Cross Section

In the final episode of Season 13, Peter Lynas, Alicia Edmund and Danny Webster unpack the recent news from the Bible Society – that the YouGov data from The Quiet Revival report was invalid and has been discounted. How can we respond to this news?

While this is hard to process, we must remember that the findings haven’t been proven ‘wrong’ but are unreliable. The team point to other surveys, church leader feedback and recurring stories suggesting increased spiritual openness, particularly among younger adults.

The team also discuss the London ‘Together’ rally against the far right, questioning claims of unity, contested crowd sizes and the growing role of religion in public demonstrations. How, in our churches, can we bring unity amidst serious political differences?

They close with reflections on church division, moving from protest to prayerful engagement, and standout news headlines from the last week.

Is the 'Quiet Revival' fake news? - Evangelical Alliance

https://www.biblesociety.org.uk/the-q...

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome

00:29 Quiet Revival report withdrawn

01:08 Why the data failed

04:44 How surveys get skewed

06:18 Church response and hope

18:01 ‘Together’ rally

22:10 Unity, politics and faith

27:28 From protest to prayer

31:07 News picks and Easter

Kay Morgan-Gurr, co-founder of the Additional Needs Alliance, and Alicia Edmund discuss the politics of disability and the attitudes that underly how we approach disability within the church. They also cover how proposed changes to both Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) provision and disability benefits will impact those living with disabilities.

Chapters:

0:00     Welcome

1:04     Kay's faith journey and lived experience with disability

2:52     The Get Britain Working white paper and PIP payments

9:14     Priorities for a government disability plan

11:33   Cultural attitudes and destigmatising disability

16:08   Discipleship and the role of the church for those with disabilities

24:35   Special Educational Needs reform

29:42   Practical advice for churches and closing remarks

Peter Lynas, Danny Webster and Zanna Meynell discuss the row over the Iftar prayer in Trafalgar Square. They talk about Nick Timothy's comment 'mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination.' How do we respond to this? What is the line with freedom of religion and speech?

The team also talk about the Evangelical Alliance's new report Confident faith, contested culture and what this shows about how evangelicals' find sharing their faith in this cultural moment. Finally, the team discuss Prince William's comments about having a 'quiet faith'.

Timestamps:

0:00 - Introduction

Join Alicia Edmund, Danny Webster and Peter Lynas as they discuss stories at the intersection of faith, news and culture. They discuss Louis Theroux's 'Inside the Manosphere' Netflix documentary. What has it revealed? How does the Bible speak into it and this cultural moment?

The team also talk about the significant vote in the House of Lords regarding the decriminalisation of abortion. There have been some headlines around whether or not the new Archbishop of Canterbury will be there for the vote. This is a conversation Christians need to be speaking into and praying about.

Chapters:

0:00 - Welcome

In this week's episode of Cross Section, Peter Lynas, Alicia Edmund and Danny Webster sit down to discuss the headlines. They cover Wes Huff's appearance on the Diary of a CEO podcast. He took 9 months to say yes to doing it and his clear articulation of Christianity is a call to us all! Steven Bartlett is beginning to revaluate his atheism and asking important questions. 

Meanwhile, Claude AI was asked about Christianity and it's answer was very interesting!

They also discuss the government's new social cohesion strategy - 'Protect What Matters'. What happened in Alicia's meeting with the Faith Minister? What is the new anti-Muslim hatred definition? What will this mean for free speech?

0:00 Introduction

Zanna Meynell, David Smyth, Rani Joshi and Damilola Makinde sit down for an honest and nuanced conversation about VAWG, the government’s new strategy to reduce it and what we can be doing in our churches.

They cover what we can do about both our young girls and boys, the nuances involved in people’s experiences coming from different cultures and backgrounds, and how our churches can be safer, more welcoming places for survivors.

Check out the work of Restored

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction and defining VAWG

Peter Lynas, Danny Webster and Zanna Meynell discuss this week’s headlines. The team cover the Green's victory at the Gorton and Denton by-election, the conflict in the Middle East and the assisted suicide bills in Westminster and Scotland. How as Christians should we navigate these situations?

Iran conflict and the Greens' victory: Christians react - Evangelical Alliance

https://www.eauk.org/news-and-views/msps-must-vote-against-the-assisted-dying-for-terminally-ill-adults-bill-at-its-final-stage

https://www.elam.com/

https://www.opendoorsuk.org/news/iran-urgent-prayer/

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

In this week’s episode of Cross Section, Peter Lynas, Alicia Edmund and Danny Webster discuss the latest headlines. The episode begins in conversation about the BBC’s failure to bleep out a racial slur said by John Davidson who has Tourette’s in their BAFTAs coverage. They also cover Peter Mandelson’s recent arrest.

Conversation then focuses on both Reform and Restore UK’s use of the Christian value trend as they call for the restoration of British Christian heritage. Who are Restore UK? Why are these parties placing such emphasis on Christian heritage and what are these ‘Christian values’ that people are calling for? What is the significance of the Gorton and Denton by-election?

The episode concludes with a discussion about the BBC's recent coverage of the Quiet Revival stats, the encouragement of Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze’s faith and an encouragement as we step into Lent.

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

In this week's episode of Cross Section, Danny Webster, Alicia Edmund and Zanna Meynell unpack the spiritual, cultural and political headlines. A recent report from Youthscape has revealed that gen Z see Jesus as having 'a God complex' and mansplaining. How is this reflective of this cultural moment?

The team also discuss the ongoing fallout from Mandelson's relationship with Epstein and what this will mean for Keir Starmer. The episode concludes with a conversation about Trump's controversial speech at the US National Prayer Breakfast last week.

Gen Z attitudes to Jesus and the political fallout of the Epstein files - Evangelical Alliance

The Cross Section team are joined by Jo Frost, director of communications and engagement for the Evangelical Alliance. They begin by discussing some key stories including Jelly Roll's speech at the Grammys, the red pilling Steven Bartlett controversy and the validity of the Quiet Revival stats.

For the majority of the episode, the panel discuss Christians on the left of politics. Who are some of the key UK Christian figures from the left. What are the trends we are seeing on the left domestically and internationally? Does faith-based political identity work differently on the left vs right? They also talk about James Talarico, the Texas state representative. He is the rising voice of progressive Christianity in US politics. Where does he stand on different issues? What makes him so persuasive?

The episode finishes with a discussion about the significance of the Gorton and Denton by-election. How do we navigate the fact that within our churches we have Reform supporters and Green supporters?

0:00 - Introduction