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The Bulletin

Christianity Today

News, News Commentary, Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.4 • 586 Ratings

🗓️ 22 May 2026

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Here at The Bulletin, we’re beginning our summer programming. We’ll be re-airing the best segments from the past four years of the show. This week: Christian universities are closing at a notable rate. Alan Nobel joins Russell Moore and Clarissa Moll to discuss the reasons for this trend and the implications. Then, Clarissa talks with author and former Obama speechwriter David Litt about developing an unlikely friendship with his MAGA brother-in-law. Then, we consider how churches can effectively and appropriately engage the world in the age of screens and digital media. REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE: It’s Only Drowning: A True Story of Learning to Surf and the Search for Common Ground by David Litt GO DEEPER WITH THE BULLETIN: Join the conversation at our Substack. Find us on YouTube Rate and review the show in your podcast app of choice. ABOUT THE GUESTS: Alan Noble is an associate professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University and author of numerous books and articles. Alan’s writing appears in Modern Reformation, Christianity Today, Vox, Buzzfeed, and The Atlantic. David Litt is a New York Times bestselling author and a semi-finalist for the James Thurber Prize for American Humor. A former senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama, David was described as "the comic muse for the president" for his work on the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Since leaving the White House, he's written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, TIME, and The Guardian, among others, and served as a fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice. ABOUT THE BULLETIN: The Bulletin is a twice-weekly news analysis podcast from Christianity Today, with editor-at-large Russell Moore and executive editor of news Clarissa Moll. Each episode offers commentary on current events and headlining news with a roundtable of premier guests, and shares a Christian perspective on issues that are shaping our world The Bulletin listeners get 25% off CT. Go to https://orderct.com/THEBULLETIN to learn more. “The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today Producer: Clarissa Moll Associate Producer: Alexa Burke Editing and Mix: Kevin Morris Graphic Design: Rick Szuecs Music: Dan Phelps Executive Producer: Erik Petrik Senior Producer: Matt Stevens Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	This paid message is from Glu.
0:02.0	There are 450,000 organizations across the U.S., churches, non-profits, and mission-driven businesses
0:10.0	working toward the same goal, helping people flourish.
0:14.0	But most are operating in silos.
0:17.0	Glu is a leading technology platform serving this faith and flourishing ecosystem with a values-aligned AI platform that modernizes systems and marketing and donor solutions that expand reach.
0:29.5	Learn how Glu is helping organizations do more at Glu.com.
0:34.3	That's G-L-O-O-O-com.
0:43.4	Thank you. That's g-l-o.com. That's g-l-o.com. From Christianity, today you're listening to The Bulletin, the podcast about the people, events, and issues that are shaping our world.
0:50.6	I'm Clarissa Mall.
0:52.2	Welcome to Memorial Day weekend and the start of summer programming here at the
0:56.6	Bulletin. Today we've got great conversations coming your way, featuring Alan Noble, David Litt, and Mike
1:03.3	Kossper. Welcome to the show. Good morning listeners. Welcome to our Friday roundtable. For many Americans, this weekend
1:14.5	signals the unofficial start of summer and school's final days. For me, this episode signals my
1:21.4	final day here at the Bulletin. It's been a joy to serve CT over the last five years, and while I'm
1:27.4	signing off to spend more time with my family and my next book project, the show goes on.
1:33.0	Here are the bulletin we create roundtable conversations that are driven not by particular personalities, but by intelligent, thoughtful engagement with the toughest issues in today's headlines.
1:43.7	And while particular voices
1:45.3	around our table may come and go, the bulletin is committed to that same mission to help you
1:50.7	understand the news from a Christian perspective.
1:54.0	So, let's get to the news, shall we?
1:56.1	This year, the Education Data Initiative estimates that over 2.1 million college students will graduate
2:02.6	with a bachelor's degree. But for a number of these students, attaining their degree has meant
	...

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