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In this week’s episode of Faithful Dissent, we run through the crazy start to 2026. We talk through the ICE shooting in Minnesota, Gunboat diplomacy in Latin America and its broader implications, and a larger pattern we keep bumping up against: how Christian leaders across contexts sometimes fall short of the moral clarity they’re called to embody. 

It's not been an easy start to the New Year, but we're here to talk it out with each other and we're glad you're hanging out with us on the ride. 

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In this New Year’s grab bag episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian look back on 2025 and talk through the moments that shaped it—personally, politically, and spiritually. From dogs at Barnes & Noble and surfing lessons to sports rivalries, holiday traditions, AI anxiety, and the ongoing unraveling of American evangelical politics, this conversation moves where real life tends to move: between the meaningful and the mundane. 

Along the way, they reflect on: 

• What brought joy and surprise this year—and what simply helped them survive it
• Why politics feels exhausting, confusing, and unavoidable
• How AI is reshaping truth, trust, and daily life (for better and worse)
• What faith looks like in a culture obsessed with success, wealth, and certainty
• Why slow practices, embodied life, and attention to what really matters still matter

This episode isn’t a manifesto or a hot take—it’s a year-end table conversation about what we’re carrying with us into the new year, what we’re trying to let go of, and why hope still feels possible.
 

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 What do people actually mean when they talk about “deconstruction”? 

In this laid-back, unscripted conversation, James and Brian sit down to talk honestly about doubt, faith, abuse, certainty, and why so many people feel like the version of Christianity they inherited no longer works. 

They trace how “deconstruction” has shifted over time—from backsliding, to honest questioning, to full-blown internet industry—and ask what healthy deconstruction might actually look like. Along the way, they wrestle with church hurt, certainty culture, conspiracy thinking, power, leadership failure, and why Christianity keeps confusing confidence with faith. 

This isn’t a takedown and it isn’t a defense. It’s a conversation about staying honest, staying human, and figuring out what faith looks like when easy answers stop working. 

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In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian talk with pastor and theologian Gino Curcuruto—co-founder of The Table Philly, prison theology instructor, doctoral student, and co-owner of Habitat Coffee Roasters. Gino shares his journey through suburban evangelicalism, church-plant trauma, and the slow, relational, deeply human work of rebuilding Christian community from the ground up. 

Together, we explore: 

• Why speed, scale, and performance shape most American churches—and how that harms real relationships
• The Table’s commitment to slow presence, neighborhood rootedness, and meaningful boundaries
• The emotional and spiritual cost of open-door ministry models, especially for families and kids
• Why megachurches thrive in American suburbia—and why they often form us away from the way of Jesus
• How Christian nationalism has reshaped public perceptions of the church
• What gives Gino hope: small, faithful, unseen communities living out the kingdom in ordinary life

Full of honesty, humor, and hard-won wisdom, this conversation offers a fresh imagination for what church can be after Christendom—a community rooted in place, moving at the speed of love, and shaped by the presence of God rather than the pressure of success.
 

Links to Gino:

https://thetablephilly.org/

Substack https://t.co/g5Ei3FwTyh

X: https://x.com/ginoc

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In this off-the-cuff episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian take a break from theology to talk about the strange, collapsing circus of American politics. From Tucker Carlson’s platforming of white nationalists to the generational weirdness fueling Gen-Z extremism, they walk through the coalitions, catastrophes, and casual bigotry shaping the moment we’re all stuck in. 

This is not a formal analysis — it’s two friends thinking out loud about the unraveling of the American Right and why the “big tent” that Trump held together with spite and entertainment value was always destined to fall apart. 

Together, they get into: 

• Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes, and the GOP’s increasingly porous boundaries
• Why Gen-Z racism and antisemitism are both baffling and deeply predictable
• The internal contradictions of a coalition united only by its enemies
• Why no future Republican can replicate Trump’s insult-comic superpower
• Whether Democrats’ greatest strength is simply not being in charge
• How economics, identity, and media chaos warp political loyalty
• And whether any of this gives us reason for hope

Funny, bleak, curious, and surprisingly thoughtful — this is a politics episode for anyone trying to make sense of a political moment that feels genuinely unhinged.
 Check out this article from Rod Dreher's substack for useful background. 

Note: (we DO NOT endorse Dreher's opinions or support for various politicians, in the US or outside) 

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 In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian sit down with author and scholar Karen Swallow Prior to trace the story of American evangelicalism—from its idealistic roots to its current identity crisis. Drawing on her own journey through fundamentalism, academia, and activism, Karen reflects on how the movement that once shaped her faith has fractured under the weight of politics, celebrity, and cultural power. 

Together, they explore: 

• Karen’s early life in New England and her path into evangelicalism.
• The legacy of missions, activism, and moral reform in the evangelical imagination.
• How movements like the Moral Majority and the “evangelical industrial complex” reshaped the church.
• What the Trump era revealed about faith, power, and the limits of charity.
• Why literature, beauty, and truth still matter for spiritual renewal.
• How believers might reclaim calling and culture without losing the gospel in the process.

This conversation is part memoir, part cultural history, and part theological reflection—an honest look at what evangelicals built, what broke, and what might come next.

Here are some LINKS to Karen's Substack, and her books on Amazon.
 

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In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian explore what it really takes to build peace after violence. Drawing from Brian’s recent study trip to Northern Ireland and Scotland, they revisit the story of The Troubles—a decades-long conflict marked by division, loss, and fragile hope—and ask what the church can learn from those who chose reconciliation over revenge. 

Together, they discuss: 

• The hidden costs of peace and why reconciliation always begins at the ground level.
• How storytelling and listening can dismantle generations of hatred.
• The emotional and spiritual weight of forgiveness after violence.
• Why violence is easy—and peace demands faith, patience, and sacrifice.
• What it means to be a prophetic community in a world that profits from division.

Through stories of loss, courage, and the slow work of rebuilding trust, this conversation reminds us that peace is not a moment—it’s a discipline, and often, a cross to carry.
 

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In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian begin a new series exploring one of the most debated and fascinating corners of Christian faith — the charismatic gifts. From speaking in tongues to miraculous healings, from holy laughter to dreams and visions, they trace how Christians have wrestled with the Holy Spirit’s power through history and in their own lives.

Together, they explore:

• What Scripture means by “spiritual gifts” and how different traditions understand them.
• The tension between skepticism, superstition, and sincere faith.
• Their own experiences of the miraculous — and what makes them cautious believers.
• Why ecstatic experiences can both deepen and distort our spiritual lives.
• How to pursue the presence of God without confusing emotion for encounter.

Whether you come from a Pentecostal background or have only watched these moments on YouTube, this episode invites you to consider how the Spirit still moves — sometimes mysteriously, sometimes controversially, always unpredictably.

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In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James, Brian, and James’s father take on one of the most complicated forms of love — the love of country. Patriotism can inspire courage, service, and unity — but it can also slide into pride, denial, or even idolatry. So what does it mean to love a nation honestly? 

Together, they explore: 

• Whether patriotism is a virtue or a temptation in Christian life.
• How love of country can both strengthen and distort our moral vision.
• The difference between devotion to ideals and allegiance to power.
• What it means to tell the truth about a nation you still hope for.
• How faith redefines belonging — not by the flag we wave, but the kingdom we serve.

At a time when nationalism and cynicism compete for our hearts, this conversation invites listeners to consider a third way: a patriotism rooted not in triumph, but in truth.
 

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 In this episode of Faithful Dissent, James and Brian explore how the digital revolution has reshaped church life—from livestream services during the pandemic to the ongoing debate about what counts as real worship. Is online church an extension of embodied faith, or does it diminish the communal and physical nature of Christian life? 

Together, they discuss: 

• The history of televised and streamed services before and after COVID-19.
• The creativity and strain of leading worship online during the pandemic.
• Communion in a digital space—what was gained and what was lost.
• Why some churches embraced livestreaming while others shut it down.
• Theological reflections on embodiment, discipleship, and formation in a digital age.
• The enduring tension between accessibility and the need for in-person community.

This conversation wrestles with the costs and opportunities of digital church, asking what it means to pursue embodied faith when screens are always just a click away.
 

You can find the link to the Tish Warren article we referenced in the notes here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/30/opinion/church-online-services-covid.html