In this episode of Sacred Tension, I have a second conversation with the progressive Christian apologist Randal Rauser. This discussion originally appeared on Randal Rauser's YouTube channel, and I suggest that you all subscribe. In this episode, Randal asks me questions about Satanism, including why I am drawn to the literary Satan as the ultimate outsider instead of Jesus, and why I am drawn to Satanism instead of humanism. We also discuss the Seven Tenets of The Satanic Temple, and we explore agreements and potential disagreements. Please offer your feedback on this conversation in the comm ..read more

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I have a conversation with Christian apologist Randal Rauser moderated by John Morehead of Multifaith Matters. Randal and I discuss The Satanic Temple’s Unveiling Day and its use of the phrase “archaic superstition.” We also discuss pluralism, why I stopped believing the core claims of Christianity, what counts as “superstition," and much more. Randal Rauser is a progressive Christian, theologian, apologist, and author of many books. Learn more about him here. John Morehead is an evangelical Christian and director of Multifaith Matters. He is committed to rel ..read more

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sacredtension.substack.com This is a free preview of my premium podcast House of Heretics. To unlock the full episode, become a paid subscriber: https://sacredtension.substack.com/ Timothy and I discuss our kink scores from Aella’s kink survey, and then Timothy asks me probing questions about my Satanism, primarily about how stigmatizing and alienating the label is to non-Satanists. I explain why I stay a Satanist despite the stigma, what I love about The Satanic Temple in particular, and much more ..read more

Subscribe on substack: https://sacredtension.substack.com/ In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by Buddhist and Shakespeare scholar Lauren Shufran to discuss their book The Buddha and the Bard. We discuss the similarities between Buddhist and Shakespearian wisdom, how reading Shakespeare is a mindfulness practice, how to explore beginner’s mind, and much more. Buy Lauren’s book on Amazon Visit Lauren Shufran’s website. Follow the Shakespeare and Mindfulness Instagram Please offer your feedback on this conversation in the comments below. If your comment is excellent I might feature it ..read more

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sacredtension.substack.com In this episode of House of Heretics, Timothy and I discuss the indictment of Donald Trump and the debased information landscape that makes it so hard to have a unanimous social reality. We also recap my recent conversation with my sister Elizabeth Schultz and discuss whether God is necessary to have a moral code ..read more

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by my sister Elizabeth Schultz. Elizabeth is a conservative Christian, classical educator, and homesteader. She asks me probing questions about my agnostic atheist worldview, and we compare and contrast our perspectives. We get into a lively discussion about God, why we do and don’t believe in him, whether it is possible to have a moral foundation without him, how we might find common ground across our worldview divides, and much more. We explore fascinating differences in intuition. I situate my ethics in the fact and mystery of human consciousnes ..read more

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by philosopher David Livingstone Smith to discuss his work on the history of dehumanization. We explore why “monstering” language is dangerous, how dehumanization leads to violence, and how trans people are currently being dehumanized. In the second half of our conversation, we discuss racism and David’s commitment to race abolitionism. We discuss “racecraft”, and why reifying race as a category reinforces racism. David Livingstone Smith is a professor of philosophy, former psychotherapist, and award-winning author of Less Than Human (St. Martin's ..read more

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by The Satanic Temple co-founder Lucien Greaves to discuss the recent controversy in our religious community. He was recently photographed with an alleged sexual harasser and transphobe, and we reflect on the kind of culture we want to see in The Satanic Temple and why Lucien has responded the way he has to this controversy. In early June 2023, Lucien Greaves took a photograph with David Silverman, a controversial figure in the online atheist space. Silverman posted the photo to Twitter and it was met with outrage both within and outside of the TS ..read more

In this episode of Sacred Tension, I'm joined by Black author, minister, and internet personality Ally Henny to discuss her new book I Won't Shut Up. We discuss the nuances of intersectionality, her insights into injustice, and what her childhood taught her about being Black in America. Ally Henny is the author of I Won’t Shut Up: Finding Your Voice When the World Tries to Silence You. She is a writer, speaker, advocate-minister, and vice president of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective–an organization committed to encouraging, engaging, and empowering Black Christians toward ..read more

Timothy and I talk about meditation, why it's a helpful skill, and how it can reveal the fundamental illusoriness of the self.  Listen to the full episode by subscribing to my Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/house-of-of-self-83792787?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link   This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredtension.substack.com/subscribe ..read more