Category Archives: Podcasts

#83 – Leaving the Mormon Church

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In this edition of the podcast, Aidan is speaking to Eric Pratt, a former radical member of the Mormon Church. Born and raised in Utah, Eric was a follower of Mormonism for over 20 years, including two years spent as a proselytizing Mormon missionary. In this intriguing audio, Eric tells the story of his indoctrination into, and his escape out of, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Eric also talks about the infamous founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, what it was like to be a missionary, the prevalence of misogyny within religion, living a moral life as an atheist, and much more. A prequel of sorts to this episode is also available, see episode 82 – Project Extra: The Legacy of Christopher Hitchens.

Expanded show notes:

Recovering from Religion offers resources to people who are seeking advice on leaving religion.

Related episodes:

#82 – Project Extra: The Legacy of Christopher Hitchens

#81 – Project Extra: Revisiting The Covenant

#80 – Richard Carrier on Christianity, Jesus, and Christian Apologetics

#45 – De-Platformed: Challenging Bad Ideas [a wide-ranging conversation with British ex-Muslim, Sadia Hameed]

#82 – Project Extra: The Legacy of Christopher Hitchens

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This episode of the podcast is a bonus audio edition ahead of a full-length episode to follow. Aidan’s guest is Eric Pratt, who for over 20 years was an aggressively active member of the Mormon Church, including two years spent as a proselytizing Mormon missionary. Although it is addressed only briefly in this episode, in the full episode, Eric will explain his journey into, and out of, the Mormon faith. In this bonus audio, Aidan and Eric talk about the life and influence of Christopher Hitchens, whose reasoned arguments assisted Eric in leaving religion altogether. Aidan and Eric also discuss atheism and religion, friendship, and Eric’s possible foray into podcast hosting. Eric, as will be discussed in the full episode, is not on social media, but is working on a book about his life which will hopefully be available in the near future.

Related YouTube videos [Note: external content]:

#81 – Project Extra: Revisiting The Covenant

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In an intriguing episode from February 2018, #73 – Abraham’s Secular Covenant, Bernard Lamborelle discussed his remarkable book, The Covenant: On the Origin of the Abrahamic Faith, by Means of Deification. This episode,  #81 – Project Extra: Revisiting The Covenant, is an abridged version of a follow-up conversation which was streamed live on Facebook on 6 April 2018 (The Aidan Project Live #3: Revisiting the Covenant). In this bonus podcast audio, Bernard provides a brief summary of his thesis, discusses additional evidence which was not covered in the original podcast episode, and addresses the response to his argument that the Abrahamic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – very likely do have a real story to tell about a covenant, but not a religious one. 

Expanded show notes:

The Aidan Project Live #3: Revisiting the Covenant


Those who are interested in checking out the book can download it for free until 6 May 2018 via Smashwords using code HZ96M. Head to http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/766677

You can visit Bernard’s web site at http://www.earthlycovenant.com/ and follow Bernard on Twitter at https://twitter.com/blambore.

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The Aidan Project Live #3: Revisiting the Covenant

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I spoke to Bernard Lamborelle on Facebook Live about the reaction to his argument presented within our previous episode and within his book, The Covenant: On the Origin of the Abrahamic Faith, by Means of Deification. We also spoke about atheism, consciousness, free will, and much more. If the video does not load below, you can watch the replay on Facebook.

[In the coming days, an edited version of the video will be released as a podcast episode]

#80 – Richard Carrier on Christianity, Jesus, and Christian Apologetics

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In this edition of The Aidan Project, Aidan is joined by author, historian, philosopher and exceptional debunker of Christian apologetics, Dr. Richard Carrier. What are the origins of Christianity? What is the evidence for a historical Jesus? What is it like to debate Christian apologists, and what are the common arguments made in defence of the faith? These questions, and much more, are answered in this episode. Dr. Carrier’s books and articles have received international attention. With a Ph.D. from Columbia University in ancient history, Dr. Carrier specializes in the intellectual history of Greece and Rome, particularly ancient philosophy, religion, and science, with an emphasis on the origins of Christianity, and the use and progress of science under the Roman empire. Dr. Carrier is also a published expert in the modern philosophy of naturalism as a worldview.

Dr. Carrier is the author of On the Historicity of Jesus, Proving History, Sense and Goodness without God, Science Education in the Early Roman Empire, Not the Impossible Faith, Why I Am Not a Christian, and Hitler Homer Bible Christ. For purchase options, see https://www.richardcarrier.info/BooksbyRichardCarrier.html

Dr. Carrier’s website is an incredible resource for additional information, including articles, useful links, classes, social media, and more. See https://www.richardcarrier.info/

Expanded show notes:

A summary of Christianity, as discussed on this episode:

[Source unknown]

“The belief that some cosmic Jewish zombie can make you live forever if you symbolically eat his flesh and telepathically tell him that you accept him as your master, so he can remove an evil force from your soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical tree.”

Richard Carrier debates William Lane Craig: Did Jesus Rise from the Dead (2009)

The Aidan Project Live #2: Insane

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Hollie Thubron, singer, songwriter and author, was my guest, exclusively on Facebook Live, on Wednesday 28 March. I talked to Hollie about her debut novel, Insane, a psychological thriller which explores different perceptions of morality. To view the video on Facebook, please click here.

#79 – The People Versus Saul Goodman and Lionel Hutz

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In this edition of The Aidan Project, Aidan is speaking to Steven Keslowitz, author of books including The World According to the Simpsons, The Tao of Jack Bauer, and Why You Better Call Saul. Steven is a practicing attorney and pop culture expert, and in this episode, Steven explains the success within popular culture of disreputable fictional characters, including the lawyers Saul Goodman (Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul) and Lionel Hutz (The Simpsons). Also considered within this fun episode: ‘Cultivation Theory’ (an examination of the effect that watching television over the long-term may have on the ability to differentiate fiction and reality), what is the relationship between celebrities (including the late Stephen Hawking) and The Simpsons, how does The Simpsons deal with controversial issues, such as gun control, and how accurate are the legal proceedings in Better Call Saul? Also mentioned within this episode are the famous comments made about The Simpsons by former US President George HW Bush. At the 1992 Republican Convention, Bush said: “We’re going to keep trying to strengthen the American family. To make them more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons.” Steven has written about this very quote in The World According To The Simpsons, and shares his view of the relationship between The Simpsons and the ideal of the American family.

For more information on Steven, you can view his website at http://www.stevenkeslowitz.com/, his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/skeslowitz/, and his Amazon author page at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Steven-Keslowitz/e/B001JS3LLC/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1522146986&sr=8-1 (UK) and https://www.amazon.com/Steven-Keslowitz/e/B001JS3LLC/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1522146986&sr=8-1 (US).

Expanded show notes:

‘Stephen Hawking would ‘just turn up’ to Simpsons script readings’, The Telegraph, 15 March 2018, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2018/03/15/stephen-hawking-would-just-turn-simpsons-script-readings/.

A selection of episodes with a popular culture element:

#29 – Project Extra: Under Siege
#15 – Project Extra: Folklore
#13 – Pokemon Diplomacy and Transnational Culture