Holy Watermelon

Satan is THE ultimate rebel. If you want to learn all about Satanic Death cults and how evil they are well... you're going to be disappointed. Satanism is actually pretty normal? Tune in to find out more!   Support us at Patreon and Spreadshirt Join the Community on Discord Learn more great religion facts on Facebook and Instagram   ******* Preston Meyer  00:12 Hey, Katie. I'm great. How are you?...

Atheism and agnosticism can sound like scary words.  These two concepts are often misunderstood as something more nefarious than they actually are. There is a misconception that they worship Satan, or that they hate God. They don’t believe that any god exists at all. In this episode, we discuss some famous atheists, like Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Ricky Gervais.  We also chat about...

In this episode, we talk about Parody Religions! These are religions based on pop culture or as a commentary on religion.  If you've ever been curious about Dudeism, the Invisible Pink Unicorn or the Flying Spaghetti Monster and his noodly appendages, then this is the episode for you. Religious parody holds an important place in society, whether you are a diehard fan of Star Wars, or want people t...

TW: Cults are pretty icky and we talk about abuse in this episode in addition to Katie's potty mouth.  What is a cult? Like religion, it’s very hard to define what a cult is. In this episode, we go over definitions we like and don’t like. A cult can be a group that is led by someone who doesn’t believe what he teaches but teaches to get gain or a group that you’re scared to leave. Did you know all...

Is belief a choice or are our beliefs inherent to us? How do we decide whether something is true or not? With 7 billion people on the planet, there are about 10,000 different types of religious beliefs. How do we come to our conclusions?    Epistemology is a complex area of philosophy that deals with how we process information and decide if something is fact or fiction.   Support us at Patreon and...

In this episode, we discuss Shinto, the indigenous religion of Japan. It doesn't have one central figure or doctrine that is based on, but rather the worship of spirits or kami. Our first records of Shinto as a religion date back to 4CE, but because it is so integral to the formation of the nation of Japan, we believe that these beliefs developed even earlier.  Kami can be almost anything includin...

Sikhism is one of the newest "World Religions," only about 800 years old. Sikhism was developed in the context of Islam and Hinduism. It is a monotheistic religion based on the teachings of 10 gurus. In this episode, we cover the history of the 10 gurus and the creation of the religion. From human gurus to book gurus we talk about the creation of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book. Did you...

Is Buddhism a way of life or a religion? Is Buddha divine or is he just a smart guy? Because Buddhism is such an open religion (you can be a Buddhist and belong to another religious group) many people view it as a way of life instead of as a religion. However, Buddhism directly addresses what happens to your soul after death, which is a pretty religious thing to do.  In this episode, we tell the s...

In this episode, we are covering Hinduism. The oldest continuous religion in the world with maybe the largest pantheon of gods. We dig into a handful of their hundreds of Gods and explain their beliefs of karma, reincarnation, moksha, and more.   Support us at Patreon and Spreadshirt Join the Community on Discord Learn more great religion facts on Facebook and Instagram   Katie Dooley 00:12 Welcom...

The last in the triumvirate of large Abrahamic traditions, Islam began in 609CE with the prophet Muhammed's revelations from the angel Gabriel. Now the second largest religion in the world, Islam has contributed to arts and science over the centuries. In this episode, we cover the history of Islam, the observances as well as the controversies of 9/11 and the Charlie Hebdo attacks. The last in the...

Our second episode on the Abrahamic traditions is about Christianity, the most popular religion in the world. Katie and Preston give a high-level overview of the history, traditions, observances, and the handful of common beliefs that are found amongst all denominations.   Support us at Patreon and Spreadshirt Join the Community on Discord Learn more great religion facts on Facebook and Instagram...

We are spending the next 7 episodes giving overviews of the world's most popular religious traditions. We're starting with the oldest persistent Abrahamic tradition: Judaism. Join us as we discuss religious texts, practices, observances, and more! No religion is monolithic, but there are some things that bind together the Jewish faith, like the Hebrew Bible. While we don’t know who wrote the Hebre...

We are discussing the war on Christmas! Or the lack of one...  Let's talk about why December is a little more secular, and a little more globalist, than you might realize. In this episode, we cover many of the holidays that take place in December including Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Because there are literally dozens of holidays happening this time of year, Happy Holidays are more appropriate and ackno...

In the study of the world's religions, religious groups are divided into two categories: Western (mostly Abrahamic religions), and Eastern (almost everything else). We're going to unpack these labels in this episode and chat about the similarities and differences between the two big categories. We also chat about everything that's left out (surprise, it's a lot). All of the world’s religions come...

Religion and pop culture go together like watermelons and summer. They are so intertwined, sometimes we don't even recognize the allusions anymore! Can pop culture be a religious experience? Can the love for pop culture go too far? In this episode, we explore its core concepts. We talk about the role of God and touch on Buddhism. We question terms like "holy" and "sacred". Our exploration continue...

Now that we (sorta) know what a god is, what qualifies as religion? If almost anything can be a god... can anything be a religion?! In this episode, we discuss what religion is. Does there need to be a God to worship? Well, it’s a tricky thing to explain. There are many religions like Buddhism and Confucianism that, while they have one founder, aren’t directly worshiped like we see in the Abrahami...

In this episode, we take a closer look at the complex concepts of gods and worship. We start by defining God and then discuss how historical figures, like George Washington, have been worshipped in certain situations. We also explore the historical practice of deification, focusing on the worship of emperors and monarchs. Moving on, we discuss divine intervention in American history and how histor...

Is there a better place to start than the beginning? Where did religion come from? Is it inherent in us to be religious? Why does religion endure, isn't it outdated? There's lots of speculation about why and how religion started and why humans continue to be religious.  In this first episode of the Holy Watermelon podcast, we discuss the different theories of how modern religion came about. Karen...

It's nice to meet you! We love talking about all things religion and how it impacts our lives and our world. We want to start a healthy conversation around religious traditions and behaviours and challenge some ideas. The Holy Watermelon podcast is a comparative religious studies podcast. That means we talk about all religions across the globe - their histories, beliefs and practices.  Whether you...