Continuation of the previous episode about the spiritual meaning of gender. Listen to the first one before this one. I continue to explore lots of ways the living metaphor of gender teaches us about the proper relationship of humans to God. At a certain point I get slightly specific about private parts, which I think is extremely relevant to the topic, but you might want to pre-screen this before letting children hear it.

Merry Christmas! from Demas! This is my first episode in a long while, and I have started a new study which should help people better discuss one of the big social issues of the day -- gay marriage. Instead of focusing on why homosexuality is wrong, I focus on the reason marriage and gender were instituted as they are in the first place. Why were we created male and female in the first place? It is a spiritual metaphor and a lesson from God. I'm trying to present a more thoughtful presentation than simply quoting Leviticus 18:22 to a gay person, because in the current social climate, we need to be more thoughtful.

PLEASE listen to parts 1 and 2 of Light Pollution or you will not understand my ramblings in this episode. I discuss several poetic metaphors from a certain poet of the romantic era, and how they relate to the words of Jesus and Paul, specifically in 1 Cor 13, and John 14. I also encourage everyone to see the movie THE TREE OF LIFE, which is a deep and thoughtful cinematic meditation on God.

I revisit my previous episode "Light Pollution" and extend the metaphor and read some scriptures that have similar themes. Hopefully this episode encourages us to acknowledge God in all our ways. Here's the link to the Hyperspace Star Polytope Slicer that I referenced in the podcast. http://dogfeathers.com/java/hyperstar.html Settings: Hyperplanes: FC-24-cell 3-Symmetry: Octahedral(3) Section slider: -0.69 Shell Slider: #22 Slide the Section slider back and forth to rotate the shape in the 4th dimension, causing the shape to enter our dimension from the dimension above. In the same way, paradoxes are part of a unified whole. The opposing thoughts are only seemingly disconnected due to our own barriers to perception. These barriers will eventually be removed, as Paul says, "when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." — 1 Corinthians 13:10

I discuss love, and also bring up some topics from previous episodes: normative power of the actual, and spiritual game theory. It seems that being salt and light does the work of preventing the new moral decay inherent in the "actual" becoming normal (ie progressive social issues). I also relate a practical example of spiritual game theory. This episode's graphic (if you listen with an iOS device) is a screengrab from The Sound of Music, where they are singing a song about "nihil ex nihilo" in the context of love. This is where I got the idea for the episode, when it made me notice that God is the first source of love, and without him we can't love. 1 John 4:10 "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

A new way to think about that phrase

Prophecy and the end times as seen through the lens of Willy Wonka. I illustrate the theory of the "new new world order," first explained to me by Frank Lordi and Chris White on the Frank & Chris Show. In subsequent discussions with Chris, I developed this idea of how to visually represent some of the timelines in Bible prophecy. In this episode, I read Matthew 24 and 2nd Thessalonians 2, but there are more I could have used. I also analyze the lyrics to "Pure Imagination," the song in the film which is a much-covered song, giving the same false hope as "The Rainbow Connection." Charlie & the Chocolate Factory clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jhvReU4TIc

This is the "warm shower" after last episode's "cold shower." I talk a bit about the circumcision of the heart, and show how the attitude of postmodernism is basically the uncircumcision of the heart. I also show how we can find hope in the midst of postmodernity, and how we can show hope to others, becuase as the postmodern self tries in vain to connect and "be known," the fact is that we already are known by the Creator—someone much more worthy to be known by, and to know, than say, a celebrity tweeting you back on twitter.

This is a continuation of episode 22, Songs About Rainbows, Cult of Celebrity, Pt. 7 I was looking for evidences of postmodernity in the Old Testament, and this is what I found. If you haven't listened to Songs About Rainbows, please listen to it first. This episode is a bit of a cold shower, but a necessary one. A warm shower is coming very soon, in the second half of Biblical Postmodernity, which is a little more hopeful. For a bit of hope in the interim, here is 2 Chronicles 7:14 - "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

The 1-year mark for Letters to Laodicea! I discuss my podcasting setup, to encourage those who have expressed interest in starting their own show. Soapboxes are cheap these days, here's mine: M-Audio Micro-Track 2 Recorder http://www.amazon.com/M-Audio-Microtrack-II-Portable-Recorder/dp/B0019R17FK It's great because it's small and has an included microphone, and also has 1/4" inputs for receiving a signal from a mixer or other equipment. At $199 it's a great deal. SanDisk 4GB CF card http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-SDCFH-004G-A11-ULTRA-Retail-Package/dp/B00065ANYW/ Gives you a good amount of recording time, I've never filled it up with a single show's worth of talking ProLine desktop mic stand http://www.amazon.com/ProLine-MS112-Desk-Boom-Stand/dp/B000J0N5TY/ Pop filter http://www.amazon.com/Nady-MPF-6-6-Inch-Microphone-Filter/dp/B0002CZW0Y/ Mackie 402 compact mixer http://www.amazon.com/Mackie-402-VLZ3-Premium-4-Channel-Ultra-Compact/dp/B00132EJJW/ You can probably find a mixer that has an integrated recorder and forget the one I listed above, but I liked the idea of being mobile if I needed to be. Sennheiser e835 dynamic microphone http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-E835-Dynamic-Cardioid-Microphone/dp/B00006I5R7/ Any voice microphone will do fine. I prefer dynamic over condenser because it doesn't pick up every little noise, and if I get close and/or project, the noise level is acceptable in a moderately "quiet" environment. You don't need total studio conditions. Planes flying will obviously get picked up, but we're not making television, we're writing postmodern epistles. 2-foot dual 1/4" TRS cable (mixer out to recorder in) 2-foot XLR cable (mic out to mixer in) 2-foot XLR-to-1/4" TRS cable (microphone direct to recorder)