Podcasts about with christian

With Christian away, Jeff and Lana Bachynski welcome Michele Morrow from Good Game to the show this week to discuss the gameplay reveal for Midnight Suns from Firaxis, Sean Layden's new studio, the numerous collectors editions for Horizon Forbidden West, and more! The Playlist: WoW: Shadowlands, Pokemon Unite, Samsung Odyssey G9 monitor, Mario Kart Live Home Circuit Parting Gifts!

  "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side" - Han Solo   The way religion is portrayed in sci-fi is sometimes the worst of straw men. Just a few examples include Good Omens, American Gods, Raised By Wolves, and the entire concept of "The Force" in the Star Wars universe.   These aren't religions. They're crayon sketches of a religion drawn by someone with only a passing knowledge of (or deep experience with) an actual religion. They're pediatric theology canonized into a sci-fi framework meant from the start to highlight a pre-conceived set of flaws.   As geeks, our (valid) enjoyment of the sci fi story unwittingly undermines our potential enjoyment of religion and religious experiences. But, as RELIGIOUS geeks, we now have to overcome this perception of religions being completely illogical, appealing to the small of mind and weak of intellect.   BUT… as IT folks with a strong connection to an organized faith system, we also have the opportunity to point out these flaws and help others see them as such. We don’t need to re-write the Bene Gesseri order any more than we need to make the magic of Harry Potter adhere to the laws of physics. But by engaging our fellow nerds on the subject, we can encourage them to more critically assess the story’s (and therefore their own) pre-conceived notions.   Listen or read the transcript below. Speaker 1 (00:23): [inaudible] Leon Adato (00:32): Welcome to our podcast, where we talk about the interesting, frustrating and inspiring experiences we have as people with strongly held religious views working in corporate it, we're not here to preach or teach you our religion. We're here to explore ways. We make our careers, IT professionals mesh, or at least not conflict with our religious life. This is technically religious. The way religion is often portrayed in Sci-fi can be the worst of straw-men often. It seems like their crayon sketches of religion drawn by someone with very little knowledge of an actual religion. Pediatric theology canonized into sci-fi framework meant from the start to highlight a preconceived set of flaws. Does our enjoyment as geeks and as Sci-Fi aficionados of these stories, unwittingly undermine our potential enjoyment of religion and religious experiences, or as IT folks with strong, with a strong connection to an organized faith system, do we have an opportunity to point out these flaws and help others see them as such and possibly help them build an appreciation of real religion in the process I'm Leon Adato, and I'd like to welcome two new voices to the technically religious Pantheon. First up is Justin Dearing. Justin Dearing (01:40): Hello. Leon Adato (01:41): And next up is Jason Carrier. Jason Carrier (01:43): Great to be here. Leon Adato (01:44): Okay. So as is our want here at technically religious, we're going to start off with some shameless self promotion of guests and, uh, everything that you're doing. Uh, Justin, why don't you start us off, tell us who you are and a little bit about yourself. Justin Dearing (01:57): So I'm Justin during I am a senior consultant at Neudesic, I'm basically a mostly.net developer who, uh, actually liked writing SQL, uh, Zippy1981, I am Zippy1981 on the Twitters, uh, because I am old, not quite as old as Leon, uh, and, uh, I identify as Roman Catholic. New Speaker (02:17): Very Good. Okay. How about you, Jason? Jason Carrier (02:20): Hi, my name is Jason carrier. I'm a product manager at SolarWinds, and also a freelance product consultant. Uh, you can find me on Twitter or LinkedIn. All the other social medias, are pretty worthless personally. Um, on Twitter, I am network_carrier and LinkedIn. You can just look me up by my name, and I would consider myself a self-styled Buddhist. Leon Adato (02:40): Fantastic. All right. And wrapping, circling back. I am Leon Adato. I'm a head geek. Yes, that's actually my job title at Solarwinds, It's not solar or wind because naming things is hard. Apparently you can find me on the Twitters, which I say just to horrify Keith Townsend's daughter, uh, you can find me there @leonadato. You can also find me pontificating on things, both technical and religious @www.adatosystems.com, And I identify as an Orthodox Jew and sometimes my rabbi lets me do so. Um, so I want to dive into this conversation, uh, starting off, you know, from the premise, is, is that really what you think? And what I mean by that is that when I'm watching certain shows and I'm specifically thinking about things like, um, certainly anything by Neil Gaiman, American gods, good omens. I really desperately hope that Neil Gaiman doesn't think that's what we religious people think. You know, as far as what religion is, I just, I, I categorize it all. Or most of it as what I call pediatric theology. What I mean by that is somebody who is a grown-up. They might have an engineering degree. They understand how load bearing walls and weight works and things like that, but their religious education stopped in third grade and therefore they find themselves arguing, "thats stupid. You can't fit that many animals in a boat, there would never be able to"...., which is ridiculous. Not just because the question itself is a little bit weird, but also because there are thousands of years of commentary, from, you know, all the way back to the middle ages, where they said just all the birds I know about wouldn't fit on a boat that size, of course, those dimensions don't work. Obviously there's something else we're talking about here. My point being that somebody's, will say real world physical education has proceeded into their adulthood, but their religious education stopped in second grade and never went any further, but they're still trying to argue religion using that understanding. It seems like there's, that's part of what scifi is trying to do. I don't know what you think about it. Jason Carrier (04:52): I was gonna say, I think it's important to start with, uh, the, the differences between what is a religion, what's your worldview and, uh, kind of your, your attitude towards spirituality. Those things are kind of three distinct, um, uh, characteristics. So I would define them, I think it's important for our conversation to go through define those words. Right. And what do we mean by those? So to me, religion is, uh, all that set of, uh, kind of, uh, uh, habits that you go through and, and, you know, the different ceremonies, the, the different, uh, um, holidays that you have, that kind of thing, that's the religion, but then the worldview is, is kind of, how do you think that reality works, you know, uh, is, is there, uh, uh, planets going around the sun or is the sun going around the planets? You know, that kind of thing. That's kind of overall worldview, and then there's also the, the elements of spirituality is how do you think the, the unseen works, you know, is there something working behind the scenes? How does that work? Is it, is it karma? Is it heaven? Is it, hell, is it, you know, what's, what's the paradigm of the unseen that you ascribe to? Leon Adato (05:48): Got it, Justin, any, like what you, what's your take on that? Justin Dearing (05:53): Okay. I think, I think Jason's raising good points, but I think another thing to keep in mind is, you know, some people Who actually are, you know, perfect their religion and do try to be spiritual, also do have these, this pediatric theology, you know, they, they believe it all the animals on the boat, not just because there are fundamentals or wherever they, they just haven't really liked delved deep into it at all. New Speaker (06:13): Right. Justin Dearing (06:13): You know, Leon Adato (06:14): That was. Justin Dearing (06:14): And their religious. Leon Adato (06:14): That was what they learned. And it was good enough for them in the same way that some people stop learning math, when they can balance their checkbook. And some people stop even before that. And think that it's okay just to take what the bank statement says as Gospel truth. So, right. I think that's true. And circling it back to Sci-Fi, I think the challenge with religion as it's portrayed in Sci-Fi and fantasy, is that I think it does a disservice to the consumer, to, to the reader, um, in the sense that first of all, I always think that a richer, more, uh, more detailed world makes for a better story. So when you give religion in your story, short shrift, you are giving the story short shrift in a way. Um, also I think that a lot of scifi and fantasy writers find religion, this, this straw man, religion to be a really good antagonist, but if you start really fleshing out the religion, it stops being as good an antagonist. You know, when you start to understand that there are reasons and, and background and, and underpinnings suddenly it's not this, you know, totalitarian authoritarian regime, instituting the religious will of the, like, you know, that kind of like you can't do that once you recognize that there's a, you know, 4 or 5,000 year history behind it. I don't know. Jason Carrier (07:39): And then the fun part there is which part of the four or 5,000 year history are you going to represent in your, your characterization of the religion? Because that's kind of what they're doing in Sci-fi in a lot of ways is characterizing religions. It's definitely a reductionist view of it, but, uh, I would argue that there's still value necessarily to that reductionist view. Uh, you don't necessarily need a story to be true in order to derive some value from it. You can kind of get the lesson from it and apply that lesson in your present moment to make a better decision. Uh, you know, uh, maybe it's a value judgment of what's good, what's bad, bad that you could draw from star Wars, for example, and, and see, uh, you know, only the Sith deal in absolutes. So, you know, as a, a person in the world, I'm not going to deal in absolutes either. Cause I don't want to be like the Sith brick. That'd be a really simplistic example. You know, Leon Adato (08:23): Don't be like the Sith Bobby. Justin Dearing (08:27): But I want lightning, Leon Adato (08:29): right. Justin Dearing (08:31): Keep my kids in line. Leon Adato (08:32): Right, right. That would definitely okay. First of all, I've seen you do enough home home, uh, you know, home repair videos that you have lightning when you need it, you certainly have enough, um fire power in your garage to do that, but that's a whole other conversation. Um, okay. I, I see what you're saying. I think that the damage, the potential damage is that for people who are consuming, um, fantasy, and Sci-fi where religion is again, poorly represented there, the risk is that they will turn to the real religion in their lives in the world, and they will, they will draw equivalency. They will say the Catholic church is, stupid in the same way that, um, what was that movie with the gun kata? And, uh, it, it was another one of those dystopian movies where the church ran everything and everyone took it their happy pill to, you know, not be angry and stay calm all the time. Jason Carrier (09:38): Oh, with Keanu Reeves, what? Leon Adato (09:40): What? Jason Carrier (09:40): With Keanu Reeves? I don't remember the name of it, but it was Leon Adato (09:42): No, no, it wasn't Keanu it, wasn't Keanu Reeves. I'm trying to remember who even stared in it. But anyway, it's not important. I, if I can find it, I'll put it in the show notes after. Um, but the point is, is that, um, religion was the opiate of the masses. It was that sort of line. And, um, you know, the people who were calm had found a sort of inner strength and, um, it wasn't that it wasn't, that religion was good. It was that religion had been, subverted to become the means of control, and I think that people go in, you know, seeing a story like that, and then, going to church or going to synagogue or whatever, may bristle, especially again, going back to the pediatric theology, if you don't know any more than what you learned in second grade, it's really easy then to see the evil empire, you know, in taking communion or something like that. I mean, you know, like it just, it leads to really bad, um, it leads to really bad sort of mental jumps, which drive people away from a religion where they might find some fulfillment if they had taken the time to maybe learn more. I guess that's, that's really my, my, my concern about it. Jason Carrier (10:54): I can definitely see your point. I think it's two sides to the same coin. There's, there's good things that can happen and there's bad things that can happen. Right. And it's, it's all devil's in the details kind of differences, you know, how well is the story told and when is that parable being applied into what situation? Right. So, so the outcome isn't going to always be good or always be bad, you know, which kind of goes back to the whole only the deal sift deal in absolutes. Right. And it's only gonna, it's, it's gonna really depend on all the variables of your, your situation. Right. Leon Adato (11:21): Got it, I like the ok. Jason Carrier (11:23): the movie that were talking about, I think is equilibrium. Leon Adato (11:25): Yes!! Jason Carrier (11:25): With Christian bale. Leon Adato (11:27): Yes. Jason Carrier (11:27): There we go. Leon Adato (11:28): That's it. Okay. Thank you. Oh, my, my, my Googler on the side. Fantastic. Um, I want to pick up on some of. Jason Carrier (11:36): Google Fu is important. Leon Adato (11:36): that Jason that you mentioned earlier, which was the reductionism. And, and so that takes us to the second sort of major talking point in this, uh, particular episode, which is what I'm calling reductionism on parade, you know, where are there examples where, uh, a religion has been reduced, possibly past its, it's, worth, worthiness? Um, and the two examples that I've got, um, first is Orson Scott Cards, uh, seventh son series. This was a series that he clearly wrote, to try to provide a fantasy structure to, um, Mormonism in the same way. And this is my other example, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, is a fantasy structure to, uh, Christianity overall. Um, so the seventh son series has a primary pro you know, protagonist named John Smith. Leon Adato (12:27): And, uh, he is a maker, a seventh son of a seventh son. And all along the, the series, you end up with things like a golden plow head that has self will and wants to plow dirt, but only the right kind of dirt. And you have the foundations of a crystal city that is made out of crystallized water, and you have all sorts of other things. You know, you have these Allan elements of Mormon. I'm going to say mythology. I don't mean it as myth. I mean, it just as the, the underlying structure of the Mormon religion. So you have that, but it does a disservice, I think, to Mormonism overall, um, because it doesn't do a good job of telling the, the story of the seventh son. And it also doesn't do a good job of telling the story Mormonism. And that takes me the other example I have, which is a language in the order of which I have affectionately or, or, um, uh, in an annoyed voice called Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, um, blunt force Catholic trauma, because it's just this, like, you know, you're reading the story and all of a sudden, you're, you know, there's this mace coming from off the side that bashes you over the head, whang!! Look at, you know, Aslan is Jesus! Whang!!. Look, it's Mary! Whang. He died on the cross! Whang!! Like, you know, it's like I get it, I get it. And it ends up being a really bad story, fantasy story. And really, I feel not a particularly wonderful introduction to, you know, Christian ideals. I don't know. I, you know, I, I may not be the best judge of it though. Justin Dearing (13:59): I, I mean, I, I will say I had a roommate in college who, whose, uh, father was a director of religious education in the Catholic church. And he was, uh, he, he did not, um, he, he, he did not stick with Catholicism and he very much agreed with your assessment. And I would say even like, I, I do agree that it is very, uh, heavy handed, um, Christianity, but it is a children's book. And like, part of that is like, when I read Tolkien as a kid, I kind of knew there was some kind of like Christian algri in there, but, you know, I think it was more obvious, um, you know, with, and I guess maybe from it, it was meant to be childlike and pediatric because, um, you know, there, there was a tweet, I think that the best summarize it, you know, we're, you know, CS Lewis would be like, Oh, and now the, the Norse, you know, the Norse god of war and, and, and Santa Claus are gonna join the battle and Tolkien, it's like, here's this ax, it's 2000 years old. I'm gonna tell you the entire history of um and were just going to, That's just the axe he has, you know, Leon Adato (14:56): Right Oh, oh, is the ax, is the, is the ax Protestantism? No, it's, it's an ax. It's right. I actually, you know, having read, um, Tolkien, you know, Hobbit and Lord of the rings and things like that multiple times, I, I know that Tolkien had a religious point of view, I, I don't feel it. I certainly don't feel it as aggressively as Lion the Witch and the wardrobe and you're right. It is a children's story. So I, I, can't always, that's the reverse of pediatric theology where you come to a children's story and you say, well, that's ridiculous. The, you know, the gingerbread man could never walk. I mean, he's made of gingerbread. Where would his sinews be where it is? Okay. You're overthinking it Leon and you're really, really overthinking it. So, you know, there's that too. But, um, I, I didn't get the religious overlay in Tolkien as sir, as much as I get in, in certainly other things. Um, okay. So what are some other examples of, you know, reductionism and you know, why or why not? Jason Carrier (15:58): So, uh, one of the, one of the ones that I would look at is, uh, in Game of Thrones, for example, they, they kind of have in the, the, the old school world, that's their a sort of a, a parallel to the pagan religions of, of earth, and then in their new, uh, religion, that that's the more predominant in the, uh, kind of series where they're talking about, uh, the mother and the father, and, you know, uh, kind of, uh, those sort of, uh, uh, tropes, uh, sort of speak more to a Christian, uh, mythos a little bit, uh, and the the play between those two, I thought it was pretty well woven into the story, uh, sort of how the, the, the older folks, uh, would, would remember kind of the old gods that were more based on trees and, you know, fairies and that kind of thing, uh, paralleling the Paragon, uh, the, the, uh, pagan religions, and then the newer ones were kind of looking more like the, the Christian type, uh, Deities. Leon Adato (16:48): Got it. So before we go to the other side of reductionism, you know, where we think that Sci-Fi stories have, and fantasy stories have gotten it right, I want to take a stop. Jason, when we were prepping for this, you said something really interesting, about sometimes, what I'm calling the void can fill the void, meaning space and Sci-Fi and fantasy, the void, you know, can fill a void, the lack of religion in people's lives. And I wanted you to sort of expand on that for a minute. Jason Carrier (17:16): Sure. So, uh, particularly in, in, uh, America, I want to say it's like 30%, 35% right in there. Folks don't even go to church. They don't have any sort of, uh, religious view. So that's not to say that they're agnostic or atheist, but in a lot of cases, they just don't have an opinion. You know, it's not something that they consider. So, uh, seeing a way to, I think there's value in, in Sci-Fi in, in how, uh, religious philosophy is sort of characterized in there, for the uninformed, because it sort of helps to give them, uh, some level of exposure there. Uh, and I know that's a different perspective than the one that you're coming. And I think that the, the important thing to recognize there is the perspective that you're coming from is a well-educated, uh, Jewish person, right? So someone who really understands the ins and outs of that faith, uh, relative to, uh, uh, the uninitiated, you know, so that uninitiated person, um, can really get a lot of value from the parable nature of the Sci-Fi that's or of the religion that's represented in. Sci-Fi Leon Adato (18:14): Got it. So that would speak more to like the spirituality of that you were talking about earlier that, that Sci-Fi, I'm, I'm using air quotes here, Sci-Fi quote, unquote, religion, but the, the philosophy of it could fill in terms of a, a more, a set of morals or the idea that you, you should have a set of morals. You should have a set of ways to determine difficult ethical questions. You should think about these things beyond their immediate. It that's what I'm hearing. Jason Carrier (18:45): Yeah. So, so essentially the, the Sci-Fi can drive them to think through those problems, whereas maybe they wouldn't have before. So considering those moral paradoxes and, uh, coming up with their own sense of morality off the example that they're seeing in the screen or book. Justin Dearing (19:00): Yeah. And I think if, if, if you, whatever were rejected Christianity or whatever, and you were, you were not given a framework when that what you could, you could be a good person because of what, because of the failing of the religion that brought you up, or you just, weren't brought up with one and you end up watch star Trek, and then you decide to become a youth minister, a transhumanist, you know, you sit there and, you know, you could go really deep into kind of some of the underpinning philosophies and, and, you know, there, there are some values, there are things I don't agree with, but there's a solid, uh, you know, philosophical and spiritual thing there for you to go out Leon Adato (19:35): In the absence of anything else. It certainly, I think can serve a purpose. Uh, Jason, I didn't mean to cut you off. Jason Carrier (19:41): Oh I was just going to say, uh, captain Picard is a good leader, whether you believe the Klingons are real or not. Leon Adato (19:47): Okay. Fair. And, and I have been known to use the question of whether uh, Darth Vader truly repented, or not as part of a, uh, Jewish context, uh, conversation. It was more whether or not Darth Vader performed, what would be Halachically or Jewish in the Jewish religious structure, whether he really performed, um, true repentance or not based on that structure. So we're still back to the structure, dogmatic, you know, thing, and whether or not the Sci-Fi character could have done it. So it certainly does serve a purpose. At the same time. I do want to call out a particular risk, um, in using Sci-Fi science fiction as a filler for a religious, um, philosophy or a religious framework. And that's the science part. Uh, one of, one of the great rabbis of this era rabbi Jonathan sacks, um, who recently passed away and he was the chief rabbi of England. Um, he had a book called a great partnership, and it was a treatise, on why science and religion both need to work together. It was against the idea that science and religion are contradictory in any way. And some of the thoughts that he brought up that I thought are relevant here is first of all, science takes things apart to see how they work. Religion puts things together to see what they mean, and you know, that they serve two different purposes, but then he went and said, here's the problem, when you treat impersonal phenomena, meaning science, as if they're persons, you end up with myth, light comes from the sun God, rain comes from the sky God, and so on. And, but when you treat persons impersonally, when you treat people like they're things, as if they were objects, the result is dehumanization. You categorize people by color, class, creed, and you treat them differently because of that. And so they work together and the risk, I think, in using science fiction as your basis for a religious, moral or ethical point of view is that the science is going to out, The science of the science fiction is going to outweigh the philosophy, religion, and again, that putting together that interpersonal piece of it. Um, and you're going to end up with a, a poor substitute. I don't know if you have any thoughts about that. Jason Carrier (22:16): Yeah. I could definitely see your point and I wouldn't disagree that that would happen in some cases. I just think that there's uh, both cases that are represented. Um, obviously if somebody were looking at a Sci-Fi and taking that as, as their source of absolute truth and thinking that, um, that was really a true definition of reality. I think that would be a very different thing than, uh, looking at it, analyzing it, thinking it through and trying to find where they could draw value from it, but I really liked the point that you made about, uh, science and religion needing to work together. That's actually one of the things that drew me to Buddhism in the first place was that, uh, when science has a better understanding of something Buddhism adjusts, it doesn't, uh, portray itself as the purveyor absolute truth. Um, which was something that really, really appealed to me. Leon Adato (23:01): Got it. Justin Dearing (23:01): Yeah and and, I'll say, you know, as, as a Catholic, you know, uh, you know, people like to talk about Galileo and, you know, I, I won't get into the politics of, of then, but it was basically more of a reject state. They, they just said, you know, hold off on teaching that until we figure some stuff out. But, you know, nowadays there, the Catholic church has a, uh, uh, a big telescope in, in, uh, I think Arizona it's called loose, the Lucifer telescope, um, run by the Leon Adato (23:27): Wait, wait, it's called the what?? Justin Dearing (23:27): Yes Lucifer. Yes it's called Lucifer, yes. Leon Adato (23:27): I presume not after the Marvel and TV show character, but instead Jason Carrier (23:40): Jesuits have a sense of humor. Yes. Leon Adato (23:44): Yes. Justin Dearing (23:44): But, uh, yeah. Uh, but the, you know, and they, they, they do that and they say, you know, um, you know, they talk about how, you know, you know, Christmas probably, uh, Jesus, wasn't probably born on the 25th. We probably weren't in March because of, of, of the, the, the, the sheep were probably giving birth. That's why they were laying in the field and, and, and what happened, you know? And, and we, you know, there, there is, um, yeah, we, we, I think most modern, you know, uh, at least my religion, you know, we, we, we do try to, you know, take science into account, uh, there, and I think, I think other religions too, and I, I think, um, you know, if that, you know, some, some, some, some shows do get that right. I think maybe like the assigned it. Right. Leon Adato (24:21): And that takes us. So that takes us into the next, the next section, which is which stories do we think, um, really get it right. And I'm going to, I'm going to start off. I've got a couple of things that I think really did well, first of all, not a lot of people, um, now know about Catherine Kerr's Deryni series Deryni, spelled D E R Y N I, and it'll be in the show notes. She did a really good job of, of portraying, uh, a medieval or sort of slightly post pre Renaissance, uh, Catholicism to, and putting it in a con, in a fantasy context. So it really, really, really is Catholicism it's really, as Christianity it's, they're not trying to make it some fake something else that, you know, and, but it exists in parallel with, um, you know, her fantasy construct. And she does a really good job of talking about how a religious sensibility informs the users of we'll call it magic. It's not, but whatever, um, and how it informs the world. So that's the first one. I also actually liked the spirituality of ma uh, Madeleine L'Engle, um, wrinkle in time series. I thought she got, even though there were no specific re, you know, what we would call traditional or structured religious elements in there, she really gave a sense of the scope of the universe. And, um, Jason, to your point, how the unseen works behind the scenes, she gave a sense that there is larger forces and larger ideals at play. And the last one, a lot of people say, well, there's no like Orthodox Jewish, you know, fantasy stories. There was one that I know of, it's called the red magician by Lisa Goldstein. And it takes place in a Hungarian village. It takes place in a Orthodox Jewish Hungarian village, and Judaism doesn't figure into the story at all. They, the characters just all happened to be Orthodox. Um, and the last one is actually a comic book it's called how America got her sword, which builds itself as just another story about a 12 year old troll fighting, uh, Orthodox Jewish girl. So it's, it's just, again, it takes place in an Orthodox context where the Orthodox Judaism, doesn't, it isn't a pivotal element. It just is present as another aspect of the world-building that the writers do. So those are ones that, that do well. And again, I think they did it well because the religion wasn't the pivotal element of it. It was simply a fact of facet that informs the lives of the characters as they go along for better or for worse, but informs their lives. So what else do you have to add to my list? Justin Dearing (26:57): Um, I'll, I'll say, yeah, to two examples. Uh, so basically what I would like to call the two space station series of, of the 90's, Babylon five and deep space 9. So, uh, um, jam JMS, uh, hu. And Ronald D Moore, I think they're, they're both atheists. I think JMS, you know, basically said, you know, I'm an aithi, you know, I'm an atheist, but I religion exists. And, you know, from like, I think episode two, like it was like all the species had to give to talk about their dominant religion and, and the, uh, and the, the, uh, earth did if he had them shake hands with the Orthodox rabbi in the Greek Orthodox and rabbi in the Catholic, I mean, the Greek Orthodox priest and the Protestant minister and the, the, the African whatever. Um, yeah. And it built onto the idea of like, uh, the human being, the people that brought diversity together. And, and that's how they went and, you know, uh, defeated, defeated the shadows, um, you know, it, you know, down, down, down or whatever. So I thought that was, you know, he did a lot of, uh, stuff that was, you know, he had a group of, of Catholic, uh, or they seem to, you know, Catholic brothers come on. And they, it seemed to be like how a monk shorter would, would evolve, um, where they had, you know, a certain mission. And, and they, they kind of, uh, you know, worked in a very Franciscan way of, of, of, uh, being, you know, they, they, they, they, they, they did work in exchange for lodging and things like that. Um, and I think, yeah, uh, deep space 9, I think, I, I think the, the whole wormhole, like the idea of exploring the idea of, well, what if we thought were gods, will there be people in, you know, they're, they just exist outside of time, uh, in, in this, in this wormhole. And then we have this kind of doubting Thomas, you know, guy who becomes their, their, their Emissary. And I think that, that, you know, dealt with it well, though, they're, they're, they're Pope uh, you know, they're, they're, they're, Pope being like she was upset that she never had her, uh, uh, divine, like experience, you know, she was upset like that. And she was also, you know, really evil, um, not, not, not because she didn't have, but, you know, she, she was, you know, they, they, I think they, if they dealt with, you know, uh, I think they, they dealt with stuff very well. You know, there was one episode where, uh, Kiko was the teacher. Um, and she was teaching about like, uh, basically, um, like, I guess she was teaching her like the earth go around the sun or whatever. And they're saying, we don't believe that because of, you know, the prophets taught us this, or what have you. And they had that actual debate between fundamentalists and, and non fundamentalists there. Leon Adato (29:08): Got it. Justin Dearing (29:10): Okay. So I I've got, I mean, I guess I can have several star Wars rants, but I have one in the religious aspect of, so did, did anyone have any idea that, that Jedi was supposed to be celibate until like halfway through episode two? Like if they, Leon Adato (29:22): Yeah no. Justin Dearing (29:22): If they like not even George Lucas, like, I think he was like writing the script and, but, um, and I think that was like, like one of the things, like, it's hard to, you know, talk about like, uh, you know, categorizing, um, the, the celibate or the Jedi as like a monk shorter or whatever, is it realistic or not realistic may, maybe a lot of it was like Buddhist. And you might have more to say in that, that Jason, if you have a thing it's like, um, you know, there's big thing about the celibacy, you know, if you're going to become a priest in the Catholic church, you know, there's, there's a lot of preparation talking about celibate, celicaby, Leon Adato (29:54): They don't just spring it on you. Like the day, the day before you take your vows, I was like, Oh, and by the way, Justin Dearing (30:00): And the last Bishop on earth living in the swamp would not forget to mention that to you. No, no. We were, luke went and had a family and, you know, the old Canon, you know? Leon Adato (30:10): Yeah. I got from, from the, okay. So, so fair warning. I, um, did see Phantom menace in the theater, and then I refuse to see anything else of the prequels. I actually frequently will not admit that they even existed. Um, so just take that for what it's worth. Uh, I did try to watch the, uh, second one. Yeah. I tried to watch the second one on mute while I was running on a treadmill without subtitles, and I still found it unwatchable. So that's just my own diatribe against the prequels. But my point being is that I got the sense of not being connected, that, that sort of almost Buddhist sense of not being attached to no thing, but I did. Right. Like, I didn't get the same sense that that meant celibacy. It just meant you, you have to make sure that you are ready, you are mature enough not to feel ownership or attachment to another person as much as to your, you know, lightsaber or your Starship or your Wookie or whatever. Um, yeah, I mean, the clone Wars does, you know, he's supposed to, like, they were afraid if he can become too attached to it. Uh, you know, Padawan, and, and, you know, you're going to be too attached to R2 and they're, they're, they're, they're definitely, uh, like what that there. And I, I guess in that regard, it's a good thing. I just, I just, like, I felt like there was a lot of interest distantly for me to formerly judge, um, star Wars, because it's, it's so inconsistent where I can say, you know, right. Leon Adato (31:49): I mean, Again, Sci-Fi story to Jason's point. Like there are parts that work and parts that don't work and, you know, yeah. Um, okay. I think, uh, we have talked to this one, not quite to death, but, but good enough for one episode, um, lightning round final words, any final thoughts or ideas? Um, Justin, I'll let you lead this one off. Justin Dearing (32:09): Okay. Sure. Uh, you know, I think this, this was a great conversation. I, I, I, I think, uh, thank you, Jason, for giving the, the, the Buddhist perspective. Uh, and, and I think, uh, you know, I think, yeah, I, I, I will echo your points about the creation, the creation, myths stories. Those are good. And, and that was probably the least tough, tough read part of the, the similar news. You know, it's kind of a very academic and tough reader as a Tolkien fan, you know, it's the hardest one of them all to read, you know? Leon Adato (32:39): Got it. Okay, Jason. Jason Carrier (32:42): Yeah. So I would love to talk about the concept of a helpful way of thinking. Uh, it's something that I took from DaVinci code books, uh, Dan, Dan Brown books, uh, there was a Buddhist character in the book that talked about a helpful way of thinking. Now she's a very scientific minded person, right? So she she's very much about, you know, physics and reality. And, uh, it doesn't care much for, uh, you know, winging angels, that type of thing. But she really liked the concept of, if you could look at, uh, Christianity and, and see something that was very helpful to you, uh, even if you don't think of it as literal truth, it can still be extremely helpful and impactful in your life. Uh, I applied the same thing to, you know, star Wars and as I'm watching, you know, religions in, in Sci-Fi, um, a lot of times they can give you a different perspective on a truth, even if it's not speaking to like an absolute truth, that's a pattern that can be a helpful way of thinking in your life. Leon Adato (33:32): Got it. So, uh, you know, you're not talking about actually recreating the Jedi religion. You're just saying that this thing that they do, even though it's a, from a fantasy environment is, is useful and applicable to our real world experiences. Jason Carrier (33:47): Exactly. Looking at it allegorically instead of literally. Leon Adato (33:50): All right. So I want to wrap it up in a completely different, uh, aspect I've already waxed, uh, annoyed on the whole star Wars universe thing. My final thought is that there's a, a certain moment in the TV series, Firefly, where river gets a hold of, um, books, uh, Booker book, Justin Dearing (34:09): separate books. Leon Adato (34:10): Yeah. He, his Bible and reorders it and says, you know, it was completely out of order. So I put it in the right order. And of course, you know, he's like, you completely ruined, it you messed it up! And she's like, but it was wrong. It was in the wrong, you know, the references and whatever. And I just want to wrap that character. I want to wrap river in a big hug, and I want to bring her into like a Yeshiva. And I want to show her the Talmud and say, here, go. Off you go, because that's the kind of mind the one that says, well, but your reference points, you know, that this came before that, and that comes before this. And if you did this and this and this, that, that is exactly the mindset of a good Yeshiva Bucher of a good learner. Somebody who is able to take information that is often presented out of order or in a different context and say, but wait a minute, you said this other thing, 4 books ago. What about that? That is exactly the kind of mind. And I just, that one moment, and of course books, you know, reaction of horror and you don't get religion and I'm thinking, no, no, no, she does. She does. She's perfect for it. You just need to, you know, and that didn't happen. So that would be my, that would be my change, my head Canon change to the Firefly universe. Uh, plus the fact that wash never died. That would also be my change. So, uh, all right. Well, I appreciate, uh, both of you taking some time out of your busy lives to talk today, and I hope that you won't be strangers on technically religious in the future. Justin Dearing (35:41): Thank you for inviting me. Thank you. Jason Carrier (35:44): Great. Thanks Leon. I really appreciate you having me. This has been a lot of fun. Leon Adato (35:47): Thanks for making time for us this week, to hear more of technically religious visit our website, technically religious.com, where you can find our other episodes, leave us ideas for future discussions and connect with us on social media.

My guest for The Happy Hour #349 is Francine Rivers. Francine Rivers is a New York Times  best-selling author. She’s written over 30 books, her most well-known work being Redeeming Love. My mom is absolutely giddy that Francine is joining me on the podcast today - we’re big fans and I’m sure so many of you are, too! In this episode, Francine tells us about everything from the importance of friendship in marriage to her excitement for her upcoming 2021 film Redeeming Love! She also talks about transitioning from writing steamy romance novels to Christian fiction, and the process of growing in her faith to understand the depths of God’s love for us. I love when she says, “With Christian fiction, it’s never meant to replace the real thing. It’s an introduction so that it hopefully makes people hunger and thirst for that kind of love.” For the full summary and links to the show, click the link below! Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is the new Xbox Series X worth it? With Christian having a few days to play it since it came out we get his first impressions. We then dive back into the pc vs console war and even the war between consoles. Let us know what you think about the new systems and if your getting one. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/boredwiththeboys/support

Christian RossChristian is the co-owner of UpNext Sports Consulting, a company that provides strategic communications that allow its clients to effectively communicate and bring their visions to life.Christian brings her expertise in brand perception, event management, and social media marketing to provide UpNext Sports Consulting by tailoring client messages to their target audience leading to proper exposure. With Christian’s multiple years of basketball experience as a stand-out player on and off the court and working with different local organizations, she has the experience to give the client what they need.​Christian is also the Founder of Life Above the Rim, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating female student-athletes. Christian recently served as a General Manager and Game Day Operational Manager for the Dallas Skyline professional basketball team, an AAU Coach, trainer, and basketball coach at Prince of Peace High School. She has a strong passion for preparing and training athletes on the court and giving back to her community. About Sivonnia DeBarrosSivonnia DeBarros – the Protector of Athletes – is a first-generation lawyer and law business owner, woman in business and a former track and field Division-I College athlete. DeBarros is passionate about helping athletes in business protect their brands through collaborative partnerships, education and support necessary to carry them to the next level. DeBarros’s practice areas are Business, Employment, Sports, and Entertainment. Learn more about her services at www.prosportlawyer.com and www.sldebarros.com.What Are You Sporting About?https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/what-are-you-sporting-about/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/ep-19-christian-ross-co-owner-of-upnext-sports-consulting-discusses-on-supporting-pros-with-sivonnia-debarros-protector-of-athletes

Christian RossChristian is the co-owner of UpNext Sports Consulting, a company that provides strategic communications that allow its clients to effectively communicate and bring their visions to life.Christian brings her expertise in brand perception, event management, and social media marketing to provide UpNext Sports Consulting by tailoring client messages to their target audience leading to proper exposure. With Christian's multiple years of basketball experience as a stand-out player on and off the court and working with different local organizations, she has the experience to give the client what they need.​Christian is also the Founder of Life Above the Rim, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating female student-athletes. Christian recently served as a General Manager and Game Day Operational Manager for the Dallas Skyline professional basketball team, an AAU Coach, trainer, and basketball coach at Prince of Peace High School. She has a strong passion for preparing and training athletes on the court and giving back to her community. About Sivonnia DeBarrosSivonnia DeBarros – the Protector of Athletes – is a first-generation lawyer and law business owner, woman in business and a former track and field Division-I College athlete. DeBarros is passionate about helping athletes in business protect their brands through collaborative partnerships, education and support necessary to carry them to the next level. DeBarros's practice areas are Business, Employment, Sports, and Entertainment. Learn more about her services at www.prosportlawyer.com and www.sldebarros.com.What Are You Sporting About?https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/what-are-you-sporting-about/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/ep-19-christian-ross-co-owner-of-upnext-sports-consulting-discusses-on-supporting-pros-with-sivonnia-debarros-protector-of-athletes

Christian RossChristian is the co-owner of UpNext Sports Consulting, a company that provides strategic communications that allow its clients to effectively communicate and bring their visions to life.Christian brings her expertise in brand perception, event management, and social media marketing to provide UpNext Sports Consulting by tailoring client messages to their target audience leading to proper exposure. With Christian’s multiple years of basketball experience as a stand-out player on and off the court and working with different local organizations, she has the experience to give the client what they need.​Christian is also the Founder of Life Above the Rim, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating female student-athletes. Christian recently served as a General Manager and Game Day Operational Manager for the Dallas Skyline professional basketball team, an AAU Coach, trainer, and basketball coach at Prince of Peace High School. She has a strong passion for preparing and training athletes on the court and giving back to her community. About Sivonnia DeBarrosSivonnia DeBarros – the Protector of Athletes – is a first-generation lawyer and law business owner, woman in business and a former track and field Division-I College athlete. DeBarros is passionate about helping athletes in business protect their brands through collaborative partnerships, education and support necessary to carry them to the next level. DeBarros’s practice areas are Business, Employment, Sports, and Entertainment. Learn more about her services at www.prosportlawyer.com and www.sldebarros.com.What Are You Sporting About?https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/what-are-you-sporting-about/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/ep-19-christian-ross-co-owner-of-upnext-sports-consulting-discusses-on-supporting-pros-with-sivonnia-debarros-protector-of-athletes

Christian Ross is the co-owner of UpNext Sports Consulting, a company that provides strategic communications that allow its clients to effectively communicate and bring their visions to life. Christian brings her expertise in brand perception, event management, and social media marketing to provide UpNext Sports Consulting by tailoring client messages to their target audience leading to proper exposure. With Christian's multiple years of basketball experience as a stand-out player on and off the court and working with different local organizations, she has the experience to give the client what they need.​ Christian is also the Founder of Life Above the Rim, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating female student-athletes. Christian recently served as a General Manager and Game Day Operational Manager for the Dallas Skyline professional basketball team, an AAU Coach, trainer, and basketball coach at Prince of Peace High School. She has a strong passion for preparing and training athletes on the court and giving back to her community. About Sivonnia DeBarros Sivonnia DeBarros – the Protector of Athletes – is a first-generation lawyer and law business owner, woman in business and a former track and field Division-I College athlete. DeBarros is passionate about helping athletes in business protect their brands through collaborative partnerships, education and support necessary to carry them to the next level. DeBarros's practice areas are Business, Employment, Sports, and Entertainment. Learn more about her services at www.prosportlawyer.com and www.sldebarros.com.

To wrap up September, we welcome Dr. Ashley Patterson from Penn State and Dr. Emily Nemeth from Denison! With Christian, they give advice for new faculty on incorporating service-learning at a new institution with a new community context, explain the difference between service-learning and critical service-learning, and discuss possibilities for keeping digital service-learning critical, knowledge production, multimodality in class projects, living within the systems we're critiquing, and incorporating empathy into every part of our academic lives. Additionally, we get to hear about the book they are working on, which touches on doing service-learning that focuses on power, navigating institutional boundaries of learning, the untapped potential of service-learning, and turning ideals of service-learning into praxis. It's a busy part of the semester, but this is an excellent episode to tune into this week!

With Christian values being attacked, Pastor teaches about the importance of determining your identity. We need to be ambassadors for Christ.

We have recently experienced something which none of us will have experienced in NZ, the government ordered churches not to gather for worship. Of course, they did not single out religious groups alone to be closed down, but for the first time that any of us have experienced in this context, we were forbidden to meet for worship. Questions arose in our minds about the rightness of this act, and these questions were multiplied as we hit the various alert levels, and especially as we were coming out of the stricter levels into those with more freedom. Questions like does the government have the right to command us not to meet, shouldn’t we practice civil disobedience? Or, if the government is inconsistent in their practice and give more liberties to non-religious groups than religious, are we then allowed to disobey? Or, how long is too long for us not to meet before we decide enough is enough? And when they allowed us to meet, would we allow them to place restrictions upon us like forbidding communion? With Christian examples of some of the early Christians refusing to obey government restrictions to meet under the persecution from Rome, or the examples of early Christians ignoring common sense practices of quarantine during plagues to minister to the sick, some were wondering if we were doing the right thing by not meeting and observing social distancing. Today as we complete our analysis on our experience of Covid-19 we are going to look at what the bible says about the relationship between the Church and State. We will look firstly, at the state’s responsibility, and then secondly, the church’s. Source

With Christian theologian and prolific author Harold Eberle, we discuss some brave and common questions that come to people who explore the Old Testament. Questions like: why did God sometimes command his people to kill other people groups? Why are there so many laws we ignore today? Does God cause things like the coronavirus to occur? What is the value of the Old Testament to our lives and culture today? Visit www.worldcastministries.com for more on Harold Eberle. To subscribe to Brave Conversations on Patreon and get more video content visit: Patreon.com/braveconversations!

With Christian back east playing the Borgata main event, Matt Berkey and Nick Howard dive into challenging yourself, overtraining, travel, and way, way more...

With Christian on vacation, Jacob was joined by Honi Ahmadian of Lakers Outsiders to discuss the main hole in the Lakers’ roster right now: Which center should replace DeMarcus Cousins after he injured his ACL? Jacob and Honi debated the merits of the four names the team has been connected to, as well as revealing who else they think the team should look at if they expand the pool of players they’re choosing from.  After that, the two previewed Jordan Caroline as the podcast continues to take a closer look at every player going to training camp. All that and more on the latest episode of “Can You Dig It?” on the Silver Screen and Roll Podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Christian out standing in his field, Tucker and Michael hunker down to talk about cool art. Like the Doug Movie. And The Phantom Menace. Cool art is absolutely flowing out of the talk spigot on this episode of the XP Bar Podcast. Unfortunately we also have to talk about video games, so get your wader wings on and dive into a frothy bath consisting of Metro Exodus, Fallout 76, Star Fox 64, Rival Schools, Sonic Advance 2, and maybe a surprise! A Dutch Drum & Bass surprise!

With Christian on vacation, Chris & Stat Guy Ry host episode 133 of the NYYST Podcast, breaking down the Yankees impact players of the first half. Mix that in with a little Bombers trivia and you get a great episode to roll into the All-Star break with.

With Christian away, Tucker and Michael must do the unthinkable: podcast about E3. The highlights, the lowlifes, the Todds, the CGI cutscenes featuring no gameplay whatsoever. The hopes, the dreams, the unfireable short men in jackets. The pit bulls, the meme men. Welcome to the only press conference you need, toots.

Avengers: Endgame! With Christian!

At this point in my Rythmia journey, I’ve already received a tremendous gift – I found my true purpose – but we’re still not done yet. Because we have two more incredible healers to meet in this episode: R. Christian Minson, the resident Director of the Breathwork Program at Rythmia Life Advancement Center, and Dr. Jeff McNairy, the Chief Medical Officer at Rythmia. Christian practices Transformational Breath, a practice that harnesses the power of your own innate healing capacity through cutting edge breathing techniques that access deeper amounts of life force energy, helping you to connect with yourself emotionally, physically, and spiritually. With Christian as your guide, the breathing brings you on insightful journeys that open you up to life changing events and shifts in consciousness. ​The results are meditative states of deep peace, energized enthusiasm for life, and an opening to the mystical realms of consciousness. It’s hard to believe that something so transformational can come from breath until you experience it, but it’s impossible to forget once you do. Christian was originally called to be a healer because he experienced the power of breathwork first hand – and if you listened to part one of my Rythmia journey, you can probably tell that this is a common theme here at Rythmia; the healed become the healers. And this is, at its essence, what Rythmia offers visitors: the opportunity to discover the light worker or light warrior essence within. Because when your light shines a bit brighter, you’re able to go out in the world and be of greater service. But this probably wouldn’t be possible or safe if it weren’t for Jeff McNairy, who has been working in the healthcare field for 25 years. He’s seen, over and over again, people struggling to heal because the current Western system of healthcare is simply deficient. It is more concerned with managing symptoms and prescribing “medicine” than healing. However, through working with some of the most intense patient populations – including those who struggle with addiction and trauma, like Rythmia co-founder Gerard Powell – he has seen that the only real healing can come from within; you have to find the root cause of your unhappiness, health concern, and discontent, then resolve it. And in working with Gerry and everyone else who has visited Rythmia since it opened, Jeff has seen that one plant medicine session conducted in a safe, clinically appropriate environment can be as effective as 10 years of psychotherapy. Like breathwork, it’s hard to believe that plant medicines can be so transformational – and then you experience it under the right conditions. It’s ancient modalities meeting modern psychology, all in the jungles of Costa Rica, and I invite you to come join me for the rest of this wild, profound, and emotional ride.   Topics Discussed With Christian: What breathwork is & how it can help you in ways that yoga can’t Why Christian became a monk for a decade (and then made the transition back to being a worldly person) How the healers at Rythmia help visitors find the light warrior essence within them What separates Transformational Breath from the hundreds of other breathwork practices out there Rebirthing through breath Plant medicine and breathwork both open up the door to consciousness – but breathwork opens the door and gently beckons you in while plant medicine grabs you and shoves you through the doorway The benefits of integrating a natural habitat into your spiritual experiences How breathwork works with plant medicine to evolve your experience & help you claim it as your own   Topics Discussed With Jeff: How the staff at Rythmia ensures that the plant medicine experience is safe for everyone involved A lot of what we call mental illness is just people in pain without any way to process that pain Using a drug to get off drugs (AKA why plant medicine is so effective for treating addiction) How it it possible that I had a psychedelic experience and, now, feel even more committed to being sober? (Trust me, that would never happen after a bump of coke...) When Jeff first met Gerry, who was then a very different person than the person you met in the last episode, and their transformational entré into the world of plant medicines The difference between iboga and ayahuasca, experientially and physically A common thread of trauma that has rippled throughout my life, especially my romantic life How the plant medicine helps you work through your own trauma and start the healing process We can’t connect with other people until we get connected with ourselves Why Rythmia accepts people who are shunned or devalued in many Western medical facilities due to their particular mental illness What science is starting to learn about the pineal gland & DMT How a dog helped me find God The three intentions that will help you find everything you’re looking for at Rhythmia   More about this episode. Connect with Luke on social media to learn how to take your lifestyle to the next level, plus catch exclusive live interviews & events: INSTAGRAM - @lukestorey // https://www.instagram.com/lukestorey/ FACEBOOK - https://www.facebook.com/MrLukeStorey/ TWITTER - @MrLukeStorey // https://twitter.com/MRLUKESTOREY YOUTUBE - https://www.youtube.com/c/LukeStorey   THIS SHOW IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY: ORGANIFI. I talk about the Organifi green juice a lot because it’s delicious and I eat it every day, but did you know that they also make a red juice? This red juice powder is packed with antioxidants, immune-boosting herbs, and adaptogens like reishi and cordyceps mushrooms (which are really hard to make taste good – I have no idea how they did this). It’s super quick and easy nutrition on-the-go. Save 20% using code “LIFESTYLIST” at http://www.organifi.com/luke. AND... ALITURA NATURALS. Your skin is the largest organ and it needs to be treated like another mouth. If you're as careful about what you put on your skin as you are about feeding your body, then you’ve got to check out my good friend and previous podcast guest’s skincare line, Alitura Naturals. Alitura was created out of desperation after it’s founder, model, and actor, Andy Hnilo, found his face unrecognizable after getting hit and run over by two cars. Alitura, latin for ‘feeding and nourishing,’ was created out if a small studio apartment, purely out of necessity to heal Andy’s scarring and abrasions. Carefully sourced with research proven ingredients containing natural, organic, nutrient-rich ingredients that feed and nourish your skin, so you can look as vibrant as you feel. And as a special gift for my listeners, use code “lifestylist” for 20% off and FREE SHIPPING in the US on your order at http://alituranaturals.com. AND... ONDA WELLNESS. If you’re a discerning health enthusiast like myself, you’ve probably sat and scratched your head at the health food store trying to figure out which CBD product you should buy. They all make big claims, they all say they’re the best, but what actually works? Well, I just found a brand that I’m super stoked about, and I want to share it with you: ONDA offers a patented and truly full-spectrum line of products that aren’t dependent on the use of alcohol, CO2, or other solvents for extraction – and this is important because when you’re getting the medicine out of the plant, you don’t want to add poisons to it! You can try it for yourself and get 15% off using code LUKE15 at www.ondawellness.com. HELP SUPPORT THIS SHOW! Starting and growing a podcast requires a ton of time, energy, and money. Do you appreciate this information, and want to support my mission to deliver as much life enhancing information as possible to as many people as possible? The easiest, and most effective way you can help is to do this: Go to Lukestorey.com/support and donate towards show production costs Subscribe to the show by clicking “subscribe” in iTunes Write us a review in iTunes Share this show with one friend right now You’d be amazed how much these four simple steps do to help us grow! Here’s the magic link for reviews in iTunes. Or, if you want to get there yourself, you can follow these instructions. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for listening and joining me on this journey we call life

With Christian off in Mexico, Joe and Vito are free to reach nerd level 9000 this week.  Starting with Beers of the week: Avid Blackberry Cider and 10Barrel Crush Raspberry Sour (1:15), the bois talk anime streaming service CrunchyRoll(2:15), is anime creepy? (3:30), Joes adventures at the UMaine anime club (4:45), shows to make you an anime fan(5:50), Vito's Final Fantasy XIV corner: Treasure maps (10:15), dad joke of the week: Frog edition (13:30), getting back into games after a long break (18:15), Kingdom Hearts 2 (20:10), Game of thrones spoilers, theories, and ice javelin physics(22:00), Joe's sports segment (25:30), bonus dad joke of the week: Mushroom edition (28:00), Fire Emblem: 3 houses seems cool (28:35), FFXIV vs World of Warcraft (29:15) and we finish with a philosophical discussion: Just what are the beefy bois? (38:10) Enjoy!   Follow Beefy Bois on Social Media:   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beefyBois/   Twitter @beefy_bois: https://twitter.com/beefy_bois   Instgram @beefyboisbudclub: https://www.instagram.com/beefyboisbudclub/   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/74KwEHTfjzdNNqcBB96TKm   Website: http://www.beefybois.com   YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGgATtKgo1sJtVwRuggL1hA/

We are down to the Final 7 as Finale night is just around the corner for the David vs Goliath cast! After negating a blindside attempt at the hands of Gabby with his own idol, Christian is on the prowl! But so are the rest of the cast after last week's failure. Who is really on the chopping block this week? Is this week's preview just hiding a Christian boot to try and confuse us? Or will it really be a random boot where everyone is at risk? Can Christian find his way back in with Nick and reform the Mason Dixon alliance? WIth Christian still being considered the biggest threat in the game, is it finally his night? Find out Wednesday night as Jim Early hosts the Survivor David vs Goliath Recap show! Call in at (657) 383-1308 and get your thoughts in on this week's action and what we can expect on finale night!

Many people look on death with dread, as the sad ending of it all. With Christian faith we look on it very differently, as our final journey home to eternal life with God. Our Lord has told us that he has gone ahead to prepare a room for us in the Father’s house (cf. John […]

Many people look on death with dread, as the sad ending of it all. With Christian faith we look on it very differently, as our final journey home to eternal life with God. Our Lord has told us that he has gone ahead to prepare a room for us in the Father’s house (cf. John […]

With Christian traveling, Jeff welcomes Andrea Rene from What's Good Games, and Anthony Taormina from Gamerant.com to dig deep into Destiny 2. But first, they talk Youtube takedown requests, LA Noire's re-release, and Magic The Gathering's new digital version. The Playlist: Destiny 2, Knack 2 Quick Questions Parting Gifts

With Christian traveling, Jeff welcomes Andrea Rene from What's Good Games, and Anthony Taormina from Gamerant.com to dig deep into Destiny 2. But first, they talk Youtube takedown requests, LA Noire's re-release, and Magic The Gathering's new digital version. The Playlist: Destiny 2, Knack 2 Quick Questions Parting Gifts

Francis Spufford is a prize-winning author who returned to faith as an adult after years as an atheist. His latest book is "Unapologetic: Why despite everything Christianity can still make surprising emotional sense".  He says he didn't write it to try to give an objective argument for Christianity, but to show why its concepts, doctrines and beliefs help those who believe it make emotional sense of the world. He chats with renowned author Philip Pullman who is an atheist.  They talk about new atheism, the atheist bus campaign, the concept of sin, the person of Jesus and more. For Unapologetic http://www.amazon.co.uk/Unapologetic-everything-Christianity-surprising-emotional/dp/0571225217 For Philip Pullman http://www.philip-pullman.com/ For more Christian/non-Christian debate visit http://www.premier.org.uk/unbelievable or get the MP3 podcast http://ondemand.premier.org.uk/unbelievable/AudioFeed.aspx or Via Itunes You may also enjoy: Unbelievable? 8 May 2010 - "The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ" This is the latest book from the pen of prominent atheist author Philip Pullman. With Christian journalist Martin Saunders and Bible Scholar Anthony McRoy. Unbelievable? 12th March 2011 - Music & God Christian David Robertson and atheist musician Gordon Livesey discuss whether music can have soul if you don't believe in the soul. Join the conversation: http://www.premiercommunity.org.uk/group/unbelievable and via Facebook and Twitter

With Christian away on vacation, Phil and Skye talk about THE BIBLE (the TV series) and all forms of changing marriage, both same-sex and... Jedi?