Could it be that the cultural influences driving these deconstruction stories needs to be re-examined, rather than Christianity itself? If I wouldve found out he was a former Christian now identifying as agnostic, it would have broken my heart. They loved not the things of the world, but repented of their sin and put all their hope and trust in him. and African Christians, and South American Christians, and Indian Christians, What am I gonna teach them now? That the simple childlike answers of your youth which at one time gave such clarity and certainty no longer sufficed. The Gospel Coalition supports the church by providing resources that are trusted and timely, winsome and wise, and centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Secondly, I have been preparing to teach John 6 where Jesus says in several ways that God draws people to Jesus, He saves them, and He doesnt lose any of them. Good Mythical Morning Net worth- $30 Million. Since the release of their stories, several apologists and scholars have offered sound rebuttals to some of the claims made by Rhett in particular. I shouldnt be afraid to poke and prod at any of this stuff, right? The two I jumped into a sea of uncertainty. Since Rhett and Link were relatively deep into religiosity, having learned "Christianese" and the culture, it took them years to complete their pilgrimage to secularism. Rhett said, , to believe [Christianity], then why would I? Link expressed, Why was I working so hard to make Christianity work for me if it wasnt even true? Aside from encountering intellectual stumbling blocks, it seems that, to YouTubes favorite pair, the gospel had begun to stink. Actor Rupert Everett, who fell hard for her said: 'Her face had the illusion of beauty, but in fact it was wonky all over. This is why growth is stunted, why people abandon the faith: our church is too shallow for roots to dig deep. But it was while still back in North Carolina that Rhetts wife, Jessie, had taken Bible courses under agnostic biblical scholarBart Ehrman, and the historical questions those studies raised continued to impact their lives. This is something Jesus himself said would happenand it will continue to happen until he returns (Matt. That was one of the hardest pills for me to swallow, too. 4:10). And I want to say that because Ive noticed that when I tell my story, often people kind of conclude that I was never a true Christian. Link is known to be awkwardly funny, a master of organization, the President of the Republic of Cheesistan, and prone to retching and gagging when introduced to strange or unfamiliar food. This led to him jumping ship. Its the people behind the arguments. He was the only one for me. Fast forward 35 years to a day replete with a global internet and smartphones, and Postmans words ring with the chill of prophetic accuracy. And I pulled my wife and my children with me. While God is love, we must remember that Hes also just and holy. If you believe in him and love him, he is supposed to be the most important thing you can speak about with anyone you meet. admit in the podcast that moving to L.A. did free them of some constraints that A former church elder with a seminary education, Neil now writes mostly about the struggles of former evangelicals living in the midst of a highly religious subculture. With guest appearances on The TODAY Show, Live with Kelly, and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, their stars have been rising for the past few years, swelling their net worth to an estimated $23 million. Much of their appeal comes from their history together. Thats humanism in a nutshell, and I feel the same way. On Feb. 22, the Rhett & Link's Mythical Entertainment agreed to buy Smosh in a deal that would unite two long-running YouTube channels. One main issue discussed by them is the problem with LGBTQ and church. Popular YouTubers Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal have publicly announced that they have left Christianity and landed in agnosticism.. Their deconversions are especially noteworthy given how publicly the two had once been with their Christian faith (e.g., missionaries for CRU, featured in Phil Vischer's What's in the Bible?It's also noteworthy that Rhett and Link have over 15 million . Let me help you out here. Blend that with Rhett and Links magnetic personalities, and its no wonder the faith of many Christians has been unsettled. This is what Ive been teaching them. Please have your Passports Ready. They acknowledge that Christianity, The apostle Paul identifies his friend Demas as a fellow worker who was with him while imprisoned in Rome (Philem. So, if you want to listen to them you can do so without fear. Rhett and Link met each other way back in Elementary school in North Carolina and theyve stuck together into adulthood, at one time passing through a ministry phase as full-time staffers with Campus Crusade (now called Cru). It gives you stability. I quickly downloaded and submerged myself into Rhett and Links respective stories (which you can also see on YouTube here and here). Hopefully, they also realize these accusations are shots fired out of fearfear that one day they may wake up to find that we are making at least as much sense as they are. But it wouldnt have shaken. Christy was born in the United States of America. Im almost sure I said those same words at some point in my journey. Would Jack Black and Daniel Radcliffe guest star on their YouTube channel if they held to the biblical doctrine of marriage and homosexuality? Frank had gone to Shantytown with some members of the Ku Klux Klan to. Or what about morality? .What do you think happens after you die? personally know that jettison God altogether during their deconstruction often become About 24 minutes into the podcast, Rhett compares the development of human DNA to an instruction manual that gets two pages permanently stuck together, leaving the headers and footers in place to show exactly where one ends and the other begins. I also appreciate him making a point of clarifying that bad experiences didnt push him out of the faith. Should Christians Embrace Evolution? Rhett, who makes up one half of the comedy duo Rhett & Link and co-hosts their hit YouTube talk show Good Mythical Morning, admits that while he is eager to "settle into the space we have,". Its okay to have doubts. Ray Comfort explains the reason why this happens so often with those who used to believe in Christianity. That tow-headed heartthrob took my breath away with every episode of the 1980s sitcom Silver Spoons. On the one hand, we dont want people who are not having doubts in their faith to listen to Rhett and Link and start doubting (Id rather have a millstone necktie). Postman posited that in the future, we would be oppressed not by an outside force like Big Brother in George Orwells dystopian novel, people will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think,, He predicted that with the rise of technology and communication, people wouldnt be deprived of information, but rather they would be given, that they would become passive and egocentric. The lesson we can learn from the Rhett and Link story is to observe the power of the media platform, recognize the roadblocks of the new apostles of unbelief, and keep a humble eye to history, remembering that our Savior told us some would fall away. As they mixed with Christians that perhaps Rhett and Link Controversy and Deconstruction Over the years, we learned that YouTubers Rhett and Link had been on staff with Cru, served as missionaries, led Bible studies, and worked with campus ministries. Are you sure about that? Thats what pushed us out, in the end. It gives you something to hold on to. They were getting tired of doing GMM. And, every time Rhett said, I know you are going to say _____________, I was thinking, Yeah, thats exactly what Id say.. Every bit helps, and is greatly appreciated. They were also Christians, former missionaries, and Campus Crusade (now Cru) staff members. Mythical Kitchen Why did Rhett and Link leave Christianity?-----Our mission is to create educational content. We were in conversation. And thats where Ive lived for about six years. However, celebrity Christian deconversions, or celebrity conversions, actually do matter. Lauren Boebert And Marjorie Greene's Adult Christianity Was Never About Democracy, Anyway. (Tim Challies reviewed the book once upon a time.) To put it bluntly. On the other hand, we need to be confident in our faith, so we need to listen to what non-Christians say about Christianity. Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases on Amazon.com. Demas traded eternal hope for earthly treasure. Commercial Kings: With Rhett McLaughlin, Link Neal, Shayne Pax, Brandon Taylor. Rhett James McLaughlin and Charles Lincoln's hosts are known for their comedic viral videos and have gathered an estimated net worth of 30 million dollars. ). God draws people to Jesus, He saves them, and He doesnt lose any of them. Now, the debate stops at Rhetts conclusions. The same goes for apologetics in general, doesnt it? It's not the End of the World When public figures walk away from the faith, a lot of Christians panic; but really, it's not the end of the world. Man, does that feel familiar! Rhett seems really reluctant to talk about it, so Scarlett doesn't ask more questions. And soon discovered some of these other traditions had different perspectives on some of the issues that often trigger Evangelical spiritual deconstruction: I came to realise the Evangelical aisle of the supermarket is a wonderful aisle in the supermarket but it aint the only aisleas much as they often like to claim it is. With the help of the Holy Spirit, they became convinced that Christianity is true as they gazed deeply at Christs beauty. Please help us to continue to make our videos and movies available on YouTube free of charge. It would appear that despite how destabilizing and difficult their deconstruction processes were, they no longer, The sad reality is that, for the deconverted, disbelief isnt sufficient. That is an excellent analogy. But as I tasted from Catholic, Anglican, Orthodox, Anabaptist, and other aisles of the supermarket I discovered the Christian faith was much more rich, varied, and delicious than I had ever thought. What am I gonna teach my kids? Theres a lot of other people on it. Listening to both Rhetts and Links stories, you can feel how much pushback they anticipate encountering from people who love them. 1:24; Col. 4:14). Maybe youre just checking to make sure a bolt of lightning wont immediately strike you the moment you do. But the same timeworn skepticism the church has interacted with since its inception is given a fresh dose of potency when delivered to a whole new generation by cool and funny guys whove become a fixture of their childhood. Mark Spence, a Christian, discusses some controversial subjects with a couple, and they leave once he brings up one topic in particular. I was angry at the people who wrote the books. Rhett explains that his first step toward evolution came through Francis Collins' book The Language of God. Tokyo is a recurring joke on Good Mythical Morning. This is the effect the gospel has, and we should expect these types of reactions. Home of #GMM, Rhett and Link, and everything else #Mythical @rhettmc @linkneal @mythicalstore @mythicalchef The LGBTQ agenda is the new master who takes no prisoners. (Except for a short hiatus after The Karate Kid, when Ralph Macchio was my all in all for a few months.) Living Waters exists to inspire and equip Christians to fulfill the Great Commission. Rhett and Link have grown their brand performing hilarious satirical songs and engaging in zany stunts such as duct-taping themselves together, playing wedgie-hangman, crushing glow sticks in a meat-grinder, and flinging bags of dog feces at one another's faces. Maybe the whole deconversion narrative is due for a bit of deconstruction. It was time to stop just reading Christian answers to everything and go a level deeper, looking next at the answers to the Christian answers. Charles Lincoln Neal III) have already established themselves as YouTube's grand old men and as two of the platform's most consistently . And so as I processed Rhett & Links stories I found 5 takeaways to suggest maybe they hadnt abandoned Jesus as much as their (many) critics suggest: When Jesus called his disciples he simply said, Follow Me. Then he skillfully planted a possible motive: money. stand to lose if they didnt capitulate to culture on an issue like same-sex marriage? As believers, we should take comfort to know its not new,he said. As far as Christians believing in the theory of Evolution or not, there is too much to go into in this short post. They no longer identify as Christians so it is not judgmental to refer to them this way.) YouTube is putting $ behind branding Rhett and Link as talk show hosts. To some, it smells like beauty and life; to others, it smells like death. One element of his deconstruction story thats particularly compelling to young people is his seemingly exhaustive knowledge of Christian apologetics. The best chance I had of communicating with him was writing a letter to his fan club. With guest appearances on, their stars have been rising for the past few years, swelling their net worth to an estimated $23 million. And when I jumped ship, I didnt jump to another boat. What I want to address is that even if Evolution were true (which I dont believe it is) there are way too many things in this world that need explanations that the Naturalistic worldview cannot answer. Several people reached out to me personally, including pastors who reported that the faith of several kids in their youth groups was rocked by the broadcasts, leaving them shaken and doubting. Not only was I taught everything I ever needed for my faith in Christ could be found in that aisle but later, sadly, that was what I went on to teach others. The younger generation is even more open about questioning their faith and leaving Christianity behind. Rather, he foretold, people will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think, pointing to Aldous Huxleys satirical Brave New World. Rhett and Melanie eat:" {Mammy} could distinguish nothing except the clatter of silver on china, and the muffled soft tones of Melanie's voice." Rhett then goes to bed. And furthermore, who wants to embrace uncertainty? But as Christians we should be encouraged to remember that for every Rhett and Link, theres a Lee Strobel, a J. Warner Wallace, a Holly Ordway, a C. S. Lewis, and a Rosaria Butterfield who tested their beliefs against the evidence, and found their atheism wanting. This insatiable need for certainty is something the still-faithful need to confront about themselves, not us. But that is no way to live. Meaning I dont know, but I hope. Careers Workplace and Religion Columnists, Recreation Outdoors and Religion Columnists, Religious Music and Entertainment Columnists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. How would it affect their revenue streams and net worth to remain faithful Christians in todays cultural climate? Unfortunately, much of the church and pastoral leadership seems committed to stopping the proper spiritual development of Christians and instead choose to keep them artificially in a state of spiritual arrested development. How Is God Loving if He Allows Suffering. What would Rhett and Link stand to lose if they didnt capitulate to culture on an issue like same-sex marriage? Can nothing make something? Rhett & Link are celebrating their 10-year anniversary and the 21st season of their show, Good Mythical Morning Released on 01/27/2022 Transcript We should be pretty good at this. 4K Followers. But I also know from experience that the work of defending the faith requires enormous amounts of self-deception, closing one eye and squinting the other to make sure things look the way theyre supposed to look. Around the time I was nursing a wounded ego for being stood up by the Ricky Schroder fan club, Neil Postman made a prediction in his 1985 book, . What he learned in time was that history disconfirms pretty much every major story from the flood of Noah all the way down through the Conquest of Canaan by the Israelites, with things not much improving for the next several books. It gives you direction. None of this is brand new; its been around for years and years and years.. for a rude awakening when you travel. As an actor playing a character on a TV show, my access was limited. 1) Deconstructing Statements of Faith is not the same as Deconstructing Faith itself When Jesus called his disciples he simply said, "Follow Me". Our cultural moment is a cauldron of information and celebrity worship in which the cult of personality can ferment and grow. Nothing? The sad reality is that, for the deconverted, disbelief isnt sufficient. Rhett & Link are entertainers who primarily use the Internet to display their talents. ButIm more interested now in what I do when I LIVE.because the only thing that I know that Ive got is this life. By the way, Evolutionary theory doesnt have a sufficient cause for the universe coming into existence out of nothing. We have taught breakouts on evolution at camp and there are many good books you can read on the subject that Ill put at the end. Christians today must be ready to provide a compelling defense for Christand even. They never talk about if it's morally wrong, but rather the person expressing who they think they are and who they think they love. I jumped into the water. That is why I read and study. He cohosts the award-winning television program Way of the Master, which airs in 190 countries. What about the beginning? Ray Comfort explains the reason why this happens so often with those who used to believe in Christianity.Visit https://www.LivingWaters.com to view more free Christian videos, articles, and to get tracts and other resources by Ray Comfort and the Living Waters team.FACEBOOKLiving Waters: https://www.facebook.com/lwwotmRay Comfort: https://www.facebook.com/official.Ray.ComfortINSTAGRAMLiving Waters: https://www.instagram.com/livingwatersofficialTWITTERLiving Waters: https://twitter.com/LivingWatersPubRay Comfort: https://twitter.com/RayComfort How is my marriage going to stay together? Its the. Aug 05, 2012 12:57PM. 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