In this Replay episode, Matthew Lee Anderson, Derek Rishmawy, and Alistair Roberts are joined by Andy Crouch — Partner for Theology and Culture at Praxis — to examine what the data on social media and video games reveals about the diverging formation of young men and women. The conversation turns on a pointed question: what happens when the skills adolescence develops are simulations rather than realities? And what does that mean for formative communities — home, school, and church — that bear responsibility for shaping persons, not just managing behaviors?

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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.

Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, R30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity

Apply for a full-tuition scholarship for Beeson Divinity School's M.Div program that begins Fall 2026 here: https://bit.ly/beesonscholarships

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Chapters

• 2:00 — Guest Introduction: Andy Crouch
• 3:00 — The Tweet: Social Media, Video Games, and Diverging Outcomes
• 5:30 — Why We Now Have Reliable Data
• 7:00 — Social Media's Harm to Girls
• 8:30 — Why Boys Seem Fine (At First)
• 11:00 — The Idolatry Framework: Things That Work at First
• 17:00 — Pornography as Formation Failure
• 19:00 — The Feminization of Internet Culture
• 25:00 — The Algorithmic Turn: From Chronological to Algorithmic Feeds
• 31:00 — The Algorithm Catches You at Your Worst
• 33:00 — Mobile Devices and the End of Distance
• 36:00 — Practical Applications: Give Resistors an Off-Ramp
• 40:00 — Banning Phones in Schools: A Framework
• 44:00 — "But They Need to Prepare for the Real World"
• 46:00 — Instruments vs. Devices: A Distinction
• 48:00 — Closing & Patron Teaser

Derek Rishmawy and Alastair Roberts host Jake Meador for a wide-ranging conversation on why evangelical institutions struggle with leadership transitions and long-term succession. They explore how evangelicalism's emphasis on discontinuity, charismatic personality-driven leadership, and brand-over-institution thinking undermines durability. The discussion touches on the boomer generational bottleneck, the producer-consumer framework shaped by technology, and what healthier models—like RTS or long-tenured churches—might teach us about building things that outlast their founders.

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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.

Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, R30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity

Apply for a full-tuition scholarship for Beeson Divinity School's M.Div program that begins Fall 2026 here: https://bit.ly/beesonscholarships

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Chapters

• 00:00 – Introduction & Framing the Problem
• 02:48 – Evangelicalism's Built-In Bias Toward Discontinuity
• 06:34 – Charisma, Personality, and the Exoskeleton Problem
• 08:46 – Brands vs. Institutions
• 11:22 – RTS as a Positive Case Study
• 15:24 – Market Forces and Media Adaptability
• 17:33 – Long-Tenured Churches and the Mold vs. Platform Distinction
• 24:18 – The Boomer Generational Cliff
• 30:16 – Carson, Piper, Keller, and Golden Age Expectations
• 39:23 – Evangelical Anxiety About Institutional Betrayal
• 43:31 – Technology, Formation, and the Performing Self
• 51:26 – Birth Rates, Legacy, and Thinking About Succession

Derek Rishmawy, Alastair Roberts, Brad East, and James Wood trace the evangelical spiritual formation movement from Richard Foster through Dallas Willard to John Mark Comer. They explore why disciplines resonate today amid technological distraction and desire for embodied faith, while navigating tensions between individual and communal formation, liturgy's role, and concerns about practices becoming self-optimization divorced from gospel foundations.

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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.

Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, 30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to

Apply for a full-tuition scholarship for Beeson Divinity School's M.Div program that begins Fall 2026 here: https://bit.ly/beesonscholarships

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• 00:00 – Introduction
• 01:06 – Tracing the Spiritual Formation Movement
• 08:35 – Why Spiritual Disciplines Resonate Today
• 19:45 – Technology, Attention, and the Appeal of Forms
• 25:00 – Critiques: Self-Optimization and Theological Drift
• 33:12 – The Role of Set Prayers and Liturgy
• 44:50 – Inhabiting Forms vs. Formalism
• 53:00 – Suffering as Spiritual Formation
• 58:47 – The Danger of Christian Elitism
• 01:12:54 – The Parable of the Three Bricklayers

Hosts Derek Rishmawy and Brad East are joined by Myles Werntz to discuss his Christianity Today Award of Merit-winning book, Contesting the Body of Christ: Ecclesiology's Revolutionary Century. Rather than systematic argument, Werntz uses narrative case studies examining how diverse Christian communities—from African Pentecostals to Korean Presbyterians—have embodied and contested the classical marks of the church.

His starting premise: assume the Holy Spirit is at work in churches confessing Christ, then investigate what's happening. The conversation tackles tough questions about theological boundaries, ecumenical charity, and faithful disagreement when salvation is at stake.

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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.

Get 40% of the Baker Book of the Month, Reading The Psalms As Scripture by James Hamilton and Matthew Damico, by using the promo code MEREFIDELITY at checkout. Get the book here: https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/products/9781683597766_reading-the-psalms-as-scripture

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• Why the 20th century was revolutionary for the church (Vatican II, Pentecostalism, decolonization, ecumenical movement)
• Contestation as intrinsic to ecclesial life, not a bug but a feature
• Theological guardrails: the Nicene Creed, Scripture, faith-hope-love
• Limit cases: when does disagreement become denial of God's work?
• How to argue faithfully in a non-Roman Catholic ecclesiology

Myles Werntz, Professor of Theology at Abilene Christian University

A podcast from Mere Orthodoxy

Derek Rishmawy, Alastair Roberts and Brad East talk with Dr. Jason Staples about his book 'Paul and the Resurrection of Israel.' The discussion explores the themes of restoration eschatology, the role of Gentiles in Paul's theology, and the nature of Israel's restoration. Staples argues that Paul's understanding of Israel is broader than just ethnic Jews, emphasizing the inclusion of Gentiles in the restoration narrative. The conversation also touches on the concept of infectious holiness and the church's role as the assembly of Israel, highlighting the theological implications of these ideas for contemporary Christianity.

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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership

Get 40% of the Baker Book of the Month, Reading The Psalms As Scripture by James Hamilton and Matthew Damico, by using the promo code MEREFIDELITY at checkout. Get the book here: https://bakerpublishinggroup.com/products/9781683597766_reading-the-psalms-as-scripture

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Derek, Brad, and Alastair talk with Leah Sargeant about her book The Dignity of Dependence. They discuss why the world is built for male bodies, how pregnancy exposes universal human dependence, whether artificial wombs would help anyone, what's wrong with workplace dynamics, and why autonomy is a dangerous cultural idol.

Post-liberalism has escaped the internet and entered mainstream politics—but what does it actually mean? Derek, James, and Alastair map three competing visions: nostalgic return to pre-modern order, retrieval of Christian liberalism, or genuine revolution forward.

Derek Rishmawy, Alastair Roberts, and Brad East discuss the nature of preaching, exploring its purpose, context, and the role of the preacher. They discuss the importance of engaging the heart and conscience of the audience, the need for contextualization in sermons, and the common pitfalls that preachers face. The conversation emphasizes the collective nature of engaging with scripture and the significance of avoiding jargon to ensure accessibility for all listeners.

Derek Rishmawy and Alastair Roberts discuss how minds actually change—through paradigm shifts, careful arguments, or accumulated experience. They explore why steel-manning opponents and engaging charitably with the strongest versions of opposing views is more persuasive than antagonistic debate. The key insight: the best positions emerge when you're willing to incorporate real strengths from other viewpoints and make warranted concessions, which requires moving beyond polarized combat toward genuine good-faith dialogue.

Derek Rishmawy and Brad East engage with Paul T. Sloan, an expert in early Christianity, to discuss his book 'Jesus and the Law of Moses.' The conversation explores the relationship between Jesus, the law, and the restoration of Israel, challenging popular views on legalism and emphasizing the importance of understanding the law as a gift. They delve into the concept of nomism, the significance of Jesus' authority, and the implications of his death as a ransom for liberation. The discussion also touches on the role of faith, the misunderstandings of the Pharisees, and the enduring relevance of the law in the New Testament.

Chapters