Begin Again Podcast

One of Julian's most famous lines comes on the heels of a rather scandalous or challenging comment. Yeah, some might say she crossed a line...

So, here is a perfect "ambushed" moment for me. In the midst of doing some reading on the burning bush event in Exodus 3, I found an ancient, but new to me, interpretation of the event... It is an interpretation that bore a lot of fruit for me personally, hopefully it will do the same for you.

Last year I was encouraged to check out St. Bonaventure. He is the one responsible for the most famous biography of St. Francis of Assisi and is also responsible for the Franciscan order becoming what it is today. St. Bonaventure, since first reading him about 2 years ago, has become one of my favorite figures in church history. He loved philosophy and theology, but also loved nature and teaching on the importance of justice. Enjoy.

And we're back. Due to the busy-ness of life, I had to put this on hold. However, we are back! This season of Lent has been a great one as I have purposefully put myself in a place to hear some new and challenging voices. But it's all good, because I have been processing what true religion is. So, give a listen if you want to hear a little bit about immature religion vs authentic faith and how Luke 18 is a fantastic commentary on these two things.

Last summer I binge read Teillard De Chardin. He was a french Jesuit paleontologist who taught me how and why to have faith in man and hope for man.

Just musing on the Sermon on the Mount, an alternative approach to the passage "do not judge," and getting down out of our trees or off of our ladders...

You, me, and everyone else on the planet need to get to know St. John of the Cross (16th century). If you are going through a dark time or feel like you are about to lose faith, his poetry and commentary on his own poetry have helped people for centuries. As a Doctor of the church, his writings have been esteemed as good for people everywhere of every time.

Just me riffing on punk rock, prophets, and my favorite Rabbi. Oh, and about echo chambers. And New Year's Resolutions.

And after another hiatus... We are back. A new job and moving takes time and energy doesn't it? Here is a quick comment on Jesus asking Peter three times in one conversation if Peter loves him from the end of John's Gospel. I was a little under the weather recording this, so grab a mug and sit under a blanket... Because that's what I did.

For the first interview in Ambushed history... is an upcoming scholar and theological juggernaut. He also happens to be my brother, Steve Chaffee. Join us as we chat about Torrance, Barth, American Christianity, physical vs spiritual and more!

A quote from George Carlin and another one from Blaise Pascal inspired this one. The question is this, have we been encouraged to make a cartoon of Jesus our hero?

Just some reflections on Not-Zeus, children playing, and the Trinity. Be ready for Perichoresis and the fact that it sounds so new-age but is, in reality, quite an ancient way of looking at the Divine!

Ever have a moment where you hear a little voice say, "Pay attention, something is happening..."? Well, I can't say these moments happen to me often but here is one of those instances that happened to me about 6-7 years ago and still resonates mystifies me.

Christianity is absurd... and that's a good thing. Early scholastic theologians came up with the phrase "credo quia absurdum", which translates as "I believe because it is absurd." However, to take this faith seriously may mean that we are seen as absurd, not only by those outside of the church, but maybe also by those within it. This too, is a good thing. Why? Because the church has only ever been reminded to be what it should through the words and the works of the saints, the holy fools. Thus, the title, "Brennan Manning and Holy Foolishness.”

Here is part 2 of "Reclaiming ______"! This time, I want to reclaim the Greek word Metanoia as "to change one's mind." This is a follow up to the last podcast on the Hebrew word Teshuvah. In all likelihood, these will be the start of an ongoing series that looks at different words that are helpful to our holistic health, betterment and spirituality. Enjoy and feel free to share!

Being raised by teachers, literally, my family has always highly valued books. And what goes with books? Well, words, of course. Here is 1 of 2 podcasts looking at specific words. Here I chat over the word teshuvah, which some translate as "repent", but more accurately should be "return." Enjoy and feel free to pass on to others!

The two greatest commandments, Jesus' own distillation of the Jewish Law, has got some other angles that we can understand them. Here are three different ways of understanding "You shall love God and love your neighbor as yourself.”

Back in grad school I was told I was iconoclastic, that I enjoyed challenging the popular ways of looking at things to see if there was not a better viewpoint. This week you can expect comments against a narcissistic god, three guidelines of physical humor, and how we choose to talk about the "Good News." Enjoy!

It's a simple question... Is it possible to make an idol of the life of Jesus? Maybe it's splitting hairs, but perhaps it is more necessary as a question than we care to admit. This is sure to be conversation fodder for you and others. Enjoy!

Culture says don't talk about religion, politics or finances when over at someone's home for dinner. Here I talk about 2 out of those 3.

After a few recent conversations and a number of great sunsets, I thought it would be fun to share my definition of mysticism. I am convinced that many of us would benefit from learning from the greats. So, here I talk about one of my favorite fire tower moments as well as St. Francis. Enjoy!

"Real spirituality begins where your religious system fails you." Be ready, we go deep into Bonhoeffer and Good Friday on this one!

This is the inaugural Ambushed Podcast! Welcome and tell your friends!