Marc Jolicoeur (aka "Jolly Thoughts")

Few people (save The Edge himself) have had as great an impact on a generation of church guitarists as sir Stuart Garrard (aka Stu G). From his epoch-making time with Delirious to his second (or third?) life as a roving guitarist (with the likes of Michael W Smith & One Sonic Society ) and a songwriter that has helped pen dozens of influential songs over the last decade, as well as his innovative...

“… it is not a question of if we should engage in work to benefit those around us. It is a question of how broadly we define the ‘us’ who benefits.” The above quote from Andrew Whitehead ’s forthcoming book American Idolatry (in my opinion) sets the tone for the nuanced conversation we try to engage in over these topics that are often portrayed as anything but nuanced. What do you think? BONUS: Be...

In this unuuuuuuusual (for me, anyway) episode, I have a chat with Ambrose Andreano about his recently released book, Angels, Archons, & Aliens . It’s a pretty wild ride, and likely not for the faint of heart, but (for many) it could also be an important conversation starter. You’ll have to be the judge of that. Ambrose is on Substack and Academia.edu , too. Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka...

Something special is a foot… In this episode of the podcast I catch up with looooong time friend (and all ‘round good guy) Jeff Somers about his brand new book, Avery And The Special Shoe . It’s a very specific story he wrote for his daughter, which is why it has universal appeal. We talk about the challenges his daughter faces, we talk about writing, and we talk about publishing (oh, and about Me...

“In every aspect of the religious life, American faith has met American culture - and American culture has triumphed.” – Alan Wolfe The above quote is from page 4 of Dr Sam Reimer ’s fascinating new book, Caught In The Current . The book is his synthesis of a compilation of both quantitative data and qualitative surveys that he personally undertook, and it reveals a lot about how so-called “evange...

“I think Christian nationalism started in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus was reaching for the Cross, and Peter, who loves Jesus, thought he should protect him with a sword.” – Caleb Campbell, Disarming Leviathan In this episode of the podcast I chat with pastor and doctoral student Caleb Campbell about his new project to engage in meaningful but intentionally transformative dialogue with thos...

Faith harms and heals. It pulls us apart and binds us together. It builds cathedrals and burns down cities. It gives life and brings death. Asking if religion is good is like asking if music is good. Or food. Or politics. Or baseball or books or art or science or any other human endeavor. Religion is human. And it matters. ( Reorganized Religion , pg 39) Bob Smietana has covered a LOT of “bad news...

“A mighty zeal for truth, for great purity, and other good purposes, is displayed; and it is observable, that this zeal generally rises in proportion as the peculiar tenets of the innovators, deviate from scripture and common sense; zeal being the substitute to make up the deficiency.” When was this sick burn tossed around? Last week? Last year? Nay, 230 years ago, from a little pulpit in Halifax,...

In this episode I’m pleased as punch to be able to catch up with my fellow-follicly-feable friend Cody Matchett! Cody is a husband, dad, pastor, scholar, and he’s just about to release a co-written book with the prolific Scot McKnight entitled Revelation For The Rest Of U s . We catch up a little, but then we dive deep into how and how NOT to read this long-contested and deeply important book of t...

I have been looking forward to this conversation with Dr Alan Streett for a looooong time now. Streett’s book on baptism ( Caesar And The Sacrament ) almost literally blew my mind while reading it. So much so that I ordered his prequel ( Subversive Meals ) and the newly-released followup ( Songs Of Resistance ) as soon as I could. In this conversation, we get a little window into Streett’s own bac...

In this episode of the podcast, my friend (and first-time SECOND-TIME podcast partner) Jeremy MacDonald asks me questions about the message I shared last weekend at my local church . The message was about (in essence) the relative value of “religion” when it comes to people’s desires & ability to connect with the divine. You can hear the message here , if you’d like to catch up in advance or after...

Y’all, I had pretty much no idea what I was walking into when I signed up to chat with the newly doctored Merrill Greene , but I AM SO GLAD I DID. This conversation was wide-ranging, but everywhere we roved, I was the better for it. Not only do we get into some of the nitty-gritty on his Dead Sea Scrolls research, we also tie some observations into Christian practice & experience, with some pastor...

You guys, part of the reason I started a podcast was because I would listen to conversations other people were having (with people I agreed with AND disagreed with) and I would find myself yelling questions back… but to no avail. Now, I am blessed with the opportunity to have and to host such conversations, with people I agree with AND disagree with. Today is one such conversation. Nathan Finochio...

Folks, they say you learn something new every day, and I gotta tell ya… I’m not sure that’s true. But TODAY I DEFINITELY DID! I am so pleased to be able to share this conversation with my friend, (the newly doctored) Dan Cooper . Dan’s thesis ( “Where Is The Place Of Darkness? A Metaphor Analysis Of Darkness In The Old Testament” ) is a wild ride which takes us to unexpected places and, in the end...

In this episode of the podcast, I sit down with Dr Matt Friedman of Kingswood University . Matt is an author, a lecturer on intercultural studies, and a messianic Jew. We talk about how he got to where he is, what these shared identities mean for him, and what they might mean for us. This conversation was eye-opening for me, particularly when we spoke about his interpretation of Leviticus chapters...

This episode of the podcast is more monologue than dialogue, though I am in dialogue with David Desteno (in a sense). For full notes and links and essentially the text of what you hear here, check out this link: David Desteno's "How God Works" // Religioprospecting, considering the source, and minding the hack Tell me: Do you see any downside to religioprospecting, or am I being an overly reaction...

Y’all, it’s been a minute, but after much summer adventuring I’m (mostly) baaaaack in the saddle for September. One of the marvellous weeks I was able to spend this summer was at our local church district’s campground, Beulah Camp , and during that week I was blessed to have been preached at by a number of folks, including this fellow follically-challenge brother, Steve Deneff: Steve preached abou...

In this episode of the podcast, I am pleased to share a recent conversation I had with longtime friend (and first-time podcast partner) AJ Thomas. AJ is the Lead Pastor of Deep Water Church in the Halifax area, and is deeply committed to his own faith tradition AS WELL AS not allowing his own faith tradition to alienate him from others. We share this in common. As such, this conversation centres m...

You guys, I am so stoked to be able to share this conversation with Dr Dru Johnson , a man of many talents, a pied past, and a prolific output. Dru and I talk about his origin story, what it means to think “Hebraically” (and why he’s passionate about it), as well as the recently released Biblical World of Gender book. Below are just some of the links we reference in the course of the show: Dru’s O...

Folks! This conversation with Dr Carmen Joy Imes is an absolute game-changer. If you have ever wondered about what actually constitutes a “human identity”, or what the so-called “image of God” language (from which virtually all of our modern human rights language derives) means, then this is the chat for you. Dr Imes unsettles so many preconceptions about gender, race, God, and the Bible, and she...

In this episode of the podcast it is my privilege to share a chat I recently had with a friend and co-leader, Love Egbon . Love is a relatively-new-Canadian who was born in Nigeria. She is a dynamic individual and a DYNAMITE singer, and (like so many of our black & brown brothers & sisters) she has observed racism in her life & surroundings. This chat is mostly just an opportunity for her to share...

In this episode, we sit down for a chat with the ever-pleasant & effervescent David Drury .  David is the former Chief of Staff for The Wesleyan Church , the current purveyor of wisdom & strategy over at the DruGroup , and the future impactor of Global Partners’ “ Global Marketplace Multipliers ” initiative.  We recorded this convo roughly 24 hours after the adjournment of TWC’s 14th General Confe...

In this episode of the Jolly Thoughts podcast I have the pleasure of chatting with financial advisor, failed lobsterman, and successful marathoner “Pete” Benson .  We talk about his early life on Grand Manan Island, his propensity towards spiritual-entrepreneurship, and what he believes successful physical & financial training share in common (spoiler alert: it’s A GOAL). Here’s the Lobster War Do...

Last weekend, I did something that was unthinkable (and uninteresting) to my younger self: I ran a marathon . In this episode of the podcast, I take a few minutes to unpack some of my reflections on the experience. For a written version, please check out either my website or my Substack page . Oh, and if you’ve been tracking along with me in this journey at all, it’d be so great to hear from you!...

My friend and co-labourer Austin White was kind enough to take a few of his last British minutes to chat with me about his experience at Alpha’s 2022 Leadership Conference and to reflect upon about some of his initial takeaways. As expected, he’s articulate and insightful, and I learned something myself! Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe