Enemy at The Gates. In this episode, we read and discuss David Mark Whitford’s book, "Tyranny and Resistance." What are Christians to do when state and church unite to enforce laws that are in opposition to God’s Word and Christian freedom?

Breaking Your Rules — In this episode, we continue our reading and conversation about Dr. Steven Paulson’s breakdown of Martin Luther’s explanation of the two kingdoms. Marriage, children, preaching, serving our neighbor, and standing up to evil.

I’ve Got a Gun aka The Whole Armor of God. In this episode, we read and discuss Dr. Steven Paulson’s breakdown of Martin Luther’s explanation of the two kingdoms doctrine. Faith, family, and false idols form the backbone of our talk.

In this episode, we read and discuss Alexis de Tocqueville’s apology for religion’s relevance to politics in Democracy in America. What happens when the two kingdoms are divided or collapsed into each other?

Faith in What? Faith in Who? In this episode, we read Robert J. Delahunty’s article about Alex de Tocqueville’s faith. Tocqueville is a remarkable study in Enlightenment faith because he straddles the line between Christianity and the Enlightenment: Law and religion, belief and despair that concerns the relationships between Church and State in the United States and France.

“Religion is predicated on the idea that our time here is short and should be shorter, that our job is to bring on the end of days. This is just a veil of tears and guilt and shame. This, the only life we have—the only life we have that contains music and art and literature and solidarity and sex and love—all of this should be swept away. We can’t wait for the end times to come. That’s what they all have to believe.”

“We were baffled by climatic and cataclysmic events: earthquakes, tidal waves, storms, lightning. All of this was to us terrifying. Religion works as an attempt, then, to make sense of things. We are pattern-seeking mammals, after all. It’s a good thing that we are, because if we weren’t pattern-seeking mammals, our curiosity would have no outlet and we wouldn’t be capable of the great innovations that have liberated us from so many things, including religion.”

Christians Aren’t Good, or Moral. In this episode, we continue to read and discuss Christopher Hitchens’ speech on religion and morality. Does religion delete our need to confront reality?

God is Good… or Not. In this episode, we read and discuss Christopher Hitchins’ speech about religion and morality. What’s the point of attaching the forgiveness of sins to morality?

The God that won’t stay dead. In this episode, we wrap up our discussion of God, Nietzsche, and how Jesus fights against our attempts at self-atonement.

God is Dead again, because of us. In this episode, we discuss whether Friedrich Nietzsche was closer to the kingdom of God than most modern Christians, and how we can learn from him.

Gracious Lord, heavenly Father, on this day we pause to remember the sacrifices made for freedom throughout the past centuries. We do indeed owe a debt of gratitude to those who have paid dearly for the liberty we enjoy.