In this episode, Phil and Suzie talk with Darante’ Lamar in an incredible, wide-ranging, and passionate discussion about his faith background, his life in ministry, what lead to his deconversion, and the impact of faith and the journey away from faith on him as an Black man and the black community.    Bio: Darante’ LaMar’s journey from serving as a leader in both charismatic megachurches and hyper spiritual storefront churches, to embracing a life of secularism and reason, offers a unique perspective on the evolution of faith in contemporary society. With a background that includes virtually every role within the ministry, Darante’ brings a comprehensive understanding of the inner workings of religious organizations and the impact they have on individuals and communities. Currently, Darante’ is a Global Project Manager and DEI executive in the healthcare industry. He serves, alongside his wife, as the managing partner of DLDD World Group - a nonprofit committed to people centric projects, programs and progress. He is the author of three published books: Significant, Parenting on Purpose, and Memphis: The Last Supper and three upcoming books, Making The Jump, Christ Held Up and The Case for Religion  Link to the ”Hell” video referenced in the episode:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-mQwkFBgaY Where to Find Darante:  Social Media  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbROOoAVy40Cv5NtKccRClg  https://www.facebook.com/darante.martin/  https://twitter.com/DaranteLaMarX  https://www.tiktok.com/@darantelamar7 https://www.dldd.us  Books  https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3ADarante%27+LaMar&s=relevancerank&text=Darante%27+LaMar&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1 Significant - https://www.amazon.com/Significant-diffidence-confidence-Darante-LaMar/dp/1506105572/ref=monarch_sidesheet Follow on Facebook, X, Instagram, and YouTube @flawedtheology Join our Facebook group, Dangerous Questions https://www.flawedtheologypodcast.com

In this bonus segment from episode 1, Phil and Susie talk about her cat, a fatal illness, and how it all relates to flawed theology.  Enjoy!

In this episode, Phil and Susie talk with Caitlin, owner of Atheist Aesthetic.  Caitlin is from Texas and she shares a lot of wisdom about her journey away from faith, her thoughts on being an ”angry atheist” and how she moved forward from that stage to being happy, fulfilled, and confident in who she is and how she can live a good and moral life without the overwatch of a deity.  She is passionate about many non-profit organizations and she shares a ton of good resources for anyone on a path of questioning their belief system.  Lots of links below for your reference. Show Notes and Resources: Atheist Aesthetic on Etsy:   https://www.etsy.com/shop/AtheistAesthetic?coupon=FLAWED   FT listeners can use the code FLAWED and get 15% off their purchase at the shop. Personal Values Inventory: https://personalvalu.es/   https://www.oasisnetwork.com/ https://www.seculartherapy.org/  https://science.howstuffworks.com/life/inside-the-mind/human-brain/gods-hearing-voices-and-bicameral-mind.htm https://www.amazon.com/Skeptics-Annotated-Bible-Steve-Wells/dp/0988245108?ref=d6k_applink_bb_dls&dplnkId=21decb48-c904-4ec7-b2f1-6a3a9433bc9c  Non-Profits to Support:  Freedom from Religion Foundation https://ffrf.org/  Recovering from Religion : https://www.recoveringfromreligion.org/  Secular Therapy Project: https://www.seculartherapy.org/  Footsteps:  https://footstepsorg.org/ Join our Facebook page at facebook.com/groups/dangerousquestions Follow us at flawedtheologypodcast.com and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.   Rate and review the podcast on Google, Spotify, and Apple Podcast

In this episode, Phil and Susie ”dig” into the power of music. Harlan Howard in the 50’s used the phrase “3 chords and the truth” to describe his genre of country music and many other artists have used this phrase and allowed it to be their philosophy of songwriting. This phrase is funny because most worship songs are 3 chords and purports to be truth, but what is the truth that is actually being conveyed? How does music actually work to affect our emotions and how is this exploited in worship/Xtian music and sold as the “Spirit”? Can “secular” music do the same thing that Xtian music does? We will talk (and even sing) about some of the tactics that are used and even how chord structures and musical formulas can elicit certain responses. For those interested in skipping over the music, here are the timestamps: 31:27-32:25 lord, I lift your name on high 33:30-34:22 how great is our god 35:15-35:55 how he loves 37:00-38:00 you alone 40:48-46:03 from the inside out by Hillsong Show Links and Resources: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/07/29/1190374074/these-scientists-explain-the-power-of-music-to-spark-awe?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_medium=social https://languageandreligion.com/2022/04/20/emotional-manipulation-in-worship-music/ https://blog.landr.com/emotional-chord-progressions/ https://reckersworld.jimdofree.com/religion/recker-s-writings-to-enlighten-and-entertain/how-churches-use-music-to-manipulate-you/ https://capuzzler.medium.com/emotion-effect-in-religious-music-9d383b34b24e https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17470218221075330 https://www.ox.ac.uk/research/choir-singing-improves-health-happiness-%E2%80%93-and-perfect-icebreaker https://www.praisecharts.com/blog/the-nashville-number-system-chart-for-bands/ Genetically modified skeptic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7btz0ocXDeg Faith Free: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoaknMByfRs *From the Inside Out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-9mUDbGsEk Closing Poem: https://www.joniroseblog.com/post/strings-the-use-of-religious-song Please subscribe and review us wherever you are listening to our podcast. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @flawedtheologypodcast Join our Facebook Group www.facebook.com/groups/dangerousquestions *We do not own the rights to the music in this episode.

In this week’s episode, Phil and Susie talk about the concept of “magical thinking” and how it is used by believers to explain things that they just don’t understand or to explain away things that they can’t logically defend.  The common explanation for explaining the unexplainable for the believer is the “providence” or “sovereignty” of God, meaning God’s overarching plan for the universe and by extrapolation, one’s entire life.  Phil and Susie ask, ”Does God really have a plan? Is it a good one? What happens when people question the plan and what happens when we discover that there isn’t one?”   Show Notes and Links: https://valerietarico.com/2018/10/02/why-people-believe-in-miracles-and-other-kinds-of-magic/  https://valerietarico.com/2018/10/09/the-human-mind-is-wired-for-magical-thinking/  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-providence-of-god  https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/God-Changing-His-Mind  https://www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/confessions/heidelberg-catechism  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Lamentations Please subscribe and review us wherever you are listening to our podcast. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @flawedtheologypodcast  Join our Facebook Group www.facebook.com/groups/dangerousquestions