According2Sam Podcast

In professional wrestling, the ‘heel’ plays an essential role. The heel is the villain—the character the audience is meant to dislike and root against, in contrast to the hero. Although the heel and the hero cooperate behind the scenes to put on the match, the audience is expected to see them as genuine adversaries. The heel's job is twofold. First, he must make the audience despise him. The loude...

CNN data analyst Harry Enten aired a segment on July 4, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, examining polling on how proud Americans are of their country. The polling indicated that Democrats, particularly younger Democrats, are much less likely than Republicans to say they are proud of the United States. During the segment, Enten said that only 36% of Democrats described the...

Many establishment Democrats seem surprised that socialists are gaining influence within their party, as if they slept through the past decade and have only now woken up. In 2016, Bernie Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, came close to winning the Democratic presidential nomination. Without the party’s superdelegate system and other actions by the DNC, he might have succeeded. In 2020...

One of the biggest challenges facing the United States as it approaches the nation's 250th birthday is tribalism, particularly racial tribalism. In many respects, the country appears more racially divided today than it did 50 years ago, at the time of its 200th birthday. This may seem counterintuitive because, as society becomes more diverse and pluralistic, one might expect race relations to impr...

The United States is widely regarded as one of the most powerful nations in history. It possesses one of the world’s most advanced militaries, equipped with sophisticated weapons, technology, and global capabilities. As a result, conquering the United States through a conventional military invasion would present an enormous challenge for any adversary. Additionally, the country’s large and heavily...

Many people are unhappy with the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) the United States is considering with Iran. They believe the Trump administration is offering too many concessions and would prefer military pressure to continue. However, many of these critics may not fully understand Trump’s strategy. Trump appears to be employing a “carrot-and-stick” approach. After several months of applying pr...

Rahm Emanuel, former chief of staff to President Barack Obama and former mayor of Chicago, wrote an op-ed in ‘The Wall Street’ Journal last fall titled “Democrats Need an Education Reset.” Emanuel, who is expected to run for president in 2028, argues that the United States faces an education crisis. He wrote the piece in response to a government report on results from the National Assessment of Ed...

The recent California primary election took nearly a week to certify the winners. In an age of modern technology and rapid transportation, that is a considerable amount of time. Many jurisdictions with fewer resources than California, and with similar or even larger numbers of voters, are able to certify their election results within 24 hours of the polls closing. This has caused some people to ha...

Over the weekend, a controversy erupted when Utah Senator Mike Lee posted a photo of the Pentagon’s revised list of religions it recognizes for observance. Lee wrote, “Can anyone tell me why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was left out of the list of Christian churches?” The Pentagon had added the word “Christian” to the names of several denominations but listed only The Church of...

Simon Magus, also known as Simon the Sorcerer, is a figure mentioned in the Book of Acts. He was a Samaritan who, according to Acts, amazed the people of Samaria with his sorcery and claimed to be someone great. The passage states: “All the people, both high and low, gave him their attention..." When the Apostle Philip came to Samaria and performed signs and miracles through the power of the Holy...

From the 2nd through the 4th centuries, many different Christian movements, or denominations, emerged throughout the Roman Empire. These included the Gnostics, Marcionists, Modalists, Arians, and many others. Most of these groups were considered heretical by the broader Christian community, but some began to attract increasing numbers of converts and grew in influence. As these movements spread, t...

The Road Less Traveled is a very popular nonfiction book that was published in 1978. Since then, it has sold millions of copies. It was written by the late Morgan Scott Peck, a clinical psychiatrist. Peck was raised in a Quaker family in New York City, which means he grew up familiar with the Bible. In The Road Less Traveled, he attempts to combine his knowledge of the Bible and the teachings of J...

An analogy often used in the Bible for the Christian Church is the human body. The Church is called the Body of Christ, though it is not a literal body; the description is figurative. Catholic doctrine teaches that the Pope is the head of the Church, and therefore, within the analogy, the Pope would be the head of the body. Catholics believe that Jesus made the Apostle Peter the head of the Church...

“Breaking News” used to mean something truly urgent — major events unfolding in real time that were important enough to interrupt whatever you were doing. That’s what “breaking” meant. News outlets were literally breaking into regular programming because the public needed the information immediately. But in the age of modern communication — with the internet, social media, and 24-hour news network...

For 50 years, the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) has been requesting an audience with the Vatican to discuss efforts to modernize the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. They have pushed for this dialogue during the papacies of John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis, but have been denied. Now, during the papacy of Leo XVIII, things have come to a head. They will likely...

Many Protestant groups—particularly during and after the Protestant Reformation—identified the Catholic Church and/or the papacy with Babylon the Great from the Book of Revelation, viewing it as a corrupt religious power opposed to true Christianity. The Puritans, among the earliest English Protestants to settle North America, shared this belief, and the idea spread throughout the New England colo...

The Catholic Church released a Synod report on homosexuality this week, further driving a wedge between those in the Church who support moderation and more traditional Catholics who believe the Church has gone off course since the Second Vatican Council. One such traditionalist group is the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, also known as the Transalpine Redemptorists. On the feast of St. Athanasius...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The Roman Curia is the administrative body of the Roman Catholic Church. It is composed of many individuals serving in a variety of roles to carry out the functions of the Holy See. As an institution, it has provided continuity for the Church for centuries. As popes have come and gone, the Curia has helped sustain its governance and operations. Although its development was gradual, its structure b...

Rodrigo de Borja was elected Pope Alexander VI in 1492. He died in 1503, and 14 years after his death, Martin Luther composed his Ninety-five Theses, launching the Protestant Reformation. Alexander VI was a member of one of the most powerful families in Spain. His uncle had been pope before him, and he used his authority as pope to increase his family’s power. His papacy is often marked by corrupt...

The true identity of Jesus has been a subject of debate for over 2,000 years. His identity was debated even among those who lived during his ministry, listened to his teachings, and witnessed him perform miracles. Despite experiencing these events firsthand, not everyone agreed on who he was. Some even claimed that he performed miracles by the power of Beelzebub. Since Jesus walked the earth, a wi...

Charlie Kirk was an evangelical Christian and identified himself as such up until moments before he was assassinated. Speaking to the crowd at Utah Valley University just before the shot rang out, he said, “I’m an evangelical Christian… but I’m not one of those guys that hates on Mormons.” That was the last time he publicly described himself that way, though he had done so many times before. Howev...

Many Catholics were surprised when the Pope called for unity between Christians and Muslims, especially at a time when Christians in some parts of the world face persecution by Muslims. The Pope did not merely call for tolerance or coexistence, but for communion—something that some conservative Catholics argued was at odds with Church doctrine. However, this criticism overlooks what the Church act...

The message of Christian–Muslim unification is emerging from many different directions, but it has not appeared out of nowhere. Pope Leo is currently touring Africa with the stated mission of improving relations between Christians and Muslims. During his visit to Algeria, he reiterated his belief that Christians and Muslims can live together and be friends. He also wrote on social media, “Communio...

The decision to attack Iran has drawn widespread criticism, much of it directed at President Trump. Some critics argue that he was influenced by Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but ultimately, the decision was his alone. As Commander in Chief, he makes the final call—and he chose to proceed with the attack. That decision is now being second-guessed not only by Democrats, but also by...