America has a religious landscape unlike any other country on earth. But it is rapidly changing. In this episode, we interview Ryan Burge, a leading demographer on religious trends in America. We discuss the present state and future of evangelicalism. And we explore the growth and status of other religious groups such as Jews, Muslims, Latter-day Saints, Black Protestants, Secularism, and more. Finally, we ask Dr. Burge for his insights on how Evangelicals can best pass on their faith to the next generation.

Ryan's latest book is The American Religious Landscape: Facts, Trends, and the Future.

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Think Biblically: Conversations on Faith and Culture is a podcast from Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, which offers degrees both online and on campus in Southern California.

Find all episodes of Think Biblically at: https://www.biola.edu/think-biblically.

To submit comments, ask questions, or make suggestions on issues you'd like us to cover or guests you'd like us to have on the podcast, email us at thinkbiblically@biola.edu.

Stories this week:

• A woman in Japan “marries” an AI chatbot, raising serious questions about the nature of marriage, human relationships, and how emerging technologies blur the line between real and artificial intimacy.
• An Atlantic article suggests physics may be reaching the limits of reductionism, as living systems exhibit emergence, self-organization, and information that can’t be explained by particles alone.
• A New York Times piece sparks discussion on when military personnel are morally obligated to disobey unlawful orders, drawing on just war theory and biblical principles of higher law.
• Ross Douthat’s analysis of the rightward shift among young men argues that perceived institutional discrimination and lost opportunities are fueling resentment and radicalization.
• Listener question: Should churches use AI generated worship music?
• Listener question: Should woman receiving abortions be charged as criminal "masterminds"?

Note: Our Weekly Cultural Update episodes will be on hiatus during Christmas & New Years. We'll return in 2026!

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Think Biblically: Conversations on Faith and Culture is a podcast from Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, which offers degrees both online and on campus in Southern California.

Find all episodes of Think Biblically at: https://www.biola.edu/think-biblically.

To submit comments, ask questions, or make suggestions on issues you'd like us to cover or guests you'd like us to have on the podcast, email us at thinkbiblically@biola.edu.

It is not an understatement to say that AI has revolutionized virtually every aspect of human life. What should characterize a Christian posture towards AI? Should we be concerned? Optimistic? How do we think biblically about it the emergence of new AI technology? In this unique episode, Sean is joined by three Biola/Talbot professors who are experts in their fields and in AI: Yohan Lee, Associate Dean of Technology and Professor of Computer Science; Michael Arena, Dean of Biola’s Crowell School of Business; and Mihretu Guta, Professor of Philosophy and Apologetics.

Mihretu P. Guta, Ph.D. (Philosophy at Durham University, UK). After completing his Ph.D., he worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Durham University within the Durham Emergence Project which was set up with cooperation between physicists and philosophers and funded by the John Templeton Foundation. Guta’s postdoctoral research focused on the nature of the emergence of the phenomenal consciousness taken from the standpoint of metaphysics, philosophy of mind, cognitive neuroscience and quantum physics.

Dr. Yohan Lee has led advanced technology organizations for over 20 years in commercial industry, education, and government. He has been privileged to serve as a civil scientist (U.S. National Institutes of Health), Principal Investigator (Google AI), Chief Science Officer (Riiid Labs, Inc.), and CEO (Scaled Entelechy, Inc). His undergraduate and doctoral studies were at UCLA in neuroscience and genomics with a focus on the neurological basis of learning and memory in addition to precision medicine. His doctoral work centered on large scale genomic data for health and distributed computing. In his corporate role, Dr. Lee has led research and business units in industry, public-private partnerships, the federal government, and international academic consortia for enterprise initiatives with Fortune 50 corporations.

Michael Arena, Ph.D., is the dean of the Crowell School of Business at Biola University. He is also the chief science officer and co-founder of the Connected Commons, a research consortium that brings together business and academic thought leaders to develop and apply organizational network solutions. Prior to joining Biola, he served as the vice president of talent and development at Amazon Web Services (AWS), where he leveraged network analysis to enable employee growth, organizational culture and innovation. Arena was also the chief talent officer for General Motors Corporation where he helped to facilitate a business transformation, which is highlighted in his book Adaptive Space. Arena also spent two years as a visiting scientist with MIT’s Media Lab researching human networks and acted as a design thinking coach within the Stanford School for three years.

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Think Biblically: Conversations on Faith and Culture is a podcast from Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, which offers degrees both online and on campus in Southern California.

Find all episodes of Think Biblically at: https://www.biola.edu/think-biblically.

To submit comments, ask questions, or make suggestions on issues you'd like us to cover or guests you'd like us to have on the podcast, email us at thinkbiblically@biola.edu.