Death, dust, deprivation, long long hours of prayer, seemingly endless waiting – who wouldn’t get excited by the prospect of Lent, a 40-plus-day journey into the wilderness with Jesus? DM, Eric and Dave discuss their experiences of Lent within their respective traditions. 

 

Or lack thereof. 

 

The arduous journey of Lent (oh, and Holy Week, which isn’t considered part of Lent but is even more challenging) ends with the highest and brightest celebration of the year – Easter (“Pascha” among the Orthodox). But some denoms prefer to ignore the darkness that greets the dawn, certain that mourning is inappropriate in the light of Christ’s resurrection. In so doing, do they miss an indispensable part of some mysterious process? 

 

Perhaps there is value in joining forces with the larger Christian community to walk the well-worn path of Lenten discipline. Can you not watch with us one hour as we ponder these things? Surely you can do that – surely the spirit is willing and the flesh is, um, at least mildly curious.

This is DM. I speak for myself here and not Eric or Dave.Honestly, I don't remember exactly when it started. But, at some point, having graduated Bible College, the thought occurred to me that the fiery, eternal torment of sinners I had been taught since I became a Protestant at age 8 just didn't line up with the Heavenly Father I was also being told to trust in and find comfort in.Looking back, I don't know what took me so long. Except, the words of teachers and parents are extremely powerful. So is the echo chamber. So when EVERYONE around you believes something and is telling you that you need to believe it as well, it's extremely difficult to break out of that thinking, even if it has obvious logical problems. Even as some of you read this, your heart and mind are rebelling -- you're getting annoyed and wishing the heretic, me, would stop insinuating the God DOESN'T burn people in a place call HELL for eternity the second they die having not "said the sinner's prayer."I know. You believe it. Your parents believe it. Your pastor believes it. So how can this NOT be true? Even though there's a conflict within you about it and always has been. Even though it means loved ones who have gone on before you are now burning in an inescapable fire for all of eternity. Even though the SAME God who must have created this place of torment is also the one you worship and praise on Sunday morning...Deep within, you want to question it. You want it to not be true. But you don't feel like you're allowed to question it. You feel like it HAS to be true or everything falls apart.How about this. Give yourself some space. Surely you're not going to be thrown into hell yourself for just QUESTIONING the teaching, right? Surely God wants you to be certain about the truth of our eternal condition. So, if you question and STILL believe this is what God does, then fine. But at least you've questioned and have come to the conclusion on your own.Let me tell you my already obvious perspective: God doesn't punitively punish people for eternity. That's sadistic. And, no it doesn't fail to be sadistic just because God does it. (The illogical argument that whatever God does is GOOD and therefore if He does something sadistic, that makes it good also.)

God ALWAYS acts in LOVE. That means PUNISHMENTS, too, are for LOVE and LOVE alone. They cannot be punitive, because that would oppose LOVE. They have to be redemptive. Just like your punishments toward your children are for redemption.Unless you're actually the kind of person who would burn your children for eternity because they sinned...I didn't think so.

Something is different.If you're old enough, you'll understand this. What equals "old enough?" Probably about 40 yrs. If you're not "old enough" to remember, you have no way of knowing (from experience) that the world used to be a very different place.Even if you were not a Christian back in the 70s (and a whole lot of people defined themselves as such at the time), you would at least accept that those people probably meant well. But something is different now. It's not OK for those Christians to be out there. They don't mean well. They're evil, hateful, bigoted.What changed? Is it a simple cultural shift that we can expect to swing back the other direction? Or is it something deeper, spiritually-based? Evidence that we're living in the end times?As a result of extraneous conversation, we never get into it as deeply we might have liked. We at least raise the issue and have lots of fun doing it.That's more than you can say for most podcasts discussing the end of all things.Right?

Sometimes is nice just to fly by the seat of your pants. This is something I've done pretty much my whole life, resulting in a brain that quickly constructs whatever bull crap is necessary to help me survive. What I find most interesting about spontaneous or surprise conversation is how often it ends up hitting the mark exactly -- far moreso than conversation that is pre-planned.In today's podcast, we walked in totally unaware of what we would talk about. Then, a simple question about the discomfort Dave seems to have with the questioning Eric and I do blossomed into a very full discussion over the next 45 mins. We end up digging into an important question: what produces the best results, the law or love?I don't know if you have these kind of conversations with your friends, but take note: there's something wonderful about honesty regarding how you feel -- even with your friends. And, there's something magical that can happen when instead of getting defensive, you consider the new information and work through it toward an honest end.I think we solved a little bit today, but not everything. Which is fine.Slow and steady wins the race. And, because we don't solve it all at once, we'll get to connect more as friends as we continue wrestling with how we become more Christ-like.

You know what? This probably isn't for you. I mean, it's for a LOT of people... but only the kind of people who LIKE to wrestle with theology out loud. The kind of people who don't get nervous that Father God is waiting to strike you dead for wondering about a tenant of the faith.I forget sometimes that there's more of them than there are of me. So, forgive me for not giving this warning earlier.There's a podcast called "The Liturgists." A 20-something friend recommended it. It's not my cup of tea. It a lot of questioning with no reverence, imo. It's bordering on mockery, in some cases. That's not AT ALL what Pod Help Us All is about. But we probably occupy the space somewhere between those afraid to question and those who are comfortable treading the line of mockery.Actually, let me be clear again... Dave is not comfortable doing what I do. Only Eric and I are actually COMFORTABLE with our questioning. Dave is probably waiting for lightning to strike me. Thankfully, it hasn't.But this is a search for TRUTH in all caps. And in a world lived behind the veil with all our human frailties and imperfections, it's a messy search if you feel the need to do it. It's not clean and tidy like Sunday morning service. It's like trudging through the swamp in the deep dark forest, calling out, "God, are you in here?"So, please... if questioning makes you squirm, go find a different podcast. But if you are a seeker who can't help but look deeper, I promise you we will do this with you respectfully -- with the purest intentions... even if we're really just a couple imperfect beasts, we're still reaching for glory.

Welcome to Episode 3 of Pod Help Us All. Today, the "Christmas" episode.I think you'd agree that the incarnation is a pretty sizable topic -- a topic about which volumes have been written. So you'll forgive us, of course, if we limited the show to 45 mins and tried our best to cover it, yes?Topics covered include Mary as the Theotokos -- literally "God-Bearer," a descriptor that tends to make Protestants a little weak in the knees; the Eucharist as an incarnation that takes place in every Mass; and the bigness of the Christmas message when one believes that the word ALL means just that.Three different Christian faith perspectives: Eric, who is Catholic, Dave who is Orthodox and DM who is... uh... hm. Well, whatever it is that I am nowadays.Agree or disagree, but listen with an open heart and mind and maybe you'll walk away with something you didn't have before. If nothing else, be inspired to set aside some time to consider the real meaning of what we celebrate at this time of year.Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas.Pod Help Us All.

Welcome to Pod Help Us All Episode 2! This weeks' episode is titled Providence.I thought we were all on the same page for this episode. My mistake. Recording the podcast, I remembered why my conversations with Dave and Eric can be so dynamic and interesting: we don't all think alike! When you have conversations with people who think differently and you CHOOSE to open your mind to new ways of looking at things or thinking about things, you LEARN and CHANGE. These are good things.So, Providence -- for most people it speaks to the involvement of God or SOME deity in our lives. Do they intervene or are they like a cosmic watchmaker who set the world in motion and then stepped away? For others, Providence might speak to the LIGHT inside you -- the deposit of God within. How much do you yield to it on a regular basis? And what are the effects.This was a difficult conversation for me when we had it -- and it was VERY difficult editing it. But, to say I am pleased with the end-result would be an understatement. I am THRILLED.

Welcome to the inaugural episode of POD HELP US ALL.Pod Help Us All is really an extension of the friendship between three guys: Dave Danglis, Eric Riggs and DM Lovic. For years, they have been having good (or great) conversation -- in coffee shops, at Dunkin Donuts, on Eric's Deck, at small diners throughout Western New York. Twelve years ago, DM moved away and the conversations were few and far between, but the three always made effort to continue them at least twice a year.In late 2018, DM had an idea. A podcast that would give the three a weekly excuse to talk, but with a catch -- they would record the conversations, edit them and post them for the world to listen to.Pod Help Us All.