First hour: What can we learn from the recent incident at the Oscars?
Second hour: Former Evangelicals on how they reconcile a dissatisfaction with the politicization of American Christianity with their religious beliefs
An incident during Sunday night's broadcast of the Academy Awards has dominated conversation about this year's Oscars ceremony. After comedian Chris Rock made a joke about actress Jada Pinkett Smith's hair, her husband, actor Will Smith, walked on stage and slapped Rock in the face. Pinkett Smith has alopecia, and has said that since her hair starting falling out in clumps, she has buzzed it very tight. Rock joked that he looked forward to seeing her in "GI Jane 2," implying that her short hair made her suited for that specific role. After Smith slapped Rock, he walked back to his seat and yelled that Rock needed to stop talking about his wife. Later that night, Smith went on to win Best Actor for his role in the film "King Richard." Smith has apologized for his behavior, but that hasn't quelled the conversation. Our guests discuss what we can learn from the incident:
- Chris Thompson, comedian, podcaster, engineer, and activist
- Jessica Lewis, president and CEO of LáLew Public Relations
Then in our second hour, the number of Americans leaving organized religion is at an all-time high. One of the chief factors is the way churches and faith leaders treat social and political issues. We recently spoke with people who left organized religion entirely, and now, we sit down with former Evangelicals. Our guests have left Evangelicalism, but not organized religion. How do they reconcile a dissatisfaction with the politicization of American Christianity with their own religious beliefs? We discuss the question with them this hour. Our guests:
- Charles Hughes Huff, assistant professor of sacred scripture at St. Bernard's School of Theology and Ministry
- Heather Hughes Huff, writer and editor
- Stacey Ritter, progressive Christian and daughter of a minister
