Relentless Inquisitor

For this episode we are going to continue looking a people leaving the church. Some will say that walking away from the church also means leaving your faith behind. Is it true that when you leave the church you also abandonee your faith ? What are churches doing to address the issues of people leaving? Are they making excuses, and just applying a band-aid, or are they looking at what people say are the reasons and finding answers? So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

Reports of people leaving the evangelical church seem to be a common occurrence over the last decade. The stories share the theme in which young people feel the church's' ideals are out of date with the times. Is this the entire story or is there more? Do the doctrines of the church meet what people today expect? Do churches today follow the teachings of Jesus or have they gotten lost in 2000 years of tradition?  These are just a few of the questions that I hear people asking all the time. I wanted to find the reason why people are leaving the evangelical church and if they are leaving their faith behind also. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.Show Notes:https://www.christianpost.com/news/leaving-christianity-what-are-the-statistical-trends.html Outlaw Christian: Finding Authentic Faith by Breaking the 'Rules Jacqueline A. Bussie 2016 Thomas Nelson Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church Rachel Held Evans 2015 Thomas Nelson https://www.patheos.com/blogs/determinetruth/2022/01/evangelicalism-why-are-so-many-young-people-leaving-the-church-and-even-their-faith/ https://research.lifeway.com/2019/06/19/10-reasons-people-are-leaving-your-church/

Today, we will continue our talk about mental health for men and some of the issues many of us face. While researching information for this series, my son came into the office needing me to help with a video game he was playing. My son is my pride, joy, and an essential part of my life. He is the constant bright spot of my existence. At this point, I thought, why do we never hear about mental health and fatherhood. As fathers, we are under more pressure than ever when it comes to raising our children and being the examples for them we should. The role of fatherhood is constantly changing, and what used to be the norm is no longer the case. How can we care for our mental health to ensure we can give the best care to our children? What resources are out there for the father that is struggling? So join me for this episode as we look at mental health for today's father.Show Notes:https://mhanational.org/mental-health-and-new-father https://nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/December-2020/The-Mental-Health-of-the-Modern-Dad

Recently there has been a virial video on social media platforms such as Facebook, Tiktok, and Instagram talking about the terrible state of men's mental health. The video talks about several issues from the number of male suicides, how women potentially view men, and some of the stereotypes centered around how men deal with problems. I thought this would be a great topic to cover for our podcast. Personally there are time I do struggle with how to deal with problems and much of it steams from being a "man". So join us as we take a look at "Why is mental health a difficult subject for most men?Show Noteshttps://www.rtor.org/2021/03/05/negative-stereotypes-and-stigma-in-mental-health/https://happiful.com/toxic-stereotypes-detrimental-mens-mental-health/https://www.verywellmind.com/men-and-suicide-2328492https://www.choosingtherapy.com/mens-mental-health/https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/men-and-mental-healthhttps://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/mens-mental-ealth#common-conditions

Everyday when we look at or watch the news, there is a report about gun violence. I think we hear the same stories on what seems to be a sad, never-ending loop. Someone was shot and injured during a robbery, a woman was killed by her boyfriend or husband in a domestic issue, or, the most heart wrenching, a school shooting. According to NPR, there have been 27 schools shootings in the US as of May 25th 2022, including Uvalde, Texas. Why do other leading industrialized nations not have this problem? What makes America unique when it comes to gun violence? Those are just some of the questions we are going to at in what just might be the most controversial episode yet. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode.https://www.npr.org/2022/05/24/1101050970/2022-school-shootings-so-far https://www.bradyunited.org/key-statistics https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/firearm-deaths/index.html https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2022/new-report-highlights-us-2020-gun-related-deaths-highest-number-ever-recorded-by-cdc-gun-homicides-increase-by-more-than-one-third https://nypost.com/2022/05/26/guns-leading-cause-of-death-for-american-children-cdc-says/ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/02/03/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-u-s/ https://www.nraila.org/get-the-facts/gun-safety/

The United States has a very interesting situation when it comes to gun laws versus the rest of the world. In relation to the number of civilian-owned guns and population numbers, the US has 40% of the worlds supply of firearms, but only 4% of the population. It is clear that our country has lots of guns. Laws controlling the sale and possession of firearms exists at all levels of government federal, state, and local. Add the Second Amendment to the mix and the topic becomes clear as mud. In this episode we are going to look a the history of gun laws in the US on the federal level. How they started, how they have evolved over the years, and look at some current court cases that could set several presidencies for years to come. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.https://fflconsultinggroup.com/american-gun-laws-colonial-arms-regulation/https://time.com/5169210/us-gun-control-laws-history-timeline/https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4825&context=lcphttps://www.thoughtco.com/us-gun-control-timeline-3963620https://www.aicgs.org/2013/01/a-brief-history-of-the-evolution-of-gun-control-in-the-u-s/https://gun-control.procon.org/history-of-gun-control/

For this episode, we will discuss a subject that could be the most controversial one in America. Today's topic is firearms. Guns are one topic that I heavily debated on creating episodes around due to its nature, but this is the exact topic I had in mind when I started this podcast. For this episode, we will look at gun ownership in the US today. The laws vary differently between the federal, state, and local levels. We need to look at the numbers associated with gun ownership, including the demographics of who owns firearms and the number of guns in the hand of civilians. This will be an exciting series, to say the least, so sit back and enjoy the show.https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/06/19/there-are-more-guns-than-people-in-the-united-states-according-to-a-new-study-of-global-firearm-ownership/ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/09/13/key-facts-about-americans-and-guns/ https://wamu.org/story/20/09/18/how-many-people-in-the-u-s-own-guns/ https://ballotpedia.org/Firearm_registration_requirements_by_state https://news.gallup.com/poll/1645/guns.aspx

There is no doubt that charities are big business. Across the world there are probably thousands of different sizes, different missions, and different areas served. The two largest charitable foundations in the world have combined trust at over $120 billion US dollars. Novo Nordisk Foundation and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded almost $7 billion in grants in just 2020 alone. Then there are the small charities that support people on the local level such as Second Harvest Food Banks. This organization is made up of 200 local food banks that provide food and meals to more than 48 million people in the US. Helping those in need is an incredible mission and those people and companies that tackles these deserve accolades. There are questions about the impact they make in communities and if they are having the biggest impact for the cost. For this episode we are going to look at weather charities are using resource to make the biggest impact and how we as individuals can maximizes what we can do with our resources given to charities. So join me for today's episode as we look at the business of being a charity.

For this episode we are going talk about something that I think everyone would agree that this world needs more of, kindness. If you spend any time at all on social media you will see several stories or memes about helping others or motivation to help others. You will also see stories of the harm and evil that humans can do. There are times it seems the bad out weighs the good by a factor of ten or even one hundred. The situation might seem that kindness is a rarity today, but I do not think that is the case. Today we are going to look at several stories of kindness and the impact made by these acts. I also want to talk about how each of us can work in the local community to make things better. So join me for todays episode as we look to find a little kindness and ways we can be a little more kind.

For the last part on the series of grief, we are going to look at choosing the wrong path while working you way through a loss. Bad choices or behaviors can impede the grieving process and could lead to problems for us. Why do people take the wrong path? What should I avoid to not end up in a situation I do not like? What if I am thinking of taking my own life? This are the questions we are diving into on this episode.

Grieving well is an important part of dealing with a loss. We can take a path that will allow us to work through the tangled web of emotions that are experienced. For today's episode, we are going to look self care, setting boundaries, and finding the right kind of care while grieving.

Faith plays an important part in the grieving process for those who believe and participate in a religion. On this episode we are going to look at the effects that faith can have on grieve for someone who is a Christian. How does a Christian grieve? Should I keep my faith even thought I am hurting? Are there resources to help a hurting Christian? These are some of the questions we are going to examine in this episode.

A little over two months have past since the Ukrainian invasion and many things are different from those first few weeks. Many thought the Russian military would easily overrun Ukrainian forces, but that has not been the case. The people of Ukraine showed a resistance that many thought did not exist, including both the Russian and US military. The involvement from other nations remains the same with seeking sacatons against Moscow, supplying resources to Ukraine, but also avoiding becoming involved in the conflict. On this episode we are going to look what has changed in the invasion since it started in February. What can the world expected to happen as the conflict continues? Could this lead to WWII? What about a nuclear response? These are just some of the questions we are going to look. So join us for this look at where the Ukrainian and Russian conflict could lead.Show Links https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-news-03-22-22/h_4aa55d4c2ec98e8dc098fb1c481560db https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/world/europe/ukraine-air-force-russia.html https://news.yahoo.com/ukrainian-forces-fight-back-territory-185825833.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9kdWNrZHVja2dvLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAALC_K7PyRjDze5W2zpbJM3K0wCX8tpXwCl24Qba63iUxk063cIcz88lUbvGs_aGStmxhMltcGGhDyYXf54n6r6mzBPaIRSAHW-U4OZEoBdD6DvDRDv9tOkEnYYSPRO3klWEEXs_RZgvkyGHz2EaAz5sLT_SvoU-_72j8aeEdX9JK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine https://www.cbsnews.com/news/conflict-nuclear-warfare-ukraine-russia/

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has increased tensions between the world and Russia to levels not seen since the Cold War. This has created the most dangerous struggle between Moscow and NATO in 30 years. While Russia and Ukraine have history that that dates back hundreds of year, people question what is the motivation behind these actions. The theories range from Vladimir Putin wanting to rebuild the Soviet Union to supporting the disputed areas of western Ukraine. While the conflict continues, we may never know the real reason behind it. Today we are going to look into several of the possible reasons and what the outcomes might be. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.Show Links https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/russia-and-ukraine-the-tangled-history-that-connects-and-divides-them https://www.nytimes.com/article/russia-ukraine-nato-europe.html https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56720589

We all have to face situations where life gets in the way sometimes. My schedule in recent weeks has been packed with events from my job, family, and life in general. I did not have time to complete the research, record, and edit what would have been the topic for this episode. While I had a couple of options for this week, a new idea for a series came to me while listening to a podcast on a flight home to NC. As a collection of people, we need to look at historical figures, key events in their lifetime, and how they relate to today's lives. I have always been a history nerd. Besides math, history was my favorite topic during school, and I still find it fascinating. Join me on this first episode of looking at historical figures and how certain events helped them shape history.Show Links:https://librarycompany.org/2020/04/23/pandemic-reading-small-pox/https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2653186/

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has added to prices increases for oil and fuel all over the world. Prices have been a steady rise during the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. What were the reasons for prices to hit record levels after the invasion? Does President Biden control oil prices? Did he stop oil production in the US? Why are we not producing more oil and making more fuel? These are just a few of questions we will look at on this episode. Let's get started.Show Links:https://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/08/determining-oil-prices.asphttps://www.republicworld.com/world-news/russia-ukraine-crisis/explained-how-russia-ukraine-war-could-affect-gas-prices-in-us-and-europe-articleshow.htmlhttps://www.cnn.com/2022/03/12/energy/us-gas-prices-russia-oil/index.htmlhttps://www.vox.com/22959903/russia-ukraine-oil-gas-price-europe-us-exports-climate-changehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keystone_Pipeline#Phase_4_(canceled)https://www.nrdc.org/stories/what-keystone-pipeline#whatishttps://www.factcheck.org/2022/03/examining-u-s-energy-independence-claims/

Faith and grieve have been intertwined in the American culture for  centuries, but what happens when you do not have faith or practice a religion. Continuing with the series about losing someone, today's episode will look at grieving without faith. The percentage of the US population that identifies as non-religious continues to increase. How does this impact how people grief? How will this affect how we respond to those grieving?  These are just a couple of the questions we will look at in this episode.

We are continuing the discussion about grieving a loss. We look at some of the common symptoms of grief and how we might be affected by them as individuals. Everyone's experience will be unique, because we are individuals. I will discuss the stages of grief that a person will go through on this journey. Lastly, we want to talk about how mental health and the loss process are intertwined.

Losing someone we love is the most harrowing experience that most people will face during a lifetime. This is also the event people are the least equipped to deal with.  In this episode, we are going to look at what grief is, the signs of grief, and how death is a modern industry in the US. I will also share my grief journey after the death of my first wife at the age of 34.

In this episode, we will continue our discussion about American politics and how large of a division it has caused. Previously we talked in-depth about the development of political parties in America and the historical divide in Washington. We will look at the spine today and what impact has made on how people vote. We'll offer some advice on how to survive a topic that is so polarizing.

Is politics the topic that causes the most prominent division among Americans today? The majority of people would answer yes. It seems that every issue that arises today takes a political spin. With 24-hour instant news access and social media, information is transmitted faster than ever before, yet it seems we have lost integrity in that information. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram make it easier to share your opinion while not coming face to face with those you are communicating.In this episode, we will look at the history of the political parties in America and how they have been the cause of division. We will also discuss one of the darkest political events in US history that most people have never heard of, the Wilmington insurrection of 1898.

For most Christian's doubt is a complex topic to tackle. Since childhood, many have been told that doubt was a sin and even subject is taboo in many churches. Is this the case? We need to look at doubt from the historical and biblical standpoint of the first-century church and how the topic would apply to modern Christianity.

In our first episode, we are going to look at the details of this podcast. What is this podcast about? Who is it for? Even the name of this podcast will need some explanation. We'll cover all those items on this first episode of The Relentless Inquisitor.

September 11th, 2001 will be remembered as the day America felt an act of ultimate evil, and 2,977 innocent souls lost their lives. Our nation was forever changed that day, but America showed what her people are made of immediately after the events. Through the darkness, we let love and kindness shine as a beacon for the world to see. Now 20 years later, where are we as a nation? Twenty years after the defining event of my generation, where are we as a country?

Are you the type of person who wants to ask challenging questions, yet finds it hard to do? The Relentless Inquisitor podcast is the show designed for you. In every episode, we will explore the topics that everyone seems hesitant to ask.