This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Late last week, I read with interest the concerns of Detroit News columnist, Ingrid Jacques, who warned that “‘Fair and Equal’ could unfairly harm faith-based work.” As a priest who has worked and served on the board of a variety of non-profits, both those that are and ...
Nov 03, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Halloween is coming! At least, that is what my five-year old daughter has told me almost every day for the past two weeks. But now, this weekend, the wait will be over, and all spooky ghosts and ghouls will be on the prowl either Saturday or Sunday, looking for some tri...
Oct 27, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. One of the best things about being a priest is that people invite you into these fascinating questions about God, the Bible, spirituality, and their lives. I had a conversation like that earlier this week. Someone had reached out who is searching and exploring, and she ...
Oct 20, 2021•6 min•Ep. 51
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. A couple of weeks ago, another issue of people claiming the name of Christ while also acting contrary to the spirit of Jesus surfaced just north of Grand Haven, among our siblings in Muskegon. Fresh Coast Alliance, an organization that operates various homes for people ...
Oct 13, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Our Scripture readings in the lectionary last Sunday included the Gospel reading from Mark 10, where Jesus talks about divorce. In it, Jesus tells the Pharisees that divorce was only permitted due to their hardness of heart and then goes on to say to the disciples, “Who...
Oct 06, 2021•5 min•Ep. 49
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. I was raised in a Christian tradition that had many rules around the role of women in the church. My home congregation in Holland actually divided over the question of whether or not a woman should be permitted to lead prayer at a small group Bible Study in someone’s ho...
Sep 29, 2021•Season 1Ep. 48
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. A couple weeks ago at the 10am worship service at my parish, St. John’s Episcopal here in Grand Haven, I did something I’ve never had to do before. I asked someone to leave our church property during a worship service. I've served in ministry in a few different areas ar...
Sep 22, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. The withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan, along with the collapse of the Afghanistan government and the resumption of control by the Taliban, has been a painful episode to watch play out over the past couple of weeks. So, as we all seek to respond to ongo...
Sep 01, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Welcome to week three of my series on Christianity and Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n’ Roll. We’ve explored the relationship between Christianity and sex, emphasizing the importance of the virtues of respect and equality over principals of purity culture. We’ve explored the re...
Aug 18, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Last week I talked about how many people think that the big things the church is opposed to are “Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” I tried to start breaking that myth by tackling the relationship between Christianity and Sex. This week, we’re talking the next item on the ...
Aug 11, 2021•4 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. If you asked the average person what the church is opposed to, you’d probably get some variation on the phrase “Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” The phrase was first used in a 1969 edition of LIFE Magazine to describe the, in the words of LIFE magazine, “sacraments” of t...
Aug 04, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. Someone in our church’s confirmation class this year asked me about my five favorite books, books that are easy to read and which impacted me as a Christian. It was a super fun exercise and the list I came up with dated me just a bit, with many of them being published o...
Jul 28, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. This morning, as I was driving to work, I was listening to NPR and heard a powerful story about advocates working to change the incarceration laws in our country, particularly as they relate to juveniles. As a part of that conversation, they also discussed issues surrou...
Jul 21, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. I hope the fireworks from the Fourth of July holiday have finally calmed down in your neighborhood. I know it seemed to me like this year’s observance was a little more… exuberant than most years. That’s probably because there were limited public celebrations this year,...
Jul 14, 2021•5 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. During Pride month, I’ve been talking about the relationship between Christianity and the LGBTQIA+ community. Thank you to all of you who joined the people of St. John’s Episcopal for worship at Waterfront Stadium this past Sunday to celebrate that final Sunday of Pride...
Jun 30, 2021•6 min
This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. During Pride month, I’ve been talking about the relationship between Christianity and the LGBTQIA+ community. This week, I’d like to talk about the problems surrounding the traditional teaching of the church on these questions—and the harm it can do. As I mentioned a co...
Jun 22, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared tries to break the myths surrounding LGBTQIA+ Christians by sharing the stories of three leaders in the Christian church. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcop...
Jun 15, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared tries to break the myth that PRIDE month and the church cannot go together. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with ...
Jun 08, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared tries to break some of the myths that that Christians cannot be socialists (and maybe even break the myth that Americans cannot either). You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St....
May 25, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared tries to break some of the myths that Christianity is all about escape from the world. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan,...
May 18, 2021•4 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared tries to break some of the myths about Christianity and the continued violence in the Holy Land. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven,...
May 11, 2021•4 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared continues to break some of the myths about the resurrection of Christ which we celebrate during Eastertide. This week, he turns to the question of why the resurrection is an important part of Christian belief. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to ...
May 04, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks some of the myths about the resurrection of Christ which we celebrate during Eastertide. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, ...
Apr 27, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks some of the myth that you outgrow the need for bedtime prayers. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today...
Apr 20, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks some of the myth of whether or not the church still has repentance and concrete work to do when it comes to her history with slavery. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from...
Apr 13, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks some of the myths we often believe about the inevitability of death—and how that influences how we live our lives, particularly during a pandemic. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jare...
Apr 08, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks the myth of the betrayal of Judas and the depths of God’s mercy. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with toda...
Mar 31, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks the myth of the Christian response to the immigration crisis—including, what the actual crisis is. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Gra...
Mar 23, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared breaks the myth of the blessings of gay marriage—and tries to be clear about the dangers of the language used in the recent statement from the Vatican. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at the bottom of the post. This is Father Jared ...
Mar 17, 2021•5 min
In this episode of Christian Mythbusters, Father Jared debunks the myth of Christian humility, to try to unpack how true humility is different than talking down to yourself in the mirror (or in your own mind)… or letting other people talk down to you.. You can hear Christian Mythbusters in the Grand Haven area on 92.1 WGHN, on Wednesdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 8:50am. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple here. The transcript of the episode is below, or you can listen to the audio at...
Mar 09, 2021•5 min
