Bear with us, we're trying here! As Joel adjusts to his new role as Managing Editor of The Babylon Bee, we're working to get back into a rhythm with this podcast. Never fear! We aren't going anywhere! 

This week:

• Small talk 
• Trump's recovery
• Masculinity and Femininity: is it cultural? is it innate? Let's talk about it. 
• More small talk 

We're working to get back on a schedule with these. Thanks for your patience! 

Finally, we're together again! It's about time! Listen as three rusty podcast hosts meander through some sort of conversation and talk about stuff. Give us a break- we need to get warmed up! 

• John MacArthur defies Governor Newsom
• The riots
• The RNC
• Donald Trump, the new Emperor of America?
• Prep for an ultra marathon
• Homeschooling
• Update on the Babylon Bee
• Other stuff

Joel is out! (He will be returning soon) but in his absence, Aaron and Sam have courageously stepped up to record an episode. In this one, we talk about mental health, the Church, and why social media should be banned for everyone under 18.

• "pop" mental health
• Identity and social media
• Two ways the Church gets it wrong
• What Christ offers

All three of us will be back soon! 

The Berry brothers sit down for another discussion on Paul David Tripp's recent woke "coming out" video. We also respond to Phil Vischer's video on systemic racism, Eric Mason's book Woke Church, and Nick Cannon's canceling. 

• Sam's baby is on the way and still healthy! 
• Responding to Paul David Tripp
• Eric Mason's Woke Church
• Nick Cannon and Black Nationalism
• What if Obi-Wan was voiced by Donald Duck? 

Resources mentioned in the episode:
Neil Shenvi's review of Woke Church by Eric Mason
Rosaria Butterfield's excellent critique of Woke Church and intersectionality
Jon Harris's website - great resource for understanding the debate
Paul David Tripp's Video
Phil Vischer's Video
Slow to Write Blog
Tim Challies summary of White Fragility
Desiring God - Seeing the World in Black and White
Obi-Wan and Anakin voiced by Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck

This week, I talk about Tolkien's essay On Fairy Stories, and why some of today's relentlessly dark entertainment fails to measure up. 

• Is escapism a fool's errand?
• The bleakness of Game of Thrones and The Last of Us Part 2
• The jail cell of materialism
• The eucatastrophe
• The fairy tale that is actually real 

Article Link: "In The Age of Trump, Escapist Entertainment Has Become An Impossibility"

No man hug this week! (sad face.) Here's a quick update though.  Love y'all! 

I still need time to polish my next essay, but I still need to get some content out! What to do? Hm... let's pull up the news for some unscripted commentary! 

• Washington Redskins
• COVID masks (please don't hate me!)
• Back to school and lockdowns
• Racist statues
• BLM Hypocrisy 
• Suicide epidemic in the military

Thanks for listening! We'll get back on track next week! 

This week, each of the Berry brothers brought one thing they wanted to talk about.

Aaron

• Sharing the gospel with your woke friend
• Where should the line of separation be within the church over this issue?
• Is "defunding the police" an issue the church needs to speak into?

Joel

• How do we fix the horrific state of our education system?
• Homeschooling
• Joel's libertarian dictatorship laws
• Youth pastors and cancel culture

Sam

• Self-discipline and routine in preparation for fatherhood
• The battlefield analogy of parenthood
• You're gonna be ok, bro!!!

And this week, we finally end with a proper prequel meme. :) 

In this episode, I share some thoughts about mainstream American Evangelicalism. I think we are all headed towards a reckoning where we will all be asked to die on the hill of Biblical Christianity or follow the culture in its downward spiral. How will it end? 

It's the weekly Man-Hug! As our culture, our government, and our leaders crumble all around us, we find reasons to laugh and reasons to hope. 

• It's a girl!!! We give Sam more fatherhood advice
• The now-famous couple who defended their home with guns
• Riots and violence
• Where is the church in all this?
• Should pastors vocally and clearly condemn the BLM movement? 
• Disappointment in Trump
• The latest Supreme Court decision
• The upcoming Civil War
• Spiritual Revival in our country
• Paddington 2!! (Your Kid's Favorite Movie Is *Not* Trash)

All around the country we are seeing statues and symbols torn down. We are seeing people canceled, their lives destroyed. This is nothing new. It can be traced back to an ancient guilt ritual over 5,000 years old. 

Christ was the fulfillment of that ritual and the sacrifice for that guilt, and our country has forgotten Him. 

This week, video games! Why? Because we love them, that's why!

• Our first 1-star troll review
• The new country of CHAZ
• Spongebob is gay? huh?
• The Berry Brothers favorite memories around video games
• Why aren’t there Christian video games? We look up a few examples and found out why...
• Our top three games of all time
• Why the 'Despicable Me' franchise is trash
• Aaron's spiritual edification corner

When the "woke left" fights racism, they always become what they are fighting against. In this episode, I make a case for the much-derided, highly unpopular phrase "all lives matter." Why would I do something so insensitive and tone-deaf? Hear me out. 

The Man Hug is back at it and we have a lot to talk about!

Cold Open: The Minneapolis Community Justice Sensitive Crisis Intervention Response Team

Current events

• Awana decides not to sue the Babylon Bee
• The Dems taking a knee in masks and African scarves
• Um... so is COVID not a thing anymore? 

Topic of the day: Fatherhood!!!! 

• One of us has a major announcement
• Joel and Aaron give their sage, expert fatherhood advice.
• Why good fathers are so important, especially now 

Joel's Rant: "Your kid's favorite movie is trash" 

• Why Zootopia is racist liberal elitist garbage

This week I talk with Leonydus Johnson, a renaissance man and Libertarian Twitter influencer.  

• The psychological warfare around George Floyd
• The real statistics on systematic police racism
• The difficulty of speaking truth to hurting people without looking like a jerk
• Unity and de-emphasizing race in the church
• Diversity that matters
• Raising kids without a racial identity
• Psychological phenomena around race  

Follow Leonydus:
@LeonydusJohnson
https://leonydusjohnson.com/

Leonydus Johnson's book recs:

Discrimination and Disparities

Thomas Sowell: Basic Economics

Why did racism and segregation against black Americans persist so long after the end of slavery? The answer is pretty shocking and disturbing, at least to me. Let's talk about it. 

In this episode:

• Why has racism persisted?
• Why I'm skeptical of "settled science" 
• Polygenism v Monogenism
• Darwin enters the scene
• The Eugenics movement is born
• Human Zoos in America and the story of Ota Benga
• The eugenicists who inspired Hitler
• How the legacy of the scientific racism and eugenics movement still continues today
• What are we to make of this? 

Sources:

Documentary about Human Zoos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY6Zrol5QEk
Scientific Racism Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_racism
The Racism of PT Barnum https://cinemacy.com/the-greatest-showman-revises-the-dark-history-of-p-t-barnum/
Eugenics Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics#cite_note-credoreference.com-20
Planned Parenthood and the eugenics movement: https://www.liveaction.org/news/planned-parenthoods-connections-to-eugenics/
Polygenism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polygenism
Leanard Darwin wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Darwin
Madison Grant Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madison_Grant
What America taught the Nazis: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/11/what-america-taught-the-nazis/540630/

Racism. Police Brutality. Rioting. Looting. Media Lies. (sigh...) Here's my obligatory response.   

The Weekly Man-Hug is here! In this episode, let's talk about a most unpleasant yet essential subject: Hell.  

• What is the orthodox view of hell? 
• Is that view being abandoned? 
• Why is this doctrine important?
• What does it teach us? 

Atheists look at the universe and see vast, arbitrary, cold emptiness. I see something different. Here's why. 

It's the weekly Man Hug! This week the Berry brothers talk about different types of meditation as a means for focusing on God and His word. This includes things like centering prayer and contemplative prayer. Is this stuff legit? Is it useful to the Christian? 

Some links to another podcast we make reference to in the episode:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-117-brad-jersak-peter-zaremba-centering-prayer/id1120914952?i=1000467686730

How are power-hungry politicians partnering with corporations and non-profits to censor speech indirectly? In this episode, I provide an example. 

In this episode, we talk about living with focus, intentionality, and self-control. Easier said than done! 

We also touch on the latest with states reopening, and a little about #Obamagate

Just a little update! 

• What's going on with The Petty Prophet and Joel's work at the Babylon Bee
• A little reflection on the fruits of the Spirit

Why is friendship important for us men? Why do we suck at it? 

• The value of friendship
• Some of the obstacles
• Some practical advice
• Manly banter
• Thinking outside ourselves

We've been treated to displays of crazy behavior lately, be it from unhinged stressed out people, political ideologues, or religious zealots. We may not always agree with these people, but one thing that drives me crazy is the smug dismissal of them. 

• Biden's expiration date written on his forehead
• Religious extremism
• Political extremism
• Extremism's place in our history, and in our future
• Be devoted to the truth, not cultural forces