Digital Public Square

Over the past few years I’ve been joined by some of society’s most influential thinkers, writers, and leaders to talk about the important ideas shaping our society today, as well as some of the top issues of life in the Digital Public Square. The purpose of this podcast from the very beginning was to equip you to navigate these issues with wisdom.

For all good things must come to an end, and this is the last episode of the Digital Public Square podcast given my transition late last year to Boyce College and the shift in my role here at the ERLC. We decided to shift our research podcast strategy and combine efforts with the main ERLC podcast, which many of you already know and love. The change will allow me to continue interviewing top thinkers and writers about their work as part of a larger network of listeners at the podcast. 

While this may be the end of the Digital Public Square podcast in this season, I hope these resources will continue to bless the church as she engages in the tasks set before us by Christ: to love God and to love our neighbors as our self.

If you’re not already subscribed to the podcast you can visit ERLC.com/podcast as well as major podcast platforms.

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In today’s episode, I am joined by Dr. Dennis Hollinger to talk about his new book entitled Creation and Christian Ethics: Understanding God’s Designs for Humanity and the World from Baker Academic. Today, we discuss how creation speaks to the foundations of the Christian ethic and how we might recover a richer vision of humanity in light of God’s creation.

Meet Dennis:
Dennis Hollinger is president emeritus and senior distinguished professor of Christian ethics at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He received the BA from Elizabethtown College, the M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, the MPhil and PhD from Drew University, and did postdoctoral studies at Oxford University. He has written numerous works on Christian ethics, including Choosing the Good: Christian Ethics in a Complex World and The Meaning of Sex: Christian Ethics and the Moral Life.

Resources:

• Creation and Christian Ethics: Understanding God’s Designs for Humanity and the World by Dennis Hollinger
• The Doctrine of Creation: A Constructive Kuyperian Approach by Bruce Ashford and Craig Bartholomew
• You’re Only Human: How Your Limits Reflect God’s Design and Why That’s Good News by Kelly Kapic
• A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream by Yuval Levin

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Matthew Martens to talk about his new book entitled Reforming Criminal Justice: A Christian Proposal from Crossway. Today, we discuss the nature of justice in the Christian life and how Christians can think about criminal justice reform through a biblical lens.

Meet Matthew:
Matt is a trial lawyer and partner at an international law firm in Washington, DC. He earned his JD from University of North Carolina School of Law and a Masters of Arts in Biblical Studies from Dallas Theological Seminary. He has spent the majority of his twenty-five year legal career practicing criminal law both as a federal prosecutor and as a defense attorney. He served as a law clerk to Chief Justice William Rehnquist at the US Supreme Court and also as a political appointee in the criminal justice division of the US Justice Department.

Resources:

• Reforming Criminal Justice: A Christian Proposal by Matthew Martens
• Basic Christian Ethics by Paul Ramsey
• The Collapse of American Criminal Justice by William J. Stuntz
• Locking Up Our Own by James Forman Jr.
• On the Morals of the Catholic Church by Augustine

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Andrew Spencer to talk about his new book entitled Hope for God’s Creation: Stewardship in an Age of Futility from B&H Academic. Today, we discuss the nature of ethics, creation care, and the distinctives of the Christian approach to the environment .

Meet Andrew:
Andrew Spencer (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) serves as associate editor for books at The Gospel Coalition. He is the author of Doctrine in Shades of Green: Theological Perspective for Environmental Ethics, editor of The Christian Mind of C. S. Lewis, and a contributor to Baptist Political Theology. He earned a Ph.D. in Theological Studies with an emphasis on Christian Ethics from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary as well as a Master of Divinity. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in English from the United States Naval Academy.

Resources:

• Hope for God’s Creation by Andrew Spencer
• Pollution and the Death of Man by Francis Schaeffer
• Stewards of Eden: What Scripture Says About the Environment and Why It Matters by Sandra Richter
• Creation Care: A Biblical Theology of the Natural World by Douglas J. Moo and Jonathan A. Moo

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Bethany Allen of Axios to talk about her new book entitled Beijing Rules: How China Weaponized Its Economy to Confront the World from HarperCollins. Today, we discuss the global influence of China alongside the rise of authoritarian capitalism in Beijing.

Meet Bethany
Bethany serves as the China reporter at Axios and leads the weekly Axios China newsletter, covering China’s role in the world. She was previously a staff editor and contributing reporter at Foreign Policy magazine, where she wrote investigations, deeply reported narratives, and analysis related to China. She is based in Taipei.

Resources:

• Beijing Rules by Bethany Allen
• China’s Civilian Army: The Making of Wolf Warrior Diplomacy by Peter Martin
• Party of One: The Rise of Xi Jinping and China’s Superpower Future by Chun Han Wong
• How China Escaped Shock Therapy: The Market Reform Debate by Isabella M. Weber

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Brandon Smith to talk about his new volume entitled The Trinity in the Canon from B&H Academic. Today, we discuss the vital role that trinitarian theology plays in Scripture and how it should produce both right doctrine and living.

Meet Brandon:
Brandon serves as assistant professor of theology and New Testament at Cedarville University in Ohio. He is also the author of The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in John’s Apocalypse and serves as the co-editor of the Christian Standard Commentary series. He is a co-founder of the Center for Baptist Renewal and host of the Church Grammar podcast. He earned his PhD from Ridley College and is a graduate of Dallas Baptist University and Criswell College.

Resources:

• The Trinity in the Canon by Brandon Smith
• On the Incarnation by Saint Athanasius
• On God and Christ: The Five Theological Orations and Two Letters to Cledonius by Saint Gregory of Nazianzus
• The Trinity: An Introduction by Scott Swain
• The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything by Fred Sanders

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Adam Groza to talk about his new book he wrote with J.P. Moreland entitled Unraveling Philosophy from B&H Academic. Today, we discuss how Christians can love God with all of our minds through studying the riches of philosophy.

Meet Dr. Groza

Adam serves as associate professor of philosophy and vice president for enrollment and student services at Gateway Seminary. He is a native Californian and has taught philosophy related classes at a variety of institutions including California Baptist University, Scarborough College, and Korea Baptist Theological Seminary.

Resources:

• The Republic by Plato
• Confessions by St. Augustine
• Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson by Camille Paglia
• The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism by Timothy Keller

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the research institute at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker.

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Joshua Chatraw to talk about his new book The Augustine Way: Retrieving a Vision for the Church’s Apologetic Witness from Baker Academic. Today, we discuss how to cultivate a more effective witness and robust apologetic in our post-Christian age.

Meet Dr. Chatraw
Josh currently serves as the Billy Graham Chair of Evangelism and Cultural Engagement at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham Alabama and previously served as the executive director of the Center for Public Christianity in Raleigh, North Carolina. He is an award-winning author of numerous books in the fields of evangelism and apologetics, including Telling a Better Story: How to Talk about God in a Skeptical Age, which won a 2021 Christianity Today Book Award.

Resources:

• The Augustine Way: Retrieving a Vision for the Church’s Apologetic Witness by Joshua Chatraw and Mark Allen
• Telling a Better Story: How to Talk About God in a Skeptical Age by Joshua Chatraw
• Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture by Christopher Watkin
• Mere Apologetics: How To Help Seekers And Skeptics Find Faith by Alister Mcgrath
• Narrative Apologetics: Sharing the Relevance, Joy, and Wonder of the Christian Faith by Alister Mcgrath

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Nathan Finn to talk about the volume he co-edited entitled A Handbook of Theology from the Theology for the People of God series with B&H Academic. Today, we discuss the centrality of theology in the Christian life and how our faith informs every aspect of our life.

Meet Dr. Finn
Nathan Finn currently serves as provost and dean of the University Faculty at North Greenville University in Tigerville, South Carolina. He is the editor or author of several volumes including the Theology for the People of God series, Historical Theology for the Church, and History: A Student’s Guide. He also serves as teaching pastor at Taylors First Baptist Church in South Carolina and a Research Fellow of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Resources:

• Historical Theology for the Church by Nathan Finn and Jason Duesing
• Rediscovering Holiness: Know the Fullness of Life with God by J.I. Packer
• Ethics as Worship: The Pursuit of Moral Discipleship by Mark Liederbach and Evan Lenow

Theology for the People of God series from B&H:

• The Holy Spirit by Andreas J. Köstenberger and Gregg R. Allison
• A Handbook of Theology by Nathan Finn, Daniel Akin, and David S. Dockery
• Humanity by John Hammett and Katie McCoy
• more upcoming

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the research institute at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker.

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Ronnie Martin to talk about his new book with Donnie Griggs titled Pastoring Small Towns from B&H Publishing. Today, we talk about the unique opportunities and challenges of pastoring in rural areas as well as the role that technology plays in shaping the culture of small town churches.

Meet Ronnie:

Ronnie Martin is founder and lead pastor of Substance Church (EFCA) in Ashland, Ohio. He holds a masters of arts from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and is currently finishing his doctorate of ministry at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Ronnie is also the Director of Leader Renewal for Harbor Network, where he works alongside church planters and pastors in areas related to pastoral care.

Resources:

• Pastoring Small Towns by Ronnie Martin and Donnie Griggs
• The Imperfect Pastor: Discovering Joy in Our Limitations through a Daily Apprenticeship with Jesus by Zack Eswine
• The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction by Eugene Peterson

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the research institute at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker.

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Katie McCoy to talk about her new book To Be a Woman: The Confusion Over Female Identity and How Christians Can Respond from B&H Publishing. Today, we discuss the rise of transgender ideology, the contours of the gender debate, and how Christians can love our neighbors by speaking uncompromising truth with uncompromising grace.

Meet Dr. McCoy
Katie McCoy serves as director of Women’s Ministry at Texas Baptists. She holds a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where she previously served on faculty. She teaches and writes on the intersection of theology, culture, and women’s issues. She is the co-author of a forthcoming volume on the doctrine of humanity as part of the Theology for the People of God series with B&H Academic.

Resources:

• To Be a Woman: The Confusion Over Female Identity and How Christians Can Respond by Katie McCoy
• Embodied: Transgender Identities, the Church, and What the Bible Has to Say by Preston Sprinkle
• God and the Transgender Debate by Andrew Walker
• Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters by Abigail Shrier
• When Harry Became Sally by Ryan Anderson

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the research institute at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker.

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Matthew Barrett to talk about his new book The Reformation as Renewal from Zondervan. Today, we discuss the reformation, renewal, and the need for retrieval today.

Meet Dr. Barrett

Matthew Barrett is professor of Christian theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, editor-in-chief of Credo, and host of the Credo Podcast. He is also the director of the Center for Classical Theology at Midwestern.

He is the author of numerous books, such as the award-winning Simply Trinity: The Unmanipulated Father, Son, and Spirit (Baker), None Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God (Baker), God’s Word Alone: The Authority of Scripture (Zondervan), and Canon, Covenant, and Christology: Rethinking Jesus and the Scriptures of Israel (IVP).

Resources:

• The Reformation as Renewal by Matthew Barrett
• An Apology of the Church of England by John Jewel
• Aquinas Among the Protestants by Manfred Svensson and David VanDrunen
• Thomas Aquinas’ Commentaries on the Book of John
• Heinrich Bullinger’s Sermon “On the Holy Catholic Church”

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Daniel Darling to talk about his new book Agents of Grace: How to Bridge Divides and Love as Jesus Loved  from Zondervan. Today, we discuss the nature of Christian unity as well as the relationship of truth and grace in the Christian ethic. 

Meet Dan:

Daniel Darling is an author, pastor and Christian leader. He currently serves as the Director of The Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Assistant Professor of Faith and Culture at Texas Baptist College. Prior to his leadership of the Land Center, Darling served as the Senior Vice President for Communications of the National Religious Broadcasters. He also has served the Southern Baptist Convention as the Vice President of Communications at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Resources:

• Agents of Grace by Daniel Darling
• The Mark of Jesus: Loving in a Way the World Can See Timothy George and John Woodbridge
• Mark of the Christian by Francis Schaeffer
• Until Unity by Francis Chan and David Cook
• Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage by Gavin Ortlund

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Daniel Strange to talk about the new edition of J.H Bavinck’s classic work The Church Between Temple and Mosque from Westminster Seminary Press. Today, we discuss missiology and cultural engagement in our secular age. 

Meet Dr. Strange
Daniel Strange is director of Crosslands Forum and the vice president of the Southgate Fellowship. He is a fellow of The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics and is the author of Their Rock Is Not Like Our Rock: A Theology of Religions, Plugged In, and Making Faith Magnetic. He is a contributing editor for Themelios and an elder of Hope Community Church, Gateshead, U.K.

Resources:

• The Church Between Temple and Mosque by Daniel Strange
• The J.H. Bavinck Reader by John Bolton
• An Introduction to the Science of Missions by J.H. Bavinck
• The Riddle of Life by J.H. Bavinck
• Personality and Worldview by J.H Bavinck, edited by James Eglinton
• Digital Public Square: A conversation with Dr. James Eglinton on Herman Bavinck, theology, and ethics

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Mark Dooley to discuss the life and work of Sir Roger Scruton in light of the new volume Against the Tide: The Best of Roger Scruton’s Columns, Commentaries, and Criticism.

Meet Dr. Dooley

Mark Dooley is an Irish philosopher, author, and journalist who has held lectureships at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, and at University College Dublin where he was also John Henry Newman Scholar in Theology. From 2003-2006, he wrote on foreign affairs for the Sunday Independent. From 2006-2018, he wrote a weekly column on ‘Moral Matters’ for the Irish Daily Mail. He is currently a Contributing Editor to The European Conservative magazine. Dooley is Sir Roger Scruton’s Literary Executor.

Resources:

Articles:

• Carl Trueman, Scruton’s Castle in First Things
• Jason Thacker, Roger Scruton on Art and Morality

Books by Mark Dooley:

• Roger Scruton: The Philosopher on Dover Beach
• Conversations with Roger Scruton
• The Roger Scruton Reader

Works by Roger Scruton:

• The Aesthetics of Music
• The Aesthetics of Architecture
• Sexual Desire: A Philosophical Investigation
• Philosophy: Principles and Problems
• Culture Counts: Faith and Feeling in a World Besieged
• The Face of God: The Gifford Lectures
• Modern Culture
• Fools, Frauds and Firebrands: Thinkers of the New Left

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Samuel Moyn of Yale University to discuss the nature of human rights in history and his works Christian Human Rights and The Last Utopia: Human Rights in History. Today, we talk about the rise and centrality of human rights in modern discourse.

Meet Dr. Moyn

Samuel Moyn is the Chancellor Kent Professor of Law and History at Yale University. He received a doctorate in modern European history from the University of California-Berkeley in 2000 and a law degree from Harvard University in 2001. He came to Yale from Harvard University, where he was Jeremiah Smith, Jr. Professor of Law and Professor of History.

His areas of interest in legal scholarship include international law, human rights, the law of war, and legal thought, in both historical and current perspective. He has written several books in his fields of European intellectual history and human rights history, including The Last Utopia: Human Rights in History (2010), Christian Human Rights (2015), and Not Enough: Human Rights in an Unequal World (2018).

Resources:

• Inventing Human Rights: A History by Lynn Hunt
• Works by Jeremy Waldron
• Works by John Tasioulas

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Gray Sutanto to talk about his recently co-authored volume Neo-Calvinism with Dr. Cory Brock from Lexham Press. 

Meet Dr. Sutanto

Dr. Sutanto is an associate professor of systematic theology at Reformed Theological Seminary. He was ordained in the International Presbyterian Church and has received a visiting fellowship at Kampen Theological University. Other than Herman Bavinck, Dr. Sutanto’s research interests are broad, ranging from modern Protestant theology, prolegomena, humanity and sin, the relationship between philosophy and theology, analytic theology, and Christianity and culture.

Resources:

• Digital Public Square podcast interview with Dr. James Eglinton on Herman Bavinck
• Neo-Calvinism: A Theological Introduction by Gray Sutanto and Cory Brock
• Guidebook for Instruction in the Christian Religion by Herman Bavinck
• The Wonderful Works of God by Herman Bavinck
• Abraham Kuyper: A Centennial Reader by James D. Bratt
• T&T Clark Handbook of Neo-Calvinism by N. Gray Sutanto and Cory Brock (coming December 2023)
• Grace in Common Podcast

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.

In this special episode, I discussed why we still need a statement of principles on artificial intelligence as we seek to navigate the fundamental questions being asked about humanity and these emerging technologies. In 2019, the ERLC launched the first faith-based statement of ethical principles in order to aid the church in thinking proactively about AI as well as to participate in the larger conversations about how these tools are shaping every aspect of our lives.

Resources:

• Artificial Intelligence: An Evangelical Statement of Principles (English or Spanish pdf)
• The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity - Jason Thacker
• The Digital Public Square: Christian Ethics in a Technological Society - Jason Thacker (editor)

In this episode, I am joined by Leah Savas to talk about the new book, The Story of Abortion in America: A Street-Level History, which she co-authored with Marvin Olasky from Crossway.

Meet Leah:

Leah reports on abortion for WORLD News Group, where she writes the weekly Vitals roundup and newsletter of pro-life news. Leah lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with her husband, Stephen.

Resources:

• The Story of Abortion in America: A Street-Level History, 1652–2022 by Leah Savas and Marvin Olasky
• Articles of Faith: A Frontline History of the Abortion Wars by Cynthia Gorney
• Choice Words: Writers on Abortion by Annie Finch
• World News Group Vital Newsletter by Leah Savas

As we continue our mini-series on our recently released volume The Digital Public Square with B&H Academic, I am joined by Dr. Keith Plummer to talk about his contribution entitled, “The World Is Watching: Proclaiming Truth and Maintaining Our Witness in a Digital Age”. Today, Dr. Plummer and I talk about the works of the late Francis Schaeffer and how technology is shaping our understanding of and witness to the world around us.

Meet Dr. Plummer:
Keith serves as professor of theology and dean of the School of Divinity at Cairn University. He previously served as a pastor in the Evangelical Free Church of America. Keith is a contributing author to Before You Lose Your Faith: Deconstructing Doubt in the Church. He earned his PhD from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.

Resources:

“Five Things We Need to Know about Technological Change.”

He Is There and He Is Not Silent by Francis Schaeffer

The Mark of the Christian by Francis Schaeffer

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The Digital Public Square is a production of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and is produced and hosted by Jason Thacker. 

Production assistance is provided by Kadin Christian. Technical production provided by Owens Productions. It is edited and mixed by Mark Owens.