Televangelists to Deepfakes: Who Defines the Sacred in the Age of AI? + John Fugelsang
When outrage wins the algorithm, what does faith become?
This live conversation from the RNS Symposium at Trinity Commons wrestles with a bracing question: when faith, power, and platform collapse into the same feed, who gets to define what’s sacred? Host Amanda Henderson and guest John Fuglesang trace a line from open-source scripture to televangelist TV to AI resurrecting voices, exploring how media mirrors our clicks—and how those clicks shape the moral imagination we live in. They name the seduction of outrage, the costs of fundamentalism, and a red-letter way forward grounded in humility, service, and care for “the least of these.” Warm, wise, and a little irreverent, this episode invites us to be more mindful about what we amplify and why it matters now.
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28:45
Cease-Fire Isn’t Peace: Inside the Vatican’s Quiet Work on Gaza
When peacemaking is quiet, stubborn, and deeply human.
In this conversation, host Amanda Henderson sits with RNS reporter Claire Giangravè to open the door on Vatican diplomacy during the Gaza cease-fire. We hear about priests who refused to leave a bombed parish that sheltered hundreds, the “Pope’s hour” of daily calls that steadied a frightened community, and the uneasy politics of neutrality when lives are at stake. From Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa’s gritty, multilingual bridge-building to new Pope Leo’s outreach to Jewish leaders, the episode invites listeners to consider how cease-fire differs from peace—and why slow, persistent, often invisible work still matters. Thoughtful, curious, and politically frustrated? Pull up a chair.
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22:59
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22:59
Willow Creek’s Midlife Reckoning: How a Seeker Church Became the Megachurch Blueprint
How the “church of the future” grew up—and owned its past.
In the fall of 1975, a youth pastor rented a suburban movie theater and swapped hymns for rock, sermons for storytelling, and pews for folding chairs—calling it seeker friendly. Within a generation, Willow Creek became the blueprint for American megachurches: packed auditoriums, meticulous production, small groups for discipleship, and a marketing mindset that even drew Harvard Business School and Peter Drucker–level attention. Then came 2018: allegations, resignations, collapse, COVID, and a community left to rebuild. As Willow Creek turns 50, Complexified host Amanda Henderson talks with Bob Smietana (who’s covered Willow for decades) and Scott Thumma (Hartford Institute megachurch scholar) about innovation and influence, power and accountability, and what humility-fueled repair looks like after the spectacle. Is the “church of the future” still a future worth having?
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Baptizing the Battlefield: Pete Hegseth’s Holy War at the Pentagon
A Secretary of War leads worship at the Pentagon—how far can faith go before it becomes policy?
Pete Hegseth calls it a “warrior ethos.” Critics call it a constitutional crisis. In this episode of Complexified, Amanda Henderson talks with RNS reporter Jack Jenkins about the Secretary of War’s efforts to merge his conservative evangelical faith with U.S. military leadership—from worship services inside the Pentagon to viral recruitment videos that pair the Lord’s Prayer with fighter jets. Together they unpack how Hegseth’s theology of power is reshaping one of America’s most secular institutions, what it reveals about Christian nationalism’s hold on the political right, and why it matters for democracy itself.
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20:51
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20:51
Faith, Labor, and a DOJ Reversal: Inside the BAPS Temple Case
When the DOJ drops a high-profile case, what truths—and tensions—remain?
A clash of cultures, a legal saga, and a spiritual community under scrutiny.
In this episode of Complexified, Amanda Henderson talks with RNS reporter Richa Karmarkar about the Department of Justice’s decision to drop its investigation into the BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham in Robbinsville, New Jersey—the largest Hindu temple in the Western Hemisphere. Together, they trace how forced-labor allegations emerged, what “seva” (selfless service) means inside this tradition, and why cultural assumptions about work, visas, and volunteering can misfire in the U.S. context. Along the way, they explore community pride, rising vandalism of Hindu temples, and the complicated intra-Indian debates that shadow the story. It’s an invitation to slow down, listen across differences, and see faith—and labor—more clearly.
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For too long we have avoided talking about religion and politics. But the truth is, religion and politics are about daily life. When we avoid the hard topics connected to religion and politics, we become stuck in the status quo. On Complexified we dive into the places where religion and politics collide with real-life, so we can get unstuck- so we can make real change. We dive into our most entrenched problems to better understand the hidden histories and experiences of real people on the front lines. We look at the ways religion has shaped our systems - and the ways we see ourselves and others– from there, we work together to imagine new paths forward.
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