In this episode, Joel Wentz, ERB contributing editor and podcast audio engineer, talks with authors Rick Pidcock and Daniel Silliman
or wherever you access your favorite podcasts.
In this episode, Joel Wentz, ERB contributing editor and podcast audio engineer, talks with authors Rick Pidcock and Daniel Silliman about their recent books interrogating how worship music and fiction produced by the Christian industry have become the contemporary lex orandi, lex credenda: The law of what’s sung and read has become the law of what’s believed. Both authors note how the last few decades of worship music and Christian fiction reflect the values and vision of Empires as they’ve become assets of trade. In particular, Pidcock explores how CCM, including worship music, tends to be individualistic, white-centered, and lyrically palatable for profit. Silliman notes how Christian bookstores have become the organizing force behind American Christianity, using the Left Behind series as an example of fiction that profoundly oriented white evangelicals’ political and theological views. Overall, this episode will challenge listeners to consider how to critique beliefs shaped by such industry forces and reinvigorate the Christian commitment to worship God in spirit and in truth.
Rick Pidcock is a 2004 graduate of Bob Jones University, with a bachelor of arts degree in Bible. He’s a freelance writer based in South Carolina and a former Clemons Fellow with Baptist News Global. He completed a Master of Arts degree in worship from Northern Seminary. He is also the host of BNG’s “Highest Power: Church + State” podcast. He is a stay-at-home father of five children and produces music under the artist name Provoke Wonder.
Daniel Silliman is a senior reporter and editor for The Roys Report. Previously, he served as senior news editor for Christianity Today. He holds a doctorate in American studies and has taught US history and humanities courses at Heidelberg University, Valparaiso University, and Milligan University.
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
If you’d like to order any of the following books, we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books (An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)
- By Rick Pidcock:
- Weapons of Worship: How the Songs of Evangelicalism Form the Soundtrack of Extremism
- By Daniel Silliman:
- Reading Evangelicals: How Christian Fiction Shaped a Culture and a Faith
- One Lost Soul: Richard Nixon’s Search for Salvation
- Other Books Mentioned:
- The Internet Will Die (And So Will You) by John West
- Empire of Ink by Alex Wright
- Damned if She Does by Sarah Stankorb
- How Western Christianity Got it Wrong by Randy Woodley
- Live Laugh Love by Kristin Kobes du Mez
If you’d like to order any of the above books, we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books (An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)
or wherever you access your favorite podcasts.
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Understanding Christian Nationalism [A Reading Guide] |
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