Tattoos & Jesus

Welcome back T&J family! We have a special episode for you this week. Aaron Simmons joins us for a wonderful conversation on philosophy, faith, and "becoming a Christian". Aaron is a Professor of Philosophy at Furman University, author, musician, mountain biker, and trout fishing extraordinaire! Raised in the Pentecostal faith by parents who were professors, Aaron learned to appreciate his faith and critical thinking at an early age. This has led him down a path heavily influenced by Danish Philosopher and Theologian Soren Kierkegaard. This influence has led Aaron to have a unique approach to his faith that resonates with us in many ways. We hope you enjoy the discussion as much as we did having it! Please check out Aaron's website below for more information on him and his writings.

https://jaaronsimmons.com/

Welcome back everyone for anything episode of T&J! This week we discuss the power of choice. How the ability for self-determination is a psychological principle as well as a core spiritual principle. As the episode progresses, Josh and Marty find some areas of theology to disagree on. Let us know what you think and enjoy!

Welcome back everyone for another episode of T&J! This week we discuss the idea of absolute truth and why we, as people and Christians, need to find certainty in the uncertain. We discuss whether absolute truth exists, the "why" of wanting to know the truth, and how fear plays a role in all of it. Ultimately, we land somewhere in the both/and, which is Marty's favorite place to live. By recognizing some of the causes of wanting certainty, we hope to show the beauty in not always knowing the answer. Enjoy!

Welcome back T&J fam! We have to warn you, this episode does mention suicide so listen with discretion. Nothing is discussed in detail but we want to be sensitive to all our listener's experiences. This week we discuss some of the unwanted outcomes of Reformed Theology. Specifically, so events that happened while Jonathan Edwards, a leader in the reformed movement, was pastor during the Great Awakening. This leads to a discussion about theology that makes us want to kill ourselves. Is this understandable, or a sign that something is not right? We welcome your feedback and input as always. Enjoy!

Questions or comments?

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Welcome back everyone for another T&J! We managed to get through hurricane Helene last week and are back on the pod for a great discussion on God and His goodness. We start off the discussion with a coffee review that was provided by a local listener. And let us tell you, if you like good dark roast coffee, this brew if for you! Marty then discusses some recent healthy problems and how it has led to thoughts about God and whether or not He is good. We try to figure out what it means, what other ideas and definitions are connected to the idea of God being good, and ultimately try to land on a conclusion. We hope ya'll enjoy this honest, and a times transparent, discussion on an often complicated concept. Behave yourselves!

Welcome back T&J fam! This week hear about Josh's recent encounter with Thai food and how he used to scare his friends in a haunted building his family owned. Then we transition to a more serious spirit; the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge how creepy this theology must sound to non-Christians and then discuss the Spirit's role in this world. We wonder if the Holy Spirit might be feminine and discuss how to differentiate between God leading and emotions leading in our life. As always, we hope you enjoy!

Welcome back T&J fam! We are sorry for skipping a week, but are back with an episode we are excited to get to you. Today we get real about the process of spiritual growth and the questioning we’ve been going through. Josh opens up about feelings of rejection, which leads Marty to remember some experiences of his own. We then discuss how this has shaped us and our approach to spirituality. Hopefully you can connect with our discussion and may even have some experiences of your own. Feel free to reach out with thoughts or feedback to [email protected].

Welcome back T&J fam! We are back and it is finally fantasy football time! Josh and Marty provide an update on their fantasy football teams that everyone likely does not care about. Then, they discuss AI and how this impacts our faith. They debate whether AI is good for Christianity and if it has a place in preparation and sermon writing. Marty may even make a confession about his own use of AI. But most of all, they try to figure out if Siri can save someone. Enjoy!

Welcome back T&J family! You are in for a treat this week. Josh had an unfortunate experience with a slick shower recently and shares about the tragedy and subsequent injuries.

We dive into the difficult topic of prayer to see how prayer even works. Does God answer requests, listen to us, provide miracles, or does it just hit the walls? The guys continue to work through their thoughts on prayers and provide great insight on this dynamic. Enjoy!

Welcome back T&J fam to the first official day of PSL 2024! This week we dive into a listener request that falls in line with some of our recent discussions. The question is about prayer but also acknowledges the role of Calvinism and Arminianism is this discussion. We decide to tackle this over two episodes, starting with the age old debate between John Calvin vs John Wesley. We walk through the five tenants of both beliefs, discuss how paradigm shapes interpretation of scripture, and begin to look at how this might impact prayer. Next week we plan on diving into the prayer side of this discussion and unpacking what Josh has promised to be . . . controversial. Enjoy!