Mere Fidelity

Derek Rishmawy, James Wood, and Alastair Roberts welcome Dr. Lyndon Jost, author of Transfiguring Headship: A Figural Theology of Gender. Jost argues that headship is rooted in Old Testament figural theology rather than Greco-Roman culture, that it fundamentally means representation rather than authority, and that this reframes debates between complementarians and egalitarians alike. 
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Get your copy of our free ebook, Spiritual Formation for the Family, at http://mereorthodoxy.com/family.
Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.
Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, Keeping Kids Christian: Recovering A Biblical Vision For Lifelong Discipleship, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity
Apply for Beeson Divinity School's Ph.D program by April 1 for Fall 2026 admission here: https://bit.ly/BeesonPhD
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Chapters
01:15 - Overview of Transfiguring Headship
03:06 - Headship as Representation, Not Authority
06:09 - Critiquing Complementarian and Egalitarian Readings
10:32 - Figural Theology and the Fourfold Senses of Scripture
17:05 - Against Greco-Roman Readings of Headship
20:13 - 1 Corinthians 11:3 and Trinitarian Headship
25:35 - Ivan Illich, Gender vs. Sex, and Vernacular Gender
32:48 - Headship, Marriage, and the One-Flesh Union
43:23 - Essentialism, Gender Realism, and Minimalist Claims
50:36 - Headship as Unity, Not Opposition
55:59 - Male Responsibility and the Final Account
58:28 - Headship, Creation Order, and External Representation
01:02:14 - Closing Remarks

div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8"> _*]:min-w-0 gap-3 standard-markdown"> Derek Rishmawy and Alastair Roberts explore the Ten Commandments — their structure, their two tables, the bookending parallel between the first and tenth commandments, and how the law is always oriented toward delight rather than mere prohibition. The law shapes the Christian life, testifies to Christ, and reflects the character of God.









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Get the free ebook, Spiritual Formation for the Family, at http://mereorthodoxy.com/family.
Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.
Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, Keeping Kids Christian: Recovering A Biblical Vision For Lifelong Discipleship, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity
Apply for fall 2026 admission to Beeson Divinity School's MDiv (or M.Div., your choice) and be considered for a full-tuition scholarship.: https://bit.ly/OurRisenLord
 
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Chapters
00:00 Exploring the Ten Commandments
04:48 The Structure and Order of the Commandments
08:35 The Heart of the Commandments: Internal Motivation
12:38 Positive and Negative Aspects of the Law
18:08 The Law as a Source of Delight
23:03 The Law in the Context of Freedom
29:51 Navigating Ethical Dilemmas in Ministry
32:10 Understanding the Nature of God's Law
36:07 The Role of the Ten Commandments
40:20 The Law as a Reflection of Christ
44:45 The Law and Holiness in Christian Life
46:50 Delighting in the Law of God

Derek Rishmawy, Alastair Roberts, and Brad East consider what Christian theology actually has to say about aliens — from the populated Christian cosmos to the angelic fall, demonic deception, and the Christological anthropocentrism that runs through Lewis, Edwards, and Aquinas. Are UFO encounters spiritual phenomena in disguise? And does any of this unsettle orthodox faith?
—
Get the ebook, Spiritual Formation for the Family, by going to http://mereorthodoxy.com/family.
Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.
Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, R30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity

Apply for Beeson Divinity School's Ph.D program by April 1 for Fall 2026 admission here: https://bit.ly/BeesonPhD
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Chapters

00:00 Aliens Are In The Air
06:38 What Counts As Alien?
12:22 The Nature of Alien Phenomena
19:08 Close Encounters of the Heavenly Kind
25:40 Lewis vs. L'Engle
32:52 Testimony
39:37 The Uniqueness of the Incarnation
45:30 Angels, Humanity, and Salvation
50:48 Christological Considerations
53:07 Be Fruitful and Explore Space!

div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8"> _*]:min-w-0 gap-3 standard-markdown"> Derek Rishmawy and Alastair Roberts take up the problem of Christian doomerism in an age of AI development, geopolitical instability, and algorithmic anxiety — diagnosing why our moment feels uniquely threatening, then building a theology and practice of realistic hope from the Sermon on the Mount, the Psalms, eschatology, and the concrete habits (prayer, scripture, crocheting) that keep despair at bay.
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Get your copy of Mere Orthodoxy's ebook, Spiritual Formation for the Family, by going to http://mereorthodoxy.com/family
Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership
Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, R30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity
Apply for fall 2026 admission to Beeson Divinity School's MDiv (or M.Div., your choice) and be considered for a full-tuition scholarship: https://bit.ly/beesonscholarships
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Chapters
00:00 – The Problem of Living in Interesting Times
05:05 – I Call All Times Interesting
11:52 – Agency
17:34 – Hope at Rock Bottom
28:03 – The Benefits of Apocalypse
32:39 – Eschatology
36:13 – Practically Constructing Hope
42:03 – Investing in Future Generations
49:06 – Back to Basics

In this Replay episode, Matthew Lee Anderson, Derek Rishmawy, and Alistair Roberts are joined by Andy Crouch — Partner for Theology and Culture at Praxis — to examine what the data on social media and video games reveals about the diverging formation of young men and women. The conversation turns on a pointed question: what happens when the skills adolescence develops are simulations rather than realities? And what does that mean for formative communities — home, school, and church — that bear responsibility for shaping persons, not just managing behaviors?
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Mere Fidelity is a podcast from Mere Orthodoxy and is listener-supported. If you would like to support this work, become a Mere Orthodoxy Member today at http://mereorthodoxy.com/membership.
Get 30% of the Baker Book of the Month, R30 Key Moments in the History of Christianity: Inspiring True Stories from the Early Church Around the World, by going to: http://bakerbookhouse.com/pages/mere-fidelity

Apply for a full-tuition scholarship for Beeson Divinity School's M.Div program that begins Fall 2026 here: https://bit.ly/beesonscholarships
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Chapters
2:00 — Guest Introduction: Andy Crouch
3:00 — The Tweet: Social Media, Video Games, and Diverging Outcomes
5:30 — Why We Now Have Reliable Data
7:00 — Social Media's Harm to Girls
8:30 — Why Boys Seem Fine (At First)
11:00 — The Idolatry Framework: Things That Work at First
17:00 — Pornography as Formation Failure
19:00 — The Feminization of Internet Culture
25:00 — The Algorithmic Turn: From Chronological to Algorithmic Feeds
31:00 — The Algorithm Catches You at Your Worst
33:00 — Mobile Devices and the End of Distance
36:00 — Practical Applications: Give Resistors an Off-Ramp
40:00 — Banning Phones in Schools: A Framework
44:00 — "But They Need to Prepare for the Real World"
46:00 — Instruments vs. Devices: A Distinction
48:00 — Closing & Patron Teaser