Christianity Today Podcast Hosted by Andrews Professor Heather Thompson Day
14 February 2023 |
In July of 2021, Christianity Today produced a new podcast entitled Viral Jesus, hosted by Andrews University communications scholar Heather Thompson Day. More than a year-and-a-half later, its 62 episodes have received a stellar 4.9 out of 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts, featuring interviews with a diverse group of theologians, evangelical thought leaders, songwriters, social media influencers, and more.
“The goal of Viral Jesus is for all Christians to hear from people they respect on how you build online community,” says Day to Christianity Today (CT). “But more specifically, I hope this podcast will also be a resource to church and ministry leaders as they navigate social media engagement.”
Christianity Today’s vice president of strategic partnerships, Ed Gilbreath, says Viral Jesus is the first of several new podcasts in development from CT’s Big Tent Initiative, “which is a focused effort to help CT reach and represent more of the racial, ethnic, and generational diversity of God’s church.”
In her most recent episodes, Day interviews Ty Gibson and David Asscherick to discuss what we may be getting wrong about the character of God. She refers to it as a “pod-class” series. She also interviews Christian comedienne Ellen Skrmetti about “using comedy as a tool for life-changing communication.” The comedian has nearly 100,000 followers and millions of views. “The Second City alum reflects on the delicate balance between faith and humor, and she explains why “going viral” comes in many shapes and sizes.”
The podcast can be found at ChristianityToday.com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Listeners can also join the Viral Jesus conversation on social media by following Heather Thompson Day @HeatherTDay and @CTmagazine on Twitter.