The Phil Vischer Podcast

Phil, Skye and Christian talk about a new book that discusses how to find "the one thing" you were meant to do or "the one person" you were supposed to marry. They also discuss the historical belief some Christians hold that America has a special covenant with God - stemming back to the original colonies from England - and how that affects things today. Dr. John Walton, an Old Testament scholar and professor at Wheaton College, is this week's guest. First, they talk about his book The Bible Story Handbook and then The Lost World of Genesis One, which Phil discussed on a podcast a few months ago. Walton explains his reading of Genesis and how he believes it is about the creation of a "home" rather than a "house". Dr. John Walton is an Old Testament professor at Wheaton College. His area of interest is on studies comparing the culture and literature of the Bible and the ancient Near East. Previously, he served on the faculty of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. He has written 15 books, including The Lost World of Genesis One and commentaries on Obadiah through Jonah.

The show gets off to a Reggae-tastic start with a special appearance. Then the crew discusses a follow up question to the podcast with Rob Vischer - do we live in a country with freedom from religion rather than freedom of religion? This leads into a great conversation about the often antagonistic relationships between atheists and Christians, and why Christians often don't show grace to those who do not share their beliefs. Phil asks Skye about heaven and whether or not we will "go to Heaven" or if Heaven will come to Earth.

Clive from What's in the Bible? makes a guest appearance to sing the podcast theme song. The crew talks about Skye's blog post about a recent study about the addictiveness of worship. They discuss having individual communion with God in addition to corporate worship, and why both are important. Skye and Phil talk to guest Brandon O'Brien about his book Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes, which discusses our contextual biases in reading scripture. They talk  specifically about the parable of the prodigal son and the way different cultures define vices and virtues.   Brandon J. O'Brien is a writer, freelance editor, doctoral candidate in historical theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and instructor of religion at College of DuPage. He is author most recently of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible (InterVarsity Press, November 2012). He is the lucky husband of Amy and the proud father of James David.

This week's podcast opens up with a special guest - Sunday School Lady from What's in the Bible? - talking about the end of the Olympics. Phil, Skye and Christian talk about Bill Gates' initiative to invent the toilet of the future, the search for other intelligent life in space, and about the new billboards from the American Atheists for the upcoming political conventions.

The podcast is live this week from Arnold's Park, Iowa and features Phil's brother, Rob, at the Bible conference their grandfather founded. Rob Vischer is a former attorney who is the associate dean of the University of St. Thomas School of Law and writes about the intersection of law and religion. The crew talks about Chick-Fil-A, Wheaton College's lawsuit against the federal government and anti-Sharia laws that are being debated across the country.Rob Vischer serves as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the University of St. Thomas School of Law.  His scholarship explores the intersection of law, religion, and public policy, with a particular focus on the religious and moral dimensions of professional identity. He received his B.A. degree, summa cum laude, from the University of New Orleans, and his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.

Phil, Skye and Christian talk about Chick-Fil-A and how our society has come to associate brands with personal identity. They talk about the Olympics and then Skye and Phil answer the twitter question, "If you could add any pavilion to the future world at Epcot, what would it's theme be?" Guest Scott Olson, CEO of International Teams, joins Phil and Skye to talk about the changing face of world missions and social justice. Rev. Scott R. Olson is the president and CEO of International Teams, an interdenominational, evangelical Christian ministry that works closely with ITeams partner organizations in Australia, Canada, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom. Globally, ITeams sends over 1000 missionaries from 40 nations to minister in 62 different countries on 170 multi-cultural teams. Scott Olson received his training through a unique combination of coaching and mentoring relationships with nationally recognized leaders, as well as formal degrees from Trinity College and Theological Seminary (B.A.), and Indiana Wesleyan University (M.S.). Scott  is a member of the Christian Leadership Alliance, and is an ordained minister in The Wesleyan Church. He is the father of two grown sons and is married to his high school sweetheart, Jill.

Skye and Christian are back to join Phil for this week's podcast. They talk about Phil's trip to the International Christian Retail Show, the current state of Christian retail and how most Christian companies are subsidiaries of large secular ones. They discuss the tragic shooting in Aurora, Colorado and the NCAA punishments for Penn State. The crew also responds to questions from the podcast on dreams and calling.

Listen to Phil's first solo podcast - a monologue on the origins of the universe. Phil explains his lifelong interest in the interpretation Genesis 1 and creation.

In this week's episode of The Phil Vischer Podcast, Phil responds to criticism about his ukelele. The crew discusses "following your dreams," the difference between our dreams and God's dreams, and how dreams can easily become idols. They ask, "Is your treasure Christ or is your treasure what you hope to do for Christ?" Skye discusses why so many Christians fear insignificance, and how that affects our idolatry of dreams. "As a Christian, the thing that we are to be consumed with - the vision of our life, the dream we have - is supposed to be God himself. He is the treasure that we would give up everything else to possess." (Skye Jethani)

This week's podcast features Phil Vischer and Skye Jethani talking about drive in movies and young America's fading love affair with cars. Phil is perplexed with PETA and they have a rich conversation around science and faith. This one is not to be missed! Listen here or on iTunes.

Join Phil Vischer, Skye Jethani and Christian Taylor for this week's episode of the Phil Vischer Podcast! They talk about Christian tomatoes, TV theme songs and gender roles in movies. You can listen to the podcast here or in iTunes.    

This week's special guest on the Phil Vischer Podcast is Os Guinness! Os Guinness is an author, a social critic, and Senior Fellow of the EastWest Institute in New York. Great-great grandson of Arthur Guinness, the Dublin brewer, he was born in China in World War Two where his parents were medical missionaries. A witness to the climax of the Chinese revolution in 1949, he was expelled with many other foreigners in 1951 and returned to Europe where he was educated in England. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of London and his D.Phil in the social sciences from Oriel College, Oxford. Os has written or edited more than twenty five books, including The American Hour, Time for Truth, The Call, Invitation to the Classics, Long Journey Home, and Unspeakable: Facing up to the challenge of evil. His latest book The Case for Civility – and why our future depends on it was published by Harper One in January 2008. Previously, Os was a freelance reporter with the BBC. Since coming to the United States in 1984, he has been a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies and a Guest Scholar and Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution. From 1986 to 1989, Os served as Executive Director of the Williamsburg Charter Foundation, a bicentennial celebration of the First Amendment. In this position he helped to draft the Williamsburg Charter and co-authored the public school curriculum Living With Our Deepest Differences. From 1991 to 2004 he was a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, and a frequent speaker and seminar leader at political and business conferences in both the United States and Europe. As a European visitor to this country and a great admirer but detached observer of American culture today, he stands in the long tradition of outside voices who have contributed so much to America’s ongoing discussion about the state of the union. He lives with his wife Jenny in McLean, Virginia.   Tune in here or find the podcast on iTunes.

Join The Phil Vischer Podcast crew as they spend the afternoon with NY Times bestselling author Eric Metaxas (Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy). Eric Metaxas is the author of the New York Times #1 bestseller, Bonhoeffer:  Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, which was named  “Book of the Year” by the ECPA.   Bonhoeffer also won the 2011 John C. Pollock Award for Biography awarded by Beeson Divinity School and a 2011 Christopher Award in the Non-fiction category.  Called a “biography of uncommon power,” Bonhoeffer appeared on numerous 2010 “Best of the Year” lists and was featured in the Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, The New Republic, Harper’s, Kirkus (starred review), NPR, FoxNews, C-SPAN’s Book TV, Christianity Today, The Weekly Standard, and First Things. Metaxas was the keynote speaker at the 2012 National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC, an event attended by the President and First Lady, the Vice President, members of Congress, and other U.S. and  world leaders.  Previous keynote speakers have included Mother Theresa, Bono, and Tony Blair. Metaxas is currently the voice of Breakpoint, a radio commentary that is broadcast on 400 stations with an audience of eight million. In 2011, Metaxas was the 17th recipient of the Canterbury Medal awarded by the Becket Fund for Religious Freedom.  Previous medalists include Mitt Romney and Elie Wiesel. You can follow Eric on twitter @ericmetaxas

In Episode 3 of The Phil Vischer Podcast, the crew discusses pop culture and Lady Gaga before interviewing Wake Forest biophysicist Jed Macosko. Listen here or download from iTunes.   Jed Macosko is a leading physicist at Wake Forest University whose dedication to making science more appealing to middle-schoolers and masters’ candidates alike has been celebrated by other scholars and the White House. With research interests spanning biophysics, thermodynamics and drug discovery, Macosko helped develop a video game that teaches middle school students advanced cellular science, and more importantly, how to love it.

Phil Vischer and Skye Jethani talk about The Avengers and movie making, discuss religious protest art and how to relate to atheists, and why it is important to read the Bible as more than just a guide for morality.