Making Meaning by Making Enemies

Making Meaning by Making Enemies:  Tribes, Mimetic Rivals, & Gospel Peace With John Houmes and Brad Edwards Why do we need enemies to feel like we belong?  In this conversation, John and Brad unpack Trevin Wax's article "When the Tribe Eats the Church" through the lens of René Girard's scapegoat mechanism—revealing why communities (left and right) use the same tribal pattern to maintain unity. From mimetic desire to mythological justification, from McCarthyism to cancel culture, we're watching the same mechanism play out in real-time: communities make meaning by making enemies. But the Resurrection changes everything. 🎯 What You'll Hear • How expressive individualism evolved into tribalism • Girard's mimetic desire: we learn what to want by imitating others • The scapegoat mechanism: communities uniting through accusation and expulsion • McCarthyism vs. cancel culture—same pattern, different tribes • Why mythology hides the violence of persecution • How Christ's resurrection vindicated the innocent victim • Why double imputation means Christians don't need another scapegoat • What the church must offer: belonging rooted in worship, not enemies • How gathered worship reorders our tribal identity 💡 KEY QUOTES BRAD EDWARDS: "We don't know how to exist, how to make sense of the world and make meaning without an enemy. That is an incredible enslavement that we have willingly walked into." JOHN HOUMES: "We're living in a story that's way too small. Jesus is victorious over our  deepest enemy—sin, death, and the devil. He rises from the dead in victory." 📚 RESOURCES Trevin Wax, "When the Tribe Eats the Church" (Gospel Coalition, April 9, 2026) René Girard, I See Satan Fall Like Lightning Luke Burgis, Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life Eugene Peterson, The Pastor Michelle Margolis, From Politics to the Pews #Tribalism #Polarization #ScapegoatMechanism #RenéGirard #TrevinWax #Gospel #Church #Belonging #Identity #Discipleship #PostEverything Chapters 00:00 🎯INTRO 01:17 🏘️Trevin Wax: When Tribe Eats Church 01:44 👤What Are Tribes? Examples Everywhere 03:32 🎭Tribalism's New Function: Making Meaning 05:47 📱Eugene Peterson: Digital Ecstasy 07:30 🚫Escape Isn't Transcendence 08:51 👎Making Meaning by Making Enemies 09:15 🤖Algorithms Designed to Deliver Enemies 10:17 🏛️Digital Disembodies Everything 11:41 🐴Horseshoe Theory: Same Battlefield 14:16 💔Church Planting on Enemy Opposition 16:36 🔄Echo Chambers Refuse New Ideas 19:45 ❌Tribal Concerns Become Gospel Tests 24:24 🗳️Politics Replaced Religion as Primary 27:34 🔍Introducing René Girard 29:41 🧠Mimetic Desire: We Learn Wanting 30:52 🏆Mimetic Rivalry: Victory Over Object 34:13 🎪Scapegoat Mechanism Brings Peace 37:11 📖Mythology Justifies the Perpetrators 38:20 ☮️McCarthyism and Cancel Culture Parallel 42:30 ✝️Gospel Uniquely Sides With Victim 43:10 🙏Resurrection Breaks the Mechanism 43:55 💫Double Imputation Means No Scapegoats 45:52 📜Stories Too Small, Jeremiah Example 57:25 🤝Church: Thick Belonging, Gospel Posture