When we looked at the 2025 performance metrics of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), I realized that what we’re seeing in their baptism metrics is very likely rebaptism at work. Rebaptism is exactly what it sounds like: Someone who’s already been baptized once doing it again. Unsurprisingly, the SBC doesn’t Read more
For years now, I’ve said that Christianity wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for its leaders grabbing and wielding legal powers of coercion 1800 years ago, then protecting it with everything they had. In recent decades, secular governments have been peeling away those powers bit by bit. But amid more Read more
You know it’s summer when we finally see our first SBC metrics drop! Last time we met up, I showed you some details of those metrics from the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)—and how those figures paint the picture of a struggling, rapidly-polarizing behemoth entering its managed-decline phase. But as we’ll Read more
Our Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Summer officially kicks off with the 2025 SBC metrics dropping at last! Today, let’s take a first look at the figures they shared—and talk about what those figures mean. (This post and its audio ‘cast first went live on Patreon on 5/12/2026. They’re both available Read more
On April 24-25, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) helped run a big apologetics conference in upstate New York. Its organizers promised that attendees would get answers for the “hard questions” of Christianity. Obviously, that didn’t happen. But they did accidentally ask two legitimate questions that, had they adequately answered them, Read more
In Alpha Course #13, the hosts kindly teach their viewers how to resist the wily wiles of the wiliest coyote of them all, Satan. Here, we learn that it’s not so much about resisting evil as it is about Jesusing the Jesus-Jesus just as hard as we can. And from Read more
Modern Christians may know that their ideal is having faith without any need for proof, but in their hearts they want good reasons to believe. For evangelicals, that tension is particularly intense: Their version of Christianity involves a very active, involved deity—but our world doesn’t show any signs of that Read more
In Alpha Course #12, its creators share how newly-converted Christians can make the most of the rest of their lives. But they’re not actually that great at it. Today, let’s check out their suggestions—and wonder together if, indeed, one could build a meaningful life out of them. (This post and Read more
On April 12, The New York Times ran an interesting opinion post about atheism. In it, Christian scholar David Hart tells interviewer Peter Wehner that he could never, ever be an atheist because he thinks atheism can’t ‘answer’ philosophical arguments against it. It’s an interesting interview for a number of Read more
On April 13, 2026, Baptist Press announced that Evan Lenow would be the new president of their beleaguered Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). They’ve struggled for years to find one that seems to satisfy them, but this time the candidate might last more than a few years. That’s because Read more