In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss the war with Iran, which the U.S. entered into on February 28. The attacks resulted in the assassination of Israel's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and several other officials. And in response, Iran has launched missiles at various targets in Israel and US military bases. Today's conversation hopefully sheds some light on the history of the tension in the Middle East, as well as whether war can ever be just.

At the top of the podcast, Dr. White suggested a helpful resource for understanding more of the world's political order. Written by Richard Haass, you can find The World: A Brief Introduction at The Grounds Bookstore HERE. He also mentioned a past podcast episode that we highly suggest you go back and listen to for more of an understanding of Israel and their engagement with both Palestine and Iran: CCP80: On the War in Israel. This episode will help you understand why Jerusalem is such a flashpoint. There is another past episode that we'd recommend for understanding the differences between Christianity and Islam: CCP86: On Islam.

Alexis mentioned the article written by Russell Moore in Christianity Today titled “What the Iran War Could Do to Your Soul,” which you can find HERE. It really challenges people to think about the why behind their support or opposition to the war. And when it comes to whether the church should engage this current conflict, it would be helpful to go back to our recent episode: CCP185: On Bad Bunny, Monks and Immigration.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.

In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss a topic that is drifting away from its biblical moorings and increasingly misunderstood in culture: exorcism. Even individuals who would not consider themselves Christians are familiar with the Lord's Prayer, which includes the line, “deliver us from evil.” But what does that mean, and why the sudden cultural interest in exorcism?

Dr. White mentioned a book that he wrote called The Prayer God Longs For. It walks through the Lord's Prayer, including a chapter that focuses on the deliverance from evil or the "evil one" (Satan). You can find it as an ebook on Church & Culture HERE. He also mentioned the work of C.S. Lewis called The Screwtape Letters - a fascinating book about the nature of temptation and demonic work in our lives. You can find that book at The Grounds Bookstore and Café HERE. Another resource that Dr. White mentioned, which you can also find in The Grounds, is Lee Strobel's Seeing the Supernatural. You can find that book HERE.

The discussion continued with a look at who Satan is, and an overview of the world of the occult. There are so many ways that the occult invades culture today, and most people are not even aware of it. There was a series that Dr. White delivered at Mecklenburg Community Church a number of years ago on the subject called “Paranormal.” The installments of this series include the map of the spiritual world, the marks of the occult, and the armor of God. There are also some past podcast episodes that you may want to go back and listen to related to today's conversation including: CCP151: On Spirits and Ghosts, CCP77: On Angels, CCP66: On Satanism, and CCP58: On Your Horoscope and Starbucks.

Finally, there are two articles that were mentioned in today's episode that you may be interested in reading. The first is written by Kaya Burgess in The Telegraph titled “Demand for exorcisms rises as faithful want ‘deliverance from evil.'” The second article was just released this week in the London Times, written by Tom Kington, and titled “Devil worshippers are using AI, exorcists are warned” discussing fears that pedophiles are using AI to create images of children participating in satanic rites.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. We'd also love to hear from you if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the Church & Culture Podcast in an upcoming episode. You can find the form to submit your questions at the bottom of the podcast page HERE.

In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss a topic that was prompted by a recent blog from Dr. White titled, “From Bad Bunny to Buddhist Monks: Navigating the News Cycle.” Church leaders are often expected to speak to what's happening with the current news cycle. While many attenders realize it's unrealistic for their church to speak to every issue, everyone at some point is drawn to a particular news story they feel demands a response, statement or a stand from their church. So how do pastors and church leaders contend with all of this?

At the top of the episode, Alexis mentioned how the Church & Culture Podcast topics are inspired by everything from what's trending in culture, to the latest news stories, to other “hot” podcasts, as well as listener-submitted questions. (By the way, if there is a topic that you'd like to see discussed on the C&C Podcast you can submit your questions HERE.)

Dr. White mentioned some earlier episodes on the podcast that were drawn from cultural trends including: CCP163: On "KPop Demon Hunters, CCP44: On Artificial Intelligence, and CCP182: On Telepathy. These topics were chosen because many Christians wrestle with how to think Christianly about them and discern whether the Bible has anything to say about them. Then there are episodes about topics over which Christians are divided. These would include past episodes such as: CCP21: On Gender, CCP151: On Spirits and Ghosts, and CCP132: On Near-Death Experiences.

Alexis also posed the question about determining which news-cycle issues to address as a pastor to the church. Dr. White referenced two series in particular that he delivered at Mecklenburg Community Church. The first was “Is it okay for a Christian to…” and covered the following topics: watching Game of Thrones, smoking marijuana and drinking wine, gambling, doing yoga, voting for ________, getting a tattoo, having cosmetic surgery or being cremated, participating in a gay wedding, and not going to church. The second was titled, “What the Bible Really Says About…” and covered these popular issues: A.I., politics, immigration, IVF and abortion, and angels.

Dr. White also addressed the need to speak to major events when they happen, particularly when there is a need to restore dignity and remind people that we are called to love one another. He noted two events in particular - the murder of George Floyd and the murder of Charlie Kirk. At the time of Floyd's death, Dr. White had a panel discussion at the church, which became our weekend service. You can find “Going Forward: Next Steps” HERE. And then the Sunday after Charlie Kirk was killed, he took time before the series message to offer condolences and a prayer. The transcript from that message was turned into a blog, which you can find HERE.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday. Thanks for listening!