For this special holiday episode, host Jake Doberenz sets aside the usual Christian ethics debates for something more festive (and chaotic): a Christmas movie trivia game show featuring returning guest Joseph Holmes, film critic and host of The Overthinkers Podcast, and first-time guest Kenny Doberenz, film and media teacher and voice actor. The three dive into obscure facts about The Santa Clause trilogy, animated Christmas Carol adaptations, Die Hard villains, and really old Christmas movies no one has seen. It's fun.

Merry Christmas, and good luck knowing when Rudolph and Frosty’s Christmas in July actually came out.

Important Links:

• The Overthinkers Podcast — Joseph Holmes' show on faith and pop culture
• "Why Are We So Obsessed With Identity" - The Overthinkers podcast episode with Jake
• Jim vs. the Future — Joseph Holmes' sci-fi movie
• The Dead Sea Squirrels — Animated kids’ show featuring Kenny Doberenz
• "How Movies Can Shape Faith More Than Sermons" - Joseph's previous episode on the show

Joseph Holmes is a New York-based film and culture critic who writes for publications like Christianity Today, Religion Unplugged, and World Magazine. He co-hosts The Overthinkers Podcast and recently released his first feature film Jim vs. the Future.

Kenny Doberenz is a film and media teacher at Oklahoma Christian Academy, where he teaches high school and middle school students about movie production and storytelling. He has voice acting credits in The Dead Sea Squirrels, an animated show created by VeggieTales co-creator Mike Nawrocki.

Follow this show and Jake Doberenz’s writings at jakedoberenz.substack.com.

Christians are still telling people to “just pray more” in response to depression.

Trey Hayman, pastor of New City Church in Nashville, is on Christianity Without Compromise with host Jake Doberenz to discuss how Christian faith and mental health need not be at odds. Drawing from both personal experience and theological training, Trey unpacks how the stigma around emotions and diagnoses developed in church spaces—and why it’s time to dismantle it. Together, Jake and Trey explore the false divide between “spiritual” and “emotional” life, the way Christian platitudes do more harm than good, and what a healthier theology of the mind could look like. Whether you’re a struggling believer or a church leader wondering how to help, this episode is for you.

Important Links:

• Trey's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/treyhayman/
• Trey's Substack - https://substack.com/@treyhayman
• Trey's Threads - https://www.threads.com/@treyhayman
• Classical Pastoral Care: Pastoral Counsel (Vol. 3) by Thomas C. Oden - https://amzn.to/3XNAv8y (affiliate)
• Classical Pastoral Care: Crisis Ministries (Vol. 4) by Thomas C. Oden - https://amzn.to/4rUSQy4 (affiliate)

Recommend Episodes:

• "Why Hate Won’t Stop Christian Nationalism - Caleb E. Campbell" - https://christianitywithoutcompromise.transistor.fm/51
• "Does God Want Me to be Happy? - Jon Adams" - https://christianitywithoutcompromise.transistor.fm/26

Trey Hayman is the pastor of New City Church, a young church plant in Nashville, Tennessee. He holds degrees in Psychology and Christian Leadership from Belmont University and a Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary. His work centers on integrating emotional health, theology, and community, and he regularly shares about mental health, faith, and authenticity online.

Follow this show and Jake Doberenz’s writings at jakedoberenz.substack.com.

If Christian community can be so toxic, should we just leave it all behind?

Loren Richmond Jr., pastor, chaplain, and host of the Future Christian Podcast, is on Christianity Without Compromise with host Jake Doberenz to discuss why the Christian faith still calls us to show up in community—even when church institutions fail. They talk candidly about disillusionment, spiritual exhaustion, and the cultural appeal of individualism, yet also uncover what’s lost when Christians opt out of the local church. Loren brings practical insight from both sociology and theology to show why Christian identity depends on more than podcasts and personal devotion. Together, they explore how church forms us, how it’s supposed to testify to God’s way of being in the world, and how to evaluate a church community without expecting perfection.

Important Links:

• “Jake Doberenz on working for a church that doesn’t fit your theology” Future Christian Podcast — https://futurechristian.podbean.com/e/jake-doberenz-on-working-for-a-church-that-doesn-t-fit-your-theology/
• “Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Demise of Traditional Faith in America” by Christian Smith — https://amzn.to/3KgYBFG (affiliate)
• “How the Anglican Tradition Forms a Moral Ecology” by Loren Richmond Jr. — https://lorenrichmondjr.substack.com/p/how-the-anglican-tradition-forms
• “Sustaining While Disrupting: The Challenge of Congregational Innovation” by F. Douglas Powe Jr. and Levett H. Weems Jr. — https://amzn.to/4iGWRC6 (affiliate)
• Loren’s Substack The Church Nerd - https://open.substack.com/pub/lorenrichmondjr

Recommend Episodes:

• "Can Churches Do Business Without Losing Their Soul? - Loren Richmond, Jr." - https://christianitywithoutcompromise.transistor.fm/4
• "Cultivating a Church's Culture - Spencer Shaw" - https://christianitywithoutcompromise.transistor.fm/1

Loren Richmond Jr. is a pastor, chaplain, nonprofit leader, and the host of the Future Christian Podcast. He holds an MDiv from Phillips Theological Seminary and an MBA with a nonprofit focus from Hope International University. His wide-ranging ministry background includes roles from food pantry director to founding pastor, giving him a grounded and practical perspective on the evolving role of the church in society.

Follow this show and Jake Doberenz’s writings at jakedoberenz.substack.com.