Forefront 360

Rich, Nate and Gage discuss whether all artistic mediums are welcome in church. 00:00 - Introduction 03:33 - What artistic mediums are you used to seeing in worship services? 13:40 - Why do many churches emphasize music over every other art form? 21:40 - A brief history of images & icons in church  40:09 - Should we expand our understanding of what "worship" means in the gathered church?  01:00:19 - Are there limits to the mediums or styles of art that would be appropriate in a church space (outside of corporate worship)?

Nate talks to Goldenwood founders David Kim and Amilee Watkins about Spiritual Formation for artists. This is the first episode in a special series based on the Goldenwood Institute. Rev. Dr. David Kim is the CEO and co-founder of Goldenwood. Over the past several decades, he has trained, consulted, and counseled hundreds of leaders and organizations in developing a robust integration of faith and work. David’s past roles include Executive Director of the Center for Faith & Work, Director of the Gotham Fellowship, and editor of the NIV Faith and Work Bible. He was also our keynote speaker at Forefront Festival 22. Amilee Watkins is the COO and co-founder of Goldenwood. Her work in the faith and work space has spanned over a decade, focusing on leadership development and spiritual formation at the Center for Faith & Work, and helping lead the Gotham Fellowship program.

Zack and Nate discuss the art they've been experiencing recently: The Jingle Workshop by Raymond Scott and the movie Father Stu.

Cody talks to Ilana Reimer about faith, editing, and the arts. Ilana Reimer is the editor of Love Is Moving. She studied journalism at Algonquin College and has worked as a freelance journalist and book editor since 2015. Her essays, poetry, and articles have appeared in a number of publications including Ekstasis, Breaking Ground, Faith Today, and Mutuality. In 2022, she was named a Cardus NextGEN Fellow. Ilana is passionate about championing and equipping Christian creators, believing they can be voices of influence, prophecy, and wisdom in our culture. She lives in Vancouver with her husband.

Rich, Nate and Megan discuss the all-new film from director Denis Villeneuve, Dune Part Two. 02:47 - Spoiler-free reactions 23:23 - Spoilers begin 28:43 - Paul's character journey 34:30 - Faith & politics in Dune 48:57 - Questions & nitpicks 01:12:51 - Chani's character journey 01:19:47 - Closing thoughts

Cody, Zack & Gage discuss how they first became captivated by the arts.

Cody, Nate and Zack gather for an arts review, discussing the following: Neutral Milk Hotel, esp. The King of Carrot Flowers The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in Turkish Kings Kaleidoscope by Kings Kaleidoscope We also mention Zack's article on the Forefront blog, "Jesus etc."

The Forefront crew gathers to discuss the classics: what are they, does it matter if we read them, and how do we read them well? Spoiler alert; here are the ones that made the draft list at the end: Pride and Prejudice Little Women Treasure Island The Grapes of Wrath The Lord of the Rings A Tale of Two Cities The Metamorphosis  The Odyssey Things Fall Apart The Count of Monte Cristo Anna Karenina The Joy Luck Club The Great Gatsby  Charlotte's Web The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Cody, Rich and Nate gather for the first arts review of the year to discuss: Sacred Strides book by Justin McRoberts The Bear TV series The Boy and the Heron film Memories in Old Age poem by Maryann Corbett  

Since Advent is a perfect season to begin rhythms of prayer & meditation, today Rich talks to Taylor Buckley, Director of Influencer & Brand Marketing at Hallow. Hallow is a popular Christian prayer & meditation app.  If you'd like to try Hallow free for 3 months: Hallow.com/Forefront

Rich, Cody, Nate, Zack, and special guest Lauren Lowin gather to discuss C.S. Lewis's beloved series, The Chronicles of Narnia. We cover what Narnia means to us personally, whether Narnia is for kids, whether we like the "allegorical" elements of the Chronicles, what adaptations we like and dislike, what we hope for the Netflix adaptations, and of course, our favorite passages from the books. We're doing it on this occasion because the podcast Pints with Jack has established C.S. Lewis's birthday, November 29, as "C.S. Lewis Reading Day." It's the perfect day to talk about Narnia, and the perfect day to pick up the books for yourself!

Cody talks with Veronica McDonald about the enjoyment of surprising stories, the beauty of the Gospel, and the challenges of running a literary journal.  Veronica McDonald is a published fiction writer, poet, visual artist, and editor. She graduated from American University in Washington D.C. with an M.A. Degree in Literature, and has since accumulated a growing list of published work. In 2019, Veronica started a literary and art journal called Heart of Flesh, where she publishes Christian-themed literature, poetry, art, and photography by writers and artists from around the world. In 2021, she began a literary magazine for kids and families, called Pure in Heart Stories. Veronica became a born-again Christian in July 2016 when Jesus saved her from anxiety, depression, and a nihilistic worldview.  Since then, she has been fascinated with good and evil, love and fear, life and death, and the various ways the Gospel and biblical themes shine out of secular literature, movies, and storytelling. This fascination

Nate, Rich and Dan discuss the art they've been experiencing recently: Anastasia Trusova's paintings The Hallow app Brother to Brother by Michael Card & John Michael Talbot Ordinary Ways by Jon Guerra

Nate, Rich and Dan give their takes on the summer blockbusters of 2023. We keep it free of major spoilers. 00:04:23 - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 00:12:46 - Across the Spider-Verse 00:20:25 - John Wick 4 00:26:28 - The Flash 00:31:44 - Asteroid City 00:34:06 - Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny 00:45:11 - Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part One 00:49:55 - Barbie 01:02:38 - Oppenheimer

The Forefront crew continues and broadens their discussion about AI’s impact on the arts: How will widely accessible AI tools affect education? To what extent will AI displace jobs, and should we be concerned? Will using AI negatively affect our spiritual formation?

The Forefront crew discusses AI’s impact on the arts: Why has AI become so important recently? What are some positive use cases of new AI tools? What are our biggest concerns about the use of AI in the arts?

Rich Christman and guest host Houston Arledge interview Dr. Karen Swallow Prior about the ideas in her all-new book, The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis (Brazos, 2023). Karen Swallow Prior, Ph. D., is a reader, writer, and professor. In addition to The Evangelical Imagination, she is the author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books (Brazos 2018); Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More—Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist (Thomas Nelson, 2014); and Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me (T. S. Poetry Press, 2012). She is co-editor of Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in Contemporary Issues (Zondervan 2019) and has contributed to numerous other books. She has a monthly column for Religion News Service. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, Think Christian, The Gospel Coalition, and various other places. She hosted the podcast Jane and Jesus. 

Heather and Cody interview Chris Wheeler, a writer and poet rooted in Middlebury, IN. His nonfiction, liturgies, and poetry have been published in Barren, Fathom, Story Warren, Reformed Worship, Think Christian, Banner, and The Rabbit Room, among others. He published his first collection of poetry, Solace, in 2020. His second collection, Masks & Mirrors, came out in spring 2023.

Cody and Nate discuss The Chosen, the hit multi-season series about the life of Jesus, told from the perspective of His followers. Topics include: How The Chosen came to be Does it improve upon other recent Scripture-to-screen adaptations? Favorite scenes Is the show ever sacrilegious? Does The Chosen "bring Scripture to life"? Bonus nitpicks

Cody and Rich talk to Laura Reece Hogan. She is the author of Butterfly Nebula (Backwaters, University of Nebraska Press, forthcoming October 2023), winner of the Backwaters Prize in Poetry, Litany of Flights (Paraclete Press, 2020), winner of the Paraclete Poetry Prize, the chapbook O Garden-Dweller (Finishing Line Press, 2017), and the award-winning nonfiction spiritual theology book I Live, No Longer I (Wipf & Stock, 2017). She is one of ten poets featured in the anthology In a Strange Land (Cascade Books, 2019). You can preorder Butterfly Nebula today.