Marc Jolicoeur (aka "Jolly Thoughts")

A repository for reflections on life, God, the Bible, etc.
Marc Jolicoeur (aka "Jolly Thoughts")

This feed is a grab bag of thoughts, reflections, and tomfoolery. The Bible will be talked about, other books will be talked about, concepts will be wrestled with, Jesus will be made much of. marcjolicoeur.substack.com

  1. 4天前

    Alan Streett's "Exploring The Paranormal"

    When Alan Streett found himself sitting around a circle with friends of his listening to a man in a trance embody the voice of a dead loved one, the fact that he was doing so “in Jesus’ name” didn’t seem strange to him… until it did. In Alan’s newest book (Exploring The Paranormal, from Eerdman’s Publishing), he walks us through several jaw-dropping phases of his own life & personal experience with the paranormal, building to a climactic opportunity to share his own current understanding of these phenomena (one I am admittedly uncomfortable with… though I can’t yet fully articulate why). In this conversation Alan generously walks us through the highlights of his story, and teases out why you might want to explore more of this paranormal treatment for yourself. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 06:53 Exploring the Paranormal: A Journey Begins 10:00 From Baseball Dreams to Spiritual Exploration 12:46 The Shift to Seminary and Psychic Phenomena 16:02 The Encounter with God and Transformation 19:05 The Charismatic Movement and Its Influence 21:56 The Evolution of Beliefs: From Acceptance to Rejection 24:52 The Role of Mentalism in Understanding Psychic Phenomena 27:57 The Third Stage: Magic Tricks vs. Genuine Psychic Abilities 31:01 The Final Stage: A New Perspective on Psychic Phenomena 37:03 The Healing Power of Meditation 40:35 Understanding Brain Waves and Consciousness 43:09 Exploring Altered States of Consciousness 47:29 The Subconscious Mind and Its Powers 53:24 Faith, Miracles, and the Power of Belief 56:45 Distinguishing Between Spiritual Experiences 1:00:43 The Nature of Phenomena and Their Origins Keywords: paranormal, spirituality, psychic phenomena, Christianity, miracles, faith, subconscious mind, Alan Streett, Jolly Thoughts podcast, spiritual experiences Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe

    1 小时 12 分钟
  2. 9月27日

    Brad East's "Letters To A Future Saint"

    “From what I gather, you fit the bill of the kind of person I have in mind.  Raised in the orbit of the church.  Not unfamiliar with Jesus or Scripture.  Not skeptical of them either.  But untutored…” The above is a brief & early description of the idealized pen-pal (or, “interlocutor”, if you’re nasty/fancy) that Brad East had in mind when writing his new book, Letters To A Future Saint. In this conversation we dig into the book, his motivations for writing it, his hopes for its use, and his preacher-level-passion regarding baptism. We also get a sneak peak at his current work on wrestling with the ramifications of digital technologies on the church (spoiler alert: not all good). This conversation… it’s a doozie! Brad is an associate professor of theology at Abilene Christian University. He writes widely on Christianity, theology, culture, and politics for a variety of publications including The Christian Century, Christianity Today, Comment, Commonweal, First Things, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and The Point. He’s been interviewed on a number of podcasts including The London Lyceum, The Christian Chronicle, and Curiously, Kaitlyn. Thanks for reading Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts)! This post is public so feel free to share it. CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Introduction and Background 06:30 - Sabbatical and Writing Projects 10:20 - Digital Technology in Ministry 14:30 - Teaching and Student Engagement 18:30 - The Rise of the Nones 22:30 - Literacy and Biblical Knowledge 26:10 - Catechesis and Its Importance 30:40 - Baptism: Understanding Its Significance 34:20 - The Role of the Church 38:30 - Baptism and Personal Experience 42:30 - The Nature of Sacraments 46:20 - Conclusion and Final Thoughts KEYWORDS: Brad East, Letters to a Future Saint, baptism, catechesis, technology, biblical literacy, Christian community, faith, church history, spiritual growth Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe

    1 小时 3 分钟
  3. 8月16日

    Expanding Our Reading Partners: Conversation with Candida Moss

    “Collaboration does not have to be about corruption; it can be about cooperation.” (pg 78 of God’s Ghostwriters) Have you ever stopped to wonder how the biblical texts were actually written down, and by who (or… whom)? In this episode of the podcast, I chat with Dr Candida Moss about her newest book, God’s Ghostwriters, which is about that very thing. In her own words, Candida is known as a bit of an iconoclast, and this book doesn’t disappoint in that regard, shedding light on (and raising questions about) the nature of inspiration. Chapters 01:00 Introduction and Background 12:05 Enslaved Collaborators in the New Testament 19:23 Challenging Traditional Notions of Authorship 21:39 The Use of Shorthand in Ancient Writing 25:06 Interpretation and Alteration in the Transmission Process 33:41 The Role of Enslaved People in Biblical Texts 49:41 Challenging Traditional Interpretations 55:59 The Influence of Paratexts 01:01:25 Broadening Perspectives in Bible Reading Sound Bites * "Enslaved collaborators wouldn't have made changes to the texts that they were receiving. That doesn't mean they're corrupting things, they might be improving them." * "There's no theological reason why you could not have more people. You can still have your authors. You just have more of them." * "Ancient shorthand seems to only have been learned by enslaved or formerly enslaved people because it takes two years to remember." * "The story of the paralytic... centers enslaved loyalty" * "Paratexts deeply influence... how we read and think about [the Bible]" Keywords Candida Moss, God's Ghost Writers, New Testament, enslaved collaborators, authorship, Bible, secretaries, copyists, divine inspiration, shorthand, interpretation, transmission process, enslaved people, biblical texts, interpretation, marginalized communities, Paul, Gospel narratives, sexual ethics, historical context Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe

    1 小时 12 分钟
  4. 8月2日

    Conversation with David Bennett

    David Bennett is a self-described “celibate gay Christian”, but goodness… he is so much more than that!  He’s an author, a theologian in residence, with a PhD from none other than Oxford, and he’s a fierce lover of (and follower of) Jesus. And yet, he’s a controversial character.  In large part, this is because of his online presence (which some might construe as “activism”) on behalf of what is often shorthanded as “side-B Christianity”.  I hesitate to offer any sort of in-depth definition of that community of belief here (largely because I’m not an expert in it), and yet I also hesitate to let you loose onto the internet to Google it, since… well, there’s no shortage of inflammatory press about it.  What’s even more exciting? Those negative reviews tend to come from both the conservative Christian right and the progressive liberal left.  It is for this very reason that I wanted to have a conversation with David. As I hope will be clear throughout the conversation, I am not engaging as an antagonist, but nor am I wholeheartedly agreeing with all of his stances.  In my limited experience, the kinds of considerations that David and others like him are bringing forward are important for the church.  Of course, as I’ll mention in the audio which is the preamble to our conversation, my opinions are only that: opinions.  Though I wear multiple hats, I have no intention of allowing any of those hats to trump my responsibility to teach & uphold the views of the denomination I’m happy & blessed to serve (that is, of course, unless the unthinkable day comes where that denomination comes into conflict with Kingdom values).  As such, if you’re interested in knowing a little more about The Wesleyan Church’s interpretation of scripture and how it applies to questions of human sexuality, this little document does a masterful job exploring that. If this conversation stirs up challenging or uncomfortable thoughts in you, it is my hope that those impulses drive you to conversation, not argument.  Primarily, I’m hopeful that our first conversation partner will be God (in Christ, through the Spirit, and in the light of the traditions of the Church), and yet not in a way that we become deaf to the conversations happening around us. Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe

    1 小时 28 分钟
  5. 6月30日

    Coffee, Music, God: Conversation w/ Conor Conway

    Conor Conway is a coffee connoisseur, top notch trumpeter, and spiritual conversationalist.  Since he is a co-owner of Epoch Coffee in downtown Moncton, I have known of Conor for years now, but this in-depth conversation was long overdue.  We dip into his early days with Canadian pop music sensation The Weeknd, drink three marvelously prepared cups of coffee, and dive DEEP into not only his own experiences of God in general and Judaism in particular, but also some of the (good and less-good) ways Judaism & Christianity have historically interacted. I learned a lot in this conversation, not least about Sistema and Reconstructionist Judaism.  I also learned (hopefully) how to do a better job recording a pod in-person rather than online… next time.  Please, your patience for the audio-quality is requested!  Most importantly, though, I learned that while it is obviously difficult to talk about difficult things, it can be worth doing so with safe people, even if you stumble pretty hard over your own words. I truly appreciated Conor’s grace to me throughout our chat, but especially in the back quarter when we get into one of the hottest of the hot topics (in my world, at least).   During this episode I referenced Carmen Joy Imes’ books.  Here’s a link to the podcast I recorded with her: Episode 31 I also referenced my love for David Desteno’s “How God Works” podcast.  Here’s a review I wrote of his book: How God Works If I had thought about it, I would have referenced this previous podcast I recorded with Dr Matt Friedman, who is himself both Jewish & Christian:  Episode 36 Chapters: 04:47 // Gesha Village Coffee 08:07 // Multicultural Upbringing and Tasting Differences 13:12 // From Music to Coffee: Conor's Journey 18:50 // Conor's Experience with The Weeknd 30:04 // Religious Identity and Reconstructionist Judaism 37:47 // Coffee Tasting and Cultural Exploration 38:26 // Walking through an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood 39:49 // Orthodox Judaism and the Importance of Community 41:18 // Observing Shabbat and Jewish Law 42:48 // Reconstructionism: Individual Interpretation of Jewish Practices 43:18 // Questioning and Wrestling with Faith 54:53 // The Power of Participating in Ritual 1:07:15 // The Book of Job: Wrestling with Suffering and Seeking Truth 1:14:08 // The Exclusivity of Christianity and the Benefits of Applying Oneself to a Religion 1:24:15 // Navigating the Complexities of Supporting Israelis and Palestinians 1:35:49 // The Rise of Anti-Semitism and the Importance of Difficult Conversations Keywords:  coffee, flavor, coffee industry, music industry, multicultural, religion, Reconstructionist Judaism, community, religion, Orthodox Judaism, reconstructionism, language, beliefs, questioning, wrestling with faith, book of Job, religion, Christianity, exclusivity, truth claims, applying oneself, benefits, Israel, theological viewpoints, support, Palestinians, anti-Semitism, Jewish community Get full access to Marc Jolicoeur (aka Jolly Thoughts) at marcjolicoeur.substack.com/subscribe

    1 小时 49 分钟

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This feed is a grab bag of thoughts, reflections, and tomfoolery. The Bible will be talked about, other books will be talked about, concepts will be wrestled with, Jesus will be made much of. marcjolicoeur.substack.com

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