In this podcast, I visit the intersection of Evangelical Christians and politics. Jim Hogue talks about how his spirituality influences his vote, and why he feels unable to vote for Trump.
Tag: Wild Theology Podcast
Monthly Update from Mom’s in Long Beach
I am still in Long Beach, California taking care of mom. I have been here since November, and will be here through May (at least – perhaps longer). Mom still needs lots of care, and that is not likely to change. Meanwhile, Charlie – her begging little Miniature Doberman is a senior citizen as well, and his health is not the best. So, I am taking care of two little old persons.
Charlie would eat himself to death, if we were to allow it. He begs for food all day long. When I am in the kitchen, he dances around my feet, making it difficult to cook and not step on him.
Meanwhile, I am beginning to get back to a somewhat regular rhythm of writing, podcasting and playing music. I have been reunited with my acoustic guitars, as well as now having a beautiful (and beautiful sounding) graphite travel-sized guitar which I shall be able to use during backpacking, train and bus travel, and working in festivals in the UK. This graphite Cargo guitar was given to me by a friend, and I can not be more thankful for the generosity. It solves the problem I’ve had over the last few years needing a guitar I could travel with that was impervious to the extreme elements I am often found in.
I have completed a couple podcasts recently. The first podcast is with Edmundo Santiago, and follows his ideas on politics and the Christian life. His thoughts fall between, or perhaps more accurately – outside the parameters of our polarized two-party system. The second podcast is my first video-podcast, and it is a discussion with my good friend Jim Hogue on developments in the Burning Man Gathering, and how that relates to the struggle Christianity has with the incursion of consumerist culture upon the church.
I am looking at talking to Trump supporting Christians, and Christians who are planning on voting Democrat in the next election, in my future podcasts. I am looking for people who can talk about difficult issues in a friendly manner. This is meant to be part of series that breaks down the polarization between extreme positions. Does this describe you? Contact me, if so.
To Long Beach, California, and a Season of Caring for Mom
Hey Gang, It has been a crazy time, and after a different kind of October with some fruitful outreach in Salem, I am now in Long Beach, California.
I am staying with my mom, and for a season, I am becoming her full-time caretaker. She has come to the point that she cannot take care of herself on most days, and consequently, she needs some regular care. My brother and sister have done their best to try and hold it together, but are unable to devote full time to it, so they have done it on evenings after work and weekends.
She had a season of falling with some regularity, but somehow has been able to do so without hurting herself. On the flip side of that, she also could not get up afterwards, and the place she lives is a retirement community, but it is not licensed for elder care. So, if she falls they have to call 911, even if she is not hurt. She had fallen enough over the course of a couple months to make it questionable whether she can stay there on her own. So, enter stage left – me. I will be taking care of her full-time for a season. I have had to register with the state of California as her In Home Social Services Caretaker. This morning, I went to an orientation as the last official part of this preparation. Now, this is a good thing that I am able to do this at this time, but there is no question that it will be a difficult season. I’ve had two days off in the last month-and-a-half, and caring for mom is a pretty much a 24/7 on-call type of job right now.
It looks like I will be here until early May at the least. At that time, I need to travel to Austin for the MultiFaith Matters gathering, where I hope to see some of you. At this point, my schedule after that is still up in the air, so in a very real way, my commitment here is an indefinite affair.
Help with dressing, bathing, cooking, cleaning, and other assorted duties are all a part of this season. One day, mom can seem limitedly independent, and the next day requires that all the basic care items are in need of help: dressing, toileting…. My life is filled with cleaning, walking her little Miniature Dobie – Charlie, cooking, bathing mom, administering meds, and being there enough hours to make sure she does not get herself into trouble. I am also staying at her place, which is quite small. Consequently, if she gets up so do I. And yes, she gets up a couple times a night.
Prayer is welcome. It has been an exhausting month-and-a-half as I adjust to the new schedule, which, as it turns out, can only be semi-scheduled, and is full-time in the truest sense.
I am trying to keep my writing and podcasting going, and am hoping to have an occasional free weekend to develop a speaking and outreach schedule. I have posted most of my Wild Theology Podcasts on YouTube and you can follow me there at this link.
I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to be here now, and hope to get to a point where study and writing can continue, and preparation for the next season of outreach can begin. An example of how busy this has been, I’ve wanted to get this email out for at least a month, but by the time I have a few free moments they are either interrupted, or my brain has turned to mush. So, belated Happy Guy Fawkes Day, Thanksgiving, and Merry Christmas to you all!
Wild Theology Podcast with Diana Greenfield
A new episode of the Wild Theology Podcast comes from the George and Pilgrim Pub in Glastonbury, England. This is a discussion with Diana Dingles Greenfield aka The Goth Vicar of Glastonbury. We both have just returned from the 3 Wishes Fairy Festival followed by the Glastonbury Festival, and I am staying with Diana and her husband Sedge in the village of Street next door to Glastonbury.
Link to Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/posts/wild-theology-39-28150190
Appleby Horse Fair and podcasts with friends: UK 2019 – Part One
Since the last blog post about three weeks ago, I have added three more festival outreach events to the frenetic place, and have stayed with friends in Pontypridd, Cheltenham and Plaisley. I created a few podcasts. One about the travels and two of them interviewing Matt and Jo Arnold, who I stayed with in Plaisley near Sherwood Forest.
I moved on from the three festivals in Wales (Focus Wales, How The Light Gets In, and the Hay Festival). I stayed with my friends Andrew and Dawn in Pontypridd and spent a day seeing the site of the festival they are running in August – Between the Trees. It was a gorgeous location and festival worth considering. The gathering is a mashup of folk music, science and philosophy near Bridgend in a hidden little gem of a forest.
From Pontypridd I traveled up to the Appleby Horse Fair in northern England. Due to a series of weird circumstances it took me 24 hours to get there by train and bus, when it is only a five hour drive. I missed the last train to Appleby from Leeds, and had to spend the night in the late night eateries, or at the train station. The following morning the ticket machine ate my money, and I missed the first train out, and then the second train broke down, and I had to wait two hours for the next train.
I eventually arrived in Appleby, and the first person I met turned out to be a pioneer vicar in a neighboring town, and she and her pioneer vicar husband invited me to stay with them for the weekend of the festival.
The Appleby Horse Fair is the largest gathering of Gypsies and Travellers in Europe. I did a podcast specifically talking about my experience at the Appleby Horse Fair, and you can find it on my Patreon page. I am hoping to return to Appleby in the future. It offers an opportunity to learn about one of the most misunderstood people groups in the UK. One of the great duties of life, and particularly of mission, is to understand the other we disagree with.
Following my time in Appleby, I traveled back south and stayed with Matt and Jo Arnold and their three boys. They live near Sherwood Forest and Matt took me on a Sherwood Forest tour while I was there, and we did a couple podcasts together. Matt is one of the few people who regularly works with the same demographic of people I do, and it made the podcast with Matt fun to do. Jo works for the Christian Fellowship for Psychical and Spiritual Studies, and this made the podcast with Jo a unique experience, as we talked about Christians who have experiences they cannot put into the typical Christian theology box.
Part 2 comes up next with stories from the Fairy Festival and the famous Glastonbury Festival.
If you would like to support my podcasts, you can become a patron on my Patreon Page. You can also find a link on this website to donate to the mission of reaching the subcultures of this world through festival outreach, and mission to places where our world’s nomads live.
The Gathering 