorado, received his BA in Russian Language and Political Science from Baylor University and his JD from George Mason University School of Law. Brent is licensed to practice law in New York and the District of Columbia and is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court and a number of other federal courts. Brent and his wife Elizabeth reside in Northern Virginia with their son, Ian, and daughter, Sarah Louise.

Matthew Hawkins (@mthawk) serves as Coalitions Director for the ERLC, working with other groups in Washington, D.C., to achieve common objectives. He is presently studying ethics and public affairs at George Mason University.

Casey Mattox of the Alliance Defending Freedom joins Andrew and Matt to discuss the Houston religious liberty fiasco and the SCOTUS non-decisions. Also, we discuss the California churches being forced to pay for abortions and The Hitching Post in Idaho.

Matt and Dan welcome Thomas Kidd, Ph.D. to talk George Whitefield, evangelism, discipleship, religious liberty, and much more.

* Kidd’s latest book: George Whitefield: America’s Spiritual Founding Father

* via Yale University Press

*  Amazon

* Bio, CV at Baylor.edu

* Dr. Kidd writes at the Anxious Bench (Patheos) and contributes at ERLC.com

* Follow him on Twitter @ThomasSKidd

Daniel Darling (@dandarling) is the ERLC’s Vice President for Communications. He is a contributor to Leadership Journal, Homelife, Crosswalk.com, Stand Firm,” and a variety of other evangelical publications. He has written several books, including his latest, Activist Faith. He personally blogs at danieldarling.com.

Matthew Hawkins (@mthawk) serves as Coalitions Director for the ERLC, working with other groups in Washington, D.C., to achieve common objectives. He is presently studying ethics and public affairs at George Mason University.

 

Matt Hawkins, Coalitions Director for ERLC, concludes this 2 part series on North Korea with Ed Brown of the Stefanus Alliance International, a Norway-based missions and human rights association.

During this conversation Matt and Ed discuss, among other things:

* How do we (in the West) discern what we hear about places like North Korea?

* What is life like for North Korean Christians who are not in concentration camps?

* What professions, particularly within academia might be a part of assisting and ministering to the global church?

About Ed & Stefanus

* Stefanus Alliance International  • @trosfrihet • On Facebook

* Contact Ed via ecb [at] stefanus.no

* Booklet by Stefanus Alliance (PDF): Freedom of Religion or Belief

Additional resources

* ERLC.com/Persecution

* Three ways pastors can cultivate a heart for persecuted Christians in their churches

* VIDEO: Persecution and the church, a conversation with Dan Darling and David Platt.

* (Book) Insanity of God by Nik Ripken

* (Book) Insanity of Obedience by Nik Ripken

* Bulletin insert from ERLC

* Part 1 of this series with Eric Foley.

ERLC’s Coalitions Director Matt Hawkins welcomes Rev. Eric Foley, co-founder and CEO of Seoul USA. Seoul USA seeks to be a bridge between the church in the West and the church in Asia.

The question up for discussion: What does life look like for Christians inside North Korea?

About Eric

* Bio

* Blog

Additional resources

* ERLC.com/Persecution

* Three ways pastors can cultivate a heart for persecuted Christians in their churches

* VIDEO: Persecution and the church, a conversation with Dan Darling and David Platt.

* (Book) Insanity of God by Nik Ripken

* (Book) Insanity of Obedience by Nik Ripken

* Bulletin insert from ERLC

* Audio: Part 2 of this series with Ed Brown

Andrew welcomes Greg Forster to chat about his recent book, Joy for the World: How Christianity Lost Its Cultural Influence and Can Begin Rebuilding It. Related topics include everything from John Locke to Christmas carols. Dr. Forster serves as program director for the Faith, Work and Economics program at the Kern Family Foundation.

* Book: Joy for the World: How Christianity Lost Its Cultural Influence and Can Begin Rebuilding It

* Dr. Forster at Acton University

* The Faith, Work, and Economics Program

Greg Forster is a program director for the Faith, Work, and Economics Program. He directs the Oikonomia Network, a national learning community of evangelical seminaries committed to equipping pastors with a theological understanding of faith, work, and economics, and how they relate to the pastoral calling. In addition to his duties at the Foundation, he is the editor of Hang Together, a group blog on religion, politics, and national identity; a senior fellow at the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice; the author of six books and numerous articles in both academic and popular publications; and a regular contributor to The Gospel Coalition, First Thoughts, and Jay P. Greene’s Blog. His writing covers theology, economics, political philosophy, and education policy. He received a doctorate with distinction in political philosophy from Yale University.

Education

* Ph.D. with Distinction in Political Science, Yale University, 2002

* M.A. in Political Science, Yale University, 2002

* B.A. summa cum laude in Political and Social Thought in Rhetoric and Communications Studies, University of Virginia, 1995

Dan and Matt welcome Josh Good of the American Enterprise Institute to discuss how economics and healthy families influence each other. Josh serves as Program Manager for AEI’s Values & Capitalism initiative.

* Values & Capitalism

* Books and more from V&C.

* Opportunities for faculty, students and professions.

* The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism by Michael Novak

* Adam Smith mentions included Wealth of Nations and his preface to WN, Theory of Moral Sentiments.

* Not mentioned but also recommended on this topic, Marvin Olasky’s Tragedy of American Compassion.

Josh previously spent four years as a consultant at ICF International, where he worked on responsible fatherhood and healthy marriage initiatives, in partnership with TANF welfare officials. He also worked on a national public-private partnership that served ex-prisoners, in collaboration with congregations and businesses.

Josh holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Covenant College and a master’s in Christianity and Culture from Harvard University, and he lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife and two children. His publications have appeared in National Review, The Weekly Standard, The Washington Times, Patheos, and Capital Commentary, and you can follow Josh on Twitter @josh_good_.

Andrew and Matt welcome to the studio Tim Goeglein, VP of External Relations at Focus on the Family. Having established a career as a Christian in the public square, we find Mr. Goeglein uniquely suited to discuss, well, Christianity and the public square. The former Deputy Director of Public Liaison for the Bush White House joins C&C to discuss an appreciation of literature, work at the White House, and sailing with William F. Buckley.

* Ideas Have Consequences – by Richard Weaver

* The Man in the Middle – by Tim Goeglein

* Archive: Firing Line television program. Database.

Prior to his positions at Focus and the White House, Goeglein served as a communications director for Gary Bauer at the Campaign for Working Families, and also for U.S. Senator Dan Coats of Indiana. Goeglein and his wife, Jenny, reside in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and have two sons.