This week on The Bulletin, Mike and Clarissa discuss the floods in Texas and the framework of Christian lament in the wake of tragedy. They talk about Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming visit with US president Donald Trump, as well as the University of Pennsylvania’s ban on transgender athletes and its apology to competitors of former UPenn swimmer Lia Thomas. Then, Mike talks with Justin Giboney about Christian civic engagement.     

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ABOUT THE GUESTS: 

Justin Giboney is an attorney, political strategist, and ordained minister in Atlanta. He is also the cofounder and president of the And Campaign, a coalition of urban Christians who address the sociopolitical arena with the compassion and conviction of the gospel. Giboney is the coauthor of Compassion (&) Conviction: The AND Campaign’s Guide to Faithful Civic Engagement.

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

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This week, Mike, Russell, and Clarissa discuss venture capitalist Peter Thiel’s interview with The New York Times’ Ross Douthat about transhumanism and the end times. Then, CT’s Andy Olsen joins the show to discuss asylum-seeking Iranian Christians who were detained by ICE agents in Los Angeles. Finally, CT writer Megan Fowler discusses with Russell and Clarissa what to look for in a good (and a bad) summer camp.

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REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE:

• New York Times interview between Peter Thiel and Ross Douthat.

• Andy Olsen’s article in CT: ICE Goes After Church Leaders and Christians Fleeing Persecution.

• Video of ICE agents detaining Iranian Christian couple.

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ABOUT THE GUESTS:  

Andy Olsen is the senior features writer at Christianity Today. He previously oversaw the print magazine team. His writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, among other outlets, and has been recognized by the Religion News Association and the Evangelical Press Association.

Megan Fowler is a religion reporter at Christianity Today. She is also an associate editor at byFaith magazine, and her writing has appeared in The Gospel Coalition and Common Good. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN: 

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more. 

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more. 

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper  

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

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Mike Cosper talks with Steve Taylor about his history with the Newsboys and his reaction to the news about Michael Tait’s sexual abuse scandal. They discuss the dynamics of working in the Contemporary Christian Music industry, and the implications for those who loved the Newsboys’ music.  

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ABOUT THE GUESTS: 

Steve Taylor is a singer, songwriter, record producer, music executive, film maker, assistant professor, and actor. He enjoyed a successful solo career during the 1980s, and also served in the group Chagall Guevara. His songs have often taken aim at Christian hypocrisy with the use of satirical, sardonic lyrics. In 1997, he founded the record label Squint Entertainment, which fueled the careers of artists such as Sixpence None the Richer, Chevelle, and Burlap to Cashmere. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

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NYC Democratic mayoral primary. Bombing in Iran. Newsboys’ Michael Tait scandal. 

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This week, Mike Cosper and Russell Moore discuss the results of the New York City Democratic mayoral primary and the projected win of democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani. Michael Wear joins to discuss the implications for the larger Democratic party. Yossi Klein Halevi and CT’s Israel correspondent Jill Nelson join to talk about the United States’ bombing of Iran and the possibilities of peace in the region. Lastly, CT’s chief operating officer Nicole Martin joins us to discuss former Newsboys member Michael Tait and his history of abuse.     

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ABOUT THE GUESTS:  

Michael Wear is the founder, president, and CEO of the Center for Christianity and Public Life. Wear is the author of The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life. He writes for The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Catapult magazine, Christianity Today, and other publications on faith, politics, and culture.

Yossi Klein Halevi is a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. He codirects the Institute’s Muslim Leadership Initiative, which teaches emerging young Muslim American leaders about Judaism, Jewish identity, and Israel. He writes for leading op-ed pages in the US, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and is a former contributing editor to The New Republic. 

Jill Nelson is Christianity Today’s Ukraine and Israel correspondent. She holds a master’s in Middle Eastern studies from the University of Texas and began her journalism career as a reporter and anchor in South Dakota. For nearly 20 years, she covered Ukraine and the Middle East for World News Group. 

Nicole Martin serves Christianity Today as chief operating officer. She is the author of several books including Nailing It: Why Successful Leadership Demands Suffering and Surrender and Made to Lead: Empowering Women for Ministry.

ABOUT THE BULLETIN: 

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more. 

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more. 

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester

Music: Dan Phelps

'Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper  

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

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Mike Cosper talks with The Dispatch’s Steve Hayes about the shifts in the conservative movement. They discuss the movement’s incorporation of populist and authoritarian strains, the roots of these changes, and the analogies to evangelicalism. 

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ABOUT THE GUEST: 

Steve Hayes is CEO and editor of The Dispatch. Prior to cofounding the company in 2019, he worked at The Weekly Standard for 18 years covering Washington, politics, and national security. Steve is the author of two New York Times bestsellers. He also worked as a contributor at CNN and Fox News and currently serves as a political analyst at NBC News. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

‘No Kings’ protests. Israel and Iran conflict. Therapy culture and parenting. 

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This week, Mike and Russell talk with CT’s national political correspondent Harvest Prude about the military parade in Washington, DC, and concurrent No Kings protests around the country. Both happened in the aftermath of targeted shootings of political figures in Minnesota. Then, Ahmad Sharawi from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies joins to discuss what’s going on in Iran and Israel. Last, author Hannah Anderson joins the show to discuss why young adults aren’t having kids these days. Are they too worried about making their parents’ mistakes? 

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ABOUT THE GUESTS:  

Harvest Prude is CT’s national political correspondent and a congressional reporter based in Washington, DC. She is a former reporter for The Dispatch and World, having served there as political reporter for their Washington bureau. 

Ahmad Sharawi is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, focusing on Middle East affairs, specifically the Levant, Iraq, and Iranian intervention in Arab affairs, as well as US foreign policy in the region. Previously, Sharawi worked at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where he focused mainly on Hezbollah. He holds a BA in international relations from King’s College London and an MA from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

Hannah Anderson is an author and speaker whose work explores themes of human flourishing with a particular focus on how ecology, gender, and socioeconomics affect spiritual formation. Besides being a regular contributor to Christianity Today, she has authored multiple books, including All That’s Good: Recovering the Lost Art of Discernment and the recently released Heaven and Nature Sing.

ABOUT THE BULLETIN: 

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more. 

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more. 

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper  

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Israel’s strike on Iran. Assassination of a Minnesota politician. Economics of aging. 

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Mike and Clarissa discuss the complex backdrop of Israel’s strikes on Iran, the assassination of a Minnesota politician, and a Christian response to political violence. Then, Clarissa sits down with economist Sita Slavov to discuss economic issues related to aging, including social security policy and wisdom for retirement. 

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ABOUT THE GUESTS: 

Sita Slavov is a professor of public policy at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. She specializes in public finance and the economics of aging. Sita has served as a senior economist specializing in public finance issues at the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers, and she has testified before Congress. Her work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Health Economics and the Journal of Public Economics. She also has work published in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, RealClearPolicy, and US News & World Report.

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, Russell, Mike, and Clarissa discuss the continuing immigration protests in Los Angeles and the complexities of food aid to Gaza. Regina Chow Trammel, therapist and professor of social work at Azusa Pacific University, and CT’s Israel correspondent, Jill Nelson, join the conversation.

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ABOUT THE GUESTS:  

Regina Chow Trammel, PhD, LCSW, is professor of the master of social work program at Azusa Pacific University. She has spent more than a decade in private practice and has years of experience in psychiatric and medical social work settings. She has academic research publications on Christian mindfulness and a TEDx talk on mindfulness and cowrote A Counselor’s Guide to Christian Mindfulness: Engaging the Mind, Body & Soul in Biblical Practices & Therapies.

Jill Nelson is Christianity Today’s Ukraine and Israel correspondent. She holds a master’s in Middle Eastern studies from the University of Texas and began her journalism career as a reporter and anchor in South Dakota. For nearly 20 years, she covered Ukraine and the Middle East for World News Group. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN: 

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more. 

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more. 

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper  

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of The Bulletin, Jon Tyson sits down with Mike Cosper for a conversation about fatherhood, the call to bless your children, rites of passage for boys, and his book The Intentional Father.

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ABOUT THE GUEST: 

Jon Tyson is a New York City–based pastor and author. Originally from Adelaide, Australia, Jon moved to the US over two decades ago to seek and cultivate renewal in the Western church. He is the author of the best-selling books Fighting Shadows, The Intentional Father, and Beautiful Resistance. He graduated from Capital Seminary and serves as the lead pastor of Church of the City New York. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump and the judiciary. AI for churches. Uyghur persecution. 

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This week on The Bulletin, David French joins us to talk about the Trump administration’s beef with federal judges and why the president is so mad at Leonard Leo. Then, artificial intelligence is showing up at work and in the classroom– are you ready for it to come to church? CT’s Bonnie Kristian stops by to talk about how faith-aligned technology seeks to serve congregations. Finally, religious freedom expert Knox Thames talks to us about a new investigative report showing how your Crocs and iPhones may come from forced labor.

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ABOUT THE GUESTS: 

David French is a columnist for The New York Times. He’s a former senior editor of The Dispatch. He’s the author most recently of Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation.

Bonnie Kristian is the editorial director of ideas and books at Christianity Today and a fellow at Defense Priorities. She is the author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today. Her writing on religion, foreign policy, the modern American right, civil liberties, electoral politics, and more has been published at outlets including The New York Times, The Week, USA Today, CNN, Politico, The New Atlantis, Reason, and The Daily Beast. 

Knox Thames is an international human rights lawyer and advocate who served for 20 years in the US government across multiple administrations, most recently in the Obama and Trump administrations as a State Department special envoy for religious minorities in the Middle East and South/Central Asia. He is currently a senior fellow at Pepperdine University.

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: TJ Hester

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happened to Elon Musk? Food aid to Gaza. Project 2025. 

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Mike and Clarissa discuss why we’re not seeing Elon Musk around the Oval Office much anymore, why food-aid stories coming out of Gaza are so complicated, and whether President Donald Trump will build a sculpture garden of American heroes. Then, Mike sits down with The Atlantic’s David Graham to discuss his new book The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America. 

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ABOUT THE GUESTS: 

David Graham is a journalist based in Durham, North Carolina. He is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he covers politics, criminal justice, music, and other topics. His coverage of the 2020 presidential election won the 2021 Toner Prize for Excellence in National Political Reporting. He was previously editor of The Atlantic’s politics section, which won a Webby Award. 

ABOUT THE BULLETIN:

The Bulletin is a twice-weekly politics and current events show from Christianity Today moderated by Clarissa Moll, with senior commentary from Russell Moore (Christianity Today’s editor in chief) and Mike Cosper (director, CT Media). Each week, the show explores current events and breaking news and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world. We also offer special one-on-one conversations with writers, artists, and thought leaders whose impact on the world brings important significance to a Christian worldview, like Bono, Sharon McMahon, Harrison Scott Key, Frank Bruni, and more.

The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more.

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today

Producer: Clarissa Moll

Associate Producer: Alexa Burke

Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris

Music: Dan Phelps

Executive Producers: Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper

Senior Producer: Matt Stevens

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices