The Bad Roman

Craig is joined by the Rev. Dr. Dan Morrison, the Assistant Rector of All Saint Anglican Church in Springfield, Missouri. Dan brings his plethora of experience and knowledge of scripture to the show for a conversation on the original role of the Church and how modern Christianity is living up to the model Jesus set forth over 2,000 years ago.  Why do Christians seek solutions through political systems of power and fail to remember those are the very systems that murdered our savior? How did we get here, and how can we reclaim Churches for Jesus rather than sell out to the state and its illusions for physical and spiritual freedom? Too often we forget it is Jesus who makes us free, but that freedom is not freedom from suffering, but rather a call towards it. It should be difficult to be a citizen of heaven in a fallen world, but that is when we need to turn to God most. In divinity school Dan became an expert on the book of Revelations, he shares his expertise and vision for the future of Churches with Craig, as well as some perspective on how we have gotten so off course as Christians. Listeners will leave this episode with a renewed desire to pursue Christ over politics, to not fall trap to the illusions of earthly power, but to instead do what Jesus would do, turn from the earthly kingdoms, and show the world what it means to know the love of God.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-65   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

Ian Minielly has written several articles for the Bad Roman and most recently is the author of the book The Genetic God. He is passionate about the church worshiping Jesus without the state and encouraging people to seek first His Kingdom.  Who is our king? Many people would respond that we don’t have one in America. But Christians do. We have a global King. Our president is the furthest person on Earth from meeting God’s standards for a ruler. We do not meet those standards. No one does but Jesus. He is our King.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-64   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

Three brilliant minds join us on this episode to talk about what made them decide Christian universalism makes the most sense compared to other theologies. They share their personal stories as well as Scriptures to explain why Hell cannot exist, everyone will be together with Jesus in the end, and what that means for our current life here on Earth. These three are Abby Cleckner, Scott Goldman, and Aree Spivey from Failed Kingdoms – the artist of our intro song. Find him on YouTube and Kindle Vella, among other platforms. God is love. God is just. God is infinitely merciful. God is not willing that any should perish. So, why do most Christians balk at the idea that God doesn’t send people to eternal punishment or obliterate them after death? We’ve been trained in what the correct answers are and never to question what the pastor says. But have you ever even truly thought it through for yourself?   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-63   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

Jordan Blake is the Executive Director and co-founder of The Reckless Saints of Nowhere. He finished his own rehab journey in 2015 and started Reckless Saints with his wife shortly after. They lead a team that destroys barriers for those ready to go through treatment for substance addiction. They go against the status quo to show the love of Jesus to those most of the world finds repugnant. And it works. No matter who you are, you know someone struggling with addiction — even if you don’t know it. This touches everyone. If it’s not you, it’s your sibling, cousin, teacher, friend, coworker… it's a deadly problem. It needs to be talked about. Shame only keeps people from getting the help they need. Those dealing with it need and deserve our love. If you or someone you know is ready to accept help, go to recklesssaintsofnowhere.com or call (918) 864-2719 to start the process.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-62   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

Jonathan Cannone is a Jesus-follower, writer, homesteader, teacher, and Kingdom worker. He wrote an article for The Bad Roman blog, The Dream of the City to Come: Do You Not Trust God?, about the Kingdom coming, both now and in the unknown future.  As Christians, we have hope. We are called to live and act peacefully, and doing this in all of our pursuits may help bring about the Kingdom to our own little corner of the world. Those in power now will not win in the end. God wins eternity. We have to remember this and take a long view of time, a God-view of time. We know Who wins and we are on His side, all that is required of us is to continuously choose to remain on that side and not fall into the ways of this world and the false promises of man-made power and state-sanctioned violence.  We know the rules of our side, Jesus showed us and told us, and it is our job, as Christians to continuously submit to our faith in his message, even when we must sometimes must obey unjust powers in pursuit of Christ. Take this episode as a message of encouragement: politicians may seem powerful, but Jesus is the true King. As a Christain you are an ambassador for Heaven, don’t forget to act like it!    For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-61   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com  

In this episode, Craig and his better podcast half, Abby Cleckner, are joined by Peter Rollo, founder of the website and blog project Rival Nations. Pete shares the history of Rival Nations, why he started it, why he was anonymous for so long, and where the project is headed.  If you’ve ever questioned if the world of politics, on any side, be it liberal, conservative, anarchist, or libertarian always seems prone to the ways of this world, to violence. This episode looks at why that is, and why we, as Christians are called to a different kingdom, and we must continue to abide by the ways of that Kingdom, the one Jesus showed us, rather than pursue earthly powers. Too often we find Christians falling into the fallacy that, if we just get more Christians elected into office things will change, and God’s will can be implemented, with the right leaders, but this is the illusion we see Jesus reject time and time again in the Bible. How do we get to this conclusion? By looking at what Jesus has to teach us. In the second half of the episode, Pete breaks down his article, Christians Can’t Be in Government, to show us exactly who is at the forefront of political power (hint: it is not God!). We see Israel fall when it turns to earthly Kings, and we see Jesus reject the role of Messiah, in an effort to show us God’s way, not Man’s. Rival Nations is a digital archive of Pete’s theological journey, and it all started with seeing Jesus as a political force, not in his pursuit of political power, but, rather, in his rejection of it. Let us know what you think and the comments, or by sharing your thoughts on social media!   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-60   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

In this episode, Craig is joined by (sometimes) co-host Abby Cleckner for a conversation with fellow podcasters, Nathan Chavoya and his co-host Tony, to talk about the power of memes, their podcast Reality Czars, and, of course, Jesus. We covered a wide variety of topics in this episode, from why we use memes to Amish communities and the pros and cons of Trump supporters. As always, it comes back to the question of: What Would Jesus Do? Whether we’re considering people who don’t want to listen, Canadian truckers, Ukraine and Russia, the Mexican border, war and Christianity, the indoctrination of the church, or conservative Amish communities – in everything, we must follow the example of Jesus. Nathan is the social media manager for the Bad Roman project. He makes a lot of the memes you see on our page. You can find Nate and Tony's show and where to connect with them via their link tree (content warning for all of their media: profanity, crude humor, rude comments) Episode Starting Points: 5:50 Why memes work 9:01 People who love to smell their own farts 12:45 Canadian truckers 24:47 The reality of COVID 29:18 Mandates 32:26 Schooling 33:52 Ukraine and Russia 39:26 Border crossers 45:00 Evangelicals love war and destruction 51:51 Amish 55:54 Reality Czars podcast   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-59   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

Keith Giles was once a pastor, but then he met Jesus. Now, he’s a theologian spreading the Gospel of love through several podcasts, including Heretic Happy Hour, Second Cup with Keith, and Threads, as well as numerous blog posts, and many books. In this episode of the Bad Roman podcast, Craig is once again joined by our beloved contributor, and Keith Giles fan, Abby Cleckner for a deep dive into the question that titles one of his articles, “What if Jesus isn’t Coming Back”? The Church’s Christianity isn’t very Christ-like. The way Christians behave is often influenced by their beliefs about the end of time. Keith joins us to talk through a blog post he wrote about the second coming of Christ, which led him to later pen the book called Jesus Unexpected. Jesus never intended for us to live in fear or anxiety, isn’t it time we start acting like Christians again, let’s turn the world on its head and be a force of love, peace, and joy once more.   Starting Points: 1:55 Deconstruction 6:10 Research Revelations 9:38 Craig waiting for Jesus 11:15 The trauma of Left Behind 15:39 We can anticipate Christ’s return 18:17 Pharisitical mindset 21:39 Is it really about the end of the world? 31:10 Coasting 33:42 John 14 34:37 New Covenant 38:06 Movie metaphor 43:07 Jesus Unarmed 50:17 Flat Bible Theory 55:27 Our foundation 57:31 Civil resistance 1:08:56 Introducing people to Jesus 1:18:15 Don’t send hate mail - WE LOVE THE BIBLE!! For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-58   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com  

In this episode of The Bad Roman, we look at foster care and adoption. This topic comes by request from listener Darren Freidinger, who is a foster parent himself. Since Darren asked us to do an episode on this often discussed topic, we invited him to be the guest! Beyond being a father, Darren is passionate about the church stepping in and fulfilling its role to care for orphans. He shares his experience with foster to adopt, the foster care system, and alternatives to the state-run system. Joining Craig and Darren in this episode is a long-time friend of the show, and Bad Roman contributor, Ian Minielly. Outside of writing articles on The Bad Roman Blog, Ian is also a foster parent and has experienced the great loss of having his first foster daughter taken from him and his wife. You can read his story in his short book, Emily's Tears, and hear a synopsis on the show. Darren and Ian share their mutual and different experiences and struggles with the system, and what they see as ways to fix it and best work with it — and Craig compares his cats to children (as normal). This episode touches on every emotion and gives a glimpse into the system that holds the fate of thousands of children who become wards of the state, through no fault of their own. Christians are called to care for orphans and widows – those who are helpless. We can do that even without fostering any children ourselves. More than anything, these kids need something positive in their lives. They need support. And it’s our job to provide for them. The question is, how?   Starting Points: 5:15 Why Darren’s a foster parent 9:52 Is there a better way to do this without the state? 10:38 Ian’s Story 17:09 Does the state want kids to get adopted? 20:36 Emotions and Turmoil 23:23 How can we fix this? It is not working 29:28 The Church is not being the Church 30:52 What it takes to become a foster parent [in Illinois] 40:00 Ian’s story continued 49:12 Older kids 51:54 Doing it just for the paycheck 57:36 Final thoughts   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-57   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com  

Terrell Carter is a pastor and the president of a community development organization. At 16, he felt the call to ministry to do what he can to improve people’s lives and help different groups understand each other. At 23, he thought he could do that as a police officer, and they offered him benefits that would support his growing family. After 5 years, he had to quit because he wouldn’t stand for the corruption in the force and testified against his partner. He’s written several books and runs Rise, a nonprofit organization working to connect communities with local institutions to empower the revitalization of neighborhoods in Greater St. Louis, while pastoring a church and raising his children.  Terrell has come on the podcast to shed light on his unique perspectives and experiences. He shares with us what it was like growing up black in a predominantly white community, how the police force didn’t fit with his life of Kingdom mission, and what it looks like to actually carry out the call of God to care for other people. One of his life goals is to bring different groups of people together through an understanding of each other, and today he is doing that by sharing his own story with us, who mostly come from a different background than his. Starting points: 5:23 Terrell’s story 18:39 Why Terrell needed to come on the show 23:12 Terrell’s time on the force 29:48 Craig’s background 32:02 How we got here 38:18 Trying to reconcile policing as a Christian (not to mention a pastor) 41:43 Terrell’s life now 44:04 Rise   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-56   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com