This week we start off with the strange, confusing, and suspicious narrative around the Kirk assassination, and then we’re jumping into a chapter of Mosiah that discusses the strained relations between the good, wholesome, chosen Nephites, and the evil, dangerous, spiteful-for-no-reason Lamenites. It’s a book with more than a few modern parallels and a heap of repetitive language (as usual). Enjoy the show, and remember that you can weigh in on these topics with us if you join our Discord (link in our Instagram bio)!

Ep. 245 – The Book of Mormon: No Such Thing as a Lamenite Noncombatant

This week we’re discussing the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the recent raid on several compounds of the Kingdom of God International church. Pastor David Taylor and his right hand, Michelle Brannon, are facing serious criminal penalties for essentially running a forced labor cult centered around call centers where his followers were forced to solicit donations or face serious consequences. This guy is a scumbag, and he’s probably going to jail for a very long time. Good riddance!

Ep. 244 – Pastor David Taylor Rebukes the Spirit of Stinginess 

This week we’re joined once again by musicians Chris and Logan from Tan and Handsome! They just released a new EP titled 2 Tan 2 Handsome, and it goes so hard. Follow Tan and Handsome on IG and Youtube (@tanandhandsome), X (@tanandhandsome_) and check out 2 Tan 2 Handsome streaming everywhere!

Ep. 243 – Father Forgive Me, For I Have Fingerblasted w/ Tan and Handsome

This week we’re discussing an absolutely insane story that the mainstream press hasn’t done a great job of covering. Over the past couple of weeks, the Las Vegas Police, the FBI, and several southern Nevada law enforcement offices conducted a sting targeting online predators. They nabbed eight .pdf files, but two men in particular drew attention from the general public: Redemption Church pastor Neal Creecy and the Executive Director of the Israel Cyber Defense Division Tom Artiom Alexandrovich. This is a wild story, and we think you’ll be as shocked as we were to learn the details!

Ep. 242 – Black Hat/White Trouser Stain & Soul-Winning on Sniffies

This week we’re looking at a couple of ridiculous stories where pastors have recently found themselves in legal trouble (to put it lightly)! Then we’re diving into a few posts on one of the most triggering subreddits, r/christiandatingadvice. This is a place where 20-something youth group kids go to ask questions with somewhat obvious answers to a group of people who give them really awful spiritual and relationship advice 9 times out of 10. It’s a little nauseating, but in the fun, cringe sort of way!

Ep. 241 – “Pastor Arrested…” & r/christiandatingadvice

This week we’re blazing through a few more short books within the Book of Mormon! A fella can take some serious liberties when creating his own lore from scratch, and in this portion we’ll look at the introduction of a specific type of prophetic figure: the seer. Enjoy the episode!

Ep. 240 – The Book of Mormon: Ancient Preamble to a Modern Hustle

This week we’re back in the Book of Mormon after several months’ hiatus, and I have to say, it feels good to really sink your teeth into the Word! We’ve abandoned the notion of going through it chapter by chapter because it is, sigh… kinda boring. So we’re jumping ahead a bit and looking at the the Book of Jacob chapter 6. Lots of lessons here, kids, so grab a notepad and enjoy the show!

Ep. 239 – The Book of Mormon: Jacob Tells Sherem to Suck an Egg in Hell 

This week we’re catching up on a few of the avalanche of news stories that have built up over the past few weeks! We glance at the ongoing Epstein case, the absolutely hilarious PR nightmare that is the Trump Administration’s response, and then talk about an ambitious young buck from our past who went from bottle feeding Jerry Falwell pureed Big Macs at Liberty University to the Executive Chairman of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation: pastor Johnnie Moore. So enjoy the episode and send all of your thoughts and prayers to poppa Sam, whose wife is in the middle of having their third baby!

Ep. 238 – Johnnie Moore: Ladder-Climbing PR Chief of the Mediterranean Killing Fields 

This week we’re happy to welcome back musician and host of the You Have Permission podcast, Dan Koch! We discuss the challenges of discussing current events with half the population, brainstorm some ideas to fix the Christian movie industry, and we gauge and quantify Dan’s reactions to the past years’ key controversial cultural moments. It’s a lot of fun and you can hear part 2 of our conversation on Dan’s show, You Have Permission, where Dan interviews us about the ways in which hosting a “deconstruction” podcast has affected us over the past 4 years. Dan’s great, and You Have Permission is a must listen! Follow Dan on X (@dankoch) and Instagram (@dancoke), and check out www.dankochwords.com [http://www.dankochwords.com/]for links to all of his work!

Ep. 237 – Plotting an Unwelcome Overhaul of the Christian Film Industry w/ Dan Koch

This week Casey is joined by keynote speaker, success coach, best-selling author, and host of the Dream Think Do Podcast, Mitch Matthews! Mitch works with a wide variety of clients with the goal of “helping them remember who they are, what they’re capable of, and what’s possible when you build something on purpose.” We discuss his early life in church, the life-altering brush with tragedy that prompted him to reevaluate his faith, and what being a Christian in the workplace should look like. It was a fun conversation and I really appreciate Mitch’s willingness to guest on our show, a risk that many people who are still in that world aren’t willing to take. To learn more about Mitch’s work and for links to his various social media, visit www.mitchmatthews.com [http://www.mitchmatthews.com/], and stream Dream Think Do wherever you listen to podcasts!

Ep. 236. – “Christian Company” or “Christians in a Company?” w/ Success Coach Mitch Matthews

Growing Up Christian is a weekly podcast hosted by Sam and Casey. Each episode they discuss the good, the bad, and the undeniably strange aspects of coming of age in the late 90’s/early 2000’s Christian culture.