Podcasts about gods

Hear Gods Voice Loud and Clear—NO MORE CONFUSION | Blessed Morning Prayer To Start Your Day With GodSUBSCRIBE to catch all the latest prayers uploaded to the Daily Effective Prayer Podcast!For more powerful daily prayers and to connect with the ministry visit:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org© Copyright DailyEffectivePrayer.com  SUPPORT THE MINISTRY: (We are listener-supported)https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/donate/ DO YOU NEED PRAYER? Send us a prayer request right now:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/prayer-request-online/ CONNECT WITH US:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/connectYouTube (1M+ SUBSCRIBERS)X / TwitterInstagram ThreadsInstagramFacebook Daily Effective Prayer™

This week on MYTH, we're riding back to the court of the legendary King Arthur for the next part of his story. You'll learn that rules are meaningless to the rich, that magic swords are awesome, and that Merlin always has the next plot hook. Then, in Gods and Monsters, Mr. Vinegar is going to learn a lesson in financial security. Source: Arthurian Legend

Audiobooks and Meditationshttps://www.hightimelineliving.com/audiobooksBuy Thomas a Coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/funastrologyThank you!"One of the Internet's top podcasts on Subconscious Mind Programming!" https://www.millionpodcasts.com/subconscious-podcasts/

What if the “supernatural” parts of Scripture weren’t the exceptions… but the assumed backdrop? What if we have been reading the supernatural part of Scripture wrong? In this conversation, Joel Muddamalle will unpack the worldview behind The Unseen Battle (building on Michael Heiser’s The Unseen Realm) and ask a provocative question: Have modern Christians unintentionally normalized a naturalistic reading of the Bible? *Joel will also return LIVE on March 24 at 4:30 PM PST to take questions, objections, and challenges—especially for those engaging Michael Heiser’s work for the first time. READ: The Unseen Battle, by Joel Muddamalle (https://amzn.to/3ZOUaG7) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

This week Jolenta does a deep dive on The Fool archetype and his evil alter-ego, The Derelict. Fools show up a lot in reality TV, from Lisa Barlow to Craig Conover. And of course she's gonna profile the crown-prince of foolishness: Summer House's Kyle Cooke. Hot Mess-terpiece Insta SOURCES Greek Mythology, Robert Garland The Greek Myths, Robert Graves Dictionary of Classical Mythology, by Pierre Grimal Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes, by Edith Hamilton 45 Master Characters, by Victoria Lynn Schmidt Bravo Shows - Peacock Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's episode, Johnnette Williams takes us through the steps of receiving Gods grace! Listeners call in wondering about liturgy and bread of life discourse.

On today's episode, Johnnette Williams takes us through the steps of receiving Gods grace! Listeners call in wondering about liturgy and bread of life discourse.

Listen Ad Free https://www.solgoodmedia.com - Listen to hundreds of audiobooks, thousands of short stories, and ambient sounds all ad free!

Sign up HERE to get on the waitlist for Coaching Club and the Smut Club Book Club. This week on Smut Club Chelsea and Hannah are reviewing Gods and Graves by Katie May.You can find every episode of Smut Club at www.smutclubpodcast.com

We are joined by podcaster extraordinaire, Eteng Ettah, as we dive into urban legends submitted by you, our Conspiriters! From after-school haunted shenanigans, to a make-up stealing ghost (Sephora is EXPENSIVE), this episode has a little bit of something for everyone. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, elder abuse and manipulation, hanging, suicide, family death, weight discussion, mental health struggles, injury, car accidents, arson, and illness. GuestEteng Ettah was raised by Nigerian immigrants and MTV. Based in NYC, she currently hosts Consider This For Comfort, where she breaks down why your favorite comfort TV shows are your favorite comfort TV shows.She is a narrative and creative strategist with a deep love for storytelling and culture. With over a decade of experience, she's helped nonprofits, media orgs, and brands bring their missions to life through smart strategy, compelling narratives, and audience-first communications. Whether she's shaping a campaign, building meaningful partnerships, or weighing in on pop culture, Eteng's work lives at the intersection of strategy, storytelling, and pop culture commentary. Her commentary and analysis have been featured across a range of platforms, including the BlackStar Film Festival, Scalawag Magazine, NPR Stateside, Free Speech TV, New York Amsterdam News, WGN-TV and more.Housekeeping- Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests' books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books- Call to Action: Send in those urban legend emails!- Submit Your Urban Legends Audio: Call us! 617-420-2344Minneapolis Spotlight- Purchase the No ICE in Minnesota bundle on Itch.io to help raise funds for Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota and get over 1400 TTRPGs.Find Us Online- Website & Transcripts: spiritspodcast.com- Patreon: patreon.com/spiritspodcast- Merch: spiritspodcast.com/merch- Instagram: instagram.com/spiritspodcast- Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/spiritspodcast.com- Twitter: twitter.com/spiritspodcast- Tumblr: spiritspodcast.tumblr.comCast & Crew- Co-Hosts: Julia Schifini and Amanda McLoughlin- Editor: Bren Frederick- Music: Brandon Grugle, based on "Danger Storm" by Kevin MacLeod- Artwork: Allyson Wakeman- Multitude: multitude.productionsAbout UsSpirits is a boozy podcast about mythology, legends, and folklore. Every episode, co-hosts Julia and Amanda mix a drink and discuss a new story or character from a wide range of places, eras, and cultures. Learn brand-new stories and enjoy retellings of your favorite myths, served over ice every week, on Spirits.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the loudest stories about the future—AI gods, Mars colonies, digital immortality—aren't science at all, but science fiction masquerading as inevitability? In this episode of The Radical Candor Podcast, Kim Scott and Amy Sandler are joined by science journalist and astrophysicist Adam Becker (PhD in computational cosmology), author of More Everything Forever. Adam breaks down the “big three” myths that dominate Silicon Valley's imagination: space colonization, superintelligent god-like AI, and the singularity. He explains why both the utopian and apocalyptic versions of AI stories often share the same assumption—unimaginable AI power—and why that assumption doesn't match reality. They also explore the deeper pattern underneath these myths: the belief that every problem can be solved with technology (usually computer technology), even when the barriers are political and social—collective action, persuasion, solidarity, and power. Along the way, Adam shares how he stayed sane while writing about “seriously disturbing ideas,” and why reconnecting with the natural world (and real human relationships) is a necessary antidote to screen-mediated life. If you've ever felt overwhelmed by the “AI will save us” vs. “AI will doom us” debate, this conversation offers a clearer, more grounded frame—and a reminder that being human matters. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Website⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠ Resources for show notes: ⁠Adam Becker's website⁠ ⁠More, Everything, Forever book page⁠ ⁠Adam Becker on Star Talk podcast⁠ ⁠Dave Troy presents: Understanding TESCREAL with Dr. Timnit Gebru and Émile Torres⁠ ⁠Why Silicon Valley's Most Powerful People Are So Obsessed With Hobbits⁠ Referenced in conversation: Blade Runner (as an example of dystopian sci-fi being misunderstood) Star Wars / Jabba the Hutt (as an example of misreading stories) Lord of the Rings / Palantír (as a cautionary reference) Jurassic Park (“they didn't stop to consider whether they should”) Public libraries (as a civic good worth supporting) Chapters: (00:00) Introduction Kim and Amy welcome Adam Becker to unpack Silicon Valley's stories about the future. (06:06) The Myths Driving Tech Ideology Space colonization, superintelligent AI, and the singularity—and why they don't hold up. (11:52) When Sci-Fi Turns into Strategy How dystopian stories get misread as roadmaps (Palantir, “Torment Nexus,” and more). (15:06) More Everything Forever Why endless expansion feels inevitable in tech—and why Adam argues it's flawed. (21:24) “Can” vs. “Should” Why tech leaders dodge both questions—and what that reveals about power. (23:19) You Can't Escape Politics by Going to Space Why “Mars as a reset button” is a fantasy—and politics follows humans everywhere. (33:22) AI Doom vs. AI Utopia Why both narratives rely on the same shaky assumption about “AGI.” (37:21) Solidarity as a Counterbalance Why labor organizing matters when leadership values diverge from workers' values. (41:02) “AGI Will Fix Climate” Why betting on future AI while burning more energy now is a dangerous logic trap. (01:03:50) Conclusion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Smokey the Bear and Woodsy Owl tried to warn us…..but still, in Prophecy and Food of the Gods, mankind has to learn the hard way not to fool with Mother Nature – she will f*** you up! #prophecy #foodofthegods #majoregortner #Klondikebar #mutantfam #horrorfam

...It's Erich Von Däniken. In the 1960's a Swiss hotelier wrote a book that changed how millions see the past—and how pop culture tells stories about it. We revisit the wild trajectory of Chariots of the Gods, the “ancient aliens” hypothesis it popularized, and the uncomfortable roots that made its rise possible. Then we pull the camera back: how the Space Age, New Age mysticism, and a collapsing trust in old narratives set the stage for infotainment, speculative nonfiction, and a meme that just won't die.

LES 49Gods Stem spreekt tot mij, heel de dag.Het is heel goed mogelijk de hele dag te luisteren naar Gods Stem zonder je gewone bezigheden op enigerlei wijze te onderbreken. Dat deel van je denkgeest waarin de waarheid woont, staat in voortdurende communicatie met God, of jij je hiervan nu bewust bent of niet. Het andere deel van je denkgeest functioneert in de wereld en gehoorzaamt de wetten van de wereld. Het is dit deel dat constant afgeleid, ontregeld en uiterst onzeker is.Het deel dat luistert naar de Stem namens God is kalm, altijd in rust en volkomen zeker. Het is in werkelijkheid het enige deel dat er is. Het andere deel is een ongebreidelde illusie, uitzinnig en verscheurd, maar zonder enige vorm van werkelijkheid. Probeer er vandaag niet naar te luisteren. Probeer je met dat deel van je denkgeest te vereenzelvigen waar voor altijd stilheid en vrede heerst. Probeer te horen dat Gods Stem jou liefdevol roept en je eraan herinnert dat jouw Schepper Zijn Zoon niet heeft vergeten.We zullen vandaag minstens vier, maar mogelijk meer oefenperioden van vijf minuten nodig hebben. We zullen proberen werkelijk Gods Stem te horen die jou aan Hem en aan je Zelf herinnert. We zullen deze hoogst vreugdevolle en hoogst heilige gedachte met vertrouwen tegemoet treden, in de wetenschap dat we hiermee onze wil verbinden met de Wil van God. Hij wil dat jij Zijn Stem hoort. Hij gaf jou die om te worden gehoord.Luister in diepe stilte. Wees heel stil en stel je denkgeest open. Ga aan alle schrille kreten en ziekelijke fantasieën voorbij die jouw werkelijke gedachten verhullen en je eeuwige verbinding met God versluieren. Verzink diep in de vrede die jou voorbij de uitzinnige, rumoerige gedachten, taferelen en geluiden van deze waanzinnige wereld wacht. Hier woon jij niet. We proberen jouw werkelijke thuis te bereiken. We proberen de plek te bereiken waar jij werkelijk welkom bent. We proberen God te bereiken.Vergeet niet het idee van vandaag heel vaak te herhalen. Doe dit waar nodig met je ogen open, maar waar mogelijk met je ogen dicht. En zorg dat je rustig zit en het idee van vandaag herhaalt wanneer je maar kunt, waarbij je je ogen voor de wereld sluit en je realiseert dat je Gods Stem uitnodigt om tot jou te spreken.Alle tekst- werk en handboek klassen van Een Cursus in Wonderen met Elbert nu te beluisteren en te bekijken op https://decursusmetelbert.nl

Welcome back to DM-Nastics - the gym for Dungeon Masters to work out their minds! Content: Things get weird and we love it! Inspiration: Weird Gods Exercise: Get Weird With Gods Supplement: Stranger Things: D&D: Tales from the Table Twitter: @DMs_Block DM Neal's @joatmoniac DM Celeste's @cconowitch BlueSky: @dmsblock.bsky.social Discord: https://bit.ly/DMBanter Intro/Outro provided by: @bomBARDedcast Check them out at bombardedcast.com

The Greek Tyron means "conscript." This holy Martyr of Christ came from Pontus and was a Roman legionary during Maximian's persecution (~303). Though he had been a Christian since childhood, he kept his faith secret while in the army. While his cohort was stationed near a town called Euchaita, he learned that the people there were being terrorized by a dragon which lived in the neighboring forest. He set off to face the dragon, praying to God that the outcome of the contest would be a sign to him of whether the time had come to offer himself for martyrdom. He found the fire-spitting monster and, arming himself with the sign of the Cross, drove his spear through its head and killed it.   His success convinced him that, having vanquished this fleshly dragon, he was ready to vanquish the spiritual dragon, the Devil. When the commander of his camp next ordered a sacrifice to the Gods, Theodore boldly refused, saying "I am a Christian!" Further, he encouraged the other Christians in his company to do the same. That night he went to a nearby pagan temple of Rhea, mother of the gods, and burned it down. He was seen by the caretaker of the temple and was brought unresisting to the governor Publius. Theodore was thrown into a solitary dungeon cell; there he refused bread and water, saying that Christ had promised him food from heaven. He spent his time there chanting hymns with the angels, so that the guards were convinced that other Christians had somehow joined him in his cell.   When all argument, cajolery, bribery and threat had failed to turn the soldier from Christ, the governor resorted to torture, subjecting the Saint to terrible mutilations; but when Theodore endured them calmly and resolutely, the governor began to fear that his example would encourage other Christians, and ordered that he be burned. Taken to the stake, the Martyr walked freely into the flames, where he gave back his soul to God. When his body was ransomed and taken from the ashes by a pious Christian, it was found to be untouched. A church was built in Euchaita in honor of the Martyr; many pilgrims came there for the healing of soul and body.   In 361, the Emperor Julian the Apostate ordered the Prefect of Constantinople to have all foods in the marketplaces sprinkled with blood of animals sacrificed to the pagan gods during the first week of Lent, so that Christians would be unable to escape contact with idolatry. But St Theodore appeared in a vision to Patriarch Eudoxius (360-364), warned him of the plan and told him to instruct his flock not to buy any food in the marketplace, but to eat kolyva made from boiled wheat grains. So, through the Saint's intervention, the people were preserved from the stain of idolatry. Ever since, the Church has commemorated the miracle on the first Saturday of Great Lent. Since that time kolyva has come to be offered also in honor of the Saints and in memory of the departed. The whole grain represents the body, sown corruptible, which will be raised incorruptible (2 Cor. 15:37); it is usually sweetened with honey to signify the delights of Paradise.

What are all these colors doing in my DC movie? They rebooted the universe and made a brand new Superman on Harmless Phosphorescence!   Support the show and get early access and exclusive content at  https://www.patreon.com/harmlessentertainment   https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEDmdtUAW_pJYCJfaZV7Unw/live   https://www.reddit.com/r/harmlessentertainment   Buy some Merch! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/attention-hellmart-shoppers   Check out Executive Producer Michael Beckwith's movie website at https://upallnightmovies.com/   Ranked: #4   RANKINGS   1 Endgame 2 Spider-Man No Way Home 3 Infinity War 4 Superman 2025 5 Logan 6 Deadpool & Wolverine 7 Captain America: Civil War 8 The Avengers 9 The Dark Knight 10 THE Suicide Squad 11 Thor Ragnarok 12 Guardians of the Galaxy vol 3 13 Black Panther 14 Iron Man 15 Captain America: The Winter Soldier 16 Guardians of the Galaxy vol 2 17 Guardians of the Galaxy 18 Batman Begins 19 Batman 89 20 Spider-Man 2 21 Spider-Man Homecoming 22 Spider-Man Far From Home 23 Black Panther: Wakanda Forever 24 Thunderbolts* 25 Thor: Love and Thunder 26 Deadpool 2 27 Deadpool 28 The Batman 29 Captain America: The First Avenger 30 Spider-Man 31 X-Men: Days of Future Past 32 Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness 33 Shang-Chi 34 Joker 35 Captain Marvel 36 Ant-Man 37 Blue Beetle 38 Black Widow 39 Ant-Man and the Wasp 40 Eternals 41 Avengers: The Age of Ultron 42 Birds Of Prey 43 Wonder Woman 1984 44 Wonder Woman 45 Iron Man 3 46 The Dark Knight Rises 47 Superman 1978 48 The Marvels 49 Dr Strange 50 Thor 51 Kick-Ass 52 X-Men First Class 53 Hellboy 54 X2 55 Darkman 56 Iron Man 2 57 Swamp Thing 58 Hellboy II: The Golden Army 59 Watchmen 60 X-Men 2000 61 Batman Returns 62 Blade 63 Defendor 64 Unbreakable 65 The Crow 66 Batman 66 67 Orgazmo 68 Superman II 69 Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania 70 Shazam! 71 Thor: The Dark World 72 The Wolverine 73 Superman Returns 74 Blade II 75 Mystery Men 76 Super 77 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 78 Venom: The Last Dance 79 Chronicle 80 Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance 81 Man of Steel 82 Venom: Let There Be Carnage 83 The Green Hornet 84 The Incredible Hulk 85 Sky High 86 The Mask 87 Constantine 88 The New Mutants 89 The Rocketeer 90 Superman III 91 Buffy the Vampire Slayer 92 The Return of Swamp Thing 93 The Flash 94 Shazam! Fury of the Gods 95 Superhero Movie 96 Blade Trinity 97 Batman V Superman: Dawn of justice 98 Venom 99 Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom 100 Captain America: Brave New World 101 Black Adam 102 Fantastic Four: The Rise of Silver Surfer 103 Hancock 104 Fantastic Four 105 Madame Web 106 Blankman 107 Supergirl 108 The Crow 2024 109 Hellboy 2019 110 Power Rangers 111 The Meteor Man 112 Justice League 113 X-Men Last Stand 114 Van Helsing 115 Spiderman 3 116 The Amazing Spider-Man 117 TMNT2 118 Superman and the Mole Men 119 Green Lantern 120 Ghost Rider 121 TMNT3 122 Hero At Large 123 Push 124 Jumper 125 Condorman 126 Howard The Duck 127 Aquaman 128 Punisher: War Zone 129 Toxic Avenger Part II 130 TMNT: OOTS 131 TMNT14 132 Hulk 133 Bloodshot 134 Daredevil 135 The Crow: City of Angels 136 The Punisher 04 137 The Punisher 89 138 Batman Forever 139 Kick Ass 2 140 Steel 141 Glass 142 The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen 143 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 144 X-Men: Apocalypse 145 Split 146 Suicide Squad 147 Brightburn 148 X-Men Origins: Wolverine 149 The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 150 Sgt Kabukiman NYPD 151 The Phantom 152 Toxic Avenger 153 The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers 154 The Shadow 155 The Toxic Avenger Part III 156 Spawn 157 Batman and Robin 158 Elektra 159 Morbius 160 My Super Ex-Girlfriend 161 Zoom 162 Underdog 163 Catwoman 164 The Spirit 165 Jonah Hex 166 Fant4stic 167 Max Steel 168 Superman IV: The Quest For Peace 169 Dark Phoenix 170 Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV 171 Fast Color 172 Joker Folie a deux 173 Kraven The Hunter 174 Archenemy 175 Son of the Mask 176 The Crow: Wicked Prayer 177 Super Capers 178 All Superheroes Must Die

Welcome to the Primordial Radio Podcast! It's a personal one this week, as the guys take time out on the podcast to just catch up. Listen to Primordial Radio 24/7

Hour of destiny daily devotional is a daily spiritual food for inspiration, impartation, guidance, and nourishment for God children. This message from Rev. Mike Eniola offers christian motivation and serves as a morning prayer to start your day. It is one of Gods ways of speaking to His children daily about their lives, family, and job, providing christian inspiration through the bible.Connect with us on our official channels.https://www.instagram.com/hourofdestinyTiktok- tiktok.com/@hour.of.destinyYouTube - https://youtube.com/‎⁨@hourofdestiny⁩7

An Aquarian Solar Eclipse, tightly square Uranus, highlights the second half of February. Other high-impact events include Mercury turning retrograde, a peaking "Gods of Change + Saturn" Minor Grand Trine, Saturn conjunct Neptune, Mars square Uranus, and more. And I announce February's free session winner! Resources Two eclipses are right around the corner: a February 17 Solar Eclipse and a March 3 Lunar Eclipse. And the "Gods of Change" outer planets, partnering with Saturn, beckon to you with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.      Discover how all this lights up your unique horoscope. Partner with these epic energies to master your challenges and take your life to the next level!      Book an Astrology+ reading with me now, so you're ready to optimize your eclipse opportunities! (Watching your pennies? Feel free to use my sliding scale!)  Law of Attraction  The Archetypal Universe by Renn Butler My 170+ Google reviews, with an average 5-star rating Deep Dive Trauma Healing. Your potent opportunity for profound personal transformation. An intensive multi-day experience, online or in person. My Amazon #1 bestseller: Instant Divine Assistance: Your Complete Guide to Fast and Easy Spiritual Awakening, Healing, and More. Available as an eBook, paperback, hardcover, and audiobook starting at $3.99, and included with Kindle Unlimited.  Learn my invocations for healing and awakening in my FREE life-transforming video: Instant Divine Assistance: Your Free Guide to Fast and Easy Awakening, Healing, and More. Let my Awakening Plus membership help you awaken, heal, connect, and thrive! "This Week in Astrology" Free Session Entry. (2 chances each month to win a free session with me!) My forecasts in writing. My services: Astrology+, Energy Healing & Spiritual Guidance, life coaching, Deep Dive Trauma Healing, and more. Watch the February 16-28 forecast video. Segment start times: 1:53 - Solar eclipse in Aquarius (2/17) 8:35 - Peak of "Gods of Change + Saturn" Minor Grand Trine (2/22) 30:34 - Saturn conjunct Neptune (2/20) 32:01 - Mercury retrograde (2/26) 33:32 - Mars square Uranus (2/27) 34:38 - Thor's Hammer starts (2/24) 35:52 - Sun enters Pisces (2/18) 36:17 - Coming March 1-15 Chronological Event Listing As of February 16… The Moon is waning.  Jupiter is retrograde thru 3/10. The "Gods of Change" Uranus-Neptune-Pluto Minor Grand Trine continues thru 9/6/2029. (Saturn's involvement continues through 4/16/2026.) Whatever your Sun Sign, my forecasts can help you make the best use of the current astrological energies. All dates and times are in the U.S. eastern time zone. Events are most powerful on the dates listed, but their influence will be active for at least a week before and after. Everyone is affected by these global transits. However, you'll be most powerfully impacted when moving planets activate sensitive points in your natal chart. Discover how these transits will personally affect you by booking a session with me. May the stars light your way, Benjamin

ACOFAE Podcast Presents: Mockingjay Part 1 - The movie: "Everything old can be new again...like democracy." Remember when watching this movie was a form of escapism? Remember when the concept of the Hunger Games was horrifying and parents were up in arms? Remember all that? Good. Watch it again. ACOFAE is continuing the watch of The Hunger Games series with the third movie, Mockingjay: Part 1. Filled with a cast that is beyond talented, Katniss is struggling with her new life in District 13, after she was rescued from the Games. Peeta is a hostage of the Capital, and is not doing well and Katniss has to rally the people for revolution. With propos. That she isn't very good at. What follows is Katniss' journey of working through the scheming and the politics of 13, dealing with Snow and his cruelty, and figuring out her place in this new district. Hoorah? "Not one to waste it in rehearsal."

We had a chaotic start to the morning, Croat Nat got a bit too silly last night and was 15 minutes late to the show. There is also breaking bee news, last week both Kyle and Jackie had bee's land on them and Jackie wasn't too happy when Bruno tried to squash her 'little Gods'. All in all, it was quite a silly show! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode, we talk about two monumental projects that were started in this reign.  One was the historiographical project that likely led to the creation of the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki.  And then there was the start of the first permanent capital city:  the Fujiwara Capital. Listen to the episode and find more on our website:  https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-143   Rough Transcript   Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua and this is Episode 143: Temmu's Monumental Projects     Ohoama sat astride his horse and looked out at the land in front of him.   He could still see the image of the rice fields, now long fallow, spreading out on the plain.  To the north, east, and west, he could see the mountains that would frame his vision.  As his ministers started to rattle off information about the next steps of the plan, Ohoama began to smile.  He thought of the reports his embassies to the Great Tang had brought back, about the great walled cities of the continent.  In his mind's eye, Ohoama envisioned something similar, rising up on the plain in front of him. There would be an earth and stone wall, surrounding the great city.  The gates would be grand, much like the temples, but on an even greater scale.  Houses would be packed in tight, each within their own walled compounds.  In the center painted red and white, with green accents, would be a palace to rival any other structure in the archipelago.  The people would stream in, and the city would be bustling with traffic. This was a new center, from which the power of Yamato would be projected across the islands and even to the continent.   Greetings everyone, and welcome back.  This episode we are still focused on the reign of Ohoama, aka Temmu Tennou, between the years 672 and 686. Last episode we talked about the Four Great Temples—or the Four National Temples.  Much of this episode was focused on the rise and spread of Buddhism as we see in the building of these national temples, but also on the changes that occurred as the relationship between Buddhism and the State evolved.  This was part of Ohoama's work to build up the State into something beyond what it had been in the past—or perhaps into something comparable to what they believed it to have been in the past.  After all, based on the size of the tomb mounds in the kofun period, it does seem that there was a peak of prosperity in the 5th century, around the time of Wakatakeru, aka Yuryaku Tennou, and then a decline, to the point that the lineage from Wohodo, aka Keitai Tennou, seemed to have come in during a time when they were rebuilding Yamato power and authority. This episode we are going to talk about two projects that Ohoama kicked off during his reign.  He wouldn't see the completion of either one, since both took multiple decades to complete, but both focused on linking the past and the future.  The first we'll talk about is a new attempt to gather historical documents and records—the last time that was done was in the time of Kashikiya Hime, over 50 years ago.  That was during the height of Soga power.  Since then a lot had changed, and presumably there were even more stories and records that had been written down.  Plus the tide had changed.  So they needed to update—and maybe even correct—the historical record. But beyond that, there was a greater goal: Ohoama and his court also needed to make sure that the past was something that they wanted to go back to, among other things. The other thing we are going to discuss is the start of a project to build a brand new capital city.  And when we talk a bout city, we really mean a city.  This was a massive undertaking, likely unlike anything that we've seen so far.  Sure, there had been monumental building projects, but this was something that was going to take a lot more work - how much more monumental could you get than a new city?  And it would create a physical environment that would be the embodiment of the new centralization of power and authority, and the new state that Ohoama was building, with his administration—and Yamato—at the center.   Let's start with the big ones.  First and foremost, we have the entry from the 17th day of the 3rd month of the 681.  Ohoama gave a decree from the Daigokuden to commit to writing a Chronicle of the sovereigns and various matters of high antiquity.  Bentley translates this as saying that they were to record and confirm the Teiki, which Aston translated as the Chronicle of the Sovereigns, and various accounts of ancient times.  This task was given out to a slew of individuals, including the Royal Princes Kawashima and Osakabe; the Princes Hirose, Takeda, Kuwada, and Mino; as well as Kamitsukenu no Kimi no Michichi, Imbe no Muraji no Kobito, Adzumi no Muraji no Inashiki, Naniwa no Muraji no Ohogata, Nakatomi no Muraji no Ohoshima, and Heguri no Omi no Kobito.  Ohoshima and Kobito were specifically chosen as the scribes for this effort.  We aren't told what work was started at this time.  Aston, in his translation of the Nihon Shoki, assumes that this is the start of the Kojiki.  Bentley notes that this is the first in a variety of records about gathering the various records, including gathering records from the various families, and eventually even records from the various provinces.  And I think we can see why.  Legitimizing a new state and a new way of doing things often means ensuring that you have control of the narrative.  Today, that often means doing what you can to control media and the stories that are in the national consciousness.  In Ohoama's day, I'd argue that narrative was more about the various written sources, and how they were presented.  After all, many of the rituals and evidence that we are looking at would rely on the past to understand the present.  The various family records would not only tell of how those families came to be, but would have important information about what else was going on, and how that was presented could determine whether something was going to be seen as auspicious, or otherwise.  Even without getting rid of those records, it would be important to have the official, State narrative conform to the Truth that the state was attempting to implement. Ultimately, there is no way to know, exactly, how everything happened.  If the Nihon Shoki had a preface, it has been lost.  The Kojiki, for its part, does have a preface, and it points to an origin in the reign of Ohoama—known as the sovereign of Kiyomihara.  In there we are told that the sovereign had a complaint—that the Teiki and Honji, that is the chronicles of the sovereigns and the various other stories and legends, that had been handed down by various houses had come to differ from the truth.  They said they had many falsehoods, which likely meant that they just didn't match the Truth that the State was trying to push.  Thus  they wanted to create a so-called "true" version to pass down. This task was given to 28 year old Hieda no Are.  It says they were intelligent and had an incredible memory.  They studied all of the sources, and the work continued beyond the reign of Ohoama.  Later, in 711 CE, during the reign of Abe, aka Genmei Tennou, Oho no Yasumaro was given the task of writing down everything that Hieda no Are had learned.  The astute amongst you may have noticed that this mentions none of the individuals mentioned in the Nihon Shoki.  Nor does the Nihon Shoki mention anything about Hieda no Are.  So was this a separate effort, or all part of the same thing?  Was Are using the materials collected by  the project? As you may recall, we left the Kojiki behind some time ago, since it formally ends with the reign of Kashikiya hime, aka Suiko Tennou, but realistically it ended with Wohodo, aka Keitai Tennou—after that point there are just lists of the various heirs.  As such, there is some speculation that this was originally built off of earlier histories, perhaps arranged during the Soga era. The general explanation for all of this is that Hieda no Are memorized the poems and stories, and then Yasumaro wrote them down.  Furthermore, though the language in the Kojiki does not express a particular gender, in the Edo period there was a theory that Hieda no Are was a woman, which is still a popular theory. Compare all of that to the Nihon Shoki.  Where the Kojiki was often light on details and ends with Suiko Tennou, the Nihon Shoki often includes different sources, specifically mentions some of them by name, and continues up through the year 697.  Furthermore, textual analysis of the Nihon Shoki suggests that it was a team effort, with multiple Chroniclers, and likely multiple teams of Chroniclers.   I have to admit, that sounds a lot more like the kind of thing that Ohoama was kicking off. We have an entry in the Shoku Nihongi, the work that follows the Nihon Shoki, that suggests 720 for the finished compilation of the Nihon Shoki.  So did it take from 681 to 720 to put together?  That is a really long project, with what were probably several generations of individuals working on it. Or should this be read in a broader sense?  Was this a historiographical project, as Bentley calls it, but one that did not, immediately, know the form it would take?  It isn't the first such project—we have histories of the royal lineage and other stories that were compiled previously—much of that attributed to Shotoku Taishi, but likely part of an earlier attempt by the court.  In fact, given that the Kojiki and Sendai Hongi both functionally end around the time of Kashikiya hime, that is probably because the official histories covered those periods.  Obviously, though, a lot had happened, and some of what was written might not fit the current narrative.  And so we see a project to gather and compile various sources.  While this project likely culminated in the projects of the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki, I doubt that either work was necessarily part of the original vision.  Rather, it looks like the original vision was to collect what they could and then figure things out. It would have been after they started pulling the accounts together, reading them, and noticing the discrepancies that they would have needed to then edit them in such a way that they could tell a cohesive story.  That there are two separate compilations is definitely interesting.  I do suspect that Oho no Yasumaro was working from the efforts of Hieda no Are, either writing down something that had been largely captured in memory or perhaps finishing a project that Are had never completed.  The Nihon Shoki feels like it was a different set of teams, working together, but likely drawing from many of the same sources. And as to why we don't have the earlier sources?  I once heard it said that for books to be forgotten they didn't need to be banned—they just needed to fall out of circulation and no longer be copied anymore.  As new, presumably more detailed, works arose, it makes sense that older sources would not also be copied, as that information was presumably in the updated texts, and any information that wasn't brought over had been deemed counterfactual.  Even the Nihon Shoki risked falling into oblivion; the smaller and more digestible Kojiki was often more sought after.  The Kojiki generally presents a single story, and often uses characters phonetically, demonstrating how to read names and places.  And it just has a more story-like narrative to it.  The Nihon Shoki, comparatively, is dense, written in an old form of kanbun, often relying more on kanbun than on phonetic interpretations.  It was modeled on continental works, but as such it was never going to be as easy to read.  And so for a long time the Kojiki seems to have held pride of place for all but the most ardent scholars of history. Either way, I think that it is still fair to say that the record of 681 was key to the fact that we have this history, today, even if there was no way for Ohoama, at the time, to know just what form it would take. Another ambitious project that got started under Ohoama was the development of a new and permanent capital city. Up to this point we've talked about the various capitals of Yamato, but really it was more that we were talking about the palace compounds where the sovereign lived.  From the Makimuku Palace, where either Mimaki Iribiko or possibly even Himiko herself once held sway, to the latest palace, that of Kiyomihara, the sovereigns of Yamato were known by their palaces.  This is, in part, because for the longest time each successive sovereign would build a new palace after the previous sovereign passed away.  There are various reasons why this may have been the case, often connected to insular concepts of spiritual pollution brought on by the death of an individual, but also the practical consideration that the buildings, from what we can tell, were largely made of untreated wood.  That made them easier to erect, but also made them vulnerable to the elements, over time, and is probably one of the reasons that certain shrines, like the Shrine at Ise, similarly reconstitute themselves every 20 years or so. Furthermore, we talk about palaces, but we don't really talk about cities.  There were certainly large settlements—even going back to the Wei chronicles we see the mention of some 70 thousand households in the area of Yamateg.  It is likely that the Nara basin was filled with cultivated fields and many households.  Princes and noble households had their own compounds—remember that both Soga no Umako and Prince Umayado had compounds large enough that they could build temples on the compounds and have enough left over for their own palatial residences, as well.  However, these compounds were usually distributed in various areas, where those individuals presumably held some level of local control. It is unclear to me how exactly the early court functioned as far as housing individuals, and how often the court was "in session", as it were, with the noble houses.  Presumably they had local accommodations and weren't constantly traveling back and forth to the palace all the time.  We know that some houses sent individuals, men and women, to be palace attendants, even though they lived some distance away.  This was also likely a constraint on the Yamato court's influence in the early days. We do see the sovereign traveling, and various "temporary" palaces being provided.  I highly doubt that these were all built on the spot, and were likely conversions of existing residences, and similar lodging may have been available for elites when they traveled, though perhaps without such pomp and circumstance. What we don't really see in all of this, are anything resembling cities.  Now, the term "city" doesn't exactly have a single definition, but as I'm using it, I would note that we don't see large, permanent settlements of significant size that demonstrate the kind of larger civil planning that we would expect of such a settlement.  We certainly don't have cities in the way of the large settlements along the Yangzi and Yellow rivers. We talked some time back about the evolution of capital city layouts on the continent.  We mentioned that the early theoretical plan for a capital city was based on a square plan, itself divided into 9 square districts, with the central district constituting the palace.  This design works great on paper, but not so much in practice, especially with other considerations, such as the north-south orientation of most royal buildings.  And then there are geographic considerations.  In a place like Luoyang, this square concept was interrupted by the river and local topography.  Meanwhile, in Chang'an, they were able to attain a much more regular rectangular appearance.  Here, the court and the palace were placed in the center of the northernmost wall.  As such, most of the city was laid out to the south of the palace. In each case, however, these were large, planned cities with a grid of streets that defined the neighborhoods.  On each block were various private compounds, as well as the defined markets, temples, et cetera. The first possible attempt at anything like this may have been with the Toyosaki palace, in Naniwa.  There is some consideration that, given the size of the palace, there may have been streets and avenues that were built alongside it, with the intention of having a similar city layout.  If so, it isn't at all clear that it was ever implemented, and any evidence may have been destroyed by later construction on the site.  Then we have the Ohotsu palace, but that doesn't seem to be at the same scale as the Toyosaki palace—though it is possible that, again, we are missing some key evidence.  Nonetheless, the records don't really give us anything to suggest that these were large cities rather than just palaces. There is also the timeline.  While both the Toyosaki palace and the Ohotsu palace took years to build, they did not take the time and amount of manpower that would be needed to create a true capital city.  We can judge this based on what it took to build the new capital at Nihiki. This project gets kicked off in the 11th month of 676.  We are told that there was an intent to make the capital at Nihiki, so all of the rice-fields and gardens within the precincts, public and private property alike, were left fallow and became totally overgrown. This likely took some time.  The next time we see Nihiki is in the 3rd month of 682, when Prince Mino, a minister of the Household Department, and others, went there to examine the grounds.  At that point they apparently made the final decision to build the capital there.  Ohoama came out to visit later that same month. However, a year later, in the 12th month of 683, we are told that there was a decree for there to be multiple capitals and palaces in multiple sites, and they were going to make the Capital at Naniwa one of those places.  And so public functionaries were to go figure out places for houses.  So it wasn't just that they wanted to build one new, grand capital.  It sounds like they were planning to build two or three, so not just the one at Nihiki.  This is also where I have to wonder if the Toyosaki Palace was still being used as an administrative center, at the very least.  Or was it repurposed, as we saw that the Asuka palaces had been when the court moved to Ohotsu? This is further emphasized a few months later, when Prince Hirose and Ohotomo Yasumaro, at the head of a group of clerks, officials, artisans, and yin yang diviners were sent around the Home Provinces to try and divine sites suitable for a capital.  In addition, Prince Mino, Uneme no Oni no Tsukura, and others were sent to Shinano to see about setting up a capital there as well.  Perhaps this was inspired by the relationship between the two Tang capitals of Chang'an and Luoyang.  Or perhaps it was so that if one didn't work out another one might. Regardless, Nihiki seemed to be the primary target for this project, and in the third lunar month of 684 Ohoama visited the now barren grounds and decided on a place for the new palace.  A month later, Prince Mino and others returned with a map of Shinano, but there is no indication of where they might want to build another capital. After that, we don't hear anything more of Shinano or of a site in the Home Provinces.  We do hear one more thing about Naniwa, which we mentioned a couple of episodes back, and that is that in 686 there was a fire that burned down the palace at Naniwa, after which they seem to have abandoned that as a palace site.  And so we are left with the area of Nihiki. This project would take until the very end of 694 before it was ready.  In total, we are looking at a total of about 18 years—almost two decades, to build a new capital.  Some of this may have been the time spent researching other sites, but there also would have been significant time taken to clear and level.  This wasn't just fields—based on what we know, they were even taking down old kofun; we are later told about how they had to bury the bodies that were uncovered.  There was also probably a pause of some kind during the mourning period when Ohoama passed away.  And on top of it, this really was a big project.  It wasn't just building the palace, it was the roads, the infrastructure, and then all of the other construction—the city gates, the various private compounds, and more.  One can only imagine how much was being invested, especially if they were also looking at other sites and preparing them at the same time.  I suspect that they eventually abandoned the other sites when they realized just how big a project it really was that they were undertaking. Today we know that capital as Fujiwara-kyo, based on the name of the royal palace that was built there, and remarkably, we know where it was.  Excavations have revealed the site of the palace, and have given us an idea of the extent of the city:  It was designed as a square, roughly 5.3 kilometers, or 10 ri, on each side.  The square itself was interrupted by various terrain features, including the three holy mountains.  Based on archaeological evidence, the street grid was the first thing they laid out, and from what we can tell they were using the ideal Confucian layout as first dictated in the Zhouli, or Rites of Zhou.  This meant a square grid, with the palace in the center. Indeed, the palace was centered, due south of Mt. Miminashi, and you can still go and see the palace site, today.  When they went to build the palace, they actually had to effectively erase, or bury, the roads they had laid out.  They did the same thing for Yakushi-ji, or Yakushi-temple, when they built it as part of the city; one of the reasons we know it had to have been built after the roads were laid out.  We will definitely talk about this more when we get to that point of the Chronicles, but for now, know that the Fujiwara palace itself, based on excavations of the site, was massive.  The city itself would surpass both Heijo-kyo, at Nara, and Heian-kyo, in modern Kyoto.  And the palace was like the Toyosaki Naniwa palace on steroids.  It included all of the formal features of the Toyosaki Palace for running the government, but then enclosed that all in a larger compound with various buildings surrounding the court itself.  Overall, the entire site is massive.  This was meant as a capital to last for the ages. And yet, we have evidence that it was never completed.  For one thing, there is no evidence that a wall was ever erected around it—perhaps there was just no need, as relations with the mainland had calmed down, greatly.  But there is also evidence that parts of the palace, even, were not finished at the time that they abandoned it.  Fujiwara-kyo would only be occupied for about 16 years before a new capital was built—Heijo-kyo, in Nara.  There are various reasons as to why they abandoned what was clearly meant to be the first permanent capital city, and even with the move to a new city in Nara it would be clear that it was going to take the court a bit of time before they were ready to permanently settle down—at least a century or so. Based on all the evidence we have, and assuming this was the site of the eventual capital, Nihiki was the area of modern Kashihara just north of Asuka, between—and around—the mountains of Unebi, Miminashi, and Kagu.  If these mountains are familiar, they popped up several times much earlier in the Chronicles--Mostly in the Age of the Gods and in the reign of the mythical Iware-biko, aka Jimmu Tennou.  Yet these three mountains help to set out the boundaries of the capital city that was being built at this time. There is definitely some consideration that they were emphasized in the early parts  of the Chronicles—the mythical sections, which were bolstering the story of Amaterasu and the Heavenly Grandchild, setting up the founding myths for the dynasty.  Even though the Chronicles  were not completed until well after the court had moved out, the Fujiwara capital is the climax of the Nihon Shoki, which ends in 697, three years into life at the new palace.  And so we can assume that much of the early, critical editing of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki were done with the idea that this would be the new capital, and so it was woven into the histories, and had it continued as the capital, the very landscape would have recalled the stories of the divine origins of the Royal family and the state of Yamato itself.  This was the stage on which Ohoama's state was built.  He, and his successors, didn't just change the future path of the Yamato government.  They rearranged the physical and temporal environment, creating a world that centered them and their government.  I suspect that Ohoama didn't originally consider that these wouldn't be finished during his reign.  That said, he came to power in his 40s, only slightly younger than his brother, who had just died.  He would live to be 56 years old—a respectable age for male sovereigns, around that time.  From a quick glance, Naka no Oe was about 45 or 46 years old, while Karu lived to about 57 or 58.  Tamura only made it to 48.  The female sovereigns seem to have lasted longer, with Ohoama's mother surviving until she was 66 or 67 years old, and Kashikiya Hime made it to the ripe old age of 74.  That said, it is quite likely that he thought he would make it longer.  After all, look at all the merit he was accruing!  Still, he passed away before he could see these projects fully accomplished.  That would have to be left for the next reign—and even that wasn't enough.  The Fujiwara Capital would only be occupied for a short time before being abandoned about two reigns later, and the histories as we know them wouldn't be complete for three more reigns.  So given all of this, let's take another quick look at Ohoama himself and where he stands at this pivotal moment of Yamato history.When we look at how he is portrayed, Ohoama is generally lionized for the work he is said to have accomplished.  I would argue that he is the last of three major figures to whom are attributed most of the changes that resulted in the sinification of the Yamato government.  The first is prince Umayado, aka Shotoku Taishi, who is said to have written the 17 article constitution, the first rank system, and the introduction of Buddhism.  To be fair, these things—which may not have been exactly as recorded in the Chronicles—were likely products of the court as a whole.  Many people attribute more to Kashikiya Hime, aka Suiko Tennou, as well as Soga no Umako.  Of course, Soga no Umako wasn't a sovereign, or even a member of the royal family, and Kashikiya Hime, aka Suiko Tennou, seems to have likewise been discounted, at least later, possibly due to the fact that she is thought to have come to power more as a compromise candidate than anything else—she was the wife of a previous sovereign and niece to Soga no Umako.  Many modern scholars seem to focus more on the agency of Kashikiya Hime and suggest that she had more say than people tend to give her credit for.  That said, Shotoku Taishi seems to have been the legendary figure that was just real enough to ascribe success to.  That he died before he could assume the throne just meant that he didn't have too many problematic decisions of his own to apparently work around. The next major figure seems to be Naka no Oe, aka Tenji Tennou.  Naka no Oe kicks off the period of Great Change, the Taika era, and is credited with a lot of the changes—though I can't help but notice that the formal sovereign, Naka no Oe's uncle, Karu, seems to have stuck with the new vision of the Toyosaki Palace and the administrative state while Naka no Oe and his mother moved back to the traditional capital.  And when Naka no Oe moved the capital to Ohotsu, he once again built a palace more closely aligned to what we see in Asuka than the one in Naniwa, which brings some questions about how the new court was operating.  But many of his reforms clearly were implemented, leveraging the new concepts of continental rulership to solidify the court's hegemony over the rest of the archipelago. Ohoama, as represented in the Chronicles, appears to be the culmination of these three.  He is building on top of what his brother had implemented through the last three reigns.  Some of what he did was consolidate what Naka no Oe had done, but there were also new creations, for which Ohoama is credited, even if most of the work was done outside of Ohoama's reign, but they were attributed to Ohoama, nonetheless.  Much of this was started later in Ohoama's reign, and even today there seem to be some questions about who did what.  Nonetheless, we can at least see how the Chroniclers were putting the story together. There are a lot of scholars that point to the fact that the bulk of the work of these projects would actually be laid out in the following reigns, and who suggest that individuals like the influential Uno no Sarara, who held the control of the government in Ohoama's final days, may have had a good deal more impact on how things turned out, ultimately.  In fact, they might even have been more properly termed her projects—there are some that wonder if some of the attributions to Ohoama were meant to bolster the authority of later decrees, but I don't really see a need for that, and it seems that there is enough evidence to suggest that these projects were begun in this period. All of this makes it somewhat ironic that by the time the narrative was consolidated and published to the court, things were in a much different place—literally.  The Fujiwara capital had been abandoned.  The court, temples, and the aristocracy had picked up stakes and moved north.  Fujiwara no Fuhito had come on the scene, and now his family was really taking off.  This was not the same world that the Chronicles had been designed around. And yet, that is what was produced.  Perhaps there is a reason that they ended where they did. From that point on, though, there were plenty of other projects to record what was happening.  Attempts to control the narrative would need to do a lot more.  We see things like the Sendai Kuji Hongi, with its alternative, and perhaps even subversive, focus on the Mononobe family.  And then later works like the Kogoshui, recording for all time the grievances of the Imbe against their rivals—for all the good that it would do.  With more people learning to write, it was no longer up to the State what did or did not get written down. But that has taken us well beyond the scope of this reign—and this episode, which we should probably be bringing to a close.  There are still some things here and there that I want to discuss about this reign—so the next episode may be more of a miscellany of various records that we haven't otherwise covered, so far.  Until then if you like what we are doing, please tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website,  SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  

Wherein Eric and John unleash their inner chaotic neutral bard and lawful evil cleric and explore the D&D-laced fantasy world of power metal through bands including: Manowar, Helloween, Hammerfall, Stratovarius, Rhapsody, Nightwish, and more!Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode:Listening Break #1: Manowar- "Hail and Kill" from Kings of Metal (1988) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6zOT3IZ90UListening break #2: A Helloween choose your own adventure!A) "Twilight of the Gods" from Keeper of the Seven Keys Pt. 1 (1987)-⁠ ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk-FNnMzVAYB) "I Want Out" from Keeper of the Seven Keys Pt. 2 (1988)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMhL9NZ0KdwListening break #3: Blind Guardian "Mirror Mirror" from Nightfall in Middle-Earth (1998)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNGCvI9dpZYListening break #4: Rhapsody "Emerald Sword" from Symphony of Enchanted Lands (1998)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5kLxQGbRYgListening break #5: Nightwish "Sacrament of Wilderness" from Oceanborn (1998)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGEQ-MEOTQsPlease do consider joining us at our Patreon page! Not only will you gain access to exclusive content, but you'll also get that sense of pure joy that can only come from supporting the world's wackiest, most insightful heavy metal podcast. Link below:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ http://patreon.com/HeavyMetal101⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Visit us at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/heavymetal101podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠(you can leave us a voicemail if you're so inclined!)Contact us at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠heavymetal101podcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Social media:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/HeavyMetal101Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/heavy_101⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@heavymetal101podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/heavymetal101podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠New episodes of Heavy Metal 101 are always released monthly on the 3rd Monday of each month!Underscore credits:Free Fantasy Epic Music (For Videos) - "Short But Strong!" by Savfk

Message from Sunday, February 15, 2026

Hour of destiny daily devotional is a daily spiritual food for inspiration, impartation, guidance, and nourishment for God children. This message from Rev. Mike Eniola offers christian motivation and serves as a morning prayer to start your day. It is one of Gods ways of speaking to His children daily about their lives, family, and job, providing christian inspiration through the bible.Connect with us on our official channels.https://www.instagram.com/hourofdestinyTiktok- tiktok.com/@hour.of.destinyYouTube - https://youtube.com/‎⁨@hourofdestiny⁩7

Zzz . . . Drift off to Part 3 of "The Gods of Pegana" by Lord Dunsany zzz For an ad-free version of Sleepy, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/sleepyradio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and donate $2! Or click the blue Sleepy logo on the banner of this Spotify page.  Awesome Sleepy sponsor deals: Avocado: AvacadoGreenMattress.com/SLEEPY for 15% off.  Quince: Go to Quince.com/sleepy for free shipping and 365-day returns BetterHelp: Visit BetterHelp.com/SLEEPY today to get 10% off your first month. GreenChef: GreenChef.com/50SLEEPYGRAZA and use code "SLEEPYGRAZA" to get started with 50% off Green Chef + FREE Graza Olive  Oil Set in your 2nd and 3rd boxes. ButcherBox: Sign up at butcherbox.com/sleepy and use code "sleepy" OneSkin: Get 15% off OneSkin with the code SLEEPY at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.oneskin.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #oneskinpod GhostBed: Go to GhostBed.com/sleepy and use promo code “SLEEPY” at checkout for 50% off! Shopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at Shopify.com/otis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Daniel 1 : 8-21

Turbulent times, spreading love, and finding hope, oh my! Shaun Duke, Trish Matson, and Jennifer Brozek join forces to share the things they loved in 2025 and the things they’re looking forward to in 2026! We discuss books, movies, geeky things, experiences, and much more! Plus, we share some VERY important announcements about the show! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode! Show Notes: 2025 Things: Shaun: Susana Morris’ Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler  All of the independent films Daniel and I got to watch and write or talk about (thanks Strike Media and Deaf Crocodile!) The two podcasts I got to be on to talk about movies I genuinely love: Reserved Recommendations with Hugh Dingwall (on Nightbreed) and Fine Beats and Cheeses (on Mac & Me)!  Trish: Death of the Author: A Novel by Nnedi Okorafor Andor S2: aired April 22, 2025 through May 13, 2025, 12 episodes. Mad props to producer Tony Gilroy. Revolutions Podcast Season 11 (Mars), by Mike Duncan: aired October 2024 to June 2025, 30 eps Jennifer: Overgrowth by Mira Grant (best book I read all year) Sinners. Such an amazingly good/original movie Hades 2. Great storytelling and replayability. It's a thing I do with the Husband. Daniel: Uncertain Sons and Other Stories by Thomas Ha and Lost in the Dark and Other Excursions by John Langan Hundreds of Beavers (2022) Directed by Mike Cheslik AGFA Secret Society Sandra: A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna (the perfect romance at the perfect time when I read it) The Great Flood (dir. Kim Byung-woo); not without its problems but I give it kudos for being the disaster flick I hadn't expected to be a scifi flick Draw Steel (an interesting change from D&D 5e) Paul: Duology: The Witch Roads and the Nameless Land, a duology of fantasy novels from Kate Elliott. Set in a new and rich fantasy worlds, Elliott hitting all the power chords.  Plur1bus: Aired in Fall/Winter 2025 on Apple TV. Constantly surprisingly, interesting, thought provoking, with some great acting BallxPit, a rogue like game inspired by Balatro, Vampire Survivors and Arkanoid (for those who remember it). 2026 Things: Shaun: The Republic of Memory by Mahmud El Sayed OR The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu All of the independent films Daniel and I are going to get to watch and write and talk about this year, some from the very same places I’ve already mentioned. Seeing how Capricon will go, as I was head of programming this year (with Cassandra Moritz as my honorable and most excellent 2nd). Trish: The Faith of Beasts by James S.A. Corey, 2nd in The Captive's War series, coming in April, because I loved the first book, The Mercy of Gods. Murderbot S2  Other: 13th Icon RPG, starting in February on Arvan Eleron's Twitch channel. PrinceJvstin will GM, and I'm playing a dragonborn druid in it, along with Darcie Little Badger as a human rogue, Kathleen de Vere as a human paladin, and Mur Lafferty as a goliath barbarian. Jennifer: Strixhaven: Omens of Chaos by Seanan McGuire Old Gods of Appachalia: Long Shadows, Season Six podcast Finishing Eberron Oracle of War, Can*Con in Ottawa, Oberon's Post Club Daniel: Partially Devoured by Daniel Kraus Evil Dead Burn (2026; dir. Sébastien Vaniček) Blood Feast and the Films of Herschell Gordon Lewis (AGFA Restorations) Sandra: Platform Decay by Martha Wells Murderbot S2, but also Slow Horses S6 (which is totally fantasy lol) Bouchercon (Calgary) Paul: Children of Strife by Adrian Tchaikovsky. The latest in his Children series, I want to see where his rich world of human and post-human sapients, from spiders to crows, will go next.  The Odyssey movie. I just want to see what Nolan will do with one of the ur-texts of the Western Tradition. And it can't be worse than the early 2000's Troy (which tackled The Iliad)  It just CAN'T. Death Valley photography trip in December 2026. Am I a good photographer? No, but I enjoy doing photography and this is a chance to do it in a place every photographer wants to go. Video versions of our episodes also appear on our handy YouTube channel! Sub and watch! Don’t forget to catch our live format every Friday at 7 PM Central on Twitch at AlphabetStreams! If you have a question you'd like us to answer, feel free to shoot us a message on our contact page. Our new intro and outro music comes from Holy Mole. You can support his work at patreon.com/holymole. See you later, navigator!

Stewards of Gods Money - Giving by LifeSource Church

True worship flows from joy in Gods presence, not concern for personal dignity.

WHEN PEOPLE move from one nation to another, do they bring their gods with them? We ask because God delegated authority over the nations to angelic beings called "sons of God" after the tower of Babel incident (Deuteronomy 32:8). The Western world has been flooded by migrants from parts of the world that are generally not Christian over the last 15 years. Is this more than simply trying to compensate for low birth rates in the northern hemisphere? In our book, the Gates of Hell, we showed how the location of Jesus ministry mattered. For example, his declaration that the gates of hell would not prevail against his church was made in the middle of territory known to be not just a pagan cult center, but an area inhabited by the spirits of the Rephaim and the gateway to the netherworld. So, it seems that Jesus acknowledged a connection between the physical realm and the spirit realm. Do spirits stay attached to specific geographic locations, or do they move when the people move from those locations? If so, how does that translate to our modern geopolitical situation? Also: Prepare for major cultural and economic disruptions because of artificial intelligence within the next 12 to 18 months. Sharon's niece, Sarah Sachleben, was recently diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer, and the medical bills are piling up. If you are led to help, please go to GilbertHouse.org/hopeforsarah. Follow us! X (formerly Twitter): @pidradio | @sharonkgilbert | @derekgilbert | @gilberthouse_tvTelegram: t.me/gilberthouse | t.me/sharonsroom | t.me/viewfromthebunkerSubstack: gilberthouse.substack.comYouTube: @GilbertHouse | @UnravelingRevelationFacebook.com/pidradio JOIN US IN ISRAEL! We will tour the Holy Land October 11–23, 2026 with an optional three-day extension to Jordan. For more information, log on to GilbertHouse.org/travel. Thank you for making our Build Barn Better project a reality! Our 1,200 square foot pole barn has a new HVAC system, epoxy floor, 100-amp electric service, new windows, insulation, lights, and ceiling fans! If you are so led, you can help out by clicking here: gilberthouse.org/donate. Get our free app! It connects you to this podcast, our weekly Bible studies, and our weekly video programs Unraveling Revelation and A View from the Bunker. The app is available for iOS, Android, Roku, and Apple TV. Links to the app stores are at pidradio.com/app. Video on demand of our best teachings! Stream presentations and teachings based on our research at our new video on demand site: gilberthouse.org/video! Think better, feel better! Our partners at Simply Clean Foods offer freeze-dried, 100% GMO-free food and delicious, vacuum-packed fair trade coffee from Honduras. Find out more at GilbertHouse.org/store/.

Daniel Buitrago & Brandon Fifield kick it in studio with Chad Aurentz & Aaron Ulmer for quick bro sesh and catch-up on Winterstrong, Sheep Show 2026 and spring fever!   Ulmer's pissed off soccer mom Audi, YouTube & Strike 1! shout out to Aziak Equipment, “Jones 161 Howler”, Back Country Riding with Silverton & Knik Glacier Valley, Valhalla BC, dealing with knee issues, The Quad God” a hot mic, segment 2 brought to you by “Northern Waste”, on this day in Alaska History, Charles D. Brower (American Explorer), Winter @ Winterstrong 2026, Connoisseur Crude Triva,       

St. Isaac does not flatter us. He does not tell us that the ascetic life is noble. He tells us it burns. He does not tell us it is peaceful. He tells us it wounds. He does not tell us it feels like fulfillment. He tells us it feels like loss. Because what stands at the heart of the ascetic life is not discipline. It is death. Not the death of the body, but the death of the self that has lived for itself. And until that self begins to die, the soul remains cold. The modern man wants illumination without humiliation. He wants consolation without affliction. He wants joy without tears. He wants Christ without crucifixion. But St. Isaac tells us plainly. The sign that the soul is drawing near to life is not comfort. It is fire. Your heart is aflame both day and night. This fire does not come from effort. It comes from surrender. It comes when a man has ceased defending himself. It comes when he has ceased preserving his image. It comes when he has ceased negotiating with God. He stands stripped of illusions. He sees his poverty. He sees his weakness. He sees that he has nothing. And this is where grace begins. Because God does not fill what is full. He fills what has been emptied. The Lord says through the prophet Isaiah I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite. The fathers knew this. Abba Poemen said The man who understands his sins is greater than the man who raises the dead. Because the one who raises the dead may still live for himself. But the one who sees his sins has begun to die. And it is this death that gives birth to tears. St. Isaac says that tears join themselves to every work. Not because the man is trying to weep. But because he can no longer protect himself from reality. He sees God. He sees himself. He sees the distance between them. And he weeps. These tears are not weakness. They are truth. They are the breaking of the heart that has lived in false strength. King David understood this when he said My sacrifice is a contrite spirit. A humbled and contrite heart you will not spurn. God does not desire your accomplishments. He desires your brokenness. Because brokenness is the door through which He enters. This is why St. Isaac says that afflictions suffered for the Lord are more precious than every offering. Because affliction destroys the illusion that you are alive apart from God. Affliction reveals the truth. That you are dust. That you are weak. That you cannot save yourself. And the ego cannot survive this revelation. This is why affliction is feared. Not because it harms us. But because it exposes us. The Apostle Paul understood this mystery when he said We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. Perplexed, but not driven to despair. Struck down, but not destroyed. Always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. Affliction carries death into the false self. So that life may be born in the true self. And this is where the paradox appears. Because the man who embraces affliction does not become miserable. He becomes free. St. Isaac says that when this fire is born in the soul, the whole world becomes ashes. Not because the world is hated. But because it no longer enslaves him. He no longer needs it to feel alive. He no longer needs recognition. He no longer needs control. He no longer needs to preserve himself. Because he has found something greater. He has found Christ. And Christ becomes his life. St. Paul says I count all things as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. This is not poetry. This is the testimony of a man who has passed through affliction into freedom. Because when the false life dies, the true life appears. And this life cannot be taken. This is the joy that St. Isaac speaks of. Not emotional happiness. But the unshakable certainty that Christ has become your life. This joy is born in tears. It is born in humiliation. It is born in affliction. It is born when the man ceases running from the cross. Christ did not say Avoid suffering. He said Take up your cross and follow me. Because the cross is not the end. It is the door. On the other side of affliction stands resurrection. On the other side of humiliation stands freedom. On the other side of tears stands joy. This is why St. Isaac warns us. If the fire grows cold, woe to you. Because the greatest tragedy is not suffering. It is returning to sleep. It is returning to self protection. It is returning to the illusion that you can live apart from God. The ascetic life is not about becoming strong. It is about becoming defenseless before God. It is about allowing Him to strip away everything false. It is about allowing Him to destroy what cannot live. So that what is eternal may appear. And when this happens, the man no longer fears affliction. Because he has seen what it produces. He has seen the fire. He has tasted the tears. He has known the joy that cannot be taken. And he understands at last the words of Christ Your sorrow will turn into joy. Not because suffering disappears. But because Christ has become your life. And nothing can take Him away. --- Text of chat during the group: 00:00:58 Fr. Charbel Abernethy: Page 177 paragraph 24 00:07:15 Fr. Charbel Abernethy: Page 177 paragraph 24 00:07:36 Fr. Charbel Abernethy: Ascetic life begins where excuses die When a man stops speaking about God and begins to suffer for Him Humility takes root so deeply that tear flow unceasingly Heart burns without knowing why When grace comes the battle grows more dangerous - soul tempted to become prudent. Where most turn back Ascetic life requires a kind of violence against instinct to survive 00:16:15 Jesssica Imanaka: Looks I can attend these retreats since they don't start until the 21st. 00:20:28 Angela Bellamy: The devil does not only tempt with sin — he tempts with carefulness. I remember that from the "Unseen warfare" 00:30:50 Sr Barbara Jean Mihalchick: Baptism of the Holy Spirit? 00:31:58 Ryan Ngeve: Father with his emphasis on tears, does that mean a lack of tears entails the lack of working of the Holy Spirit 00:32:00 Angela Bellamy: Does such a thing that has happened that the unemotional/tenderness tears come... Would "carefulness take it away before time" 00:36:24 Angela Bellamy: Reacted to "Does such a thing th..." with ❤️ 00:39:24 Angela Bellamy: But with certainty one can assume that they are the one who pulled away, not Him? So there can be a drawing near again...? 00:46:03 Holly Hecker: it would appear that consolations at these times could be sort of dangerous - do we want to go back or go forward 00:46:09 David Swiderski, WI: I have noticed when repentance seems distant my mind turns towards pride forgetting being freed from it is not by me but by grace of something. When I turn back to repentance I find myself like Abba moses walking around with a hole in a bag of sand and more open to others struggles 00:50:21 John ‘Jack': Since reading the fathers, I've come to realize that I am only responsible for my own salvation, it seems like our culture has convinced us that we are somehow responsible for others salvation. Since I've been focused on this I've found my “witness” if you will has become far less burdensome. 00:54:35 Joan Chakonas: My prayers are usually in context of afflictions (my judgmentalism, my ridicule, my thoughts in general from living my day )and asking for Gods help and guidance.  When I am at peace I am not actively petitioning God for abstract things - I am trying to repent all the time and peace is what I get when I get His message. 00:55:09 David Swiderski, WI: Sin is followed by shame, Repentance is followed by boldness- St. John Chrysotom 00:56:10 Joan Chakonas: I just say thank you God over and over when I get to peace. 00:56:26 John ‘Jack': Perfectly stated, Father thank you. 00:56:53 Myles Davidson: Reacted to "I just say thank you..." with ❤️ 01:01:18 Anthony: Preach Father! I saw the Faith in Southern Italy was so different in its tone than what I've seen as an American Catholic. 01:01:41 Myles Davidson: A word for sorrowful joy seems like a word we lack in English (bittersweet is probably the closest). Is this the Greek word you mean Father? χαρμολύπη (charmolýpi)… pronounced as khar-mo-LEE-pee 01:02:05 Ben: Anna; This conversation reminds me of something Jesus said, "This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you." 01:02:45 Angela Bellamy: Reacted to "Anna; This conversat..." with ❤️ 01:02:57 David Swiderski, WI: Reacted to "Anna; This conversat..." with ❤️ 01:05:51 Angela Bellamy: I'm not really sure why this conversation reminds me of Malachi.

This week on Another Pass, Sam and Case are joined by Zorikh Lequidre to revisit Shazam! Fury of the Gods. We break down the sequel's mythic swing, its tonal tightrope between family comedy and divine spectacle, and whether this lightning strike deserved a brighter fate at the box office. Another Pass Full Episode Originally aired: February 13, 2026  Music by Vin Macri and Matt Brogan Podcast Edited by Sophia Ricciardi Certain Point Of View is a podcast network brining you all sorts of nerdy goodness! From Star Wars role playing, to Disney day dreaming, to video game love, we've got the show for you! Learn more on our website: https://www.certainpov.com Support us on Patreon! patreon.com/CertainPOVMedia Join us on Discord: https://discord.gg/wcHHer4 PODCAST SHOWS: ▶ Another Pass - https://www.certainpov.com/another-pass-podcast Outline Shazam Franchise and Character Legacy The discussion highlighted the complex evolution of the Shazam character and its multiple incarnations, emphasizing the challenges of maintaining clarity in the franchise (02:00). Complex Character History and Naming (02:43) The Shazam character has undergone multiple renamings, now sometimes called "The Captain" to differentiate from original versions. Comics have introduced variants like Mary Marvel and Junior (Freddie Freeman's hero name) to expand the lore. The character's fluctuating comic presence, with cancellations and restarts, impacts fan engagement and continuity. Zorak's project, Captain Marvel Culture, explores these variants in cultural and historical contexts, highlighting the character's societal relevance. Actor and Fan Perspectives on Shazam (07:30) Sam Alicea shared her positive cosplay experience as Mary Marvel, emphasizing the character's wholesome reception in fandom. Both Sam and Case Aiken noted that the first Shazam movie was colorful and fun, appealing to casual viewers with good pacing and humor. Case's personal connection to the character goes back to childhood superhero creations, reinforcing the deep fan roots. The first film balanced the youthful and superhero personas well, unlike the sequel where the older cast created dissonance. Challenges with Sequel Timing and Casting (14:00) The four-year gap between the first and second Shazam movies caused problematic aging of the cast, making the characters less believable as teenagers. The COVID-19 pandemic limited crowd scenes, affecting the movie's atmosphere and fight sequences, leading to a "COVID movie" feel with socially distanced extras. The sequel's timing made character maturity inconsistent, with Zachary Levi's older age conflicting with immature superhero behavior, reducing audience sympathy. The lack of continuity in character growth and the absence of younger kid scenes weakened the family dynamic established in the first film. Plot, Powers, and Mythological Elements The movie's story and mythological adaptations were discussed, focusing on the Daughters of Atlas and their powers, plus how mythology was reinterpreted (28:58). Invented Mythology and Powers of Atlas' Daughters (29:00) The film introduced three daughters of Atlas, a creative deviation from classical mythology that was accepted as a fun concept. Helen Mirren's character uses force fields and telekinesis, Lucy Liu's character employs "chaos" powers resembling mind control, and Rachel Zegler's character has axis-based powers, visually impressive but not well explained. The powers were often scene-dependent rather than consistent, especially Helen Mirren's varying abilities. The dome barrier served as a plot device to isolate the final fight and prevent intervention from other heroes, a trope common in superhero films. Mythology vs. Comic Lore (31:33) The movie used traditional Shazam power origins (Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury) rather than newer comic variations. Discussion considered linking the characters to the broader DC mythos, such as the New Gods, but the film stuck to simpler concepts. The film's magic and powers were occasionally connected to Dungeons & Dragons references, reflecting the script's mix of fantasy influences. The casting of iconic actors like Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu added gravitas despite the powers being plot-driven. Narrative and Visual Critiques of Powers and Effects (35:00) The dome and powers' visual effects felt forced or inconsistent, serving more as story contrivances than meaningful world-building. The chaotic power, mainly mind control, lacked thematic clarity despite being the most consistent. The movie struggled to integrate powers into the plot logically, often introducing new abilities at convenience moments. The limited impact of the dome on the city was noted, with little attention to realistic consequences of such an event. Family Dynamics and Character Development A major theme was how the sequel mishandled the Shazam family dynamic, focusing too much on superhero forms and not enough on the kids' human sides (40:00). Underused Supporting Characters and Forced Representation (40:00) Pedro's gay reveal felt forced due to minimal screen time and lack of character development. The less prominent kids, especially Eugene and Pedro, were overshadowed by their superhero forms, weakening emotional engagement. Darla remained the heart of the family, carrying much of the emotional weight and humor, consistent with the first film. The sequel relied heavily on superhero personas rather than showing genuine child characters, harming the family's relatability. Mismatch of Actor Ages and Character Portrayals (46:30) The aging cast, particularly Zachary Levi, struggled to convincingly portray teenage characters, making immature behavior less palatable. The lack of contrasting younger versions of Billy and other kids reduced the dynamic tension present in the original movie. The sequel missed chances to explore Billy's growth and his struggles with leadership and abandonment issues meaningfully. Sam noted the film's good attempt to show Billy's fear of aging out of foster care as a motivation, but this was not fully developed. Lost Opportunities for Emotional Payoff (53:00) The film failed to create a satisfying emotional journey for Billy, especially regarding his insecurities and leadership challenges. The family's support was underutilized in key moments, leaving Billy's character arc feeling incomplete. The sequel lacked the sense of belonging and acceptance that made the first film's family dynamic resonate. Case and Sam suggested that a powerful second-act scene showing Billy's vulnerability and the family's encouragement was needed to strengthen the story. Critique and Proposed Fixes for the Sequel The panel proposed several realistic improvements to the sequel's structure, pacing, and character focus to enhance its emotional and narrative impact (56:00). Strengthening the Second Act and Family Bonding (56:00) Add scenes where the kids remain in their human forms to highlight their vulnerabilities, creating richer character moments. Insert a confrontation scene where Billy expresses frustration at the family's lack of unity, followed by reassurance from siblings. Shorten or remove the cringy Wonder Woman date scene to maintain tone and pacing. Show more of the lesser-used kids at school, depicting their struggles balancing normal life and superhero identities. Improving the Final Battle with the Dragon (31:30, 56:00, 01:32:50) Make the fight more dynamic by having Billy repeatedly say "Shazam" to power up the staff, requiring him to transform back to human form intermittently. Introduce stages in the fight where the hero tries different tactics, fails, then devises a winning plan. Include moments of vulnerability where Billy dodges attacks and avoids damage, adding tension and realism. Use the environment inside the dome better, possibly including some civilians or other stakes, if COVID protocols allow. Enhancing Character Scenes and Emotional Arcs (01:40:00) Show the kids' defeat when Helen Mirren's character escapes by turning back into their child forms, emphasizing their youth and fallibility. Add a scene where Billy admits to failure and receives encouragement from his siblings, reinforcing the family theme. Develop more natural, character-driven moments such as a school scene involving Skittles, tying in humor and personality. Streamline the plot to reduce the number of major events, allowing more screen time for character interactions and growth. Long-Term Franchise Vision: TV Series Format (01:14:30, 01:49:00) The panel agreed a TV series would better suit the story, allowing the actors to age naturally and explore the characters in depth. Proposed dividing the cast so Billy, Mary, and Freddie attend college while the younger kids remain in high school, creating parallel storylines. This approach resembles a "Happy Days with superpowers" format, supporting gradual character evolution and maintaining audience engagement. The TV format would also allow passing powers to new kids as the original characters grow up, ensuring franchise longevity. Production Context and External Influences The discussion recognized COVID-19's major impact on production, release timing, and overall movie quality, affecting creative decisions and execution (14:00, 01:52:00). COVID-19 Pandemic Effects (14:00) Production delays and social distancing protocols limited extras and crowd scenes, affecting the movie's atmosphere and fight choreography. The necessity of a smaller dome and fewer characters in scenes was a direct result of COVID restrictions. The four-year gap between movies was unplanned but forced by the pandemic, causing casting and story continuity issues. These factors contributed to the movie feeling disjointed and less cohesive compared to the first film. Script and Franchise Challenges (25:00) Multiple script rewrites were needed after Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam was spun off into his own movie, forcing major plot changes. The absence of Black Adam as a villain removed a key expected antagonist, weakening the sequel's threat level and fan expectations. The movie was released amid DC's shifting cinematic universe plans, reducing the likelihood of future sequels or franchise expansion. Despite plans to connect with the Justice Society and tease Mr. Mind, these elements remained unresolved, signaling franchise uncertainty. Casting and Political Context (01:06:00) Gal Gadot's performance as Wonder Woman was noted as uneven and disconnected from the main cast's energy. The panel acknowledged Gadot's political stances have affected her reception among some fans, adding complexity to her role's acceptance. The awkwardness of Billy's romantic scene with Wonder Woman was criticized for tone and appropriateness, detracting from character coherence. Zachary Levi's personal controversies and public persona complicated audience reception of his performance, especially given the film's tonal demands.

Are ancient gods returning and ramping up their presence? In this episode, Pastor Jack discusses passages in the Bible regarding demonic activity, idols, possession, and even shares a personal encounter with the dark spiritual realm. (00:00) The Return of the Gods and the Rise of Demonic Influence(05:35) Idols, Demons, and the Warning of 1 Corinthians 10(09:04) Revelation 13 and the Image of the Beast(10:43) Unclean Spirits and the Danger of an Empty House(12:30) Legion, the Tombs, and the Demons in the Pigs(15:36) Genesis 6, Fallen Angels, and the Nephilim(19:18) Satan Entering Judas and Spiritual Influence in Action(21:04) Modern Deception, UAPs, and Cultural Manifestations(27:55) A Pastoral Encounter with Alleged Demonic Activity(36:40) Christ’s Victory and a Call to Biblical DiscernmentCONNECT WITH PASTOR JACK:Get Updates via Text:  https://text.whisp.io/jack-hibbs-podcast Website: https://jackhibbs.com/Instagram: http://bit.ly/2FCyXpOFacebook: https://bit.ly/2WZBWV0 YouTube: https://bit.ly/437xMHnTwitter/X: https://x.com/RealJackHibbs CALLED TO TAKE A BOLD STAND:https://boldstand.org/DAZE OF DECEPTION:https://jackhibbs.com/daze-of-deception/ Did you know we have a Real Life Network? Sign up for free today for more exclusive content:https://www.reallifenetwork.com/

Get Ready For Gods Open Doors—YOU'RE NEXT IN LINE | Blessed Daily Effective Prayer To Start The Day With GodSUBSCRIBE to catch all the latest prayers uploaded to the Daily Effective Prayer Podcast!For more powerful daily prayers and to connect with the ministry visit:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org© Copyright DailyEffectivePrayer.com  SUPPORT THE MINISTRY: (We are listener-supported)https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/donate/ DO YOU NEED PRAYER? Send us a prayer request right now:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/prayer-request-online/ CONNECT WITH US:https://www.dailyeffectiveprayer.org/connectYouTube (1M+ SUBSCRIBERS)X / TwitterInstagram ThreadsInstagramFacebook Daily Effective Prayer™

If you loved the soundscape extravaganza that was the award-winning Illuminae audiobook, listeners, then you're going to ADORE the audiobook for Amie's newest, Red Star Rebels. We can't wait to share what audiobook producer (and previous guest of the pod) Nick Martorelli has  done with Amie's triumphant return to space. We've snagged the first four chapters for your listening pleasure: enjoy, then go and devour the whole book, which is out now. You can find Red Star Rebels wherever books (print or audio) are sold. Make sure you're subscribed to the pod in whatever app you use to listen, and to the Pub Dates newsletter so you won't miss it when a new episode drops. Sign up for our individual newsletters at Amie and Kate's websites, and find out more about Meg's other books at her website. You can buy both The Isles of the Gods and Nightbirds - AND Fyrebirds and The Heart of the World - wherever good books are sold. Series completists, rejoice!    

Zzz . . . Snooze to Part 2 of "The Gods of Pegana" by Lord Dunsany zzz For an ad-free version of Sleepy, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/sleepyradio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and donate $2! Or click the blue Sleepy logo on the banner of this Spotify page.  Awesome Sleepy sponsor deals: Avocado: AvacadoGreenMattress.com/SLEEPY for 15% off.  Quince: Go to Quince.com/sleepy for free shipping and 365-day returns BetterHelp: Visit BetterHelp.com/SLEEPY today to get 10% off your first month. GreenChef: GreenChef.com/50SLEEPYGRAZA and use code "SLEEPYGRAZA" to get started with 50% off Green Chef + FREE Graza Olive  Oil Set in your 2nd and 3rd boxes. ButcherBox: Sign up at butcherbox.com/sleepy and use code "sleepy" OneSkin: Get 15% off OneSkin with the code SLEEPY at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.oneskin.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #oneskinpod GhostBed: Go to GhostBed.com/sleepy and use promo code “SLEEPY” at checkout for 50% off! Shopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at Shopify.com/otis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Years ago, we had a cursed episode all about horses. Now, to celebrate our 10 year anniversary AND The Year of the Horse, we visit some new horses (and murder horses) from folklore and mythology around the world. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of murder, gore, drowning, sexual assault, animal death, abduction, violence against women, gun violence, and sex. Housekeeping- Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests' books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books- Call to Action: Send in those urban legend emails!- Submit Your Urban Legends Audio: Call us! 617-420-2344Minneapolis Spotlight- Pimento Relief Services, accepting contributions to their Immigrant & Restaurant Frontline Relief Fund at https://bit.ly/pimentoreliefFind Us Online- Website & Transcripts: spiritspodcast.com- Patreon: patreon.com/spiritspodcast- Merch: spiritspodcast.com/merch- Instagram: instagram.com/spiritspodcast- Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/spiritspodcast.com- Twitter: twitter.com/spiritspodcast- Tumblr: spiritspodcast.tumblr.comCast & Crew- Co-Hosts: Julia Schifini and Amanda McLoughlin- Editor: Bren Frederick- Music: Brandon Grugle, based on "Danger Storm" by Kevin MacLeod- Artwork: Allyson Wakeman- Multitude: multitude.productionsAbout UsSpirits is a boozy podcast about mythology, legends, and folklore. Every episode, co-hosts Julia and Amanda mix a drink and discuss a new story or character from a wide range of places, eras, and cultures. Learn brand-new stories and enjoy retellings of your favorite myths, served over ice every week, on Spirits.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

FOLLOW RICHARD Website: https://www.strangeplanet.ca YouTube: @strangeplanetradio Instagram: @richardsyrettstrangeplanet TikTok: @therealstrangeplanet EP. #1319 Nimrod Awakens: Tomb Hunt, DNA Revival & Elite Endgame Richard dives into the shadowy enigma of Nimrod—the biblical giant, rebel king, and architect of Babel—whose ancient tomb may hold secrets that could reshape humanity. Guest Derek Gilbert unravels forbidden histories: from elite quests to locate Nimrod's burial site in the Middle East's forgotten ruins, to chilling modern plots involving DNA resurrection and hybrid revival. As mainstream voices like Candace Owens probe these myths, explore how ancient rebellions echo in today's power structures. Is Nimrod's return a prophecy unfolding, or a supernatural trap? Truth seekers, prepare for revelations that blur history and apocalypse. GUEST: Derek Gilbert is an acclaimed author, broadcaster, and researcher specializing in biblical prophecy, ancient mysteries, and supernatural influences on global power. Host of SkyWatchTV and co-host of Unraveling Revelation, and the podcast Peering into Darkness. He's penned over a dozen books, including his latest: The Gates of Hell: Unlocking the Ganymede Code and the Demonic Portals of Mount Hermon and the United States Capitol and Destination Earth: Ancient Aliens, the Ancient of Days, and the Ancient Plot to Hybridize Humanity. With decades exploring fringe truths, Derek bridges history, spirituality, and current events for audiences worldwide. WEBSITES: https://www.derekpgilbert.com https://peeringintodarkness.com https://unravelingrevelation.tv BOOKS: Destination: Earth: Ancient Aliens, the Ancient of Days, and the Ancient Plot to Hybridize Humanity The Gates of Hell: Unlocking the Ganymede Code and the Demonic Portals of Mount Hermon and the United States Capitol The Second Coming of Saturn: The Great Conjunction, America's Temple, and the Return of the Watchers Giants, Gods, and Dragons: Exposing the Fallen Realm and the Plot to Ignite the Final War of the Ages SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!!! QUINCE Luxury, European linen that gets softer with every wash! Turn up the luxury when you turn in with Quince. Go to Quince dot com slash RSSP for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too ⁠ BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER!!!⁠ ⁠https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm⁠ Three monthly subscriptions to choose from. Commercial Free Listening, Bonus Episodes and a Subscription to my monthly newsletter, InnerSanctum. Visit ⁠https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm⁠ Use the discount code "Planet" to receive $5 OFF off any subscription. We and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. By using our website and services, you agree to our use of cookies as described in our Cookie Policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm/

Garth Heckman The David Alliance TDAgiantSlayer@Gmail.com    Bad Bunny, President Trump, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, ICE, Transgender rights, Olympic outrage, Tarrifs and trade, mass deportation, conversion therapy, Turning point halftime show vs NFL halftime show, The Epstein files, expanded travel bans, MAHA regulations, DOJ, Republicans, Democrats, Government shutdown…. Kidrock, JayZ, NFL players who are Christian,    When you feel powerless you choose a platform to publicly rebel so that you cover your emptiness. Rebellion is a false sense of power.  Why do you act out, rebel, etc… selfishness - its all about me. I am empty, I am entitled, I am important (because I truly don't feel important) I matter and my opinion matters… because internally I don't feel like I matter or like my opinion matters. Listen to this verse.    Proverbs 16:32 one who rules his spirit is better than one who captures a city.    It is far more important that you rule your spirit, keep it under Gods control and act out in the fruits of the spirit than it is for you to rampage on social media about what ever cause you are trying to conquer.  Chew on that one for a second. Sweat that one out. It is far more important to God that you rule your heart, control your heart, control your spirit than it is for you to change that cause you are ranting about. Yes we as Christians are just as guilty as non christians.    Finally… we have forgotten the purpose of our walk- its not to point out all the things that are wrong? Did Jesus do that? He had the opportunity and the power to showcase everyones sins… but his purpose was the gospel. Look -personally I am to busy to trash, yell, argue, road rage about any of the so called controversial things that are going on in our country - the only thing that is going to change our country is the gospel. If you are not actively sharing Jesus - you my friend are the problem. 

In our latest, we talk with legendary filmmaker, screenwriter and novelist John Sayles. We start with a discussion about his new novel "Crucible." But also talk about labor, class consciousness, portraying the organizer as a hero, the border and the American empire in his, and other, films and novels. Bio//John Sayles is an Oscar nominated American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He is known for writing and directing the films The Brother from Another Planet, Matewan, Eight Men Out, Passion Fish, The Secret of Roan Inish, Lone Star, Men with Guns, Sunshine State, Silver City and Amigo. He has written eight novels, the most recent being Yellow Earth, To Save the Man, Crucible and the forthcoming Gods of Gotham.-------------------------------

https://rumble.com/embed/v73e0og/?pub=84ufd Today’s Topics: 1, 2) Opinion piece: War of the “gods,” Sorcery, and the Great Deception https://catholic460.substack.com/p/war-of-the-gods-sorcery-and-the-great 3, 4) Musk's Neuralink is the beginning of a dystopian, post-human future https://thefederalist.com/2024/02/02/elon-musks-neuralink-heralds-the-beginning-of-a-dystopian-post-human-future/

Zzz . . . Sleep soundly to this epic snoozy reading of "The Gods of Pegana" by Lord Dunsany. Part 1 of 3 zzz For an ad-free version of Sleepy, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/sleepyradio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and donate $2! Or click the blue Sleepy logo on the banner of this Spotify page.  Awesome Sleepy sponsor deals: Avocado: AvacadoGreenMattress.com/SLEEPY for 15% off.  Quince: Go to Quince.com/sleepy for free shipping and 365-day returns BetterHelp: Visit BetterHelp.com/SLEEPY today to get 10% off your first month. GreenChef: GreenChef.com/50SLEEPYGRAZA and use code "SLEEPYGRAZA" to get started with 50% off Green Chef + FREE Graza Olive  Oil Set in your 2nd and 3rd boxes. ButcherBox: Sign up at butcherbox.com/sleepy and use code "sleepy" OneSkin: Get 15% off OneSkin with the code SLEEPY at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.oneskin.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #oneskinpod GhostBed: Go to GhostBed.com/sleepy and use promo code “SLEEPY” at checkout for 50% off! Shopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at Shopify.com/otis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices