Faith, Finances and F*Bombs

• This episode was recorded on September 11, 2023. This day is officially called “Patriot Day,” (Kevin refers to it as a day of remembrance) a national day of service and remembrance that commemorates the catastrophic events of Sept. 11, 2001. On this day in 2001, almost 3,000 people were killed in a series of coordinated attacks involving commercial airplanes. The attacks started at 8:46 a.m. when hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 11 crashed the plane into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, killing everyone on board and hundreds inside the building. Just 17 minutes later, hijackers crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into the World Trade Center’s South Tower, killing all on board and more inside the Trade Center. Thousands more died when both towers crashed down less than an hour after being attacked. The 9/11 attacks weren’t limited to New York. Flight 77 crashed into the western façade of the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m., killing 50 people on board and 125 inside the Washington, D.C. home of the Department of Defense. A fourth plane crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing all on board as passengers and crew attempted to wrestle control from the hijackers. Among the fatalities that day were 343 firefighters, 72 law enforcement officers and 55 military personnel.

“It’s the nature of the world that most people have moved on, but the people directly involved with 9/11, for them, twice a day it’s 9/11.” 
  - Robert Reeg, former FDNY firefighter.

• Additional commentary and reflection on the app Text With Jesus:
  • It is worth considering what our society reflects knowing people are willing to employ a Silicon Valley tool in place of something so profoundly human and freeing and beautiful: the quality of accessing God through prayer. 
  • Isn't seeking to communicate with (and control) God through a handheld device similar to offering requests for health and prosperity to totems and golden calves created by ancient metal workers? 
  • A person truly formed by prayer will protect and cultivate the spiritual encounter, appreciate and accept the mystery of Jesus, allow Jesus to be himself. 
  • Prayer is a human experience. Everyone can do it any time they want. 
  •  The fact Text With Jesus has been created and is being consumed reveals how deeply married/codependant/intertwined we Americans have become to our smartphones. 
  • Hartley and Kevin address, only through light inference, why people should be careful and dubious toward this app's insistence that its content is "Bible-based." There is an embarrassing level of biblical illiteracy among all people, including Christians and the pious, when preference is given toward avoiding uncomfortable truths in favor of what one wants to hear. 
  • The app aligns with our clinical culture, which emphasizes personal affirmation and physical and mental wellness  

• Sounds by Zapsplat 
• Additional Sound Effects from Pixabay  
• Announcer: Dr. K.J. Wright
• Podcast Theme: Catch It Music by Coma-Media from Pixabay