InkleDeux Podcast

This week, AJ and Brandon talk about the importance of knowing the history of the faith. We have 2000 years of Christ's followers learning how His teachings interact with human realities, so why try to reinvent the wheel with every generation?

This week, Brandon brings to AJ the news of Andrew Tate's recent conversion from Christianity to Islam. He converted largely because he felt that Jesus gets mocked too often with no real consequence. How true is that assessment? And why does it happen?

In John's letter, he says that those who don't love don't know God. This week, AJ and Brandon discuss whether the opposite is also true. How do we reconcile what John says and the examples of atheists who certainly seem loving to us.

In this week's episode, AJ and Brandon talk about Heaven. Is it possible to lose it once we're there? And if not, can we really say we're free there?

Before Brandon and his girls headed off for the long weekend, he and AJ have a discussion about patience and the value of being still, even if it wasn't our preference. Because things can never be that simple, they then continue with a discussion about the importance of being patient and waiting for the right moment without becoming idle and sedentary.

What is the difference between testimony and worship? Well, AJ and Brandon try to get to the bottom of it and understand the proper role for each in our journey to Christ.

Having listened to some of the debates in Peoria about bathrooms and school curriculum, Brandon brings his frustration with the way science is becoming political so that he and AJ can wrestle with it together.

In their Bibles, Brandon has been reading through the Minor Prophets and AJ has been reading the Historical Books. As they've been reading, they both noticed that sin always leads to separation and holiness always leads to the people being gathered together. Why is that? And how do we interpret that in our own experiences of isolation and friendship?

This week, AJ and Brandon talk about the idea of idolatry and what it would mean to serve Mammon, which we tend to translate as money. How is it possible to "serve" money? How do we avoid it, even as we try to build a business?

This week, AJ and Brandon are joined by Walther, because, if you're going to discuss friendship, you need to have a friend to discuss it with. Making friends isn't always easy, but it's definitely important.

AJ had something of a revelation this weekend listening to the Gospel about St. Thomas and his doubts about Christ's resurrection, so he and Brandon talk about the struggle with doubt and St. Thomas' incredible response once he realized the truth.

Happy Easter! AJ and Brandon jump into a conversation about stewardship. Sports, capitalism, and culture all play a part in helping us come to grips with what it is and what we need to be doing.

This week, as we prepare for Holy Week and Easter, AJ and Brandon talk about the tendency to view Christ's work as restoring us to Eden and just how short that sells what Jesus accomplished.

Continuing their look at CS Lewis' Reflections on the Psalms, AJ and Brandon discuss the Psalmist sense of the after life and God's ongoing revelation through the Bible about what Heaven and Hell really are.

This week, Brandon starts us off talking about a hard conversation with an anxious 8 year old. It's all well and good talking about the faith, but how do you explain death, heaven, and hell to a kid without causing trauma or losing the reality?

This week, AJ and Brandon continue looking at CS Lewis' Reflections on the Psalms. This time, the focus is on the way the psalmist not only welcomes, but actively calls on God as his judge. Where does this confidence come from and where has it gone?

Brandon is back! This week, he and AJ talk about CS Lewis' observation that the most heated and difficult faith conversations tend to come not from faithful believers nor staunch atheists, but semi-believers. What is a semi-believer and why would those conversations be so much more difficult?

This week AJ and Bran...Wait, that's not Brandon! Instead, AJ is joined by Walther Cantu from Barbatus podcast and his Peregrino Newsletter/Blog. Walther and AJ talk about his journey in life and faith to this point. Make sure to find Walther on some future pods with us and by signing up for Peregrino at: https://walthercantu.substack.com/

Wrapping up their discussion of the Silmarillion , AJ and Brandon talk about our roles as subcreators and the lessons and parallels for us found in the works of Tolkien.

As they continue looking at the Silmarilion , AJ and Brandon look at the relationship between good things and jealousy and greed that they seem to bring with them. Are the good things to blame? How do we appreciate what's good without being consumed by them?

As they continue to discuss Tolkien's Silmarillion , AJ and Brandon hone in specifically about the creation myth and the unique, central role of creation myths in the context of fairy tales as they discussed last week.

In this week's episode, AJ and Brandon begin geeking out about JRR Tolkien's Silmarillion , specifically in its relation to fairy tales and mythology. The mingling of tragedy, hope, and valor offered by these types of story are so necessary for us all.

AJ and Brandon wrap up their conversations about heresy by trying to figure out why, other than the occasional Twitter fight, they don't really hear about heresy in the modern context.

Continuing the discussion about heresies, AJ and Brandon move into a look at some of the mistaken teachings about just who Jesus Christ really was. The idea of Christ being both God and man caused as much confusion as the Trinity being three persons and one God.

AJ and Brandon continue talking about heretics, this time taking a look at some of the early attempts to rationalize the Trinity. It's true that our understanding of the Trinity is largely thanks to the conversations that the heretics began, but their heresies are also an important reminder about the dangers of trying to force God to fit inside our minds.