Virtue in the Wasteland Podcast

Jenn Koiter shares her poetry with us as we discuss her nonprofit work in India, the value of poetry, the problems of poverty tourism and cultural appropriation, suffering, sex trafficking in Asia, Zen, and why one might stick with their Western spiritual heritage through it all.  We did not censor this episode, though even grandma should find it tame overall.  This is episode 106.  

 

virtueinthewasteland.com

 

Direct download: Bindis_at_Coachella.mp3
Category:Bonus B-Side -- posted at: 5:00pm PDT

Lending with interest in European history, Adam Smith, social ethics, borrowing, debt, greed, and cash societies.  The song we play at the break is "Gimme Some Money" by the spoof band Spinal Tap.

Direct download: Usury_and_Debt.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00pm PDT

Shūsaku Endō, his Tanizaki Prize winning novel Silence, when mentors disappoint you, Jesuits, the Catholic mission to Japan in the early modern era, Francis Xavier, Martin Scorsesse, Pure Land Buddhism, Jodo Shu, Jodo Shinshu, faith, doubt, martyrdom, and the silence of God in the midst of suffering and abandonment.  We won't give any spoilers till after the music break.  Check out other wasteland companions if you dig this sort of thing.

Direct download: Silence.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:04pm PDT

What is anti-wisdom?  What is it's purpose?  How does it inform our spirituality, emotions, ethics, and philosophy?  Job and Ecclesiastes are examples in the Hebrew Bible.  They deal with themes that assist us during times when conventional wisdom can't help us.  

Direct download: Antiwisdom.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00pm PDT

We discuss the recent film by James Franco and Seth Rogan, its cultural effects, and its international implications.  We discuss the difficulty of liking things on facebook that have ideological baggage.  We share our new year's resolutions for each other.

Episode 102

Direct download: The_Interview.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00pm PDT

Shelley, Thoreau, Ferguson, the police, the law, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ideology, Žižek, and our post-Christmas depression.

 

Direct download: Disobedience.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00am PDT

For our hundredth episode, we discuss the sociology and cultural implications of Christmas traditions in the west.  Joining us are Faithful Mask Fellows, Dr. Koenig (a sociologist) and Dr. Armstrong (a classics scholar and occasional pulpit jockey).  This one gets a bit giddy and a tad out of hand, since we recorded at the end of a semester and were celebrating the fact that we hit 100.  

Direct download: The_Sociology_of_Kristmas.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00am PDT

This isn't your normal self-help conversation.  Dr. Lu is brutally honest.  He is all about research and not so much of the fluff.  But we can learn some things about parenting, continuous improvement, setting realistic and motivating goals, and letting go of our egos.

Direct download: ViW75_Optimize_Yourself.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00am PDT

We run down the top 10 christmas films, what they say about our culture, and the message they have for us about life together, overcoming the grinches in our world and virtue.

We definitely will hit on It's A Wonderful Life and Christmas Vacation.  Will your favorite make the list?  Will Charlie Brown?

Direct download: ViW73_Christmas_Movies.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00am PDT

The pagan roots of Christmas and other reflections on the greatest holiday around.

Direct download: ViW72_A_Very_Pagan_Christmas.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:00am PDT