New Persuasive Words is a sharp and insightful podcast that dissects the intersections of culture, politics, and theology with intellectual rigor and a conversational ease. Hosted by Scott Jones and Bill Borror, the show offers a thoughtful examination of contemporary issues, blending humor, historical perspective, and philosophical depth. With a keen eye for nuance and a willingness to challenge conventional wisdom, New Persuasive Words invites listeners into a space where ideas are tested,…
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Scott and Bill head back to ancient Greece—by way of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey . They explore what Nolan does with Homer’s strange, violent, morally complicated epic and take up a provocative debate sparked by Ben Shapiro and Ezra Klein: Has Nolan “Christianized” The Odyssey? What happens when a pagan story about glory, cunning, fate, and the gods is reframed around guilt, mercy, homecoming,…
In this episode of New Persuasive Words , Scott Jones and Bill Borror wrestle with one of theology's oldest and most unsettling questions: the scandal of particularity. Prompted by a provocative argument from Israeli philosopher Yoram Hazony, they ask whether the Enlightenment's quest for universal reason came at the cost of dismissing the particular people, stories, and traditions through which…
What happens when theology stops shaping private belief and begins organizing public power? Scott and Bill examine the growing influence of Doug Wilson, the religious currents reshaping American conservatism, and the uneasy relationship between faith, politics, and democracy. Moving between current events, history, and theology, they explore how ideas once confined to the margins are finding new…
In a cultural and political moment defined by outrage, division, and uncertainty, hope can feel naïve—or even impossible. But what if hope isn't wishful thinking? What if it's an act of courage? In this episode, Bill and Scott explore why hope matters now more than ever. Together, they wrestle with the temptation to give in to cynicism, the exhaustion of living through constant political conflict,…
In this episode of New Persuasive Words, Scott and Bill wade into the moral fog of war, asking an old question that never quite stays settled: when, if ever, is war justified? Using the framework of Just War Theory, they unpack the escalating conflict between Donald Trump and Iran, and the public tension between Trump and Pope Leo. Is this war defensible under traditional criteria like just cause,…
What happens when Jesus Christ and Genghis Khan get dragged into the same geopolitical argument? You get one wild quote from Benjamin Netanyahu—and one even wilder episode of New Persuasive Words. This week, Scott and Bill react to Netanyahu’s eyebrow-raising claim that history suggests goodness doesn’t really have an edge over ruthless power. In other words: nice guys…don’t finish first. Or…
Is the war with Iran actually a religious war? That’s the explosive question posed by Tucker Carlson in a viral clip that has ricocheted across the internet. In the video, Carlson suggests that beneath the geopolitical rhetoric—nuclear weapons, regional stability, national security—there may be something deeper and more dangerous at play: religious narratives about holy sites, prophecy, and the…
In this episode of New Persuasive Words, Bill and Scott dig into “Rod Dreher Thinks the Enlightenment Was a Mistake,” a provocative Atlantic feature that explores how one of today’s most influential conservative thinkers is challenging the very foundations of modernity. They unpack Read the full Atlantic article here, which profiles Rod Dreher’s journey from cultural critic to a leading voice in…
In this week’s episode, Bill and Scott unpack The Atlantic’s provocative analysis of how Charlie Kirk’s assassination has reshaped the conservative movement and exposed deep ideological fractures within the Trump-aligned right. Drawing from Yair Rosenberg’s Atlantic article, “The Second Death of Charlie Kirk,” they examine how Kirk’s absence has opened space for previously marginalized figures —…
In this week’s episode, Bill and Scott are joined by their Onbudsman Emily Acrigg to unpack one of the oddest culture-war moments yet: House Speaker Mike Johnson mansplaining religion to the Pope. We dive into a recent article from The Daily Beast detailing how Johnson responded to Pope Leo XIV’s critique of U.S. immigration policy by offering up his own theological interpretation of Scripture —…
This week, Bill and Scott take on Ross Douthat’s conversation with Ryan Burge and ask whether the story we’ve been telling about America’s religious collapse is actually wrong—or at least wildly incomplete. If the “nones” are leveling off, what replaces the old secularization narrative? Is Christianity really dying, or just losing its cultural monopoly? And what does it say about us that…
