Untangling Christianity Podcast

In this episode John and Gregg continue from last week’s podcast by resuming their conversation concerning Dan Dailey’s blog post titled “Sin of forsaking fellowship.” Gregg notes, concerning his comment about being obligated to attend church in last week’s podcast, that this is, more accurately, an obligation to love others “rightly” (i.e., even as one […] The post 96: Evangelizing a Church? appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss a blog post entitled “The Sin of Forsaking Fellowship,” by Dan Dailey, first raised in the Untangling Christianity private Facebook group. John wonders about a comment that Gregg left on the blog post. Gregg explains that he was struck by what he saw as a crucial contradiction at […] The post 95: Obligated Church Attendance? appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Greg to discuss a recent discussion John had with his parents around NT Wright’s book Surprised by Hope. While discussing the first chapters, John referred to some ideas Gregg has put forth. John was surprised when his father suggested that, “It’s great that Gregg has those ideas, but you have […] The post 94: Do Your Own Work appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg revisit their discussion from last podcast, where they considered the validity of claiming that certain experiences are “from God.” In this episode they discuss the example of “the eagle” (i.e., being on a hike with a group of people and seeing an eagle in the sky, and one person […] The post 93: The Eagle Circles Again appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss some of Gregg’s ideas about how / what it means to “experience God.” Reflecting on their past discussion in episode #77,  John wonders if Gregg views God’s action in the world being solely for the purpose of furthering God’s kingdom rather that touching / engaging with people individually? […] The post 92: Questioning Experiences of God appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg resume their discussion about church attendance, this time regarding children. John starts by wondering about Gregg’s process in allowing his children to make choices about where to attend church, and also about the difference between teaching our children to believe Christianity, versus to understand (life, and so Christianity). Gregg […] The post 91: Kids and Church | Belief vs Understanding appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

During this episode John and Gregg again discuss church attendance, especially as their earlier conversation on this topic generated much feedback from listeners. John continues to grapple with the notion that one may abstain from going to church, the more so as he tracks with one of our listener’s who has also pressed pause” on […] The post 90: How to Decide on Church appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss listener Stephanie’s question: “Is it possible to have an authentic Christian experience without going to church?” Gregg is enthusiastic that Stephanie developed this conversation in the Untangling Christianity private FaceBook group. He comments on the role of “obedience” in terms of going to church, noting that Hebrews 10:24-5 […] The post 89: Do I Have to Go to Church? appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss an article from Relevant magazine, concerning an interview with Rachel Held Evans on how Millennials feel alienated from most church settings, and are looking for a committed community rather than for a church with “the right” programs or music. John notes, despite not being in the Millennial age […] The post 88: Church Isn’t Working appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss a very unusual ‘listener’ email. When Gregg was 22 years old his father killed himself, his son (Gregg’s younger brother), and two young parents in a car crash. Gregg’s father was traveling 100 mph in a 50 mph zone and was legally drunk at the time, and so […] The post 87: Saying Father and Meaning It appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

Today we discuss Easter. John characterizes Easter from his past as a moment of rejoicing that Jesus’ resurrection means that Christians have eternal life. He wonders what significance Easter holds for Gregg? Gregg’s view is that Easter is about how Jesus’ life and death broke down barriers, particularly in the sense that through Jesus’ life and […] The post 86: Easter appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg again discuss the idea that Christians need “second opinions” about their faith. John sees parallels here with Wayne Jacobson‘s notion of listening to one’s “yuck meter,” where Christians need to attend to their negative reactions / feelings of unease regarding supposedly “Christian” responses (because this may be the Holy […] The post 85: Listening to Yourself appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss the notion of Christians getting a “second opinion” on matters concerning their faith, and even on their faith itself. Gregg introduces the topic by explaining how his spouse was reading a book on Christianity late one evening and was troubled by its contents. However, she was unable to […] The post 84: Second Opinions appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode Gregg and John continue examining John’s mission statement. Johns clarifies his notion of owner as being someone who takes ownership for their life and situation and who is committed to “making things happen.” John explains that working with those who don’t want to / don’t seem ready to be helped is very […] The post 83: Owning Everything appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

John and Gregg begin this episode by discussing an article from Relevant Magazine, entitled “3 Youth Group Lessons I’ve Had to Unlearn,” by Addie Zierman. Gregg explains that the article expresses a similar perspective to the one that he has adopted in his discussion with Tommi, on the matter of theory versus practice. Specifically, Tommi […] The post 82: Unlearning Youth Group appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode Gregg and John discuss John’s mission statement and how it relates to the podcast. Gregg begins by reading John’s mission statement: “John brings order to chaos and clarity to a confusion so that owners can effectively communicate their truth and thrive.” John explains that “owners” are people who not only take charge […] The post 81: Pushing Without Being Pushy appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg discuss how one can or should disagree, in situations where others raise viewpoints that one thinks are questionable or does not believe.   John gives the example of being at a party and someone making an offhand comment about the human soul after death. Several people added supporting comments […] The post 80: How to Listen and Disagree appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John wonders why Gregg was so pleased when, during the last episode, Tommi disagreed with Gregg’s perspective. Gregg explains that he is excited and positive about several things. First, that listeners such as Tommi are listening attentively to our episodes, grasping what is being said, formulating their own views on the subject, […] The post 79: Beneficial Disagreement appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

In this episode John and Gregg welcome Tommi Poelstra, John’s wife, to the show. Tommi joins John and Gregg to offer feedback on Episode #68. In Tommi’s view episode #68 was more focused on God’s kingdom than on God “meeting our needs,” which is what John and Gregg set out to discuss at the beginning […] The post 78: Be More Practical and Less Theoretical | Listener Feedback appeared first on Untangling Christianity.

John begins by presenting the new, “Untangling Christianity” private Facebook group. John explains that the goal of this group is to be a place for deeper conversation about subjects raised on or related to the podcasts, and that the group can be accessed by sending us an email request. In this episode John and Gregg […] The post 77: Was That Experience Really God? appeared first on Untangling Christianity.