Michael McGrath joins me this week to talk about his journey away from and eventually back to Christianity and various aspects of Monty Python’s Life of Brian, from it’s seemingly quite well researched “Historical Jesus” viewpoint to it’s advocacy of asking questions, even if the Python’s answers (and questions?) may leave a bit to be … Continue reading Ep. 11: The Life of Brian w/ Michael McGrath

Professor of Theology Katherine Schmidt joins me this week to talk about John Michael McDonagh’s 2014 film Calvary, and along with it thoughts on Digital Theology, paradigm shifting scandal, and continuing on in a faith that is ingrained in your sense of self.

Television editor Adam Spieckermann joins me this month to talk about John Ford’s How Green Was My Valley. Adam grew up in small town Missouri before moving to LA for film school, and seeing the film helped to convince him that that was the career path he needed to be on. But Valley isn’t just … Continue reading Ep. 9: How Green Was My Valley w/ Adam Spieckermann

David Emch grew up homeschooled in conservative evangelical communities, went to Liberty University and was well on his way to being a youth pastor for a non-denominational Christian church. Seeing The Village (2004), the story of an insular community that uses fear to control its young people, led to some cracks in his worldview and … Continue reading Ep. 8: The Village w/ David Emch

It’s a short solo episode this month as I talk about my religious interpretation of Avengers: Infinity War. I’m reminded of a professor I had in college who once finished an hour and a half long lecture in an hour long class with the phrase “Of course only two serious Poe scholars believe this interpretation, … Continue reading Ep. 7: Avengers: Infinity War w/ Just Me

Justin Ridgley entered high school, experienced 9/11, and saw The Fellowship of the Ring in a four month period and that maybe had some formative influence on him. We discuss the similarities between my and Justin’s conservative upbringings, our changing definitions of “good” and “bad” from what we were raised to believe, and the difficulty … Continue reading Ep. 6: LotR: The Fellowship of the Ring w/ Justin Ridgley

Joey Schulte has gone from enthusiastic Catholicism to New Atheism to liberal Protestantism and with each new step he has found something to relate to, something to draw from, something to push him forward in music of Jesus Christ Superstar, particularly Norman Jewison’s 1973 film version. We talk about that journey toward finding peace in … Continue reading Ep 5: Jesus Christ Superstar with Joey Schulte

Corinne Labita knows that the term “new age” may cause eye rolls, but her spirituality of relationships includes tarot reading and Jungian Shadow work, so there’s no other shorthand description. We talk about remembering and forgetting and growing from each as we discuss Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Check out her website at https://www.livinlabitaloca.com/

Musician Jonathan Hape joins me to discuss how you don’t have to be perfect to try to be better even in a hard world. Danny DeVito’s Death to Smoochy, like Dostoevsky’s The Idiot, wonders if it’s even possible to live sincerely in the modern world. And while the Russian novel ends on a dark note, … Continue reading Ep. 3: Death to Smoochy with Jonathan Hape

After having watched the film “literally figuratively” 100 times together — by my count, at least 37 — the “ostensibly non-religious” Stephen Goldmeier and I sit down to talk about Harold Ramis’s 1993 classic comedy Groundhog Day in terms we’ve never really articulated to one another even over all that time. Along the way we … Continue reading Ep. 2: Groundhog Day with Stephen Goldmeier