This week, we're doing something we haven't done in a long time on the Vital Signs podcast: we're giving you a stand-alone episode. Since it's Christmas week, we'll consider the hope of Advent by taking a closer look at Luke's account of Simeon.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

RZIM: Vital Signs Broadcasts

Simeon's Hope

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences for this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part six (the final episode of this series), Cameron shows how villainizing creates more and more enemies. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 6

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences for this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part five of six, Cameron looks at how villainizing creates idols.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 5

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences for this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part four of six, Cameron shows how villainizing caters to our worst fantasies.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 4

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences for this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part three of six, Cameron examines the damage that villainizing does to our understanding of God.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 3

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences of this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part two of six, Cameron explores how villainizing destroys our understanding of what it means to be a neighbor. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 2

It is certainly not news that our public discourse has grown increasingly hostile. Consequently, there has been a lot of focus on how we vilify our opponents. However, what happens to us when we vilify others? What are the spiritual consequences for this new national pastime? In this six-part series, we'll focus on what our "villainizing" habit does to us. Today, in part one, we'll explore how villainizing destroys our sense of truth.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

The Double-Edged Sword of Vilification, Pt. 1

Despite the provocative title, this is a deeply practical series that focuses on how Christians interact with the surrounding culture. Exploring this theme under four headings (seeing, knowing, doing, and changing), the hope is to challenge Christians to hold onto all the strangeness that makes them distinct, and to help those outside the church gain a better understanding of what makes Christian men and women tick. Our final episode considers what it actually means to change the world, and how Christians rely on the power of their Lord, rather than mere human efforts. Don't miss another episode, subscribe wherever podcasts are found. (Quick links: iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify or Google Play Music)Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Christians Are Cultural Misfits, Pt. 4

Despite the provocative title, this is a deeply practical series that focuses on how Christians interact with the surrounding culture. Exploring this theme under four headings (seeing, knowing, doing, and changing), the hope in this podcast series is to challenge Christians to hold onto all the strangeness that makes them distinct, and to help those outside the church gain a better understanding of what makes Christian men and women tick. In this third episode, we talk about what it is that Christians actually do in their cultural engagement.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Christians Are Cultural Misfits, Pt. 3

Despite the provocative title, this is a deeply practical series that focuses on how Christians interact with the surrounding culture. Exploring this theme under four headings (seeing, knowing, doing, and changing), the hope in this podcast series is to challenge Christians to hold onto all the strangeness that makes them distinct, and to help those outside the church gain a better understanding of what makes Christian men and women tick. In this episode, we consider how to gain a deeper understanding of our culture.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Christians Are Cultural Misfits, Pt. 2

Despite the provocative title, this is a deeply practical series that focuses on how Christians interact with the surrounding culture. Exploring this theme under four headings (seeing, knowing, doing, and changing), the hope in the next four episodes is to challenge Christians to hold onto all the strangeness that makes them distinct, and to help those outside the church gain a better understanding of what makes Christian men and women tick. This episode explores the surprisingly difficult task of actually seeing the culture in which we find ourselves. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Christians Are Cultural Misfits, Pt. 1

Even before the entrance of COVID-19, anxiety levels were skyrocketing in our nation. On the face of it, this seems odd as, relatively speaking, we live in an age of unprecedented wealth, convenience, and connectivity. So, what's wrong with us? In this three-part series, we'll consider anxiety by examining three major illusions of our age: 1) We're in control 2) We're invincible 3) We're immortal. Our final episode explores the illusion of immortality.Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Are We So Anxious? Pt. 3

Even before the entrance of COVID-19, anxiety levels were skyrocketing in our nation. On the face of it, this seems odd as, relatively speaking, we live in an age of unprecedented wealth, convenience, and connectivity. So, what's wrong with us? In this three-part series, we'll consider anxiety by examining three major illusions of our age: 1) We're in control 2) We're invincible 3) We're immortal. In this first episode, we consider an admittedly strange illusion, namely, that we're invincible. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Are We So Anxious? Pt. 2

Even before the entrance of COVID-19, anxiety levels were skyrocketing in our nation. On the face of it, this seems odd as, relatively speaking, we live in an age of unprecedented wealth, convenience, and connectivity. So, what's wrong with us? In this three-part series, we'll consider anxiety by examining three major illusions of our age: 1) We're in control 2) We're invincible 3) We're immortal. In this first episode, we consider the modern illusion that we're in control. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Why Are We So Anxious? Pt. 1

Though we struggle mightily with the concept of communal sin in our 21st century context, it's vital that we recover a basic understanding of wrongdoing that takes us beyond narrow individualism. How else can we account for grave systemic injustice in all of our institutions? Trying to lay the blame at a single person's feet is not only naïve, it vastly oversimplifies the problem. In this six-part series, we'll take a close look at some of our nation's abiding communal sins, taking into account systemic racism, communal sin in politics, the church, the entertainment industry, and the workplace. Having traced these destructive patterns in our cultural moment, we'll then turn to the biblical account of communal sin and see how it both makes sense of our dilemma and offers the only feasible hope. In this final episode, we'll consider the example of the Apostle Peter, a man who experienced a full-blown moral revelation, only to fall back into old prejudices. Follow Cameron on Twitter:@CamMcAllister7

Communal Sin in the 21st Century, Pt. 6

Hosted by RZIM apologist Cameron McAllister, Vital Signs is an exploration of the major cultural ideas, issues, and works of art that are shaping current conversations. It's not just a place to learn how to be culturally informed; it's a place to learn what's worth celebrating in contemporary life. If guarding what you pay attention to is a way of guarding the integrity of your thought, then Vital Signs aims to show you what's worth your attention, as well as what's worth talking about.

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RZIM: Vital Signs Broadcasts

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