Breakpoint Podcast: "We Want to Believe"

Host: John Stonestreet
Date: February 27, 2026
Description: A daily dose of sanity—applying a Christian worldview to culture, politics, movies, and more.

Episode Overview

In this episode, John Stonestreet explores humanity’s enduring desire to believe in things beyond what can be seen or scientifically explained. Using historical and contemporary examples—from the Cottingly fairies to AI-manipulated images—he examines why both the credulous and the highly intelligent are often drawn in by the supernatural, hoaxes, or spiritual fads. Stonestreet connects these phenomena to deeper truths about human longing, spirituality, and the hope that exists beyond the material world, situating them within a Christian worldview.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Cottingly Fairies Incident

• Background: Two young girls staged photos of “fairies” in 1920, fooling not only the public but also respected thinkers like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ([00:01]-[01:36]).
  • Quote: “The fairy pictures look so real. In fact, they even convinced none other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the author of the famously Sherlock Holmes stories.” – John Stonestreet ([01:11])
• Decades later, one girl confessed it was a prank using paper cutouts from a children's book, but the images had already captivated a generation.

2. Why Do Intelligent People Believe?

• Conan Doyle’s belief was not mere credulity; he was a grieving father who longed for hope, particularly after the loss of his son in World War I ([01:37]-[02:30]).
  • Quote: “Perhaps most importantly, he’d lost a son during the First World War. The prank gave him hope that perhaps there was something beyond this world, and if so, it could mean he might see his boy again.” ([01:50])
• The human longing for something beyond this world—whether driven by grief or curiosity—can make even the rational susceptible to fantasy.

3. The Persistence of Spiritual Longing in a Skeptical Age

• Despite predictions that science and technology would diminish spirituality, interest in the supernatural persists—seen in spiritual fads, new practices, and metaphysical beliefs ([02:31]-[03:10]).

  • Quote: “People remain curious about things they wish to be true and end up being drawn to a hodgepodge of spiritual practices. And even if they don't really make sense, they can't really be proven wrong.” ([02:40])

• The decline of formal religion hasn’t erased spiritual searching; rather, spiritual vulnerability remains a distinctly human trait.

  • Quote: “As it turns out, people are simply spiritually vulnerable creatures.” ([03:07])

4. The Christian Perspective on Longing and Reality

• Stonestreet suggests these longings are not simply foolishness or escapism, but reflections of being made “with eternity in our hearts” ([03:11]-[04:19]).
  • Quote: “After all, humans are made with eternity in our hearts, what Romans describes as things that are eternal but we inherently know about.” ([03:25])
• Grief, for example, is not irrational if death is seen as wrong and unnatural—a viewpoint rooted in Christian belief about the world’s fall and the hope for more.

5. Misguided Spirituality as Evidence of Real Desire

• Many traditions and spiritual practices emerge because of a real, God-given longing for transcendence.

• The problem isn’t the longing, but its misdirection without the “clarifying light of God’s truth” ([04:20]-[05:08]).

  • Quote: “Without the clarifying light of God's truth, we'll stumble around in the darkness. And yet, even as we stumble, the longing persists. And even that points to the higher reality.” ([04:38])

• C.S. Lewis Reference: "If we find in ourselves a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we're made for another world." ([04:53])

6. The Christian Call to Engage Spiritual Seekers

• Stonestreet draws a parallel with the Athenians in Acts 17, pointing to their altar to an “unknown God” as evidence of an unfulfilled, but genuine spiritual search ([05:09]-[05:30]).
  • Quote: “Our spiritually minded and tempted neighbors are a lot like the Athenians that Luke describes in Acts 17. They have all kinds of altars, even one to an unknown God. Yet they somehow know that there's more. They don't know where to look.” ([05:13])
• Christians are called to step into this space, offering truth to those searching for something more.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Humanity’s Longing:
  “We want to believe that there's more to this world. We want to know that reality is not limited to just what we can see.” – John Stonestreet ([04:10])

• On Spiritual Vulnerability:
  “People are simply spiritually vulnerable creatures.” ([03:07])

• C.S. Lewis Quotation:
  "If we find in ourselves a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we’re made for another world." ([04:53])

Key Timestamps

• 00:01–01:36: The Cottingly fairies incident and its impact
• 01:37–02:30: The psychology behind belief—Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s story
• 02:31–03:10: Modern spiritual longings and practices
• 03:11–04:19: Theological reflection on human longing and Christian hope
• 04:20–05:08: The dangers of misdirected spirituality; need for God’s truth
• 05:09–05:30: The Christian calling to engage seekers

Conclusion

John Stonestreet’s “We Want to Believe” episode reveals the profound and persistent human longing for eternity and transcendence, even in a skeptical age. Through historical anecdotes and scriptural insights, he argues this longing points not to foolishness, but to our true design and hope. Christians, he asserts, are uniquely placed to respond to this search for meaning with the truth of the Gospel.