Author Archives: davetcourt

I came across this thought in a recent sermon from Darrell Johnson titled Jesus the Healer: He Gives Us a New Past. It’s a well documented observation concerning the literary design of John’s Gospel, in this case narrowing in on the explicit use of the term “anthrakia” (the Greek word for “charcoal fire.”). As JohnsonContinue reading “The Charcoal Fire: What it means to Believe, What it means to Love”

One of the reasons I love to spend time in the scriptures is their ability to continually suprise me. Given that my own vantage point is always changing with time and context, the ability to speak in new ways. Or perhaps for me to hear in new ways. One of the reasons I love toContinue reading “A Fresh Perspective on The Beloved Disciple: Who it is and Why it Matters to a Life of Faith”

On the most recent episode of The Good Fight podcast, host Yascha Mounk interviews author Dean Spears on the subject of population. Or more specifically, the subject of his new book (After the Spike: Population, Progress, and the Case for People), the problem of depopulation. A few times throughout the interview the word “math” wasContinue reading “Depopulation, Overpopulation, and the Search For True Values”

I was challenged recently to demonstrate why morality is a problem for the worldview of an atheist. A complicated question to be sure, and I would need to qualify it. First, to me, I begin with the premise that the atheist, in terms of adherence to logical and rational conclusions, is obligated towards a reductionist/materialistContinue reading “Can An Atheist Justify Objective Morality?”

It’s been an interesting year for film in 2025. There’s the usual mix of box office and critical successes, blanketed of course by the usual barrage of cycnicism and the perpetual identity crisis facing the American industry. Anyone who follows headlines knows how ridiculous it all tends to be on the best of days, everyoneContinue reading “My Film Journey: Reflections At The Halfpoint of 2025”

Having just finished Ethan Kross’ book Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why it Matters, and How to Harness It, I find myself in a weird space. For a book that is as accessible as this one is, it is suprisingly difficult to apply. Part of the issue is his reliance on case studies. AnotherContinue reading “Facing The Chatter in My Head: Reflecting on Ethan Kross’ Book And Why Foundations and Truth Matter To Our Harnessing of a Functional World”

Looking back at my reflections for the first quarter of 2025, I can see some steady themes emerging, guiding my journey into the second half of this present season. Themes about finding ones place in the world. Finding ones place through a life of particiipation in a world where we find both the sacred andContinue reading “My 2025 Reading Journey: Reflections on the Second Quarter”

(Spoiler Warning For Danny Boyle’s 28 Years Later) Ruminations on death, politics and masculinity. These might not be the sort of themes one might expect from a zombie film, but in 28 Years Later, which sees Danny Boyle affectionately returning to the famed franchise, all three of these themes are woven in to what couldContinue reading “28 Years Later: Exploring Themes of Death, Politics and Masculinity Through the Evolution of the Zombie”

Author Helen Lewis’ recent book titled The Genius Myth is an interesting deep dive into a reality we all experience but might not have given much thought to or recognize. Yascha Mounk has an interesting interview on The Good Fight (titled Helen Lewis on The Genius Myth) for anyone who wants to get a goodContinue reading “What Is a Genius and Why Does it Matter: Revelation, Representative, and The Great Lie of the Modern Age in Helen Lewis’ The Genius Myth”

Its rare for my small corner of the city of Winnipeg, the historic neighborhood of St. Johns, a once bustling Ukrainian migration spot still dotted by the grand Cathedrals marking each corner, and still home of the oldest Public Library in the city, a focal point for the almagamation of this once town into theContinue reading “The Places We Live, The Places To Which We Are Drawn: How A Quiet Morning and an Unsuspecting Breeze Awakened My Imagination”