The inaugural episode of a new, ongoing series called "Keywords: A Vocabulary of Barbarism and Stupidity." C. Derick Varn joins Danny to discuss a series of words that have become pervasive in our political discourse, yet have been divorced from their original meanings in many ways. The series will probably offend liberals, conservatives, and leftists alike at some point, but we at the Sectarian Review think it's important to be honest about our language. In this episode, Varn dives into the history and transformations of the following Keywords: "Woke," "Gaslight," "Privilege," and "Millennial."
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On May 22, 2018, American Novelist Philip Roth died at the age of 85. His passing marks the end of an era in American literature, when “serious” fiction and popular celebrity were not entirely distinct, and “important” books had a broad cultural impact. This week, the podcast looks back at the career of one of America’s most important artists. What does Newark, NJ and American Jewishness have to do with Roth’s work? Should he have received that Nobel? What was distinctive about his style and subject matter? What exactly have we lost as a culture, and how might Roth’s approach to fiction help us find it? Michial Farmer of the Christian Humanist Podcast and Matthew Shipe, President of the Philip Roth Society join for this humorous, enlightening discussion about an seminal figure in American letters.
Links: Philip Roth Society “Remembering Philip Roth: A Giant of American Literature,” by Adam Kirsch “The Day the Genius Died,” by Megan Garber “The Plot Against America,” by Chris Gehrz “What Roth Didn’t Know about Women Could Fill a Book,” by Dara Horn 
James Isenhower of the Everything is OKpodcast joins Danny for a discussion about Christian culture’s reliance upon celebrity. What’s valuable and what’s pernicious about this practice? A quasi-sequel to our previous “Celebrity Liberalism” episode, we leave no stone (a few at the most) unturned in our exploration of Celebrity Culture’s invasion of the Christian imagination.
Topics: All about the Everything is OK podcast Podcasting as “fluffing your own ego” Potential problems with celebritism in xtianity The poisonous effects of the American Dream and the elevation of the self What kind of celebrities are we talking about? Sports and Christianity (God wants Auburn to win) Christian Persecution Complex Zach Hoag on Celebrity Christianity Duck Dynasty Celebritism in Lefty Christianity as well Pastor as celebrity Rob Bell HGTV’s Joanna Gaines and Celebrity as sign of God’s blessing “Celebrity as an excuse to sanctify things that shouldn’t be sanctified” Celebrity as ambassador to systemic injustice “You want a country founded on Christianity” Q: Are we not celebrities? A: We are podcasters! Tony Hale as a better version of Christian celebrity Celebrities in their cars making cell phone videos Danny staying in the institutional church Sharing Pharoah Dave Ramses stories (H/T Nathan Gilmour) James destroys argument x on social media When Celebrity Christianity Backfires http://ift.tt/2u5yfOj Calling Out Celebrity Christianity & Counterfeit Justice http://ift.tt/2ulDmFr Tony Hale talks about being a Christian in Hollywood https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdJJg3dO03w The Gathering Testimony: Joanna Gaines https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7iPEDnqwm0 Celebrity isn’t just harmless fun – it’s the smiling face of the corporate machine | George Monbiot http://ift.tt/2hEWY4R everything is ok http://ift.tt/2u7tZOD 
For the annual Sectarian Review “Banned Books Week” show, Danny is joined by Jay Eldred and Megan Von Bergen to discuss the Christian Impulse to boycott or ban. What drives people of faith to avoid businesses and works of art in adherence to the faith? Are there occasions when this impulse is appropriate? As always the Sectarian Review gang try to take a nuanced approach to such questions.
Topics: Teaching controversial material at Faith-Based institutions Banning art versus boycotting companies Trigger warnings and teaching Alan Moore Moral Superiority and the motivation for avoiding art Translating Calvin and Ovid at the same time Pitching our Scandal of the Evangelical Mind episode Evangelical separatism and Bob Jones Scorsese's Last Temptation of Christ The Lion King The Lego Movie Aladdin The gay Beauty and the Beast Procter and Gamble (thanks Brett Chase!) Faith-Driven Consumers! The trade-off between Christianity and capitalism The poor, oppressed Christian’s best defense? Discretionary income Avoidance of the uncomfortable The wisdom of Milton Danny sees your Milton and raises you a Matthew Arnold What things are worth avoiding? Why should Christians wrestle with Taxi Driver? Josh “bringin’ the” Feuerstein rails against Starbucks Paul and meat sacrificed to idols Is there an institutional solution to this problem? The role of unorganized fundamentalism. Alex Jones! Artistic Standards, doctrine, and Wonder Woman Chris Gehrz’s The Pietist Option Rod Dreher and idolization of the family Cleaning the outside of a dirty cup Links: The Faith-Friendly Companies Christians Can ‘Buycott’ This Christmas | The Daily Signal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_hUF76FQ-s Some Dude Josh Feuerstein Goes Full Bonkers on CNN over Starbucks Cups https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ti629wLy4vU Christians Need to Stop Boycotting Stuff http://ift.tt/2fgY1J7 Conservatives Urge Boycott of Procter & Gamble http://ift.tt/2uuKb7T Procter & Gamble Awarded $19.25 Million in Satanism Lawsuit http://ift.tt/2oSCCc2 History of Comics Censorship, Part 1 | Comic Book Legal Defense Fund http://ift.tt/ZWrSJe Beauty and the Beast and Boycotts | Think Christian http://ift.tt/2v9ck6m 'Last Temptation' Views Still Coming In : Boycott of 'E.T.' Among Religious Reactions http://ift.tt/2fi1CXl The Lego Movie: One of the most anti-Christian movies ever http://ift.tt/2wieeSg Matthew Arnold’s Culture and Anarchy https://librivox.org/culture-and-anarchy-by-matthew-arnold/ Areopagitica https://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/areopagitica/text.html Alex Jones as Bon Iver https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEoCg4737LU The Pietist Option, by Chris Gehrz and Mark Pattie III https://www.ivpress.com/the-pietist-option In the same vein of “least Christian” movie, but on the flip side, there’s this: (H/T Christian Feminist podcast, which posted this to their FB page): http://www.marilettesanchez.com/marilettesays//wonder-woman-might-be-the-most-accurate-on-screen-depiction-of-biblical-womanhood-and-heres-why 
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Join Danny and the Christian Humanist Podcast's Nathan Gilmour for a fun, angry rhetorical analysis of the internet's newest laughingstock, Verrit.com. Learn about Hillary Clinton sycophant Peter Daou, nephew of Fear of Flying author Erica Jong, and his Freshman Comp capacity for essay-writing. What's a "Daouist?" What do Kenneth Burke, Aristotle, and basic logical argumentation have to say about Verrit? Why can't Liberal rhetoric succeed outside the "serious middle?" Will Danny finally be able to enter polite society after purging his rage over the stupidity of Verrit? All this and more! Links: The Strange Life of Peter Daou The Dada Engine Hilarious Jacob Bacharach Tweet:
Danny is joined by Coyle Neal (of the City of Man Podcast) and C. Derick Varn (of every other podcast in the world) for a discussion about Mark Noll’s seminal book Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. Rather than just discussing the book on its own terms though, the trio apply its analysis and conclusions to American Liberalism as well. The result is a sprawling, detail-rich episode, filled with plenty to consider as we think about the state of the American intellect in the Twenty-First Century.
Topics: Derick in Mormon-landia CHRN back online The listener contest concludes! The Scandal, sacred and secular Atheism tasting Protestanty Jonathan Edwards as godfather Proto-populism The Scottish Enlightenment Cultural Panic and the Nashville Statement Activism, Biblicism, Intuition, Populism Dispensationalism Broad Brush! Evangelical College vs. Evangelical University Patterns of Thought versus Participation in American Culture Separation of church and state and “Religious Deregulation” Rhetorical Revivalism Missionaries Political power over religion The Joel Osteenification of Christianity Applying Noll’s argument to the American Left and Right Manichaeism in Evangelicals and Liberals Ken Ham and “Thinking Correctly” through Intuition ugh Religion’s importance for politics Evangelicals and the Alt-Right The Evangelical withdraw into their own media spaces Urbanization and the Republic Art rejecting didacticism Can Democracy work? City of Man on Marxism Do Marxists accept original sin? The problems of Enlightenment Links: Scandal of the Evangelical Mind https://www.amazon.com/Scandal-Evangelical-Mind-Mark-Noll/dp/0802841805 Nathan Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity https://www.amazon.com/Democratization-American-Christianity-Nathan-Hatch/dp/0300050607 Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/weber/protestant-ethic/ Steve Bruce, God is Dead: Secularization in the West https://www.amazon.com/God-Dead-Secularization-Steve-Bruce/dp/0631232753 
Danny once again welcomes Coyle Neal from the City of Man Podcast to discuss that wiggly, squishy, zany concept of “Authenticity.” Learn about Jonathan Edwards and his concept of authenticity and the use and abuse of external standards. Was Emerson “the great villain?” Can you be “spiritual but not religious?” What does Sheryl Sandberg actually believe? Have postmodernists rediscovered truth in the Age of Trump? Lionel Trilling, Sincerity and Authenticity. Authenticity as performance. Is the House Church movement suffering from Authenticity overload? Coyle authentically begs listeners to write their prayers down. Authenticity that undermines art. Danny mangles Walter Benjamin. Stephen King’s writing advice and art. Danny can’t distinguish Foucault from Barthes. Donald Trump as the perfect embodiment of Authenticity. Obama versus Hillary: writer throw-down. What is the moral cost of insincerity? The fakeness of talk radio and the American media. All this and much more!
Links: Obama Bests Clinton At Craft of Writing - The New York Sun http://ift.tt/2uRmRmm America’s First Postmodern President http://ift.tt/2uBFAly This fake TED Talk about nothing might be the best you've ever seen http://ift.tt/25S3UiZ Sheryl Sandberg: The Importance of Authentic Communication - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nRENaRCvLI Jonathan Edwards: Religious Affections https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_Affections David Wells: The Courage to be Protestant https://www.amazon.com/Courage-Protestant-Truth-lovers-Marketers-Postmodern/dp/0802840078 Neil Cole’s ChurchPlanting http://www.churchplanting.com/neil-cole/#.WZ2ysiiGNPY Daniel Franklin: Politics and Film https://www.amazon.com/Politics-Film-Political-Culture-United/dp/0742538095 Francis Schaeffer: The God Who is There https://www.amazon.com/God-Who-There-Francis-Schaeffer/dp/0830819479  Danny is joined by Rob Osborn and Kim Anderson for a discussion about the philosophy of Minimalism, a lifestyle of reducing one's possessions and overall footprint. Focusing on the 2015 documentary Minimalism, the trio discuss consumerism, a healthy materialism, spirituality, and class privilege. And bonus (!) listen to the first two submissions to the Sectarian Review fake ad contest. Get your submissions in by August 15!
Links: The Art of Letting Go | The Minimalists | TEDxFargo How might your life be better with less? Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, known to their 4 million readers as "The Minimalists," are the executive… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7rewjFNiys Marie Kondo and the Ruthless War on Stuff J oy points upward, according to Marie Kondo, whose name is now a verb and whose nickname is being trademarked and whose life has become a philosophy. In April… http://ift.tt/29oF8iZ "Minimalism, Spirituality, and Why it Matters" by Joshua Becker Journey Church Meets Sundays @ 9 & 10:30 AM Liberty Auditorium http://ift.tt/zYaYLP video production by Jeff Cools Productions http://ift.tt/1usB3iZ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2qIRr51zBo Investopedia Video: Veblen Good Named after economist Thorstein Veblen, who introduced the term "conspicuous consumption," a Veblen good is one whose demand increases as its price increases… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56TIQ1rcHek bush: go out and shop Find out why AnarchyEnsues Loading... Unsubscribe from AnarchyEnsues? Working... 14 Loading... Loading... Working... Want to watch this again later? Sign in to… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxk9PW83VCY Story of Stuff (2007, OFFICIAL Version) From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GorqroigqM Century of the Self https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJ3RzGoQC4s How Much Cotton Does it Take to Make a Shirt? Cotton has been around for thousands of years, but it's drawing new interest these days with talk of sustainable clothing. That soft and comfy T-shirt you… http://ift.tt/2vK1eod Study: Child Laborers In Bangladesh Are Working 64 Hours A Week Babu, 8, works at a brick factory in Narayanganj, Bangladesh. KM Asad/LightRocket via Getty Images In Bangladesh, a new report finds, impoverished children are… http://ift.tt/2gc0l3O 10% Happier http://www.10percenthappier.com/mindfulness-meditation-the-basics/ McMansion Hell http://mcmansionhell.com/ Project 333 https://bemorewithless.com/project-333/  Of what use is the "Evangelical" label in the age of Donald Trump and the Christian leaders that John Fea terms "Court Evangelicals?" Does it still maintain a theological meaning or has it devolved into, as Danny says, "Theocratic Libertarianism?" Coyle Neal, from the City of Man podcast joins Danny for a historical, philosophical, and political discussion about contemporary Evangelicalism. Is there still room for the "1910 Evangelical?"
Also, at the beginning of this episode, Danny announces the first-ever Sectarian Review listener contest! Click here for details. Links for Curious People: Coyle Neal's Review of The American Patriot's Bible. "Defining 'Evangelical' by Jonathan Merritt. "What Was Being Worshiped Yesterday at First Baptist Church in Dallas?" by John Fea  Danny Anderson, Jordan Poss, and Jay Eldred discuss the complicated, sometimes appalling legacy of Jack Chick and his "Chick Tracts." What theological tradition do these comic books participate in? Where do they go off the rails? Is there anything laudable about Jack Chick's bleak theology? Special Treat: hang around for about the 1 hour 45 minute point to hear Danny's impromptu Alex Jones imitation!
Main Links: Chick Tract Evangelism on YouTube "The Imp" Chick Tract Parody LA Magazine Retrospective Jack Chick 'Official' Biography from Chick.Com "The Wiles of the Devil" by Charles Fuller "Meet Jack Chick," by Jimmy Akin https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/meet-jack-chick "The Death Cookie" http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0074/0074_01.asp "Dark Dungeons" https://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0046/0046_01.asp "Somebody Loves Me" https://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0006/0006_01.asp MST3K style parody of "DD" https://www.fecundity.com/darkdung/darkdung.php?page=1 In addition, this episode introduces the first of an occasional new segment for the show: "Spider-Web Christianity" (provisional title). In these brief segments, we explore institutions that structure Christian Culture. What are the networks that drive Christian thought and conversation? To start us off, Danny talks about the publicity company Grace Hill Media. Spider-Web Links: Grace Hill Media website "Disney Sells Faith Side of Mira Nair's 'Queen of Katwe' with Whispers, Not Shouts" "Secular Hollywood Quietly Courts the Faithful" "The Secret Christian Message in This Weekend's Highly-Anticipated Horror Film"  In this episode of the Sectarian Review Podcast, Danny Anderson is joined by Peter Mommsen and Veery Huleatt for a discussion about the Bruderhof, an Anabaptist tradition with communities throughout the world. Learn about how this faith community lives out its ideals and rejects many of the spiritual trappings of Modernity. Work without hierarchy, common ownership, and communal worship. Also, how does this expression of the Christian faith compare with Rod Dreher's Benedict Option? A fascinating look into a fascinating faith.
Links for the deep thinkers among us: The official Bruderhof website: www.bruderhof.com/en Bruderhof Communities Podcast Homage to a Broken Man, by Peter Mommsen "What Does the Bruderhof Think of the Benedict Option?" by Peter Mommsen C-Span video of panel discussion about The Benedict Option featuring Peter Mommsen  Join Danny and C. Derrick Varn for an *in-depth* discussion of the the 1967 Soviet horror film, Viy (based on the Gogol short story). Danny and Derek talk about the cultural significance of Cossacks in Russian history, the Soviet film industry, Ideology, and Eastern Christianity. The film is freely available on YouTube if you want to watch beforehand, but this episode will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about Soviet movies where witches terrorize seminary students who don't believe in God.
Link to full film (subtitled)  Four perspectives about a film about four perspectives. Pretty meta, eh?
In this episode, Danny welcomes Todd Pedlar, Carter Stepper, and Michial Farmer for a discussion about Akira Kurosawa's groundbreaking 1950 film, Rashomon. Why is this film so revered in the history of cinema? How does Kurosawa's technical mastery contribute to the existential philosophical questions Rashomon poses? How does this film's famous exploration of subjectivity speak to our current "Post-Truth" moment? All this and a new intro! Please go to iTunes and leave a review: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sectarian-review/id1031613670?mt=2 Also, visit and like our Facebook page to access more content and to share your thoughts with the show's creators: https://www.facebook.com/SectarianReview/  In this episode, the Sectarians talk about Dante's Inferno, but not in a conventional way. Imagine reading a poem about Hell while engaged in war. Joining the show for this episode is Neil Gussman, who led a reading group of American soldiers who were fighting in Iraq. What is it like reading Inferno in 130 degree heat? What does Dante have to say about war? How does the experience of reading the great work of Western Canon change when it is ripped from institutional education and placed in the battlefield? Also, contest announcement!
 Solidarity in the Christian Humanist Radio Network. Danny and Megan Von Bergen of the Sectarian Review Podcast join forces with Victoria Reynolds Farmer of the Christian Feminist Podcast to discuss the controversy about "Fearless Girl," a recent Wall Street craze. If you are unfamiliar with the Fearless Girl, she is statue that has been placed in direct confrontation with the famous Wall Street charging bull. To many, she has become the symbol of an emerging girl power in the boys club of American finance. There is an opposing viewpoint, however. Jillian Steinhauer, writing for Hyperallergic, labels her "Fake Corporate Feminism." This episode of Sectarian Review takes Steinhauer's article as its jumping off point. Is there something redeemable for feminism and anti-institutional resistance in Fearless Girl? Is it a corporate shell game that co-opts the language of resistance just to tame it for the PR benefit of the existing power structure?
Also in this episode, Danny announces a special contest for Sectarian Review listeners with special prizes at stake! Some links: "Facebook Feminism, Like it or Not" by Susan Faludi General Electric Millie Dresselhaus ad Mayor de Blasio gives official public approval to Fearless Girl  Danny and Jay Eldred bask in one of the show's most stimulating interviews yet. This time, prominent historian John Fea sits down for an illuminating discussion about the study of History, the role of the humanities in higher education, the disturbing popularity of Donald Trump among Evangelicals, and the possibilities of public scholarship. In addition, Fea (a New Jersey native) talks a little Springsteen with the boys. Links: Thewayofimprovement.com Fea considers leaving evangelicalism Pt 1 Fea considers leaving evangelicalism Pt 2 Fea’s Patreon page Fea’s Twitter feed  Danny Anderson is joined by Jordan Poss and Nathan Gilmour to talk about Political Correctness and its many discontents. What are the term's roots and when did people start worrying about it? How did the Bill Clinton era affect us? What role did identity politics play in the election, and will become of the Democratic party's reckoning in the dawn of the Trump Dystopia? And finally, Danny asks "pitchforks and torches?" Plus listener responses to subject. Links: Frank Bruni on Democratic failures Aaron Hanlon on the PC Left and language wars Larry Summers on Political Correctness Cracked on Donald Trump Slate Star Codex: You Are Still Crying Wolf Mad Dogs and Englishmen Podcast  In an episode from beyond the universe, Danny is joined by Carter Stepper for a stellar discussion about science fiction and its role in social critique. Our intrepid explorers discuss the genre’s history of social criticism, and aim their blasters at the work of such mind-bending authors as H.G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, and Philip K. Dick. In addition, find out what Dune has to say about messianic authoritarianism and learn about what we can learn about our own current flirtations with authoritarian politics. Plus, Uhura! And stay to the end for some recommendations from across the galaxy!
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