A couple weeks ago, The Reason for Church: Why the Body of Christ Still Matters in an Age of Anxiety, Division, and Radical Individualism, by Brad Edwards was named Book of the Year by Christianity Today magazine.
The timing couldn’t be more perfect for us, because this week I’m talking with Brad Edwards about his book, which I also will name as my Book of the Year in an upcoming article.
Brad and I talk about the shift that’s happened over the last decade or so in how people perceive institutions, especially the institutional church. We look at how the rise of radical individualism has replaced once-trusted institutions, why a distrust in institutions is problematic, and why institutions—especially the church—still matter.
Brad is a church planter and pastor of The Table Church in Lafayette, CO. This conversation also includes an overview of the reasons behind the loss of institutionalism, and especially five Church Defeaters:
- Church Defeater 1: Spiritual Pragmatism
- Church Defeater 2: The Sacred Self
- Church Defeater 3: Counterfeit Institutions
- Church Defeater 4: (Un)Civil religions
- Church Defeater 5: Virtuous Victimhood
Links
- The Reason for Church: Why the Body of Christ Still Matters in an Age of Anxiety, Division, and Radical Individualism
- Mere Orthodoxy
- Brad’s Substack
- @CBradEdwards on Twitter/X
Bonus Content
Our Role in the Grand Narrative of Scripture, with Brad Edwards
Brad Edwards and I talk about the importance of understanding the metanarrative of scripture as a foundational teaching for life and faith.
In particular, their conversation addresses two storytelling terms. First, Main Character Syndrome, which helps us understand and clarify the dangers of the hyper-individualism of our current age. Second, the MacGuffin, a term coined by movie director Alfred Hitchcock that helps us see what our role in God’s story really is.
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Credits
Producer: Veronica Beaver
Editor: Phil Vaters
Music: Composed and performed by Jack Wilkins
Logo: by Solomon Joy
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