Aug 19, 2022
Is Greenbelt festival a guilty pleasure for evangelicals, a Church without the hassle of 365day pastoral care or a breaking through of the kingdom of God?
We talk to Paul Northup, Creative Director (aka Big Dog) of Britain’s best festival about the inclusion of Richard Dawkins at a Christian festival, what inclusion means and what makes Greenbelt a special space for so many people.
Paul takes time out of his busiest and most stressful time of year to talk to the Beer Christianity Crew about how Greenbelt has changed over the years, the challenges of creating a safe and yet challenging space and the difficulties of putting on a festival that does something fundamentally different from other Christian, art or justice events.
We also talk about his time as a rock star (a term he laughingly rejects) and the VERY surprising speaker Greenbelt get pressured to invite (you will be shocked). Greenbelt is the ultimate broad church, while still remaining true to the faith.
If you’re anywhere near the UK, it is not too late to book your tickets to Greenbelt. Visit https://www.greenbelt.org.uk and come!
The Beer Christianity crew in total will be there! Come say hi!
About Beer Christianity
Beer Christianity is a left-leaning, evangelical-adjacent Christian discussion podcast that often features interviews and always features a few drinks and laughs. Our aim is to be real, to be helpful and to be entertaining.
Follow Beer Christianity on Twitter: @beerxianity and find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Stitcher.
Leave us a question or comment to be included in the podcast at: speakpipe.com/beerchristianity and we'll love you forever.
Beer Christianity also has a newsletter in which Jonty and guest authors comment on the news, theological issues and stuff that matters. Sign up to the Beer Christianity newsletter on Substack.
Jonty's Show With Music on Spotify is called New Old Music. Check it out if you like eclectic music and weird chat. It's not terribly serious.
Jonty's novel, Incredulous Moshoeshoe and the Lightning Bird, is not available in all good bookshops, but if you bought it and left a review that would probably make that more likely.
All Beer Christianity shows and info available at http://beerchristianity.libsyn.com
We don't really want to preach at you, but some people like to know what we believe. It's this: Jesus Christ is the Son of God and came to teach us a better way to be while reconciling us to God and each other in a way we could never do without Him. He also changed water into wine. Nice.