577: How Church Became Theater & the Evangelical Imagination with Karen Swallow Prior

A new survey of worship leaders finds that four megachurches have cornered the worship music market. Should we care who is writing the songs we sing in church, and what gets lost when market forces influence local ministries? A sermon clip has gone viral showing a megachurch pastor scolding people who arrive late or leave early because they are treating the "church like it's a religious show instead of a welcoming family." But are people acting like church is a show because that's the model church leaders have created? We explore the history of how churches came to copy theaters and its impact on the church's mission and power. Then, Phil talks to Karen Swallow Prior about her new book, "The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis." She explains how the current crisis in evangelicalism finds its roots in trying to preserve Victorian values rather than biblical ones. Also this week: a celebrity bear is above the law. Patreon Bonus: Holy Post Office - How do you justify the O.T God who commanded Israel to annihilate other nations, with the New Testament themes of loving our enemies? https://youtu.be/IMEMzA8rJZQ 0:00 - Intro 1:49 - Show Starts 4:10 - Theme Song 4:27 - Sponsor - Hiya Health 5:36 - Animal News 14:05 - How we choose worship music in church 34:55 - JD Greear's recent viral clip 56:03 - Sponsor - AG1 To get your FREE 1 year supply of Vitamin D AND 5 free travel packs with your first purchase, go to athleticgreens.com/HOLYPOST 57:32 - Sponsor - Blueland To get 15% off your first order, go to Blueland.com/HOLYPOST 58:38 - Interview Intro Karen Swallow Prior 1:03:36 - How Victorian literature influenced Evangelicalism 1:12:20 - Evangelicialism and Empire 1:24:43 - Broadening our imagination 1:36:43 - End Credits Links mentioned in news segment: Hank the Tank: Fugitive burglar bear captured in California https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66429736 Few worship leaders avoid Hillsong, Bethel songs — despite controversies and scandal https://religionnews.com/2023/07/11/few-worship-leaders-avoid-hillsong-bethel-songs-despite-controversies-and-scandal/ JD Greear's sermon clip - https://twitter.com/laurchas22/status/1687426921586622464 Other resources: The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis by Karen Swallow Prior https://amzn.to/3qm5F9N Holy Post website: https://www.holypost.com/ Holy Post Plus: www.holypost.com/plus Holy Post Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/holypost Holy Post Merch Store: https://www.holypost.com/shop The Holy Post is supported by our listeners. We may earn affiliate commissions through links listed here. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.