Peter Lynas, Danny Webster and Alicia Edmund unpack this week's headlines. They cover the controversy around Andy Burnham and Keir Starmer - what is happening with the Labour Party? Conversation also covers ICE and Trump and the ongoing conversation around migration and the recent scandal involving Bethel. 

The team then pull back the curtain to look at this cultural and political era - how do we engage and act as people of hope at this significant time?

This week's biggest news stories are discussed by the Cross Section team. They unpack the rising discussion around banning social media for under 16s - should this happen? What would it look like if it did?

Conversation moves onto the many defections to Reform that we have seen. Last Sunday saw Robert Jenrick, others have followed, who could be next?

The episode concludes in reaction to the alarming rise in abortions as 2023's statistics were released last week. Are we talking about this enough in our churches? How can we respond?

Social media bans, global chaos and rising abortion numbers: Christians react - Evangelical Alliance

0:00 - Introduction

Cross Section is back for 2026. In this week's episode Peter Lynas, Alicia Edmund and Danny Webster discuss the dominating stories from the first two weeks of the year. This includes all that has been happening across the globe in the US, Venezuela, Greenland and Iran. Discussion moves onto the controversy around Grok AI and other cultural stories and how Christians can engage and respond.

https://www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/2026/01/the-age-of-invasion

https://samf.substack.com/p/interview-with-john-bew-adviser-to?utm_campaign=email-half-post&r=i2ju&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

In the final episode of Cross Section of 2025, Peter Lynas, Danny Webster, Alicia Edmund and Zanna Meynell sit down to reflect on the key political, cultural and spiritual trends and moments from the year. They discuss the increase in popularity of both Reform and the Green party, the ongoing prevalence of Christian nationalism and The Quiet Revival findings. The team test their knowledge with a competitive quiz and offer some predictions for 2026. 

In the penultimate episode of 2025, Peter Lynas, Alicia Edmund and Zanna Meynell discuss some of the biggest cultural and political conversations through a Biblical lens. How can we be brave and kind when talking about the welfare state and asylum system? The team also discuss rage-baiting – Oxford University Press’s word of the year. 

The welfare state, asylum system and rage baiting - Evangelical Alliance

In this week's episode of Cross Section, Peter Lynas, Danny Webster, Mark Gilmore and Zanna Meynell react to Rachel Reeves' budget, having recorded straight after it finished. The team also talk about the Supreme Court ruling in regards to religious education in Northern Ireland and the announced puberty blockers trial. 

Rachel Reeves' budget: Christians react - Evangelical Alliance

Peter Lynas, UK director, and Alicia Edmund, head of public policy, follow up on June’s episode ‘Should we be concerned about Christian nationalism?’ to reflect on how protests, domestic and global politics events continue to divide communities and polarise debate in the UK.  

00:00 - Introduction 

In this week's episode of Cross Section, Alicia Edmund, Danny Webster and Peter Lynas focus on the media. With significant resignations at the BBC and questions around impartiality and bias, the team discuss finding trustworthy sources.

Where as Christians should we find our news?

How can we be good news people in our polarizing world?

https://www.eauk.org/resources/what-we-offer/videos-and-podcasts/coming-soon-good-news-people

Cross Section - Evangelical Alliance

In this week's episode of Cross Section, Alicia Edmund, Peter Lynas and Zanna Meynell talk about this week's biggest news stories. The episode begins with a cultural roundup ranging from Celebrity Traitors to Prince Andrew becoming a 'commoner'. They then reflect on the Doncaster train attack, and how Christians can respond in faith.

The main conversation focuses on the rise in political extremes as the team look at the growing popularity of the Green party and discuss the recent reports about Tommy Robinson becoming a Christian. The episode finishes with a discussion about the persecution of Christians in Nigeria and Trump's involvement in the conversation.

https://www.opendoorsuk.org/act/idop/

The surge of the Green party and Tommy Robinson's Christian conversion - Evangelical Alliance

In this episode of Cross Section, Alicia Edmund, Peter Lynas and Danny Webster discuss this week's key headlines. Conversation begins with Prince Andrew's decision to relinquish his titles and moves into a wider conversation around grooming gangs and how the church can speak into the issue of violence against women and girls.

They also talk about Graham Linehan and non-crime hate incidents and the controversy around the Aston Villa vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv football match. Conversation moves towards the Anglican church with a focus on the ongoing tensions around same-sex blessings and the growing divide in the Global Anglican Communion.

The episode closes with a discussion about Halloween and how Christians can navigate this cultural moment. 

https://www.eauk.org/news-and-views/lighting-up-your-local-area-on-halloween

A defining moment for the Anglican church - Evangelical Alliance