Cover of Hank Unplugged

Hank Unplugged

Hank Unplugged

By: The Christian Research Institute
Listen for free

Season's Savings | 0.99 €/month for 3 months

5.99 €/month thereafter - terms apply. Cancel monthly.
Dig Deeper with Hank Unplugged — Hank Unplugged is a podcast brought to you by the Christian Research Institute, where Hank Hanegraaff takes you beyond the sound bites and into thoughtful, in-depth explorations of the critical issues confronting Christians today. Drawing on Scripture, history, theology, and culture, Hank equips listeners to think Christianly about the questions that matter most and to contend for “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

For more information, visit www.equip.org. To support CRI and our global outreaches, visit www.equip.org/donate/. The Christian Research Institute Social Sciences Spirituality
Episodes
  • What Makes a Cult? Here Are the Defining Characteristics

    What Makes a Cult? Here Are the Defining Characteristics
    22 Oct 2026
    What are the defining characteristics of a cult? Hank Hanegraaff uses the memorable acronym C-U-L-T-S — Counterfeit, Unbiblical Revelations, Linguistic Subversion, Theological Perversion, and Sociological Deviance — to expose the teachings and practices of Eastern Lightning, also known as The Church of Almighty God.

    Hank examines Eastern Lightning’s claim that Jesus Christ has been reincarnated as a female christ in China, its rejection of the Bible as outdated and unreliable, its subversion of biblical language, its denial of essential Christian doctrine, and its use of intimidation and threats to demand unwavering obedience.

    With millions of first-generation Christians worldwide vulnerable to false teaching, Hank explains why equipping Christian leaders to recognize and respond to movements such as Eastern Lightning is central to the worldwide work of the Christian Research Institute — and why a special issue of the Christian Research Journal is devoted to helping Christians contend for “the faith once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

    For more information about this special issue of the Christian Research Journal (48:02–03) The Eastern Lightning Cult: Christ Returns to Earth as a Female, click here.To receive this issue with your partnering gift, click here. https://www.equip.org/christian-research-journal/the-eastern-lighting-cult-christ-returns-to-earth-as-a-female-special-print-issue-48-02-03/

    For information on receiving the special dual-language “flip” edition — English and Chinese — click here.https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-special-dual-language-flip-english-and-chinese-print-issue-48-02-03-the-eastern-lighting-cult-christ-returns-to-earth-as-a-female-wa/


    Dig Deeper with Hank Unplugged — Hank Unplugged is a podcast brought to you by the Christian Research Institute, where Hank Hanegraaff takes you beyond the sound bites and into thoughtful, in-depth explorations of the critical issues confronting Christians today. Drawing on Scripture, history, theology, and culture, Hank equips listeners to think Christianly about the questions that matter most and to contend for “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).
    • Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.
    • Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.
    • You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.
    Show more Show less
    28 min
  • Sharia Law in the West? What Would Life Be Like? | Part 4

    Sharia Law in the West? What Would Life Be Like? | Part 4
    8 Oct 2026
    What would life in Western civilization look like under Islamic law (sharia)? In Part Four of his series on sharia, Hank Hanegraaff looks to Islamic Spain, where religion was law, and sharia governed both public and private life. He examines the consequences for religious freedom, women, art, music, intellectual inquiry, and those who lived as non-Muslims under Islamic rule.

    Hank also considers the modern West, where calls to accommodate aspects of sharia have raised fundamental questions about religious liberty, free speech, equality before the law, and the preservation of Western jurisprudence.

    Can Western civilization accommodate sharia practices that conflict with its own legal and cultural foundations? Understanding the history and implications of sharia is essential to answering that question.

    For a more comprehensive treatment, see Hank Hanegraaff’s MUSLIM: What You Need to Know About the World’s Fastest Growing Religion.

    https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-muslim-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-worlds-fastest-growing-religion-0926va/


    Dig Deeper with Hank Unplugged — Hank Unplugged is a podcast brought to you by the Christian Research Institute, where Hank Hanegraaff takes you beyond the sound bites and into thoughtful, in-depth explorations of the critical issues confronting Christians today. Drawing on Scripture, history, theology, and culture, Hank equips listeners to think Christianly about the questions that matter most and to contend for “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).
    • Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.
    • Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.
    • You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on
    Show more Show less
    18 min
  • Does Sharia Mandate War? | Part 3

    Does Sharia Mandate War? | Part 3
    1 Oct 2026
    In Part Three of his series on sharia law, Hank Hanegraaff examines what sharia has historically taught about jihad and warfare.

    Hank argues that Islamic jurisprudence has given warfare against non-Muslims a central place within sharia. He considers Qur’anic texts concerning fighting, the traditional division between the “house of Islam” and the “house of war,” and the rapid military expansion of Islam following the death of Muhammad.

    Hank then traces Islamic conquest from the Middle East and North Africa into Spain and Europe and challenges the popular portrayal of medieval Andalusia as a golden age of peaceful religious tolerance. Drawing on the work of historian Darío Fernández-Morera, he points instead to the persecution and killing of Christians under Muslim rule and asks why this history is so often minimized or recast.

    While jihad can refer to inward spiritual struggle, Sharia made armed expansion a religious duty.

    This is Part Three of an ongoing series on sharia. In the next podcast, Hank plans to examine the impact of sharia on Western civilization.

    For a more comprehensive treatment, see Hank Hanegraaff’s MUSLIM: What You Need to Know About the World’s Fastest Growing Religion.https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-muslim-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-worlds-fastest-growing-religion-0926va/


    Dig Deeper with Hank Unplugged — Hank Unplugged is a podcast brought to you by the Christian Research Institute, where Hank Hanegraaff takes you beyond the sound bites and into thoughtful, in-depth explorations of the critical issues confronting Christians today. Drawing on Scripture, history, theology, and culture, Hank equips listeners to think Christianly about the questions that matter most and to contend for “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).
    • Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.
    • Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.
    • You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.
    Show more Show less
    22 min
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet