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Humans have a primal instinct to find their identity in the group. The group tells us what to believe and how to behave. This is literally the heart of how religion operates. So what happens when a culture becomes secular? The religious impulse doesn’t go away. New group identities battle each other for dominance of the greater culture.  If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.  

The Matrix has you - systems of control animated by ideological forces. You feel their presence telling you how to think, what you can say and what you should do. And if you don’t measure up, it will cancel you. In this part two of a conversation about the cross, Mark and Paul discover a message that stands against the systems that seek to define and dominate our lives. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

In this episode, Paul presents an alternative view of the cross and challenges the idea that the Father unleashed his wrath on Christ as a punishment for sin. Mark makes a case that payment is a function of how the world works and that "the wrath of God” is a real experience for many people. This episode is part one in a series of conversations about the crucifixion. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Are we living in the end times? Does the Bible have anything relevant to say about this current moment in history? Mark and Paul explore the nature of apocalyptic literature and what it reveals about the future of humanity. Once again, the conversation takes some unexpected turns and may cause you to rethink what you thought you knew about the final chapter of the human story. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

In the aftermath of Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake, grappling with PTSD, filmmaker Luke A. Renner set out on a healing journey that would eventually unlock an older, deeper, childhood trauma he had lost in time. In their first ever guest interview, Mark and Paul speak with Luke about his wonderful new film and the importance of taking your trauma seriously. With the help of world-renowned experts, fellow survivors, and creators from around the globe, this film seeks to illuminate what lies inside us all. About Luke Renner: Luke is an award winning filmmaker with 8 gold and 9 platinum RIAA video awards, and directed projects which spent over 400 weeks on Billboard Magazine's "Top Video Sales" charts. In 2003, Luke and his wife Adrian started Fireside International, a non-profit work that uses storytelling to better the lives of those suffering from poverty around the world. He co-founded Tilt23 Studios in 2012 and is currently dedicated to mental health and wellness advocacy through both "What Lies Inside" and his podcast "Inside Out."  Watch WHAT LIES INSIDE - Official Trailer https://www.whatliesinsidefilm.com/about?wix-vod-video-id=06122f491d5042dea2487ceb109d4042&wix-vod-comp-id=comp-kgcijou2 Visit https://www.whatliesinsidefilm.com/ 

Is The Devil real? Are there other ways to understand the Bible when it talks about The Serpent or Satan? In one of their most fascinating conversations yet, Mark and Paul try to make sense of the struggle with evil both within ourselves and the collective group. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

What happens when your mindset stops you from seeing? What if it’s willful blindness? You don’t want to see and you’ll stop at nothing to stay blind. In this first episode of a new Bible freestyle series, Mark and Paul unpack the John 9 passage, a somewhat comedic yet tragic account from one of history’s early “cancel cultures”. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

How do you see the world and make sense of it? In this episode, Mark and Paul talk about Jesus as a lens to view the nature of God, the scriptures and the symbolic patterns of human experience hidden in the stories of scripture. An experience with Jesus can open our eyes to a picture of reality that often appears faint and upside down.  If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

A child dies at birth. Thousands of people are swept away in a tsunami. Does God even exist? If so, how can God be good? In a honest and heartfelt conversation, Mark and Paul make it personal and share their own struggles to find meaning and peace despite the many unsatisfying answers to the most troubling question of all - the problem of suffering.  If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

The West is experiencing a widespread crisis of meaning, as ideological battles rage on to determine a future vision for humanity. Mark and Paul discuss what happens to a culture when science and reason has undercut belief in God. Will Christian faith survive? Can we find meaning and connection through spiritual practices and experiences? If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

The Bible can be confusing and difficult to read. Some insist it is the infallible word of God, while others believe it shouldn’t have a place in a progressive society. In this conversation, Mark and Paul propose that your worldview and approach to the Bible makes all the difference in reflecting reality or disguising it. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Have you ever felt like you don’t belong? Have you ever been compelled to leave the community you once called “home”? In this episode, Mark and Paul explore the path of the outsider. These are the ones who leave the safety of the group to venture out into an unknown world. Outsiders ultimately become a gift to the community and have always been the ones to pull society forward.  If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.  

One moment can disrupt life as you know it. Mark and Paul try to make sense of their unusual “conversion experiences”. Using Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” as a framework, they suggest that all of us are on a spiritual journey whether we know it or not. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Hell is a place of eternal torment where most people go when they die. Mark and Paul discuss how questioning this classical view of hell kick-started their faith deconstruction and led to a horizontal way to read the bible. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

In this first episode, Mark and Paul retrace their earlier days in Christian ministry and how questioning their faith led to exiting the organized church, only to stumble into a simple do-it-yourself form of spiritual community. If you have questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you: contact@thesomapodcast.com  Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.