#227: Ch. 8, Dawn of Flame by Stanley G. Weinbaum

Return with me once again to those thrilling days of yesteryear, when men were men and they wrote men’s romance novels! Yes, back again to Dawn of Flame, as poor ol’ Hull Tarvish is caught in the toils of that beautiful and terrible woman warrior of the post-pandemic world, Black Margot of N’Orleans. Will the [...]

Read Full Post »

Blog Announcement

I'm really not going to an all-Fathers, all-the-time format. Really. I promise we're getting back to the normal mostly-fiction format. Soon.

Read Full Post »

#226: Ch. 13, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Irenaeus now brings up Marcus, a Gnostic teacher whose reported personal worship and evangelical practices lead one to believe he really wasn't all that opposed to flesh. Or money. Or using prestidigitation and hypnosis to bedazzle his marks. (His more theoretical ideas come next chapter.)
Chapter 13: Marcus' Practices.
12:30.
UPDATE: Bad link fixed.

Read Full Post »

#225: Chs. 11-12, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Now we go from discussing a general summary of Gnosticism to a quick summary of individual Gnostic teachers' ideas. (Isn't Colorbasus a great name, btw? Sounds like a brand of paint.) This is pretty much the pattern of the book — from general to ever more specific issues, each then opposed with Christian arguments.
Chapters 11-12: [...]

Read Full Post »

#224: Chs. 09-10, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Against Heresies continues with arguments against these basic Gnostic ideas, including the unity of the Church.
Chs. 9-10: Refutation; Unity of the Church
19:17

Read Full Post »

#223: Chs. 7-8, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

St. Irenaeus explains how Gnostics thought the world would end, and what their own fate would be. He also explains their favorite quoting techniques, as Against Heresies continues.
Chs. 7-8: The Gnostic Apocalypse; Their Quoting Techniques
25:25

Read Full Post »

#222: Chs. 4-6, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Against Heresies continues, as St. Irenaeus explains how it is that Gnostics thought that the Creation of the world was generally a mistake and a bad thing.
Chs. 4-6: Achamoth, the Demiurge, and the Threefold Man
28:51

Read Full Post »

#221: Chs. 0-3, Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Against Heresies is in some ways a really great book. St. Irenaeus went out there and not only studied Gnostic writings, but talked to Gnostic teachers. Then he tried his hand at refuting their arguments, and put all the information out there for Christians to use.
Unfortunately, Gnosticism is more interesting as a phenomenon than as [...]

Read Full Post »

#220: The Martyrdom of St. Perpetua and St. Felicitas

Very few writings by women have survived from classical Greece and Rome. This audiobook is made from one of them.
Meet Vibia Perpetua, a twenty-two year old from North Africa. She has a baby at her breast, a father who loves and disagrees with her, and a mind and soul set on a path that the [...]

Read Full Post »

#219: The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp

A contemporary early Christian text describing the martyrdom of St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna (now Izmir, Turkey). 
The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp
27:26 

Read Full Post »

#218: Ch. 56, Mr. Sponge’s Sporting Tour by R.S. Surtees

This classic of English humor continues, with a chapter that's unusually full of acute observation and subtle social commentary. We visit a noble house that isn't expecting visitors.  Also, foxes have earths, and the birds of the air feather their nests, but it looks like poor Mr. Sponge will soon have nowhere to lay his [...]

Read Full Post »

#217: Letter to the Philippians, by St. Polycarp

St. Polycarp's only surviving letter is on the topic of righteousness.
St. Polycarp's Letter to the Philippians
16:27 

Read Full Post »

#216: Letter to St. Polycarp, by St. Ignatius of Antioch

I really am trying to get back on schedule with the podcast. But I'm afraid things are going to continue being a bit slapdash until I do. Anyway, at least I managed to give you something to listen to today!
From the surviving letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch:
St. Ignatius' Letter to St. Polycarp
9:16.

Read Full Post »

#215: Letter to the Smyrnaeans, by St. Ignatius of Antioch

From the surviving letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch:
St. Ignatius' Letter to the Smyrnaeans
13:11. 

Read Full Post »

#214: Letter to the Philadelphians, by St. Ignatius of Antioch

From the surviving letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch.
St. Ignatius' Letter to the Philadelphians
11:31 

Read Full Post »