Intersections are high-traffic areas, with people coming from and heading in all sorts of directions. While intersections are places of potential collision and calamity, they are also the very places where we can find direction and learn where to go. The Intersection is a podcast where faith engages the complexities of our modern world. Though intersections sometimes feel risky, they are where real dialogue happens, they are where we find direction and discover where to go next.
The Intersection with Dr. J + Friends
Claim This Podcastby Justin Detmers
5.0(10 reviews)
40 episodes
Updated Daily
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Podcast Overview
Intersections are high-traffic areas, with people coming from and heading in all sorts of directions. While intersections are places of potential collision and calamity, they are also the very places where we can find direction and learn where to go. The Intersection is a podcast where faith engages the complexities of our modern world. Though intersections sometimes feel risky, they are where real dialogue happens, they are where we find direction and discover where to go next.
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Publishing Since
10/18/2024
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Recent Episodes
June 26, 2026
When the Old Maps Stop Working: Rethinking Apologetics with Luke Cawley
<p>In a moment marked by declining church attendance and religious affiliation, competing truth claims, and growing scepticism toward institutions, Dr. J chats with Luke Cawley to explore a pressing question: How should Christians think about evangelism and apologetics in a post-Christian world?<br><br></p><p>Far from merely winning arguments or using urgent emotional appeals, this conversation examines the deeper currents shaping the foundations of un/belief today. Drawing from his extensive study and ministry experience across Europe and beyond, Luke argues that faith is never found in a vacuum. Every culture creates conditions that make certain beliefs seem plausible or difficult to imagine. As traditional assumptions lose their cultural footing, Christians must learn to engage the environments, stories, and social realities that shape how people make sense of the world.<br><br></p><p>Globalization, technological change, and generational shifts have transformed the landscape of not just faith conversations but also the plausibility structures that contain them. As such, the conversation explores why storytelling often matters as much as argumentation, and how apologetics must adapt to a fragmented secular age. The conversation also challenges some of the assumptions that have shaped modern evangelism, particularly in how American Evangelicalism relates to cosmopolitan post-Christian settings. <br><br></p><p>What if the goal is not merely to provide stock answers but to help people see Christ in a way that is more fitting and compelling? How can Christians create spaces where honest questions are welcomed, and the gospel can be heard within contemporary realities? And what opportunities might exist for Christian witness in a culture where inherited faith can no longer be taken for granted?<br><br></p><p>For listeners interested in evangelism, apologetics, cultural engagement, and the future of faith in the West, this episode offers a thoughtful reexamination of how Christians can be more faithfully present in a rapidly changing world.</p><p><strong>LINKS:</strong></p><ul><li>The Invisible Castle Podcast (<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/7ose04bmpNzl9uPfQZkHwi?si=d18b80fe56304619">Spotify</a>) (<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-invisible-castle-podcast/id1762707128">Apple</a>) (<a href="https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/5243158f-5bdf-4a5f-849a-aa625736da8b/the-invisible-castle-podcast">Amazon</a>)</li><li>Substack: <a href="https://www.entertheinvisiblecastle.com/">@invisiblecastle</a> </li><li>Website: <a href="https://lukecawley.org/">lukecawley.org</a></li><li>Book(s): <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Somethingism-Exploring-spiritually-something-evangelistic/dp/1802543023">Somethingism: Exploring Our Sense of More</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Non-Christian-Christians-Spiritual-Religious/dp/0830844503">|</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Non-Christian-Christians-Spiritual-Religious/dp/0830844503">The Myth of the Non-Christian</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Non-Christian-Christians-Spiritual-Religious/dp/0830844503">|</a> other<a href="https://lukecawley.org/books"> books</a> </li></ul>
June 12, 2026
Developing a Theology of Politics w Dr. Michael Giles
<p>In a political culture overflowing with opinions but often lacking deeper reflection, Dr. J sits down with Dr. Michael Giles to explore a deceptively simple question: What is political theology, and why does it matter?</p><p>Far more than partisan preferences or ideological instincts, political theology asks how our understanding of God, human nature, authority, and the common good shapes the way we think about politics. Drawing from Augustine and various intellectual traditions, Dr. Mike argues that every political vision rests upon deeper assumptions about reality, whether we recognize them or not.</p><p>Along the way, Justin and Mike trace the historical roots of modern democracy, examining the influences of ancient Athens, the Roman Republic, Christianity, and the humanism of the Enlightenment. They discuss how Christian ideas of human dignity helped transform political thought and why understanding these historical foundations remains essential for navigating contemporary debates.</p><p><br>The conversation also confronts a challenge unique to every generation: our tendency to become prisoners of our own moment. As Dr. Giles observes, we often swim in cultural waters we scarcely notice, making it difficult to recognize the assumptions and narratives shaping our political imaginations. How have Christian, Enlightenment, and other philosophical ideas shaped democratic institutions? And how can historical awareness help us better understand the opportunities and tensions of our present age?</p><p>For listeners interested in faith, politics, history, and public life, this episode offers an introduction to political theology and a compelling invitation to think more deeply about the ideas that shape our civic lives.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>LINKS:</strong></p><ul><li>Website: <a href="http://michaeltgiles.com">michaeltgiles.com</a></li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/City-Penguin-Classics-Augustine-Hippo/dp/0140448942/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=1334809671754852&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.BHNspK_eig-RGqEuSrgccR2dYpQUPUhJ7IGuCc2_gbWh6VAhCa5tNYj3WbNYFrP8XIf1rQiw_i-HDpYUAWEOH6w6ZZC4CeByjfHjQ4Y9wnFPAniOeCjGRXeXOJScwQajmTsQATItSqAzAWxNKZE5zkdAd50FsDRQCMQ-cvTS5h9nYKHDYhuU49rlF4IGm_3qeJ7qJrUN9E1zcPdbChR5HS9WwgegoOYpqrZM9rZC29g.sGE-mDwDVSFdbyOLRW6n-u9fDx4GTYLHIBVl7_EwdsI&dib_tag=se&hvadid=83425887153107&hvbmt=bp&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=104656&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=p&hvtargid=kwd-83426804867704%3Aloc-190&hydadcr=1034_1015248605&keywords=st+augustine+city+of+god+book&mcid=1b191537645d394aa4b2fe5b874c6aca&msclkid=cd338bbaf7da1f545ce7e196cba10402&qid=1781283969&sr=8-1">City of God</a> by Augustine</li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Augustine-Limits-Politics-Bethke-Elshtain/dp/B000N3KZHW">Augustine & the Limits of Politics</a> by Bethke</li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Commonwealth-Hope-Augustines-Political-Thought/dp/0691226334/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=1335908330275989&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hHeed-9_wriKXWnvoWFj7gj1Bkiver194NZjxcVzZws.kD7Sr4UoMov4rhAaBk0BHuXVXVRQVsNVFap4hi0DgLg&dib_tag=se&hvadid=83494549475871&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=104724&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvtargid=kwd-83495312078316%3Aloc-190&hydadcr=7852_13584074&keywords=michael+lamb+a+commonwealth+of+hope&mcid=429e067c819234a98abadee145a04693&msclkid=2971799812be1bb9890b13b42c12b835&qid=1781284530&sr=8-1">A Common Wealth of Hope</a> by Michael Lamb</li></ul>
May 22, 2026
Victorian Ghosts in the Evangelical Machine with Dr. Karen Swallow Prior
<p>Dr. J sits down with Karen Swallow Prior for an incisive conversation about the evangelical imagination. In a moment where many seem more discipled by the trappings of a subculture and internet tribalism than by wisdom, beauty, or truth, Karen argues that the crisis facing evangelicalism is not merely theological or political, but imaginative. Drawing from history, literature, theology, and cultural criticism, Justin and Karen explore the powerful but often invisible forces that shape how evangelicals engage the world. From Victorian moralism and sentimentalism to modern consumerism and culture war reflexes, they unpack the “social imaginary” that forms contemporary faith long before believers ever articulate doctrine. </p><p>As Karen points out, our water is imbued with the Victorian era. In other words, many have inherited a cultural mood they mistake for Christianity itself. The conversation makes a case for recovering art, literature, beauty, and moral imagination as essential components of formation. Along the way, they wrestle with evangelicalism’s credibility crisis, the fallout of deconstruction, generational disillusionment, shallow conversion practices, and the difficulty of cultivating discipleship in an age increasingly allergic to nuance.<br><br></p><p>The episode also explores the unique role stories play in shaping culture and belief. Rather than offering simplistic nostalgia or culture-war panic, Justin and Karen cast a hopeful vision for faithful presence in a pluralistic world. The task, they argue, is not merely to condemn culture nor mindlessly reproduce it, but to help cultivate healthier cultural ecosystems rooted in wisdom, humility, creativity, and love of neighbor. </p><p><br></p><p><strong>LINKS:</strong></p><ul><li><strong>Substack:</strong> <a href="https://substack.com/@karenswallowprior">@karenswallowprior</a></li><li><strong>Website: </strong><a href="https://karenswallowprior.com/">karenswallowprior.com</a></li><li><strong>Book(s)</strong>:<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Evangelical-Imagination-Stories-Metaphors-Created/dp/1587435756">The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis</a> || other<a href="https://karenswallowprior.com/books/"> books</a> &<a href="https://karenswallowprior.com/articles/"> articles</a></li><li><a href="https://ttf.org/">The Trinity Forum</a></li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Social-Imaginaries-Public-Planet/dp/0822332930/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=1330409632589600&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.07AHPYiHpdRaMCup-t6OZLCzDzg9cN256XHcTolkKltdV781aEdJw5-u9TeEvwzm9vZZ_bcbdtuEgoFyoE-homO0hif19Vr92YDyQMopHoC-zbH_FmL9lXHiDFEm7rU3REu9PGCzm6I-HTK1CpILfw.6EsOpY4qES_9Jg4j8Mh2ysnD09GOgQpYo5eID8rve7w&dib_tag=se&hvadid=83150841259058&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=104436&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvtargid=kwd-83151797258737%3Aloc-190&hydadcr=20615_13322642&keywords=charles+taylor+social+imaginary&mcid=0799887f058c375aa993a7b340361588&msclkid=2fa8dcfb05231dc1a6beb6f45928a330&qid=1779391510&sr=8-1">Modern Social Imaginaries</a> by Charles Taylor</li></ul>
40 total episodes available
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