Homebrewed Culture Cast

How did someone pull off an $81 million international bank heist? Better yet, how did they do it without anyone hearing about it? Mike Collins, our resident tech expert, explains. A criminal network who had planned on stealing $1 billion, got away with one of the biggest single hauls in history, leaving no trace of the...

In this special hour-long interview, I talk with Matthew Vines, author of “God and the Gay Christian,” and Rev. Adam Phillips, pastor of Christ Church, Portland about the tragedy in Orlando. We also discuss both what its like for a gay man like Vines, who is part of a conservative Evangelical community, to come out, and what the effects of being an Evangelical LGBTQ advocate have been for Adam. This powerful discussion goes well beyond the myth of the biblical case against being gay, and even beyond how we, as people of faith, begin to address hate crimes like the one at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida. In particular, Matthew reveals both his need to grieve such loss before considering next steps, and what it means to make up every day as a man in a culture that generally lacks tolerance for who he is. There’s little more I can add to this episode that isn’t said better in the show itself. It’s not the easiest listen, but for anyone interested in knowing your fellow human beings better and in working toward more holy, inspired reconciliation, this is a must.

In this special hour-long interview, I talk with Matthew Vines, author of “God and the Gay Christian,” and Rev. Adam Phillips, pastor of Christ Church, Portland about the tragedy in Orlando. We also discuss both what its like for a gay man like Vines, who is part of a conservative Evangelical community, to come out,...

Turns out Slim has a sweaty face. But we love him anyway. This leads us to a whole conversation about body images, the privilege of male grossness and if women should embrace their armpit hair. Well, technically I guess that’s impossible but you know… As we all know, some really tough stuff has gone down lately; this timely sermon by Amy is our interview, talking about how we hold our grief and still rise through it and keep moving ahead. If a kid falls in a gorilla habitat and everyone plays the blame game, who pays for the tragedy? Well of course, we kill the innocent animal, but aside from that, someone has to pay! We dig into parent shaming, including some of our own humiliating parenting moments. And man, do we have a lot of choose from. Now that it’s settled who the major political teams have picked for the big showdown, what does it mean to have a woman making history, whether she wins or loses? And why do so many people hate her? There are reasons, we think, but not necessarily the obvious ones we tend to hear all the time. Finally, after some too-hip-for-school recommendations, Amy fills us in on why we Pacific Northwesterners will also soon be liquified in her Fear of the Week. So yeah, it’s been fun folks, but I guess we’ll be zombie lava monsters soon. We need your help! Become a CultureCaster by keeping the show going and dig on some sweet swag.  Join us Saturday evening at 5:30 in North Carolina at Wild Goose Festival for a live CultureCast with special Guests Trey Pearson and Tripp Fuller. And yeah, ignore what Christian says in the episode about the show being on Friday night. That’s when he’s cohosting the Homebrewed Christianity live show with Tripp. Christian is altered most of the time but we like him anyway. 

Turns out Slim has a sweaty face. But we love him anyway. This leads us to a whole conversation about body images, the privilege of male grossness and if women should embrace their armpit hair. Well, technically I guess that’s impossible but you know… As we all know, some really tough stuff has gone down...

Prince was shrouded so much in mystery and mystique that it’s hard to know what he was really like. So we sat down with his friend and former employee, Sam Jennings, to find out. In addition to being his graphic artist and webmaster for upwards of a decade, Sam and his family, hung out at the rock god’s expansive estate, sharing holiday meals while his daughter played dress-up with the man himself. We talked with him about everything from Prince’s inspiration to his religious evolution and largely-unknown drug addiction. Known for being a paradigm-smashing pop culture icon, he also help forge a frontier for artists to connect more directly with the public online. Sam talks about how he came to know, and then work for, one of his long-time idols, along with his tragic and untimely death. Check out our chat with Sam, then visit his body of work and learn more about him HERE. And of course we can’t go Trump-less for long; we break down the Trump-vs-Elizabeth Warren Twitter throw-down, along with a look into what happened when George Zimmerman decided it was a good idea to try and auction off the gun he used to kill Trayvon Martin. Nothin but class, baby. If that ain’t enough – and damn, you’re demanding if it ain’t – we serve up a fresh fear of the week and your latest recommendations for what to watch, listen to and read. Oughta keep you busy at least until the next show. Oh, and be sure to come hang with us at Wild Goose Festival July 7-10 in North Carolina, where we’ll be hosting a LIVE SHOW Thursday night (July 7th from 8-9:30 PM), followed by Christian cohosting the Homebrewed Christianity show with Tripp Fuller the next evening on the Justice Stage. If you haven’t gotten your tickets yet, Use offer code, “GooseCast2016” when you buy their tickets online and you’ll get 25% off. Gonna be some goodness all up in that biz-nass. OK, yeah, so that just didn’t work. You’ll get over it.

Prince was shrouded so much in mystery and mystique that it’s hard to know what he was really like. So we sat down with his friend and former employee, Sam Jennings, to find out. In addition to being his graphic artist and webmaster for upwards of a decade, Sam and his family, hung out at...

In this Homebrewed CultureCast Minisode, I interview Rodrigo Garcia about his latest film, “Last Days in the Desert.” Starring Ewan MacGregor as both Jesus and “the Adversary” that Jesus encounters while on a desert trek, and is shot by Emmanuel Lubezki. Lubeski, known most recently for filming “Birdman” and “The Revenant,” is the first cinematographer ever in history to win three consecutive Academy Awards for their work. His masterful hand with the camera shines through, telling much of the story that is left to the viewer’s imagination in this sparsely written, postmodern “theopoetic” fictional account of what might have happened to jesus during his much-storied forty days preceding his ministry. Garcia trusts his audience as vulnerably as he does these before and behind the camera in what shatters the notion of any expectation of a “Christian film.” His emphasis on Jesus’ humanity evokes themes of parental strife (human and divine), mortality and what it means to find one’s lifelong call. To call it a faith-based movie before calling it a film about fundamental human experience and nature would be a mistake, and Garcia dances a fine line, inviting audiences of any (or no) faith into a story that metaphorically delves into our own disconnectedness from others at times, and even from our own selves. “Last Days in the Desert” releases to select cities Friday, May 13th to test the public waters be sure to support this provocative, elegant work of storytelling, with the hope that it – as well as others – will help shift and reshape the conversations in our larger culture about what it means to be people searching for connection and deeper meaning.

In this Homebrewed CultureCast Minisode, I interview Rodrigo Garcia about his latest film, “Last Days in the Desert.” Starring Ewan MacGregor as both Jesus and “the Adversary” that Jesus encounters while on a desert trek, and is shot by Emmanuel Lubezki. Lubeski, known most recently for filming “Birdman” and “The Revenant,” is the first cinematographer...

I got to chat with the producer of National Geographic Channel’s “Story of God with Morgan Freeman,” James Younger about his new interfaith series about religion, faith and who/what we understand God to be. Having worked on various science TV series and worked with such “Hard News” outlets as the Associated Press, “Story of God with Morgan Freeman” seemed like a bit of a philosophical departure; he explains why it’s not really, though. We also process the then-hours-old news that rock legend Prince has died. What is his legacy, what are our memories, and why was he so damned magnetic as a media giant? Then we dive into the question we’re sure you’ve lost sleep over: do chimps practice religious ritual? No joke, this is based on a recently published findings that some science nerd speculate connotes a sense of ritual in the chimp world. Next thing you know they’ll break into denominations and come up with so mind of chimp hell, probably where theres’ an infinite pile of bananas to peel with nothing in the middle. That would suck, wouldn’t it. Finally, are churches ready for the wave of deaths coming with the aging boomer population? Is Amy preggers (argh!)? And are there billion-dollar industries based on age- and beauty-shaming women (spoiler alert: yes)?  

I got to chat with the producer of National Geographic Channel’s “Story of God with Morgan Freeman,” James Younger about his new interfaith series about religion, faith and who/what we understand God to be. Having worked on various science TV series and worked with such “Hard News” outlets as the Associated Press, “Story of God...

Tripp Fuller, the “Podfather” of the Homebrewed podcast network, is a busy little bee. When he’s not curating a ten-book series or hosting one of five or so regular podcasts, he works with this kind of revolutionary new theological education program out on Redondo Beach called The Hatchery? What is this communal think-tank-cum-seminary a few  feet from the sand, you ask? Listen to this episode of the CultureCast and all will be revealed. Tripp also chats up his new show, “The Story of God-cast,” a companion series to the miniseries, “The Story of God with Morgan Freeman,” as well as the first of his ten Homebrewed Christianity books, “Homebrewed Christianity Guide to Jesus: Lord, Liar, Lunatic…or Awesome?” Yeah, he’s got some things a-happenin’. In the rest of the show we talk about the all-too-real gender pay gap, as punctuated by a recent dustup in the professional soccer world. Next we pose the question of whether the U.S. government is straight-up inept if they have to outsource to a private company just to break into a single iPhone. I mean…one phone? Then we bust out some other tasty nuggets of goodness, bestow upon you a heaping’ helpin’ of recommendations and your coveted Fear of the Week. Listen. Learn. Love. And some other Ls I can’t think of at the moment. Listen to the Episode HERE Subscribe on iTunes HERE  

Tripp Fuller, the “Podfather” of the Homebrewed podcast network, is a busy little bee. When he’s not curating a ten-book series or hosting one of five or so regular podcasts, he works with this kind of revolutionary new theological education program out on Redondo Beach called The Hatchery? What is this communal think-tank-cum-seminary a few...

(First version of this episode was corrupt. Please download and listen to this one instead.) WARNING: The second half of this show, though sophomoric and childish, has quite a bit of potentially kind-unfriendly language. When a child is captivated by TV evangelists but you’re not exactly a religious family, what do you do? In Elizabeth Mount’s case, you go to a local Unitarian-Universalist church and explore there as a family, rather than let the pomade-slicked media hucksters do the teaching. Elizabeth, now a U-U minister in formation, is known for dedication to environmental activism and protection of indigenous environments. In particular in this episode, Slim talks to Elizabeth about being a part of the much-covered protest from a Portland bridge last year to prevent a Shell Oil tanker from passing through toward the ocean. We learn what it’s like to spend 40 consecutive hours hanging from a bridge, some 100-plus feet in the air. As Elizabeth both says and lives, faith is about what you do, not what you say. We chat about how to respond in constructive ways to the recent spate of terror attacks without “becoming the theme we hate,” including some kid-inspired wisdom. And then we talk about poop. A lot. You’ve been warned. Also, because we laugh our asses off through it all – because poop is funny – the sounds gets a little sketchy. As long as you laugh along with us you won’t really notice.

(First version of this episode was corrupt. Please download and listen to this one instead.) WARNING: The second half of this show, though sophomoric and childish, has quite a bit of potentially kind-unfriendly language. When a child is captivated by TV evangelists but you’re not exactly a religious family, what do you do? In Elizabeth...