That's What I Meant to Say

James D. Newcomb
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Philosophy

You'd think that with all this talk in the world, someone would eventually say something that actually means something! On time, and on point, this show aims to do exactly that. Through solo commentary and conversations with carefully curated guests, we explore how to notice the deeper patterns that shape a meaningful life. This show is for listeners who tire of the superficial, and who sense that their lives, work, responsibilities and interests are not the product of random chance, but meaningful parts of a coherent whole moving toward clarity and purpose.

  1. The Role of History

    2d ago

    The Role of History

    What does it mean to ask about “the role of history”? Is history its own entity with agency of its own, or is there more to the story? In this episode, we reflect on how the past shapes the present through context, inheritance, memory, precedent, and constraint.

    12 min
  2. Thinking Orthodox & A Primer on that “Other” Way of Christian Discipleship with Dr. Jeannie Constantinou

    3d ago

    Thinking Orthodox & A Primer on that “Other” Way of Christian Discipleship with Dr. Jeannie Constantinou

    https://jamesdnewcomb.com/jeannie “The Orthodox mind, the mind of the Church, is the mind of Christ.” We welcome biblical scholar and author Dr. Jeannie Constantinou for a sweeping, heartfelt, and clarifying conversation on phronema—the ancient Christian mindset preserved in the Orthodox Church. I open the conversation by sharing my own journey of transitioning into Orthodoxy, reflecting on how Western Christianity shaped my early worldview and how the discovery of the Orthodox Church revealed an entirely different way of understanding faith, thought, and spiritual life. As you'll hear, reframing an entire worldview and mindset does not happen overnight! In this episode, you'll hear why Orthodoxy speaks so deeply to those seeking “something more” i.e. a fuller experience of Christ rather than a purely symbolic one. The discussion highlights the West’s long-standing reliance on human reason, logic, and systematic explanations, contrasted with the Orthodox emphasis on mystery, experience, sacrament, community, and the healing of the heart. To put it another way: We can't possibly understand God in all His fullness, and we're perfectly okay with that! Dr. Jeannie explains the ancient Greek concept of phronema. This goes beyond a mere “worldview.,” It is a mindset, disposition, and lived mentality that flows from the apostles and the early Church, unchanged for two millennia. She also explains in detail how the Orthodox Church has maintained continuity with Christ’s original intent, what early Christian worship actually looked like, why tradition (and the dreaded ritual) matters, and how one begins to cultivate the mind of Christ through prayer, humility, sacramental life, and participation in the community. Whether you’re new to Orthodoxy, curious about early Christianity, or simply wrestling with the limits of Western religious paradigms, this episode offers clarity, depth, and a pastoral invitation to encounter the reality of Christ via the fullness of His Church. Episode highlights: 01:10 – James’s transition (not conversion) from Protestant/Western Christianity into Orthodoxy 07:10 – The unfulfilled Protestant mindset: salvation as a “destination” vs. lifelong journey 10:10 – Western fixation on explanation vs. Orthodox acceptance of mystery 13:10 – What phronema is—and isn’t 14:10 – How Christ Himself taught “the mind of God” through His deeds and teachings 17:10 – The West’s attempt to reconstruct early Christianity through reason 21:10 – The problem of individualism and denominational fragmentation 24:10 – The Church is the physical body of Christ, not some invisible abstraction 28:10 – The Eastern Church didn’t “break off” from Rome 30:10 – Bishops, councils, and why the early Church rejected papal monarchy 34:10 – The sincere desire to rediscover early Christianity 37:10 – How the apostles taught—and preserved—Christ’s actual teachings 41:10 – Early Christian worship: sacred, communal, experiential 46:10 – Oral tradition and why Scripture was never meant to stand alon 49:10 – Understanding the much-maligned Constantine’s role in Church history 51:10 – Why ritual is natural, ancient, and thoroughly Christian 53:10 – How to acquire phronema through lived participation within community 01:03:10 – How to connect with Dr. Jeannie and closing remarks About the guest: Dr. Jeannie Constantinou is a biblical scholar, author, speaker, and longtime teacher of the New Testament and early Church. With academic training in Orthodox theology, patristics, biblical interpretation, and law, she brings both scholarly rigor and pastoral clarity to questions of Scripture, tradition, and the Orthodox Christian mind. Her books include Thinking Orthodox: Understanding and Acquiring the Orthodox Christian Mind, The Crucifixion of the King of Glory, and Guiding to a Blessed End. Through her writing, teaching, and podcast work, Dr. Constantinou helps Christians encounter the Bible not merely as a text to be analyzed, but as the living witness of the Church. Resources mentioned: Thinking Orthodox: Understanding and Acquiring the Orthodox Christian Mind by Jeannie Constantinou

    1h 4m
  3. I Reserve the Right to be Wrong

    Jun 5

    I Reserve the Right to be Wrong

    Honest speech requires the freedom to be wrong. In this episode, I reflect on students afraid to speak, a mob moment from my trumpet podcast days, and the difference between correction and public shaming. When decent people are afraid to speak, fools fill the silence. I’m James Newcomb, and that’s what I meant to say. Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    12 min
  4. This Guy Knows What He Wants

    May 21

    This Guy Knows What He Wants

    I was recently asked by Deacon Stephen Wehr at my home parish (St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church in Minneapolis) for a personal conversation about, well, me. Steve asked me about my upbringing, my military service, my musical endeavors, marriage, faith, and how I discovered and was drawn to Orthodox Christianity. This is not some tidy conversion story, but a life shaped by vocation, risk, patience, and the slow recognition of home. Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    27 min
  5. When the Truth Feels Like an Attack

    Jan 31

    When the Truth Feels Like an Attack

    Why do people cling to beliefs even after they’ve been proven wrong? In this episode, we explore what happens in the mind when deeply held beliefs are challenged, why facts alone often fail to persuade, and how emotional investment shapes what we accept as true. Drawing on decades of psychological research, this conversation unpacks why corrections sometimes backfire, why empathy matters more than argument, and how curiosity can open doors that confrontation slams shut. If you’ve ever wondered why misinformation spreads so easily, or why difficult conversations go nowhere, this episode offers clarity—and a more hopeful way forward. Key Themes * Why the brain treats belief challenges like physical threats * How emotional reactions precede logical reasoning * Why more evidence can sometimes make beliefs stronger * The difference between explaining a belief and defending it * Why timing matters when correcting misinformation * How and why detailed corrections can unintentionally backfire * The “truth sandwich” method and why it works * Age, emotion, and susceptibility to misinformation * Motivational interviewing as an alternative to confrontation * Why empathy changes minds more effectively than argument * Winning relationships versus winning debates #BeliefChange#Misinformation#CriticalThinking#Psychology#TruthAndMeaning#CognitiveBias#EmpathyMatters#That’sWhatIMeantToSay#fakenews Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    8 min
  6. Why Being Right Feels So Good (And Costs Us So Much)

    Jan 27

    Why Being Right Feels So Good (And Costs Us So Much)

    Why do intelligent, well-informed people so often talk past one another? Why do we cling to our beliefs, even when presented with overwhelming evidence that on the surface disproves them? In this episode, we explore a phenomenon known as “Confirmation Bias.” This is the tendency to favor information, even blatantly false, that supports what we already believe to be true. Drawing on research from Harvard University, MIT, and Stanford University, the conversation examines why false information spreads faster than truth, why being proven wrong can literally feel painful, and why facts alone rarely change minds. Rather than focusing on a single event, although it would be easy to do so, this episode looks at how we receive information itself, and why we might do well to question our own certainty in an increasingly polarized world. Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    8 min
  7. Protestants v. Catholics in America's Founding Era: When Certainty Becomes the Threat

    Jan 21

    Protestants v. Catholics in America's Founding Era: When Certainty Becomes the Threat

    The American Founders are often remembered as champions of reason, restraint, and religious liberty. But beneath that story lies a less examined assumption: a deep certainty about which forms of belief were acceptable—and which were dangerous. In this episode, we revisit some of the important documents of that era, namely Federalist Nos. 10 and 51 and explore how fear of factions, combined with cultural and religious certainty, may have planted seeds of the very instability the Founders hoped to prevent. Rather than treating certainty as a virtue, this conversation asks whether it can quietly become a liability, not just politically, but spiritually and culturally as well. Resources & References * The Federalist Papers– Federalist No. 10 (James Madison on factions)– Federalist No. 51 (Checks, balances, and human nature) * Gordon S. Wood, The Creation of the American Republic * Philip Hamburger, Separation of Church and State * John Courtney Murray, We Hold These Truths #FederalistPapers #AmericanFounding #ReligiousLiberty #PoliticalPhilosophy #ChurchAndState #Certainty #JamesMadison #ThatsWhatIMeantToSay Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    7 min
  8. The Non-Wall That Has Marginalized Christianity from the American Public Consciousness

    Jan 20

    The Non-Wall That Has Marginalized Christianity from the American Public Consciousness

    Most Americans assume the founders intended a rigid wall between church and state. In fact, many Christians even consider it a great blessing. Yet the historical record tells a more complicated and far more interesting story. In this episode, we examine how the Establishment Clause was originally understood, why the founders opposed state churches while wholesale embracing religion in public life, and how modern interpretations, notably from 20th Century Supreme Court decisions, diverged sharply from those assumptions. #ChurchAndState#FirstAmendment#EstablishmentClause#AmericanFounding#ReligiousFreedom#SupremeCourt#Constitution#PoliticalHistory#CivicVirtue#ThatsWhatIMeantToSay Get full access to James D. Newcomb at jamesdnewcomb.substack.com/subscribe

    10 min
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About

You'd think that with all this talk in the world, someone would eventually say something that actually means something! On time, and on point, this show aims to do exactly that. Through solo commentary and conversations with carefully curated guests, we explore how to notice the deeper patterns that shape a meaningful life. This show is for listeners who tire of the superficial, and who sense that their lives, work, responsibilities and interests are not the product of random chance, but meaningful parts of a coherent whole moving toward clarity and purpose.

Information

  • Creator
    James D. Newcomb
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    14
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © James D. Newcomb
  • Show Website
    That's What I Meant to Say