All Things Bright and Beautiful Jenna DiPrima and Lydia Schaible

Why should we care about philosophy? Is philosophy only for academics? In this episode we interview Dr. Douglas Groothius, professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary. He makes a compelling case that philosophy is for everyone in his book Philosophy in Seven Sentences by introducing us to seven important sentences by key philosophers in history. In our time with Dr. Groothius we discuss apologetics, the law of non-contradiction, self-hood, and what it means to be a distinctly Christian philosopher.

Resources mentioned

Philosophy in Seven Sentences by Douglas Groothius

Beyond the Wager:The Christian Brilliance of Blaise Pascal by Douglas Groothius

The Dust of Death by Os Guinness

Fools Talk by Os Guinness

Christian Apologetics by Douglas Groothius

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Long Journey Home by Os GuinnessMockery in Apologetics by Douglas Groothius

Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman

Tactics by Greg Koukl

Strange New World by Carl Trueman

The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman

Life’s Ultimate Questions by Ronald Nash 

https://www.douglasgroothuis.com/

We need to understand history to navigate our current cultural moment. According to Andrew Wilson, we especially need to understand the year 1776: all that led up to it and how it created the narrative of the West. In this episode we discuss the Enlightenment, romanticism, industrialization, and how the ideas they birthed shape the church and the world around us.

Notes:

Lydia mentions the composition of silence, it is titled 4'33'' by John Cage.

Jenna mentions C.S. Lewis' introduction to On The Incarnation: “We may be sure that the characteristic blindness of the twentieth century - the blindness about which posterity will ask, "But how could they have thought that?" - lies where we have never suspected it... None of us can fully escape this blindness, but we shall certainly increase it, and weaken our guard against it, if we read only modern books. Where they are true they will give us truths which we half knew already. Where they are false they will aggravate the error with which we are already dangerously ill. The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books.”



Resources mentioned:

Remaking the World: How 1776 Created the Post-Christian West by Andrew Wilson

The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self:Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution by Carl Trueman

Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution by Carl Trueman

All Things Bright and Beautiful Episode 20: Expressive Individualism and "Strange New World" by Carl Trueman

All Things Bright and Beautiful Episode 1: On Reading and "Lit" by Tony Reinke

The Air We Breathe: How We All Came to Believe in Freedom, Kindness, Progress and Equality by Glenn Scrivener

All Things Bright and Beautiful Episode 7: "Frankenstein: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting" by Mary Shelley and Karen Swallow Prior

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

You are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World by Alan O Noble

The Letters of John Newton

The Hunger Game Series by Suzanne Collins

1984 by George Orwell

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien

The Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot

We’re back! In this episode we talk about where we’ve been this last year: the good and the difficult. We share our thoughts on suffering, the sovereignty of God, and how God’s goodness, provision, and nearness were magnified in the events that transpired in our lives most recently. We discuss the most helpful books we’ve read on the topic (and some of our favorite more light-hearted reads).

Resources Mentioned

The Pillar Network

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

Calvinism and Cancer by Jenna DiPrima

Calvinism is Getting Me Through Cancer by Jenna DiPrima 

Letters of John Newton

Psalms by the Day by Alec Motyer

Suffering is Never for Nothing by Elisabeth Elliot

Walking with God through Pain and Suffering by Tim Keller

The Treasury of David by C.H. Spurgeon

Songs of Suffering by Joni Eareckson Tada

A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis

Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher

Friendship with God by Mike McKinley

Communion with God by John Owen

Holiness by J.C. Ryle

Remaking the World by Andrew Wilson

The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Truemen

The C.S. Lewis Biography Trilogy by Harry Lee Poe

What can we learn from an Irish woman who lived in the 19th century? In this episode we discuss Elisabeth Elliot’s biography of Amy Carmichael, A Chance to Die. We talk about the importance of reading Christian biographies, and various modern topics that Amy Carmichael can help us navigate. We cover self-care and sacrifice, the tension of word and action, and holiness and compassion.

Resources Mentioned

A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliot

O, Church Arise by Keith and Kristyn Getty

Amy Carmichael by Iain Murray

The Dohnavur Fellowship

If by Amy Carmichael

Mimosa by Amy Carmichael

The Elisabeth Elliot Podcast

C.S. Lewis: A Life by Alister McGrath

A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War by Joseph Laconte

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Fierce Convictions by Karen Swallow Prior

John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace by Jonathan Aitkan

Susie by Ray Rhodes

Theologians on the Christian Life by Crossway

Christians Heroes Then and Now

Do Great Things for God Series by The Good Book Company

How do we grapple with a world that seems, as T.S. Eliot puts it “advances progressively backward.” In his book You Are Not Your Own, Dr. Alan Noble argues that the increasing cultural emphasis on efficiency, and increasing isolation have created an inhuman world. In this episode we talk with Dr. Noble about how our unity with Christ gives us meaning, purpose, and hope as we live in this world. We discuss despair, self-medication and escapism, and the antidotes of gratitude toward God, examining ourselves, death to self, and resting in belonging to Christ, our only hope in life and death.

Resources Mentioned

Disruptive Witness by Alan Noble

You Are Not Your Own by Alan Noble

Strangely Bright by Joe Rigney

Episode 18: Can You Love God and Enjoy This World?

Ethics by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis

Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis

Why is the local church important? In this episode we’re joined by Erin Wheeler to discuss the centrality of the church in the life of the Christian. We discuss how culture has impacted our ecclesiology, the gift the church can be in how we serve one another, and the necessity of our physical presence in the local church. We discuss the purpose of the church, criticisms of the church and how we should think about them, how we can prioritize the local church in various stages of our lives, and the ins and outs of discipleship.

Resources mentioned

The Church: Delighting in the Doctrine of the Church by Erin Wheeler

The Good Portion Series

Episode 16: “How Can Women Thrive in the Local Church” with Guest Keri Folmer

Christ: The Doctrine of Christ, for Every Woman by Jenny Manley

Discipling: How to Help Others Follow Jesus by Mark Dever

Fix Your Eyes by Amy Gannett

Jesus Through the Eyes of Women by Rebecca McLaughlin

Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves

Priscilla Talk