Superstitious Christianity (122)

In this episode John and Gregg follow up from the previous episode where they both find it problematic when there is only one “politically correct” view on a given matter. Gregg offers an example of this, when he was living in Vancouver and attending a party. At the party a number of people were commenting on how their children’s personalities were directly related to / determined by the moon’s stage in its cycle on the date of the child’s birth.

Beyond the fact that Gregg finds this view very unlikely (if not hopelessly untenable), Gregg notes the difficulty in broaching the subject of what leads people to hold this view and / or inquiring about what would be sufficient for these people to change their minds.

John raises the example of a coaching seminar that he attended and how, if the “good vibe” that participants experienced during the seminar was experienced in a Christian context, this would explained with the blanket statement that “the Holy Spirit being present” Gregg agrees that in Christian contexts emotionalism (and particularly the experience of positive emotions) tends to be equated with the presence of the Holy Spirit, yet the Bible abounds with examples of God acting via the Holy Spirit to admonish, correct, and otherwise critique human beings. And such situations are not accompanied by “positive” emotions—just the opposite!
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When Reasonable People Disagree (121)

In this episode John and Gregg pick up from their last episode where they discussed the idea of how the craftsmanship sees meaning in an object and brings this meaning forth. For example, a sculptor may see a figure within a block of stone and simply removing the unnecessary pieces in order for the figure to be seen.

John contrasts this the conclusions of a friend whose studies of postmodern thought led him to conclude that in postmodernism there is no inherent meaning, there is just whatever meaning one brings to the object or situation. Thus postmodernism was portrayed as bankrupt and invalid.

Gregg responds by wondering how most Christians would feel about and respond to the other options, particularly philosophically modern options. So where the modernists would claim “universal reason” (such that all people can and should see things the same way, and where they fail to do so they are simply being unreasonable). Yet as Gregg notes this is a philosophical notion, not a theological notion.
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Deep Work (120)

In this episode John and Gregg discuss John’s reading of Deep Work, by Cal Newport. A recent interview with Cal Newport is found on the Productivityist Podcast.

John wonders specifically about how the themes and concerns of the book relate to Christianity and lack of depth / thought in one’s beliefs. The author offers a philosophical argument for depth (or concentration that leads to “deep work”) and examines how “notions of sacredness and meaning have evolved though human culture.”

Referring to Descartes the author quotes All Things Shining (by Dreyfus and Kelly), that the thinking individual who seeks certain knowledge essentially trumps truth offered by kings or by God.  John wonders if this seems a fair presentation / how we are best to understand Descartes.
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Bible Pastiche (118)

In this episode John and Gregg recap their discussion from last episode with long-time listener Anna.

John explains that he felt greatly encouraged to hear Anna’s story, despite the fact that Anna has experienced setbacks and that there certainly has been no “happy ending” in it for Anna.

Gregg also values the discussion with Anna and describes her story as “true to life,” particularly in the sense that he and John have had so many interactions with Anna over the past several years and yet the experiences that Anna highlights and the perspectives that she offers have a consistency that Gregg believes offers them a high degree of credibility.

Upon reflection John explains that he resonates most with the fact that Anna does not present a “success story” about her relationship with God but rather describes a relationship filled with various successes and failures, connections and disconnections (with both God and others). So despite the differences that John sees between his own experiences and those of Anna, John seems a number of commonalities.
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