My friend Greg Emilio joins me once again to talk about movies. This time though we remember three movies that stood out for each of us during the last decade, from 2010 to the end of 2019, just a few days ago. My three selections are what you would call mainline, Hollywood type movies that use conventional storytelling techniques, while Greg’s picks offer a nice contrast as he reviews three beautiful films that tell their stories in more poetic mode.MUSIC LINKS:// “Little Idea” by Scott Holmeshttps://freemusicarchive.org/music/Scott_Holmes/Inspiring__Upbeat_Music/Scott_Holmes_-_Little_Idea// “The Mighty Rio Grande” by This Will Destroy You. Everywhere on the internet.

John Bucher is a strategist, communicator, and cultural mythologist based out of Hollywood, California. Last week (Dec 8.2019) he wrote a piece for the Joseph Campbell Foundation, called “Reawakening Wonder.” Since it’s Christmas, I thought I’d talk to him about wonder, and about mythology, and what those things have to do with each other. John is the author of six books, has worked with companies including HBO, DC Comics, The History Channel, A24 Films, and served as a consultant and writer for numerous film, television, and Virtual Reality projects. He has spoken around the world about using the power of story to reframe how individuals, organizations, cultures, and nations are viewed.LINKS:ARTICLE : “Reawaking Wonder,” by John Bucher. https://www.jcf.org/mythblast-reawakening-wonder/++ JOHN BUCHER at tellingabetterstory.com Follow him on Twitter @johnkbucher++ MUSIC: Saint-Saëns - The Carnival of the Animals - VII. Aquarium, can be found everywhere on the internet. ++ O Little Town of Bethlehem. Kevin MacLeod. https://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100307++ WRITE ME: asmallgoodthing.org

Independent journalist Paul Rowan Brian wrote a short article in the journal First Things last year entitled “Muslims in American Politics.” (Link below). In it, Brian claims that due to anti-Muslim rhetoric pervasive in the Republican party and among conservative Evangelical Christians as well, American Muslims “have no choice” but to align themselves politically with the liberal left, even though many of the left’s platform values – “gay marriage, abortion, drug legalization and infringements on the rights of religious organizations and individuals,” for example – are at odds with Islamic teaching. This tension, says Brian, puts Muslims in America “in a precarious position – caught in a dilemma between a false friend and an open opponent. Islam, at heart,” says Brian, “aligns with neither right nor left in an American political context. It is unique and comprehensive, based on a specific view of the human being, rights, and the purpose of life informed by God rather than men. Only the future will tell to what extent American Muslims define a place for themselves in American political culture.” In this episode I talk to a former student of mine, a young, devout, seminary-educated Muslim. I wanted to find out if his own experience in the Muslim communities he is part of rang true to Brian’s claims. I would tell you his name, but I won’t. He seeks a career in a sensitive field and because of the flammable nature of social media today, we agreed it would be best to keep his identity vague. But this I will tell you: it was a most refreshing and enlightening conversation for me, and I hope will be for you, too. LINKS: Muslims in American Politics: https://www.firstthings.com/article/2018/11/muslims-in-american-politics// MUSIC: Sami Yusuf - Asma Allah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhwdEtO5fJE&feature=youtu.be// Maula Ya Salli Wa Sallim (with English Subtitles)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g57bvG59ZtI&feature=youtu.be// WRITE ME: [email protected]

“The Pilgrims valued people more than prosperity, and let themselves be taken advantage of – at times, and in moderation – as if caring for individuals was necessary for their physical or spiritual survival. That's definitely a Christian perspective, but it's also an economic claim about the value of individuals and a healthy community. If we could exchange money for good friends, stable families, and a clean conscience, would we?” This is one of the insights from Dr. Liam Corley, professor of Early & 19th Century American Literature at Cal Poly Pomona, on what we can learn from the Pilgrim’s story today. LINKS:// MUSIC: Mark Isham. “Coalwood” and “Dreams of Boys.” Soundtrack from October Sky.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXKvtcUAJ3I// CONTACT: asmallgoodthing.org

Roma, is the extraordinary movie made by Mexican filmmaker and Academy Award winner, Alfonso Cuarón. It came out last November in 2018. But you can watch it now any time, or many times, on Netflix streaming. To help me talk about it I called my friend Greg Emilio in Atlanta. He was with me on Episode 107 where we talked about Patterson, another remarkable movie. LINKS:// MUSIC from the official Roma trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BS27ngZtxg// For more episodes you can go to: asmallgoodthing.org

This episode is a kind of continuation or further exploration of an earlier episode I did called, Praying to Andres Dubus, Episode 114. There, I talked about the plausibility of praying to the saints, people who are dead but not dead. My friend and one of my former guests, Donna Burns, wrote me a nice little email after that saying that she would like to talk to me more about that some day, and so, I’ve invited her back, this time to be my interviewer and conversation partner. Donna is perfect for the job because she is a Protestant Christian, so she can be suspicious of anything that sounds too Catholic. Yet she definitely is NOT anti-Catholic and also shows an intellectual openness to different ideas than her own tradition. LINKS:// MUSIC: “Clear Progress” by Scott Holmes. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Scott_Holmes// I mentioned Dallas Willard a couple of times. Dr. Willard was the chair of the Philosophy Department at USC. You can find his books wherever books are sold.

The book of Ecclesiastes is not only one of the most beautiful books in the Bible, it is one of the most beautiful pieces of literature in the whole world. And within its beauty resides something new and mysterious, a “newer” wisdom about life and God, as you will hear from my friend, Dr. William “Billy” Marsh. He holds degrees in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Theology, and Philosophy of Religion from the University of Chicago. Website: asmallgoodthing.org

Here's what Dean Koontz writes about Douglas Axe's book, Undeniable: "In this highly engaging book, with facts and humility and humor and reason, Axe uses 'common science' to consider the biggest mystery: to what or to whom do we owe our existence? I greatly enjoyed it. Part II of my conversation with microbiologist, Douglas Axe.LINKS:// Douglas Axe. Undeniable https://www.amazon.com/Undeniable-Biology-Confirms-Intuition-Designed/dp/0062349597/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1TO64O110FVRJ&keywords=undeniable+douglas+axe&qid=1564676151&s=gateway&sprefix=undeniable+dou%2Caps%2C264&sr=8-1// David Gelernter https://www.claremont.org/crb/article/giving-up-darwin/// Journey Inside the Cell. A 3 ½ minute video that graphically shows exactly how proteins work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fiJupfbSpg&app=desktop// MUSIC: “Wires Don’t Cry.” Ayato & Kecap Tuyul http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ayato__Kecap_Tuyul/The_Shaman_Wont_Come_Back/4_Wires_dont_cry

David Gelernter recently wrote an essay in Claremont Review of Books entitled “Giving Up Darwin: A Fond Farewell to a Brilliant and Beautiful Theory.” Gelernter is professor of computer science at Yale University, chief scientist at Mirror Worlds Technologies, and a member of the National Council of the Arts. He is also the latest of a small, but growing, number of scientists and intellectuals who are now studying the evidence for themselves and finding that the case for evolutionary biology as presented by the mainstream, “scientific” establishment is, in fact, mistaken. One of the scientists that Gelernter refers to in his essay is molecular biologist, Douglas Axe. He is a “distinguished biologist with a five-star breeding,” according to Gelernter, “a graduate student at Caltech, [who] then joined the Centre for Protein Engineering at Cambridge.” Dr. Axe is my guest for the next two episodes of A Small Good Thing. LINKS:// MUSIC: “Wires Don’t Cry.” Ayato & Kecap Tuyul http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ayato__Kecap_Tuyul/The_Shaman_Wont_Come_Back/4_Wires_dont_cry;// David Gelernter https://www.claremont.org/crb/article/giving-up-darwin/;// Douglas Axe. Undeniable https://www.amazon.com/Undeniable-Biology-Confirms-Intuition-Designed/dp/0062349597/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1TO64O110FVRJ&keywords=undeniable+douglas+axe&qid=1564676151&s=gateway&sprefix=undeniable+dou%2Caps%2C264&sr=8-1

Meredith Anne Miller’s official bio says that she is “a pastor, speaker and writer with a deep love for the local church and its potential to impact and transform communities. Together with her husband Curtis, they have returned home to Southern California in 2019 to start a church that follows Jesus into the world, together.” While all of that is true, it obscures a lively and complex personality. Meredith offers a clear, compelling and challenging rationale for the necessity of a different form of church. She aspires to listen carefully both to the world and to God. Among other things, she speaks of “dialoging across difference, pursuing justice, and elevating the voices of people who have been marginalized in church spaces.” You may disagree with her on points, but I don’t think you will be able to easily dismiss her. She is fresh, transparent and articulate. She’s educated and fair minded, yet at ease with her own thoughts. Normally, I do some editing in my conversations with people to keep the episode at a manageable length, but in this case I left most of our talk together intact. LINKS:Music// “Every Voice” by Jimmy Fontanez https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqt-Gj0iRNw ; “Just Like That” by Proviant Audio http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Proviant_Audio/Welcome_Wilderness/Just_Like_That// Find Meredith Miller on Instagram or contact her at [email protected]// Find Pomona Valley Church at pomonavalleychurch.org and @pomonavalleychuch on Instagram.// The other churches that Meredith mentioned are:High Rock - https://www.highrockarlington.org/highrock-networkSunday Supper Church - https://www.sundaysupperchurch.com/Open Circle - https://opencirclecommunity.org/// You can always contact and find out more about me https://www.asmallgoodthing.org/