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An atheist and a minister discuss religion and politics. God or Not is the podcast where we discuss all those things you’re not supposed to bring up in polite conversation.
Episodes
Wednesday Feb 05, 2020
Wednesday Feb 05, 2020
Scott and Jamie continue their discussion on prejudice, touching on homophobia, transphobia, and sexism. They also discuss how the existence of prejudice fits into their own worldviews.
In "Spin the Wheel", Scott and Jamie surprise each other with burning questions on "Church and State Separation" and "Sin".
In their second installment of the "God or Not Book Club", Scott and Jamie discuss parts 1 - 5 of Section III (pages 63 - 134) of "Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism" by Richard Carrier. For the next installment, they will cover the remainder of Section III (pages 135 - 208). You may contribute to the discussion by submitting your comments by 2/11/20.
As further study Scott recommends the Netflix documentary special “Derren Brown: Sacrifice”, and Jamie recommends the book “Love Thy Body” by Nancy Pearcey.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Wednesday Jan 22, 2020
Wednesday Jan 22, 2020
Bigotry, racism, sexism, homophobia and the like are terms that can broadly be categorized under the umbrella, prejudice.
What does it mean to be prejudiced and who is prejudiced? Is it prejudice to be intolerant of certain behaviors? Scott and Jamie tackle this volatile topic head on flushing out each other‘s perspectives, highlighting some areas of difference and asking the tough questions.
In their first installment of the "God or Not Book Club", Scott and Jamie discuss Sections I & II (pages 1 - 62) of "Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism" by Richard Carrier. For the next installment, they will cover parts 1 - 5 of Section III (pages 63 - 134). You may contribute to the discussion by submitting your comments by 1/28/20.
As further study Scott recommends the book “The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined” by Steven Pinker, and Jamie recommends the book “The Four Loves” by C.S. Lewis.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Tuesday Jan 07, 2020
Tuesday Jan 07, 2020
Is there an objective standard for morality? Can God be that standard? If God had a different nature would morality be different? Scott and Jamie tackle these issues and more as they investigate together the objective standard for morality.
In "Spin the Wheel", Scott and Jamie surprise each other with burning questions on "Mercy and Justice" and "Valid Methods of Reasoning".
The dialectic duo also get the ball rolling on the "God or Not Book Club", where they will be reading "Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism" by Richard Carrier. Grab a copy and follow along if you would like! The first assignment is Sections I & II (up to page 62). You may contribute to the discussion by submitting your comments by 1/14/20.
As further study Scott recommends the book “Just Babies: The Origins of Good and Evil” by Paul Bloom, and Jamie recommends the book “Legislating Morality” by Frank Turek.
Happy New Year 2020!
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Tuesday Dec 24, 2019
Tuesday Dec 24, 2019
Merry Christmas! I mean Happy Holidays, er Festivus for the rest of us!… Christmas has traditionally been a time to celebrate the birth of Christ, or has it? Is Christmas pagan? Does it matter? Can an atheist celebrate Christmas or are they too busy waging war on the rest of us who just want to celebrate in peace?
In "The Crowd Goes Wild", Jamie addresses some listener feedback.
As further study Scott recommends the book “The Atheist's Guide to Christmas” edited by Robin Marvie and Stephanie Meyers, and Jamie recommends the book “Hijacking the Historical Jesus” by Phil Fernandes.
The jolly fellows also discuss some upcoming plans for the podcast, including a God or Not Book Club?
Music credit:
Jingle Bells by Kevin MacLeod http://incompetech.com
Creative Commons — Attribution 4.0 International — CC BY 4.0
Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_jingle-bells
Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/8ahD-2LK_Zw
Wednesday Dec 11, 2019
Wednesday Dec 11, 2019
Scott and Jamie aren’t the kind to shy away from difficult or heavy subject matter. In this episode of the God or Not Podcast they discuss death, dying and grief. A naturalist and a theist give their thoughts on the subjects, sifting out some of the possible implications of each worldview. Do those who believe in an afterlife live more morally righteous lives because of the fear of punishment or the thought of reward? Do atheists take better advantage of opportunities in the here and now believing that this is the only life they have? Scott and Jamie both reflect on past grief in their own lives having lost loved ones to this thing we call death.
In "Spin the Wheel", Scott and Jamie surprise each other with burning questions on "What would it take to convince you" and "Should you be interpreting".
As further study Scott recommends the book “A Better Life: 100 Atheists Speak Out on Joy & Meaning in a World Without God” by Chris Johnson, and Jamie recommends the book “A Grief Observed” by C.S. Lewis.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Tuesday Nov 26, 2019
Tuesday Nov 26, 2019
Scott and Jamie take a break from their usual sparring match to tackle a less contentious topic: swearing. Where do swear words come from? Why do we use them? Are there benefits to swearing? Is it wrong? Scott investigates Jamie’s religious position on swearing, and they discuss society's role in this often taboo subject. We hope you enjoy this *#!&%@ episode!
In "Oh, the Humanity", Scott talks about the Halo Effect.
As further study Scott recommends the book “Holy Sh*t: A Brief History of Swearing” by Melissa Mohr, and Jamie recommends the book “A Christian Manifesto” by Francis Schaeffer.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Tuesday Nov 12, 2019
Tuesday Nov 12, 2019
The story of the resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone of Christianity. What should we think of that story? Did it really happen, or is there some other explanation? Why does it matter? Scott and Jamie break out the magnifying glass and examine this ancient story and its ramifications.
In "Spin the Wheel", Scott and Jamie surprise each other with burning questions on "Becoming an atheist" and "Labor unions".
As further study Scott recommends the book “The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe: How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake” by Steven Novella, and Jamie recommends the book “The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus” by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Monday Oct 28, 2019
Monday Oct 28, 2019
“Faith”, a volatile word with many meanings. Is faith believing something you know ain’t so? Or is faith trusting in something you have good reason to believe to be true? Scott and Jamie explore what it means to have faith, diving into the nuances of this word.
In "Oh, the Humanity", Scott talks about risk-taking.
As further study Scott recommends the book “Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman, and Jamie recommends the book “Why Do You Believe?” by Skip Heitzig.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Tuesday Oct 22, 2019
Tuesday Oct 22, 2019
What does it mean to say "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence"? Is it an attempt to shut down an argument before it is even made, or is it simply holding up claims to a fair standard of proof? Scott and Jamie dive deep into the weeds discussing the kind and amount of evidence needed to warrant belief in something extraordinary.
In "Spin the Wheel", Scott and Jamie surprise each other with burning questions on "What kind of documentary would you make" and "Exorcism".
As further study Scott recommends the book “The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark” by Carl Sagan, and Jamie recommends the book “Forensic Faith” by J. Warner Wallace.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com
Monday Oct 14, 2019
Monday Oct 14, 2019
In the second part of their discussion on morality, Scott and Jamie record "behind the scenes" where they work through some miscommunications and figure out what kind of approach they will use as they continue their travels through this deep topic. If you're wondering what goes into making a podcast like this, this will give you a little peek into their process.
In "Low Blow", Scott talks about what it means when someone says they're an atheist.
As further study Scott recommends the book “Moral Origins: The Evolution of Virtue, Altruism, and Shame” by Christopher Boehm, and Jamie recommends the book “How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture" by Francis Schaeffer.
Contact us with comments and questions: email@GodOrNotPodcast.com