The Christian podcast scene is having a moment.
In 2024, it became increasingly clear that more mainstream podcasts either had openly Christian hosts, or were inviting Christian guests, who in turn were sharing their faith and demonstrating the validity of Christianity.
During this period many more voices rose up in sympathy with this new Christian-themed media voice.
Douglas Murray, Ayaan Hirsi Ali and even Richard Dawkins were among the many intellectuals that seemed to shift their views, either fully embracing Christianity or looking on it more favourably than previously.
The signs of a shift were there in the first few days of 2021, when Catholic media organisation Ascension’s podcast “The Bible in a Year (with Fr Mike Schmitz)” stunned many by becoming the number 1 podcast on Apple.
For a Catholic podcast—involving just a priest reading the Bible each day—to make the number one spot was striking, to say the least.
In 2023, the host of the Christian debate podcast “Unbelievable?”, Justin Brierley, published his book The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God: Why new atheism grew old and secular thinkers are considering Christianity again. In it, he noted a change in the air.
Much to the surprise of many, Brierley highlighted that the so-called “New Atheist” movement was beginning to decline; that his guests were starting to talk about Christianity in gentler, more understanding and accepting terms.
Now, in January 2025, this trend has hit the mainstream more than ever.
In the first few days of 2025, another Catholic podcast by Ascension, “The Rosary (with Fr Mark-Mary Ames)”, overtook the “Joe Rogan Experience” to take the number 1 slot on Apple.
On 7 January, Rogan, one of the biggest podcasters of all time—and a man who once said “Christianity, at the end of the day, with no proof, is just mythology” and mocked the idea of proof for Christ’s existence—joined this trend of shifting toward at least giving Christianity a fairer hearing.
Rogan sat down with the Protestant apologist Wesley Huff and discussed, in detail, the historicity of the Jesus story. Looking at manuscript evidence, historical sources, psychology and more, the pair unpacked, as Lee Strobel’s bestselling book also put it, “the case for Christ.”
Rogan seemed absorbed and amazed throughout the interview.
Two days later, this mega-star podcaster also sat down with Mel Gibson. Whilst Gibson had some questionable things to say about Catholicism (being a sedevacantist Catholic himself), he gave experiential arguments for God’s existence.
Again, Rogan seemed gripped by Gibson’s story—as well as by the evidence for the Shroud of Turin.
In October 2024, Shawn Ryan, a former US Navy SEAL, made news by also overtaking Rogan’s podcast with his own.
Ryan, an openly Christian host who talks regularly about his faith, the spiritual battle between good and evil, while also promoting Christianity, has also had many openly professing Christian guests on his Shawn Ryan Show podcast, including Jim Caviezel, Pete Hegseth, Nick Freitas and the Exorcist priest Fr Dan Reehil.
At the time of writing, Ryan’s podcast still sits at number 4 on Spotify’s podcast chart.
In short, 2025 has kicked off with Christianity going mainstream big-time.
Whilst podcasts are predominantly listened to by young men, the overall cultural impact of such prominent voices speaking about faith cannot be understated.
New Atheism pushed Christianity into the intellectual shadows for decades; it became a taboo subject in many areas of life, looked upon with superstition and mockery.
But here it is, back again, front and centre, being helped by podcasts but also by other media events and public personalities making Christianity more mainstream (and acceptable).
In 2020, Tom Holland published his book Dominion in which he posited that the Western mind was not Greco-Roman influenced, but Christian-based—a view which, along with a religious experience, quite publicly shifted him towards Christianity.
In a similar period, Jordan Peterson both attained a degree of infamy because of his view on “pronoun-based” speech laws in Canada, while also gaining great popularity, and a following to match it, because of his Biblical lecture series, and his regular references to Christian concepts in interviews, talks and his books.
Whilst Christians should not rely on popularity to support or confirm their faith, the now unmistakable trends should give hope.
In his most recent interview with the atheist speaker Alex O’Connor, Brierley reflected on O’Connor’s own softening views of Christianity.
Where once there was ardent atheism, there is now more respect and understanding, and which reflects much of what is happening at a larger scale in society.
O’Connor and Brierley discussed this “rebirth of belief,” and O’Connor, I think quite rightly, put this down to a societal crisis of meaning. The New Atheists never provided a replacement for religious impulse; they just tore the structure down.
In the face of growing radical ideologies and a crisis of meaning, young men particularly are turning to faith again. In 2025, many indicators, such as what media is being consumed, are showing this trend clearly.
If the Catholic Church is not equipped or ready to receive this new interest, there is a risk that Matthew Arnold’s “tide of faith” will come back into shore, but the church will not catch it.
Other radical ideologies also want these young minds, and so Catholics need to pray, fast and support their churches in welcoming and catechising seekers of meaning.
At a time like this, learning some basic apologetics should be an aim of all Catholics. Being ready and able to have deep conversations with people about their lives and their feelings of purposelessness are paramount.
Churches are well positioned and well equipped to coordinate this: to run courses, prayer sessions, host debates, make themselves known in their communities; these are the ways the wider Church can begin to receive those people who are searching.
And people are searching. As we step into 2025, Catholics can be hopeful that whilst much about the state of the Western world looks bleak, glimmers of hope can be found; even if those glimmers are, for now, in podcast rankings.
This article was originally published by The Catholic Herald and is used with permission.