Protect Your Noggin

Who owns you? Does your father? Your spouse? Your church? God?  Segment one: the radical nature of Christian liberty, reflecting on a surprising ally here: the Apostle Paul in Galatians 3-4 who argues that no one owns an heir to the kingdom of heaven. Segment two (starting after the first hour): the good, bad, and ugly about the classical Christian school movement, its valuable insights for K-12 education, but also its occasional association with white nationalism, opposition to racial integration and "kinism," especially in circles influenced by Doug Wilson. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thepynp/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thepynp/support

Molech was the underworld deity to whom some in the ancient Near East sacrificed their children. In philosopher Bertrand Russell and poet Allan Ginsberg we see folks using Molech or "Moloch" as a reference to impersonal, authoritarian religions of cruel power. Through fear, folks find themselves turning religion into the exact opposite of what they originally came for: peace is exchanged for terror, flourishing is exchanged for spiritual death. In the first hour, Jeff gives an overview of ancient Israelite relationships with Molech in segment one and then Stacie then applies this to contemporary parenting and education via the work of psychologist Alfie Kohn. “The goal is empowerment rather than conformity, and the methods are respectful rather than coercive. ... The way kids learn to make good decisions is by making decisions, not by following directions.” --Psychologist Alfie Kohn "And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters t

“Look for truth that is like a solid granite mountain face. Let all fragile constructs dash to pieces against it.” This is not a show arguing for or against the concept of biblical inerrancy, but it is a long form reflection on the nature of truth and what it feels like when we find it. It is also about ways in which people sometimes use ideas like biblical infallibility as a tool for authoritarian control. We spend a good bit of time discussing our application of the enneagrams to our relationships, but wait for the application of this seeming rabbit trail to the question of divine revelation. Whatever our view of our sacred texts, when we enforce allegiance to it in the minds of students in a way that bypasses their critical thinking and genuine engagement with the complexities that texts present us, we do psychological, intellectual, and spiritual harm—even when we are intending to do good.  We might get some stuff wrong but we are all but certain that if you take some of this to heart you will find a deep

How the wolves tend to deny guilt but sling shame, but also how to have compassion but be wary of those wolves whose lives are a riddle.  First segment: a discussion of the main theme and the distinction between shame and guilt, along with another story of Jeff getting knocked unconscious by a bully. Second Segment: discussion of a powerful lecture from Carl Gustav Jung to Swiss clergy, starting at 1:02 Third Segment: A fun but powerful game you can use to identify and confront your shadow self, starting at 1:20 Fourth Segment: we respond to a question about the meaning of our logo, created by Auggie Mallinson (check out his work on Instagram at @ars.viatoris) For further show notes, check out our website at www.protectyournoggin.org  Twitter: @thepynp Instagram: "Taosurfers"   --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thepynp/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thepynp/support

For the first segment, Stacie shares her background in American evangelicalism: the good, bad, and ugly. Then she explains why she got into yoga.  The second segment (about an hour in) is an in depth discussion of research related to the psychological reasons people either minimize abusive behaviors or fail to report them. The most important thing here is that the research suggests that protocols and procedures, including enforced mandatory reporting rules aren't enough: we need to rethink the way we educate both students and educators. That's what this project is all about. We ran out of time to respond to voice messages, but keep them coming by clicking on the blue "voice message" box on www.protectyournoggin.org. TW: This show deals with sexual abuse in the context of people not reporting it. Again, we will not always be focusing on this topic directly, rather, in these first episodes we are trying to convey why training in critical thinking and trusting perceptions is important for individuals and, ultima

Welcome to our first episode. Segment 1: We'll share a bit about our backstory, focusing this time on Jeff's story (Stacie's will be on episode 2). Segment 2: We discuss research from Donald Capps that relates bad forms of religious education to torment in students. Segment 3: We address a listener call about leaving a religious group. We offer and receive lessons in outfoxing religious wolves reforming religious education so everyone can be spiritually bold, free of manipulation and filled with deep peace. After 20+ years of professional work in religious education and educational nonprofits, hosts Jeff Mallinson (D.Phil. Oxford, philosophy and religion professor, author and speaker) and Stacie Mallinson (former nonprofit development professional, and certified yoga instructor) realized that bad forms of religious education can lead to trauma. This podcast focuses on training in critical thinking and personal empowerment as we reform religious education. The piano at the beginning is by Aidan Mallinson, free