Protect Your Noggin

During their sabbatical semester traveling the country and studying American religion, Jeff and Stacie spent time at a legendary hippie commune called The Farm in Tennessee. It was founded by Stephen Gaskin and author of Spiritual Midwifery Ida May Gaskin. The group voted to stop being a "cult" and changed to an intentional community in the 1980s. This show is about the lessons learned from that transition, and how it might apply to religious communities and society in general. In the process it turns out they were rather impressed by the community and even contemplated moving there. 

Check out protectyournoggin.org for detailed show notes.

Why Uber drivers are important for understanding a local scene. The commune called "The Farm", how young women are unplugging from the patriarchy through van life etc. Fear based religious signage in the US. Understanding return of paganism. The difference between mysticism and magic. Maslow's hierarchy of needs applied to religious expression. Climate change. Spoken word poetry. Ranking US hot dogs, especially Colombian dogs versus TJ Mexican dogs and El Guero Canelo.

Road lessons for the soul! We’ve been on the road for half a year now. We’ve discovered some wisdom along the way. For the next few episodes, we will be sharing insights from our overland travels across the US. The first two episodes will be about general lessons we’ve learned. Then, we’ll share direct advice from friends we’ve visited along the way. This show also provides some introductory information about living on the road if you or someone you love might find that worth trying. We normally talk about avoiding religious manipulation. Here, the topic is admittedly a bit different, but the connection is that by living simply, it is easier to untangle ourselves from unhealthy relationships, groups, and ways of living.

Who owns you? Does your father? Your spouse? Your church? God? 

Segment one: the radical nature of Christian liberty, reflecting on a surprising ally here: the Apostle Paul in Galatians 3-4 who argues that no one owns an heir to the kingdom of heaven.

Segment two (starting after the first hour): the good, bad, and ugly about the classical Christian school movement, its valuable insights for K-12 education, but also its occasional association with white nationalism, opposition to racial integration and "kinism," especially in circles influenced by Doug Wilson.

Molech was the underworld deity to whom some in the ancient Near East sacrificed their children. In philosopher Bertrand Russell and poet Allan Ginsberg we see folks using Molech or "Moloch" as a reference to impersonal, authoritarian religions of cruel power. Through fear, folks find themselves turning religion into the exact opposite of what they originally came for: peace is exchanged for terror, flourishing is exchanged for spiritual death. In the first hour, Jeff gives an overview of ancient Israelite relationships with Molech in segment one and then Stacie then applies this to contemporary parenting and education via the work of psychologist Alfie Kohn.

“The goal is empowerment rather than conformity, and the methods are respectful rather than coercive. ... The way kids learn to make good decisions is by making decisions, not by following directions.” --Psychologist Alfie Kohn

"And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin." Jeremiah 32:35 

“Look for truth that is like a solid granite mountain face. Let all fragile constructs dash to pieces against it.”

This is not a show arguing for or against the concept of biblical inerrancy, but it is a long form reflection on the nature of truth and what it feels like when we find it. It is also about ways in which people sometimes use ideas like biblical infallibility as a tool for authoritarian control. We spend a good bit of time discussing our application of the enneagrams to our relationships, but wait for the application of this seeming rabbit trail to the question of divine revelation. Whatever our view of our sacred texts, when we enforce allegiance to it in the minds of students in a way that bypasses their critical thinking and genuine engagement with the complexities that texts present us, we do psychological, intellectual, and spiritual harm—even when we are intending to do good. 

We might get some stuff wrong but we are all but certain that if you take some of this to heart you will find a deep peace you may not have yet known, and a stronger trust in the truth of Jesus’ message (even if you don’t call yourself a Christian).

Segment 1: Background and opening with a question from a listener

Segment 2: Discussion of Stacie’s enneagram number and why it is helpful to consider: minute 0:23

Segment 3: Seven points about biblical inerrancy: 1:30

This is our longest episode yet, so you might want to break it into chunks throughout the week.

www.protectyournoggin.org

How the wolves tend to deny guilt but sling shame, but also how to have compassion but be wary of those wolves whose lives are a riddle. 

First segment: a discussion of the main theme and the distinction between shame and guilt, along with another story of Jeff getting knocked unconscious by a bully.

Second Segment: discussion of a powerful lecture from Carl Gustav Jung to Swiss clergy, starting at 1:02

Third Segment: A fun but powerful game you can use to identify and confront your shadow self, starting at 1:20

Fourth Segment: we respond to a question about the meaning of our logo, created by Auggie Mallinson (check out his work on Instagram at @ars.viatoris)

For further show notes, check out our website at www.protectyournoggin.org 

Twitter: @thepynp

Instagram: "Taosurfers"

For the first segment, Stacie shares her background in American evangelicalism: the good, bad, and ugly. Then she explains why she got into yoga. 

The second segment (about an hour in) is an in depth discussion of research related to the psychological reasons people either minimize abusive behaviors or fail to report them. The most important thing here is that the research suggests that protocols and procedures, including enforced mandatory reporting rules aren't enough: we need to rethink the way we educate both students and educators. That's what this project is all about.

We ran out of time to respond to voice messages, but keep them coming by clicking on the blue "voice message" box on www.protectyournoggin.org.

TW: This show deals with sexual abuse in the context of people not reporting it. Again, we will not always be focusing on this topic directly, rather, in these first episodes we are trying to convey why training in critical thinking and trusting perceptions is important for individuals and, ultimately, the viability of institutions that were founded to serve individuals in the first place.

Again, keep the Crisis Hotline text number handy: 741741

PS: Here's a link to the Sarah Condon video we referenced: https://vimeo.com/350051797 

Welcome to our first episode.

Segment 1: We'll share a bit about our backstory, focusing this time on Jeff's story (Stacie's will be on episode 2).

Segment 2: We discuss research from Donald Capps that relates bad forms of religious education to torment in students.

Segment 3: We address a listener call about leaving a religious group.

We offer and receive lessons in outfoxing religious wolves reforming religious education so everyone can be spiritually bold, free of manipulation and filled with deep peace.

After 20+ years of professional work in religious education and educational nonprofits, hosts Jeff Mallinson (D.Phil. Oxford, philosophy and religion professor, author and speaker) and Stacie Mallinson (former nonprofit development professional, and certified yoga instructor) realized that bad forms of religious education can lead to trauma. This podcast focuses on training in critical thinking and personal empowerment as we reform religious education.

The piano at the beginning is by Aidan Mallinson, free styling in the living room one day, with production by Jeff Mallinson. The drops during the closing are from the films "The Life of Brian" and "Gaslight".

Find us at www.protectyournoggin.org 

Follow the hosts overland travels on Instagram as "Taosurfers" 

Follow us on Twitter @thepynp