Category: Podcasts

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Podcasts

What Christians Should Know About Chatbots, Big Tech, and the Bible

Interview With Doug Smith

Should Christians use chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Grok? Is AI simply a neutral tool that humans can use for either good or evil? How does the book of Genesis offer clarity to the AI conversation? 

Kicking off Know Why’s 2026 season is Doug Smith, longtime software engineer, lifelong student of the Bible, and author of [Un]Intentional: How Screens Are Secretly Shaping Your Desires and How You Can Break Free, and the forthcoming [Un]Intelligence: The Lies Behind Today’s AI and the Truths You Need to Thrive. In this deep-dive interview, Doug helps us think through the following topics: 

  • What epistemology means and how it helps us understand AI
  • How large language models (LLMs) fundamentally differ from other search engines
  • Whether the “neutral tool” trope applies to AI
  • Why Big Tech founders use spiritual terms to talk about AI
  • And much more. 

Listen to this fascinating conversation for a unique perspective on AI and chatbots that is thoroughly informed by a biblical worldview and relevant for every human being. 

More Resources: 

It’s Time To Be More Intentional With Your Life Than Big Tech.

https://www.estherlightcapmeek.com

How People Are Really Using AI (Harvard Business Review)

Empire of AI by Karen Hao

That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewis

How Bad Are AI Delusions? We Asked the People Treating Them (The New York Times)

Against the Machine by Paul Kingsnorth

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Podcasts

Best of 2025: Biblical Reliability, AI, Charlie Kirk, Trad Wives, and More

It’s time for Know Why Podcast’s annual “Best Of” Episode! In 2025, most popular episodes among Know Why listeners and viewers included…

“Is the Bible Reliable?” With Josh Barnes    • Is the Bible Reliable? Josh Barnes on the …  

“Does AI ‘Perfection’ Harm Our Souls?” With Philip Bunn    • Does AI ‘Perfection’ Harm Our Souls? Phili…  

“What Should Christians Think About the ‘Charlie Kirk Effect?'”    • What Should Christians Think About the ‘Ch…  

“Neither Trans nor Tradwife: Understanding True Femininity” with Rachel Schroder    • Neither Trans Nor Tradwife: Understanding …  

“Is it Ok to be Mediocre?”    • Is It Ok To Be Mediocre? Summer Series 2025  

These top 5 most popular episodes are a great representation of the kinds of topics and series Know Why has covered in 2025. If you’ve enjoyed the Know Why Podcast or found any episode helpful or informative, send us an email, and let us know what you’d like to see the Know Why Podcast cover in 2026.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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Podcasts

Understanding God’s Design for Marriage and Sex

With Andrea Crum

At the beginning of the Know About Family Formation Series, we asked why marriage is good. In today’s episode with Andrea Crum, we wrap up the series talking once again about marriage—specifically the God’s design for marriage and sex that is articulated in the Bible.

Andrea addresses questions such as…

Why do Christians often fail to talk about sex?

What does it mean that biblical marriage is described as a covenant between one man and one woman?

What would happen in the world if everyone followed a biblical sexual ethic?

How does healthy marriage represent God to the world?

Despite secular cultural narratives, there is spiritual significance to God’s design for sex and marriage. Listen to know why.

More Resources:

AndreaCrum.com

GenuineFamilyMinistries.com

*Video recording is not available for this episode, due to technical difficulties. Thank you for your understanding!

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Podcasts

How to Build the Village Your Family Needs

Interview With Nadya Williams

“It takes a village.” Parents often hear this old adage, and having a community to help with childcare or call on during emergencies sounds nice. But the reality for many parents today is that their “village” is nowhere to be found.

Author, academic, and homeschooling mother Nadya Williams joins the Know Why Podcast to discuss an overlooked village source that historically played a major role in more Americans’ lives—the local church. Reflecting on the state of parenthood today, Nadya offers practical advice for building a village right where you are. She reminds parents that villages are about more than “insurance friends” to call during an emergency…they’re about thriving.

More Resources:

What’s a Village For? A Response to Olga Khazan by Nadya Williams (IFS) https://ifstudies.org/blog/whats-a-vi…

Nadya Williams on Substack https://substack.com/@nadyawilliams?u…

The Gospel Comes With a House Key: Practicing Radical Ordinary Hospitality in Our Post-Christian World by Rosaria Butterfield https://www.amazon.com/Gospel-Comes-H…

Scruffy Hospitality — Google Search https://www.google.com/search?q=scruf…

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Is Having Kids Bad for the Environment?

Repost with Update – Know About Family Formation

Many young adults are worried that having children will overburden a planet that’s already overpopulated and further damage the environment. They’re also worried about what kind of environment their kids will be born into. Are these valid concerns — and if not, why not?

In this episode of the Know Why Podcast (originally aired in 2023), Liberty takes listeners through research and perspectives from millennials, parents, climate scientists, and more, exploring a question many young adults are asking.

More Resources:

Why I Stopped Being a Climate Catastrophist  https://www.breakthroughjournal.org/p…

Three tough truths about climate by Bill Gates https://www.gatesnotes.com/home/home-…

Anxiety over climate warming is leading some young adults to say they don’t want children (AP)

https://apnews.com/article/climate-an…

Climate Anxiety vs. Reality (The Free Press)    • Climate Anxiety vs. Reality  

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Should We Do Things We Don’t Enjoy? On Harvard, Grade Inflation, and Finding Life’s Deeper Meaning

Quick Questions With Liberty

News outlets have reported Harvard University’s students’ reactions to the threat of stricter academic standards, after a commission found that grades were massively inflated despite a decline in academic involvement at the college. Some reacted by worrying they wouldn’t find their classwork enjoyable or fulfilling if academic standards were raised.

Beyond Harvard, is there an underlying assumption in modern culture that life is to be enjoyed? Liberty examines that assumption, identifies why it’s problematic in everything from education to relationships, and recalls research that points to what makes humans more deeply fulfilled.

More Resources: All A’s at Harvard (World)

https://wng.org/opinions/all-as-at-harvard-1762387132

The Perverse Consequences of the Easy A (The Atlantic)

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/08/harvard-college-grade-inflation/684021/

Does This Study Reveal the Key to Human Flourishing? (Know Why Podcast)

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Podcasts

Is Autonomy a Lie? A Preview of “The Dignity of Dependence” by Leah Libresco Sargeant

Know About Family Formation

Is autonomy the default state of human existence? Is freedom from other’s neediness a human right? If the answer to those first two questions is “yes,” where does that leave individuals who, through no fault of their own, are not autonomous?

In her book The Dignity of Dependence: A Feminist Manifesto, Leah Libresco Sargeant argues that modern society has been built on a “false anthropology,” which is the lie that we are autonomous creatures by nature. Liberty shares insights from the book, as well as her recent interview with Leah on Point of View Radio Talk Show.

Listen to learn how accepting the reality of our own needs and learning to live in mutual dependence can create a more just society for every member of the family.

More Resources:

Full Interview With Leah Libresco Sargeant on Point of View Radio Talk Show: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast…

The Dignity of Dependence: A Feminist Manifesto by Leah Libresco Sargeant https://www.amazon.com/Dignity-Depend…

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Podcasts

Longing for Family: Wading Through Suffering, Childlessness, and Unmet Desires

Interview With Chelsea Sobolik

The “Know About Family Formation” series is highlighting the good of marriage and family. But what if you already know family is good, and you desire family, but for one reason or another, that desire remains unfulfilled?

Chelsea Sobolik understands what it is like to wrestle with that kind of grief. Author of “Longing for Motherhood: Holding Onto Hope in the Midst of Childlessness,” Chelsea joins the Know Why Podcast to share her personal story—as well as hope for those who may be walking through infertility, prolonged unwanted singleness, or other kinds of grief and suffering.

In this episode, Chelsea addresses topics including:

  • Why we shouldn’t idolize marriage and motherhood…
  • What stepping in and out of different family roles throughout life can look like…
  • How churches can promote the goodness of family while supporting those grieving infertility and loss… H
  • ow Jesus relates to and comforts us in the midst of embodied brokenness…
  • How individuals can be an advocate, a mother figure, and a vital member of church and local communities in different seasons of life…
  • And so much more.

Watch, listen, or share with someone you know who is longing for family.

More Resources:

Chelsea’s Books, including Longing for Motherhood: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Chelsea…

Dads Hurt Too: A Father’s Memoir of Miscarriage by Eric Shumacher https://www.amazon.com/Dads-Hurt-Too-…

Abbey Wedgeworth https://www.abbeywedgeworth.com/all-b…

Brittany Lee Allen https://brittleeallen.com/miscarriage…

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Podcasts

The Cost of Kids: What Monetary Calculations Miss About Family Life

Interview With Ivana Greco

Many millennials and Gen Zers are intentionally avoiding parenthood, and the number one reason cited is cost. But when it comes to kids, can crunched numbers really capture the gamut of costs AND benefits, stresses AND joys that one experiences over a lifetime?

As it turns out, spreadsheets fail to convey the lived experience of many mothers, who, statistically, report being happier than their childless counterparts. That doesn’t mean people must have kids to be happy, but media warnings about daycare costs and lost wages fail to capture the full picture of parenthood.

Ivana Greco is an attorney and homeschooling mom of four who writes about women, children, families, and family policy. She joins the Know Why Podcast to discuss her article, “What is the Price of Parenting?” published with Commonplace Magazine.

More Resources:

What is the Price of Parenting? https://www.commonplace.org/cp/172950941

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Podcasts

Soulmates: Myth or Marriage Material?

Know About Family Formation

Do you believe in soulmates? In finding “the One?” If so, you’re not alone—according to surveys, a majority of young singles hold some version of the soulmate view of marriage. Unfortunately, that’s also the marriage view most likely to lead to divorce.

In this episode, Liberty summarizes research compiled by Dr. Brad Wilcox in his book Get Married, explaining why soulmates are a myth and why a different view of marriage—”family first,” or mission-minded—aligns better with our overall purpose and function as human beings made in God’s image.

P.S. Liberty also mentions a resource for parents in this episode—a discount code for $10 off registration to the Raising Biblical Kids Conference for Parents in Grapevine, Texas! See more information below.

P.P.S. Comment to share your thoughts—or if you watch long enough to understand what “yellow butterflies” means!

More Resources:

Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization by Brad Wilcox https://www.amazon.com/Get-Married-Am…

Raising Biblical Kids Conference https://raisingbiblicalkidsconference…