Porch Talk with Father Aaron
Welcome! Here we have conversations where the Christian faith interacts (or intersects) with topics found outside of the typical, safe church environment. We wanted to address the question: "What happens when a priest talks with people of the community about topics that are important to them, but not necessarily what you might hear Sunday morning?" Our church porch (or patio) was designed to facilitate these meaningful and authentic conversations, so we called this "Porch Talk." Join us!
Episodes
19 episodes
Ashley Enfinger: Candidate for Houston County Commissioner District 3
Today Fr. Aaron spoke with Ashley Enfinger, who is a candidate for Houston County Commission district 3. Their conversation included a biographical sketch of Ashley's life spent in Alabama, his work ethic, and what skills he hopes to bring to t...
Comedy as God's Gift for Pressure Relief
Today Fr. Aaron spoke with Jordan Stanley, a comedian local to Dothan, Alabama, but is expanding her reach through invitations to travel to new venues. She shared some of her life story leading up to performing at the Dothan Opera House. They b...
City Politics and Working with Others in Solving Problems
Fr. Aaron speaks with Dothan City Commissioner David Crutchfield, who is the Commissioner for Dothan, Alabama city district #6. They spoke about the "nitty gritty" of getting involved in local city government, working with others in city govern...
Seeking Elected Office: A Conversation with the Challenger
What drives us to seek elected office, challenging the incumbent and earning the trust of voters? It's not always easy to articulate that in a sound bite, so Fr. Aaron spoke with John Rogers, who is seeking election to the Houston County Commis...
God's Grace Deployed through the Fire Service
Fr. Aaron talks with Joel Sewell, a training Sergeant for Dothan Fire Department in Dothan, AL. The conversation covered Joel's experiences in the fire department, what he finds most fulfilling about it, and how we see God's grace deployed to p...
Local Government: Talking with the County Chairman
Fr. Aaron speaks with Brandon Shoupe, the Chairman for the Houston County Commission in southeast Alabama. The conversation included the responsibilities that the country Commission Chairman faces, local politics, and the need for wisdom to mee...
Walking with People Through Trauma
Fr. Aaron speaks with Shelly Linderman, the Executive Director for Wiregrass Angel House (https://wiregrassangelhouse.org/) in Dothan, Alabama. For many years, they have maintained a ministry, covering eight countries in southeast Alabama, that...
Christian Unity and Counseling People with Grace
Fr. Aaron speaks with Dr. Virginia Mayer who founded Living Waters Counseling (https://www.lwcounseling.net/) in Headland, Alabama, along with Kingdom College (https://www.kingdomcollege.net/) in the same town. "Ginger" had recently published a...
The Blessing of God to Us through our Pets
Fr. Aaron speaks with local veterinarian Dr. Jeff Strickland, of Briar Creek Veterinary Clinic in Dothan, Alabama about caring for our pets and how animals deliver God's grace into our lives. This is in anticipation of the forthcoming "Blessing...
Military Service, Just War Theory and Conscience
One of my parishioners, Mitchell Nalley, was gracious enough to sit down and talk with me. Buckle up for a longer "drive time" than usual because we discussed several topics including higher education in America, justifications for war (includi...
Human Trafficking, Christian Compassion and Finding Purpose
Fr. Aaron talks with Morgan Blankenship, the Director of the Dare to Hope, Inc. in Dothan, Alabama which focuses on compassionate interventions for those that have been victims of human trafficking. Morgan shares startling information about the...
A Priest Talks to a College Student
Heath Robinson is a student attending Troy University in Troy, Alabama. He also worships with us here at St. Matthias Anglican Church. Far too many clergy and elders in the church dismiss the upcoming generations as "snowflakes" or clueless reb...
Books, Churches, and Community Engagement
In my conversation with Troy Fountain, owner of "Downtown Books" in Dothan, Alabama. This was our first time to chat and we discovered "it's a small world after all," having far more in common than we could have imagined. We discussed the charm...
Pubs, Hospitality and Creating the 3rd Place
I sat down with Kerry Farrell, owner/operator of "The Thirsty Pig" in Dothan, a local family-friendly pub. Kerry shares her story leading up to starting the bar, why it comes from a place of hospitality. We discuss why God seemingly gives the "...
"Cultish" Tendencies in Church with Gaylene Tupen
Years ago, my sister, Gaylene Tupen, had read the book "Cultish" by Amanda Montell. That book had since been the catalyst to a series of conversations Gaylene and I enjoyed over time about some of the quirky religious experiences we remember fr...
City Government & Family Legacies with Mayor Mark Saliba
Fr. Aaron talks with Mark Saliba, the Mayor of Dothan, Alabama. We discussed the rigors of city government, his family story that prepared him for such responsibility, and the benefits of being in a town of "just the right size." We touched on ...
Choosing Life, Counseling for Women in Crisis, and Deploying Grace to the Culture
Fr. Aaron talks with Susan Anderson, the Executive Director of the Wiregrass Hope Pregnancy Center in Dothan, Alabama. Our conversation ranged from the history and development of that ministry, to Susan's journey in becoming the Executive Direc...
Culture, Immigration, and Assimilation into the Christian Community
Fr. Aaron talks with Darlene Ott, an immigrant from the Philippines, naturalized as a U.S. citizen just months after we were married. We discuss her experience going through the legal immigration process, why it differs so much from illeg...
Family Trauma and the 5th Commandment to Honor Father and Mother
Our inaugural episode of "Porch Talk with Fr. Aaron" at Saint Matthias Anglican Church in Dothan, AL. We WILL work out the kinks and get better at our presentation, but as out first try, this conversation was too important not to post.