

The Plunge with Derek Holser
derekholser
The Plunge is a serial podcast, hosted by Derek Holser, and anchored by conversations about Theology, Philosophy, and Culture.
The Plunge is a forum for producing extended conversations with a variety of guests that invite the listener to explore stories and their creators, thinkers and their ideas, artists and athletes, and their unique aesthetics. The Plunge endeavors to dive into deep waters safely and freely, by welcoming thinkers from various areas of human expression. Each topic will be presented with a variety of guest conversationalists, over a period of 8-12 weeks and each series is intended to be accessible and enjoyable for the curious and the studious.
Welcome to the Plunge: Let’s Dive In!
The Plunge is a forum for producing extended conversations with a variety of guests that invite the listener to explore stories and their creators, thinkers and their ideas, artists and athletes, and their unique aesthetics. The Plunge endeavors to dive into deep waters safely and freely, by welcoming thinkers from various areas of human expression. Each topic will be presented with a variety of guest conversationalists, over a period of 8-12 weeks and each series is intended to be accessible and enjoyable for the curious and the studious.
Welcome to the Plunge: Let’s Dive In!
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 26, 2025 • 1h 11min
Tolkien's Greatest Characters: Bilbo Baggins | Thalia Toha
Welcome to Episode Three of Tolkien's Greatest Characters.
This week's episode is a lively conversation about Bilbo Baggins, the meaning and nature of place, and the opportunity for everyone to determine where their story ends. We touch on the Shire, the Ring, and Bilbo's journey There and Back Again!
Today's guest is Thalia Toha. Thalia is an architectural historian, geographer, and preservationist. She believes that everyone should be able to choose how their story ends, regardless of where they're placed in life. Her interest in studying hidden ways in which places impact people's story arcs led her from Princeton University to restoring 15,000 square foot town halls, to advising the development of food halls, to serving as a geography exhibit designer in Lafayette Museum.
Thalia's insights have been featured on Architectural Digest, SELF magazine, and Homes & Gardens. When she's not busy with her interdisciplinary work, you can find her writing about the philosophy of places on:
https://storyarks.substack.com/about
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Sep 19, 2025 • 1h 9min
Tolkien's Greatest Characters: Frodo Baggins | Dr. Andrew Snyder
Welcome to Episode Two of Tolkien's Greatest Characters. This week's episode is an inspiring discussion of Frodo Baggins, the humble hobbit thrust into a quest for the ages.
Joining me is Dr. Andrew Snyder, a professor of philosophy and theology, author of the forthcoming book Divine Honour in the Lord of the Rings, host of the Mythic Mind Podcast, and leader of the Mythic Mind Fellowship, a Christian humanitites-based community.
Andrew enjoys discussing the wisdom found in stories from ancient myths to contemporary pop culture. He resides in Williamsburg, VA, with his wife and three children.
https://www.youtube.com/@andrewnsnyder
https://mythicmind.substack.com
📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Sep 12, 2025 • 1h 13min
Tolkien's Greatest Characters: The Narrator | Dr. Sørina Higgins
Welcome to Episode One of our mega-series entitled Tolkien's Greatest Characters. Each week for the next sixteen weeks, we will host a conversation exploring the virtues, flaws, symbolism, and story development advanced by a unique character from the J.R.R. Tolkien Universe.
This week's episode is a lively conversation about The Narrator. Is the voice of the storyteller of The Lord of the Rings the voice of Tolkien? How does the Narrator advance the story, reveal aspects of Tolkien's worldview, and more.
Dr. Sørina Higgins is an editor, author, English teacher, and writing consultant. Her scholarly interests inclue British & Irish modernism and magic, religion & literature, the Inklings, and Arthuriana. Dr. Higgins is currently writing a series of lectures on the Inklings for one of The Great Courses from The Teaching Company.
Sørina has received a Clyde S. Kilby Research Grant from the Marion E. Wade Center for her forthcoming book The Oddest Inkling: An Introduction to Charles Williams, due out in 2026 from Apocryphile Press. She previously wrte and recorded C.S. Lewis: Writer, Scholar, Seeker, an Audible Original from The Teaching Company, and edited an academic essay collection entitled The Inklings and King Arthur. She is also the author of the blog The Oddest Inkling, devoted to the study of Charles Williams' works.
https://theoddestinkling.wordpress.com
https://wyrdhoard.com
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Sep 5, 2025 • 1h 24min
A Child of God Perhaps: Cormac McCarthy | Joel J. Miller
"He moves in the dry chaff among the dust and slats of sunlight with a constrained truculence. Saxon and Celtic bloods. A child of God much like yourself perhaps."
Today's episode is a singular one, for a singular writer. This is a conversation about Cormac McCarthy, and his novel Child of God. This novel explores the uttermost depravity of humanity, and wrestles with the idea that "perhaps" Lester Ballard is a child of God like me...
Joining me for this conversation is the incomparable Joel J. Miller, of Miller's Book Review. http://millersbookreview.com/
Joel J. Miller is a former publishing executive with a twenty-year career in writing and editorial. Today he serves as chief content officer of Full Focus https://fullfocus.co/
and he publishes Miller's Book Review, a popular Substack celebrating literary culture.
He is the author of several books, including The Idea Machine: How Books Built Our World and Shape Our Future (forthcoming, November 2025). His writing has appeared in Reason, the Washington Post, American Spectator, and National Review. He lives outside Nashville, Tennessee, with his wife, kids, dogs, and more books than space.
Pre-Order Joel's latest book here:
https://tinyurl.com/yushvpfk
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Aug 29, 2025 • 33min
A Pint with Derek | Hosted by David Bates
Today's episode flips the script. Turns the tables. I recently sat down with David Bates, host of Pints with Jack, a popular YouTube channel featuring C.S. Lewis and all things Inklings.
We chatted about why I started the Plunge and how I came to explore Owen Barfield.
I hope you'll enjoy this guest episode, and subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/@PintsWithJack
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Aug 22, 2025 • 1h 7min
Broken & Beloved: The Human Series | Bethany Dearborn Hiser
Welcome to Episode Seven in The Human Series: Season One. Today's guest is Bethany Dearborn Hiser.
Bethany currently works as the Director of Soul Care for Northwest Family Life, a network of therapists trained to work with survivors of domestic violence and sexual trauma. As a bilingual social worker, chaplain, and pastoral advocate, Bethany has worked in a variety of ministry and social service settings with people affected by addiction, sexual exploitation, incarceration, and immigration.
After experiencing her own burnout, she has become passionate about being a sort of midwife alongside other helping professionals, as they navigate secondary trauma, move toward groundedness, and uncover their belovedness. She is a Spiritual Director and the author of From Burned Out to Beloved: Soul Care for Wounded Healers.
https://www.amazon.com/Burned-Out-Beloved-Wounded-Healers/dp/0830847952
Bethany, her husband Kenny and their two young daughters, are just moving back to the Skagit Valley in NW Washington, after a few years in San Diego.
Bethany writes here: https://bethanydearbornhiser.substack.com
She offers online Soul Care Groups and Spiritual Direction for helping professionals. More info here:
https://www.bethanydearbornhiser.com
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Connect with Derek Holser
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y
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Aug 15, 2025 • 1h 17min
World Without End: The Human Series | Justin Bryeans
Welcome to Episode Six of The Human Series. Today's conversation features Justin Bryeans, a dear friend and a kindred spirit.
Justin Bryeans is a southern boy at home in the great Pacific Northwest. He spends his days as a pastor and spiritual director, and is graced by the long haul companionship of his wife Hannah (married 29 years) and the joy of bearing witness to his four children as they continue to become themselves - Ethan, Noah, Tait, and Lucy.
Among other things, Justin and I discuss the endlessness of Jesus, the nature of hospitality, and the virtue of learning to be still.
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Aug 8, 2025 • 53min
The Soul of Psychology, 2: The Human Series | Dr. Don Lichi
Welcome to Episode Five of The Human Series. I continue my conversation with Dr. Donald A. Lichi entitled: "The Soul of Psychology, 2."
Dr. Don is a licensed psychologist in Ohio and is Vice President Emeritus of Emerge Counseling Ministries where he served for over 30 years. Dr. Don is a frequent speaker at both sacred and secular conferences and seminars across the country.
He is a seasoned clinician with years of rich experience in counseling and consulting pastors and leaders. He directs the ministers' enrichment team at Emerge, which is a group of pastor-focused clinicians developing soul care treatments for pastors and their families. He is also the co-author of Broken Windows of the Soul:
https://tinyurl.com/53wvjnpt
Dr. Don's special focus is faith-based counseling, mental health, life skills, overcoming porn addiction, and marriage enrichment.
https://emerge.org/
Dr. Don has taught at universities and seminaries for a number of years and he was on the teaching faculty of Heart-to-Heart Communications and served 12 years on the pastoral ministry team of the Akron Chinese Christian Church.
His ministry has taken him to Australia, Singapore, India, Canada, Brazil, Thailand, Ecuador...quite literally all over the world.
Not only that, but he is a veteran of the Air Force where he served from 1970-77. Dr. Don is married to Marcy, his wife of 50 years. They have three adult children and eight grandchildren.
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Aug 1, 2025 • 1h 3min
The Soul of Psychology, 1: The Human Series | Dr. Don Lichi
Welcome to Episode Four of The Human Series. I'm joined by Dr. Donald A. Lichi for "The Soul of Psychology, 1."
Dr. Don is a licensed psychologist in Ohio and is Vice President Emeritus of Emerge Counseling Ministries where he served for over 30 years. Dr. Don is a frequent speaker at both sacred and secular conferences and seminars across the country.
He is a seasoned clinician with years of rich experience in counseling and consulting pastors and leaders. He directs the ministers' enrichment team at Emerge, which is a group of pastor-focused clinicians developing soul care treatments for pastors and their families. He is also the co-author of Broken Windows of the Soul:
https://tinyurl.com/53wvjnpt
Dr. Don's special focus is faith-based counseling, mental health, life skills, overcoming porn addiction, and marriage enrichment.
https://emerge.org/
Dr. Don has taught at universities and seminaries for a number of years and he was on the teaching faculty of Heart-to-Heart Communications and served 12 years on the pastoral ministry team of the Akron Chinese Christian Church.
His ministry has taken him to Australia, Singapore, India, Canada, Brazil, Thailand, Ecuador...quite literally all over the world.
Not only that, but he is a veteran of the Air Force where he served from 1970-77. Dr. Don is married to Marcy, his wife of 50 years. They have three adult children and eight grandchildren.
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📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y

Jul 25, 2025 • 1h 11min
Radical Acceptance: The Human Series | Dr. Heather Huckett
Welcome to Episode Three of The Human Series: Radical Acceptance.
Today's guest is Dr. Heather Huckett, a psychotherapist with a PhD in Clinical Sexology, a Licensed Couple and Family Therapist, and an AASECT-certified Sex Therapist.
Dr. Huckett specializes in addressing sexual health within the context of identity, relationships, and individual well-being. As co-owner of Kaiun Wellness on Bainbridge Island, she provides integrated care that supports mental, emotional, and sexual wellness. Dr. Huckett's approach centers on whole-person wellness, emphasizing the complexity and richness of the human experience in both personal and relational contexts.
https://www.heatherhuckett.com/
📲 Connect with Derek Holser:
🐦 Twitter / X: https://X.com/derekholser
📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@derekholser
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplungewithderekholser/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/derekholser
📚 New Book! Lightgliders ➡ Grab it on Amazon: https://a.co/d/bDvRc0Y