No Church Answers!

As we continue our look at Rod Dreher’s The Benedict Option , we generally agree American culture lost something valuable when colleges and universities abandoned classical education models, study of the humanities and their respect for the history of Western Civilization. But are Dreher’s suggestions realistic? We debate his call for Christians to forsake public schools for private schools and ho...

As we continue our discussion on The Benedict Option, we reflect how we, as Christians, should desire to be seen by the world. Amidst the chaotic collapse of the Roman Empire, Benedict created active faith communities that drew men and women looking for an alternative to the moral disorder around them. Author Rod Dreher says that today’s Christians must make deliberate choices as to inward discipl...

Has Christian influence in the culture waned? Most definitely. Are Christians wasting time and effort trying to restore the cultural climate of the 1950s? Most definitely. Author Rob Dreher wants Christian churches to focus their efforts on what he believes are more important goals. As we continue our study of The Benedict Option, we debate Liberalism vs. Progressivism, whether Evangelicals derive...

We begin a study of Rod Dreher's controversial 2017 book, subtitled "A Strategy for Christians in a Post-Christian Nation." Dreher is not calling for a retreat, rather he says the current times offer an opportunity to regroup around the Benedictine Rules written for Christian monastic living. In the opener of the series, we look at the life and contributions of St. Benedict (c.480-c.547), and how...

The phrase "spare the rod and spoil the child" is not in the Bible. But the Book of Proverbs does address the value of disciplining your children. The fellows discuss whether the Bible endorses corporal punishment or if parents misuse scripture as an excuse to vent their personal frustration and anger on their kids. We also try to interpret "spare the rod" means in 2024, when so many adult childre...

We discuss the juxtaposition of Wisdom and Folly in the Book of Proverbs and the Biblical assertion that there is objective, divine, discernable Truth that God infused within creation. We contrast this with the modern folly, particularly the ideas of moral relativism and academic nihilism, which tell us the world is only what we make of it and if we wish it, 2+2 can equal 5. Join us as we try to i...

"Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" might grate the ears of American Christians, who are raised to see themselves as independent, self-reliant and owing nothing to no one, but the phrase "God helps those who help themselves" is nowhere in the Bible. We discuss the scary word "surrender," the difference between trust and faith, and discerning a true calling f...

In a super-sized podcast before our summer break, we take a deep dive into Season 3 of The Chosen . Jesus’s disciples attempt to live by his teachings, doing their best to speak plainly, forgive and put others first. For some it proves difficult. We talk about the modern overtones in the relationships between Simon and Eden, Mary and Tamar and Matthew and his parents. And , amid the miracles and p...

In a provocative podcast, we talk about whether God makes any distinction in severity among sins. We touch on the Catholic doctrine of mortal and venial sins, and contrast that with Paul's assertion that the wages of sin--all sin--is death. We question why, if adultery is against God's law, why Israel's patriarchs and kings got a pass for multiple wives and concubines, while being judged and punis...

The fellows wrap up their look at the Sermon on the Mount with a discussion of modern false prophets inside and outside the church, the touchy topic of whether non-Christians can be true disciples of Jesus and if the principles outlined in the Sermon can be separated from the foundational directive of "seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Is the Sermon on the Mount analogous to an MRPG strategy guide? The fellows are mischievous enough to suggest it. If our Christian mission is to work alongside God to establish the Kingdom of God on earth, Jesus give us an awful lot of information as to how to do it, beginning with your character traits (the Beatitudes), your role (to be salt and light), information about how best to follow the ru...

Seek first the Kingdom of God and all we need will be given to us. This is hard to believe. Yet for Christians it stands as a promise from the Son of God himself and therefore demands to be taken seriously. Material wealth won't last. Worry accomplishes nothing. Judgment leads to hypocrisy. These sections of the Sermon on the Mount get to the heart of its counterculture nature. Join the fellows as...

Jesus teaches the Christian approach to religious disciplines of charity, prayer and fasting should be practiced with humility. The fellows discuss the definition of true humility, which lies somewhere between boastful arrogance and self-erasure. We talk about the difficulty of avoiding temptation of making gifts or personal service all about oneself, and try to resolve that with the idea that rec...

The Sermon on the Mount, as Robert "The Professor" Cocheu notes, sits "at the intersection on faith and real life." We take on one of the chewier sections in an attempt to get to its overall countercultural point -- that in the Kingdom of God, everyone is understood to be made in God's image and no one is expendable. In this framework, does insult equal murder? Does lust equal adultery? And what a...

The Sermon on the Mount is at once an inaugural address, a list of promises and expectations, a mission statement, and a vision for a new type of Kingdom. It seems to set impossible expectations, but suggests these expectations can be met through the power of the Holy Spirit and a spirit-driven community. This week, the fellows begin a comprehensive look at the entire sermon beginning with the wel...

The Sandwich Generation describes adults from the ages of 40 to 59 who are caught between supporting minor children and aging parents. We focus on the aging parent caregiving part of this and the stress it can bring to Christian households. How do we honor the commandment to “Honor your father and your mother" (Exodus 20:12) while at the same recognizing that we have a responsibility to handle our...

The fellows wrap up their study of Galatians with guest Scotty Swingler, Students Pastor at Sugar Land Baptist Church. We talk about how freedom in Christ opens the door to agape love and fellowship, freedom from the cultural pressure to condemn others and fret about what other think of us. But most of all, we are free to put aside "playing church" and act in response to a faith that demands we se...

Grace. compassion and empathy do not come naturally. Just look at the glee people have toward "cancelling" that latest personality who posts an ill-phrased or politically incorrect remark. Paul writes that restoration of sinners should be a principal aim among Christians, who should be first to understand that restoration with God was the undeserved gift of the Cross. Yet many churches today, as d...

Surrender to the Holy Spirit and fruit of the spirit--love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,   gentleness and self-control--will follow. So it says plainly right here. Yet do we really believe that? Do we always hedge, depending on some aspect of our fallen human nature as a back-up to grace? Is it even possible to totally surrender to the Spirit? We revisit ways to culti...

To grasp Paul's message it’s essential to understand what he means by “freedom.” In America, freedom means independence and self-actualization. Therefore we must be on guard of replacing slavery of the Law with slavery of identity, nation, culture, career and, most of all, ego. To Paul and the early Christians, freedom was liberation--not just from the Law--but also from barriers created by tradit...

We are a people claimed by God as children and heirs. The Psalms exhort us to shout for joy. When C.S. Lewis came to God, he was surprised by joy. Yet it seems, going all the way back to the Galatian church in AD 50, that there have been those determined to make Christian life and worship as doleful and dolorous as possible. What is Christian joy? What is the difference between joy and happiness?...

In fulfilling the Law, Paul says Christ freed us to live in faith by the Holy Spirit. So what role does Mosaic Law, from the Ten Commandments on down, have in our Christian lives? We debate one commentator's assertion that, when faced with a moral quandary, "Christians who are seeking God's will do not turn first of all to the Law of Moses for direction." If not there, then where? Has Christ's vic...

Paul chides the Galatians for falling into "Christ-Plus" thinking in terms of salvation. Yet even today, We Christians still fall back on expressing our religion through adherence to arbitrary rules extracted from Old and New Testament writings, regardless of the context. Should Christian women wear trousers or cut their hair short? Does the Bible declare medical marijuana off-limits? When does pr...

Peter visits Antioch and Paul calls him out publicly for eschewing gentile converts and folding to pressure from Judaizers who demand all new believers follow the letter of Mosaic Law. We talk about why Paul was right, but also try to understand what political and religious and cultural forces behind the "circumcision party's" demand for absolute observance of the law. The dispute resonates throug...

The Professor and the Gambler dive into Season Two of The Chosen, the crowd-funded breakout Christian hit. Amid gathering crowds, bickering apostles, Zealot plots, Sanhedrin politics and a wise-cracking Imperial secret agent, Jesus prepares to launch his ministry with a sermon-as-manifesto. We look at the Christian themes that run through the season, unearth a few Biblical Easter eggs and admire t...