411. How To Pastor in the Age of Trump

The New Evangelicals Podcast

Tim Whitaker

News, Religion & Spirituality, Politics, Christianity

4.7 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 5 January 2026

⏱️ 63 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In today's episode, Tim Whitaker speaks with Cody Deese about his journey from a Southern Baptist upbringing to becoming a progressive Christian leader. They discuss the challenges of navigating faith in a landscape dominated by Christian nationalism, the importance of social justice, and the complexities of maintaining relationships with family members who hold differing political views. Cody's Website | Codydeese.com Chapters 01:25 Cody Daese: A Journey from Fundamentalism to Progressive Christianity 12:35 Navigating Relationships in a Divided America 18:44 The Role of the Church in Social Justice 24:31 Confronting Gun Culture and Nationalism in the Church 30:41 The Evolution of a Spiritual Collective 34:03 Challenging Church Structures and Leadership 52:11 Finding Balance in Activism and Personal Life ____________________________________________________ TNE Podcast hosts thought-provoking conversations at the intersection of faith, politics, and justice. We’re part of the New Evangelical’s 501c3 nonprofit that rejects Christian Nationalism and builds a better path forward, rooted in Jesus and centered on justice. If ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠you'd like to support our work or get involved, visit our website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thenewevangelicals.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Us On Instagram @thenewevangelicals Subscribe On YouTube @thenewevangelicals This show is produced by Josh Gilbert Media | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Joshgilbertmedia.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	You're listening to the New Evangelicals podcast.
0:20.1	What's up, friends? Happy New Year, New Year, New Year, New You. I don't know. Isn't that the saying,
0:26.1	hey, on this episode, we're going to kick the New Year off great with some pastors. This month is
0:31.2	Pastor Month. Pastors doing good work, okay? Not Christian Nationalist pastors. Do not freak out.
0:36.0	I brought on Cody Dees.
0:37.6	He's the pastor of Vitingis Lake Church.
0:39.7	He's a speaker, an author, and we had a great conversation.
0:43.3	You might have seen his stuff go viral.
0:45.0	We've also shared it on the New Evangelicals Instagram a few times.
0:48.3	He's awesome.
0:49.5	I think you're really going to love this conversation about just being faithful to Jesus in the Christian
0:55.7	Nationalist American Empire and church structure. And how do you do that in a healthy way? So
1:01.2	hope you enjoy this. Friends, thank you for your support in 2025. It means the world.
1:05.7	We are really set up for a super successful 2026. Cannot wait to share more and more details with you.
1:10.8	Thank you for tuning into the podcast.
1:12.3	It means the world.
1:13.3	I hope that you enjoy this conversation with Cody.
1:15.5	Talk to you later.
1:25.3	All right.
1:26.1	Well, Pastor Cody Deas, you are an author, a speaker. You wrote a book discovering your
1:32.1	internal universe, and you pastor over at Vining's Lake Church. And most recently, you've been going
1:37.5	mega viral for saying all the right things critiquing Christian fascism. So welcome on the podcast.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Tim Whitaker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Tim Whitaker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.