Céad Fáilte
A thousand Welcomes to The Village Oak Tree for April 17th, 2024
I bring you an interview with the author of Journey to Reason. A book about his journey from his Christian fundamentalist upbringing to atheism.
In our discussion today (and it really was a discussion rather than a formal interview), we both talked about our journeys through the Christian dogma that haunts most Americans who are brainwashed into believing in this theology in all of of its varied forms.
We also Segway a little into gun control, our take on reading some different religious texts from other religions and some other little snippets that just kind of dropped into the conversation. That is also one of the reasons that the show went a little long. We were having too much fun talking about stuff and exchanging personal stories.
Mark Alsip has a lot to say about a lot of things so if you have some time, watch or listen to the show and maybe there is something in it that will resonate with you.
I must warn everyone, I had trouble with my audio settings that didn’t show up until after we recorded the show. His voice has an echo. I added in an apology clip in the beginning of the show to let everyone know and that I have fixed it. Be sure and I will be checking for this before every show from now on. IT glitches are the bane of all IT technicians and this was one of those mysteries that I will chalk up to not performing enough pre-checks ahead of any shows.
An announcement: This show has now been picked up by a veterans radio show from Boulder, Colorado called Military Broadcast Radio or MBR for short. It now airs every Thursday at 4 pm eastern standard time starting on April 18th, 2024. I will be providing my prerecorded shows every week from here on out. Click the link to check them out, especially if you are a veteran.
Hit play above to watch the show.
This is is the topic for today’s show.
Is the U.S. devolving into a theocracy?
This is a synopsis of what we talked about. To hear his responses and our conversations, please watch the show. We might even make you crack a smile.
I have written a fictional book on what a U.S. theocracy might look like. What do you think the U.S. would look like if an autocratic, theocratical government should take over the country within the next ten years?
Why do you consider fundamentalism and evangelical Christianity to be so dangerous?
Can you give us some examples of how this is hurting the people of the world now.
I want to switch gears. I looked through your website and found the link to your debunking blog. I found it quite interesting.
Tell us about this blog. Is this blog a way of calling out these Young Earth Creationists? Or is it for anyone who lives in a cave somewhere, like some of the MAGA people?
Can you think of any other Christian creationism examples that you could debunk in a few short sentences here, besides the Noah’s Ark example described in your blog?
What do you think about the latest fad from the evangelicals who want to support the Zionists and Jews over this war in Gaza? They claim we should unconditionally support Israel because they are kindred spirits and brethren. I happen to know that a lot of Jews, especially the Zionists, despise the Christians because of the past hate leveled by the Christians for crucifying their prophet.
Lastly, I am sure that you have read the bible, maybe even some of the different versions besides the protestant King James version. Have you read any other religious books, such as the Quran, or the Talmud? Or any others? If so, what did you think?
Do you have anything else you want to add here before we close things out? Maybe tell us about your book(s)?
References:
Journey to Reason by Mark Alsip
I hope this makes someone think a little bit and maybe reflect some on life outside the religious box society likes to place everyone in. As we mention in the show, fundamentalism occurs in every major religion in the world. it’s not just the Christians.
Be well, stay safe and have a blessed week ahead. I will be back again next week with something else that may make you think a little. Sláinte
Thank you for joining me today. I hope you enjoyed it and that you will return again for another episode of The Village Oak Tree.
Please share this podcast with your friends and relations. The more you share, the more we can convince enough people to make the world a better place to live in.
As a Seanchaí, I hope you will continue to let me travel to your village to bring you some news from the world outside that might make you think a little after we part for the day.
As I say good bye this week, I wish to leave you with this Irish blessing as you go about your day. “May the saddest day of your future be no worse than the happiest day of your past.” Slán go fóill — which means goodbye for now in Irish.
T. Ó Domhnaill — Gaelic Seanchaí
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