Voices In My Head (The Rick Lee James Podcast)

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 316: In Conversation with Islam - Dr. Akber Mohammed

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 316: In Conversation with Islam - Dr. Akber Mohammed
On the 21st of April 2019, Easter Sunday, three Christian churches across Sri Lanka and three luxury hotels in the commercial capital Colombo were targeted in a series of coordinated terrorist suicide bombings The Sri Lankan government said the bombings might have been in retaliation for the killing of 50 people last month at mosques in New Zealand, and that two Islamist extremist groups might have been involved, not one.
 
More than two days after the Sri Lanka bombings, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the coordinated attacks. The group identified the seven suicide bombers by their names, and specified which of them had gone to which target on what it called “the infidel holiday.”
 
As the first mass funerals were held, grief, for some, turned into into anger. Some began speaking of of retaliation and revenge. Muslim-owned shops were vandalized, and hundreds of Muslim families fled religiously mixed areas.
 
In contrast, Members of Sri Lanka’s Muslim community have reached out to their neighbors, offering to donate food and blood.
 
The chairman of one mosque was quoted “We would do anything to help, We are so pained.”
But with the attacks still so fresh and tensions so high, some Muslims were warned to hold back for now.
Today on Voices In My Head I am pleased to welcome Dr. Akber Mohammed and a members of the Islamic faith community here in Springfield Ohio as we deal with some of these hard topics in conversation together.
 
Dr. Akber Mohammed, the former president of the Islamic Association in Springfield Ohio, is also a cardiologist affiliated with multiple hospitals in the Clark County Ohio area, including Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Mercy Health Urbana Hospital. He was a part of the CBS News Documentary Beyond Tolerance in 2017 and has been instrumental in Islamic Day Ohio festivities.
 
As always, thank you for listening to Voices In My Head.
 
  
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 315: Guest Stephen Tobolowsky

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 315: Guest Stephen Tobolowsky
This week is a special flashback episode with guest Stephen Tobolowsky. 
Stephen is one of the leading character actors in film today. USA Today listed Stephen as the 9th most frequently seen actor in movies; he has appeared over 200 movies and television shows. See here for credits.
He is best known for playing Ned Ryerson in Groundhog Day, Sammy Jankis in Memento, Werner Brandes in Sneakers, Happy Chapman in Garfield, and Mr. Bates in Freaky Friday.  On television, he played Tor Ekland on Seinfeld, Hugo Jarry on Deadwood, Bob Bishop on Heroes,  Sandy Ryerson on Glee and Stu Beggs on Californication. He is currently on screen in Silicon Valley and The Goldbergs.  Stephen will also appear in Netflix’s new series by Norman Lear, One Day at a Time (a new generation remake!); season 2 starts filming in June.
He wrote and performed Stephen Tobolowsky’s Birthday Party and The Primary Instinct, and wrote True Stories with David Byrne and Beth Henley.
His podcast with David Chen “The Tobolowsky Files” is available at Slashfilm.com and on iTunes, and also previously broadcast on KUOW 94.9 in Seattle, on WFPL in Louisville, KY and many stations through Public Radio International (PRI).*
His first book of stories, The Dangerous Animals Club, is published by Simon & Schuster September 25, 2012.  His second book, My Adventures with God, is now available everywhere, also published by Simon & Schuster.
Fun Facts:
He performed with Stevie Ray Vaughn when Stevie was 14 and cut the first songs Stevie ever performed.
*David Chen’s update on /Film: Public Radio International Announces a New Radio Show Based on The Tobolowsky Files.
For the last 10 years, Stephen has taught Classes in Improv and Comedy offered through Kalmenson & Kalmenson.
If you are wondering where you might have seen him, Stephen’s many television and film credits are listed here: Stephen Tobolowsky at IMDb
 
As always, thank you for listening to Voices In My Head.
 
  
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 314: Calvary Movie Reflection

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 314: Calvary Movie Reflection
This week is Holy Week 2019 and as I have done every Holy Week since 2014 when it released, I am revisiting the film Calvary and sharing some reflections on the film.
Disclaimer #1: The audio on today's episode turned out to not be great. I'm not sure why there is so much background noise on the audio but given the nature of the episode I couldn't rerecord it so it is what it is. 
 
Disclaimer #2: This is not an endorsement for you to go and see the film Calvary, which is Rated R, and is a very difficult and disturbing film. This episode simply shares my reflections on why the film has been important and formative in my life and why I revisit it each Holy Week.
 
Disclaimer #3: I am in no way associated with the film, is director, or anyone involved in the making of the film. I'm just a guy who watched it.
  
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.

Episode 313_The Jewish View of Original Sin with Rabbi Cary Kozberg

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 313: The Jewish View of Original Sin with Rabbi Cary Kozberg
Did you know that Jews do not see the story of Adam and Eve as "The Fall" but as the story of "The Uplifting?
Find out about this as well as the Jewish view of the afterlife, sin, redemption and more on today's episode.
Its a terrific conversation.
 
For 25 years, Cary Kozberg served as Director of Religious Life at Wexner Heritage Village, a senior care facility in Columbus, Ohio. In that capacity, he developed innovative religious and spiritual programming, as part of WHV’s overall program of holistic care. As an integral part of WHV’s Interdisciplinary Care and Continuing Education teams, he helped hundreds of individuals—residents, staff and family members— to better understand the spiritual and emotional aspects of growing ​old and frail. Cary is a Board Certified Chaplain and a member of the National Association of Jewish Chaplains, having received that organization’s “Chaplain of the Year” award in 2012. An ordained Rabbi, he received his Masters of Arts in Hebrew Letters and Rabbinical Ordination from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.
A published author and poet, he has presented workshops and seminars around the country, and is a nationally recognized resource on the particular spiritual, emotional and psychological challenges that face persons with dementia and their families. Cary is a Past Chair of the Forum on Religion Spirituality and Aging, a constituent group of the American Society on Aging and a past editor of the Forum’s quarterly newsletter.
His many publications include Honoring Broken Tablets: A Jewish Approach to Dementia (Jewish Lights Publishing), “The Whole World is Full of God’s Glory” in Broken Fragments: Jewish Experiences of Alzheimer’s Disease through Diagnosis, Adaptation, and Moving On, edited by Rabbi Douglas Kohn (URJ Press) and Flourishing In The Later Years: Jewish Pastoral Perspectives on Senior Residential Care, co-edited with Rabbi James Michaels (Mazo Publishing).
More About The Conference Rabbi Cozberg Mentions In Today's Show
What: Scripture and Faith: Toward A Better Understanding with Dr. Julie Galambush
When: April 30th - May 1st
Where: Temple Sholom, 2424 N. Limestone St., Springfield Ohio
RSVP: (937) 399-1231
 
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 312: Matthew Clark

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 312: Matthew Clark
 
Singer/songwriter/storyteller and Mississippi native Matthew Clark blends a thought-provoking narrative lyricism with well-honed guitar skills to craft songs that have been likened to the work of Andrew Peterson, Matthew Perryman Jones, and David Wilcox. 
Each Fall Matthew loads up his tiny-house-in-a-van (a converted Dodge Sprinter dubbed “Vandalf the White”) and travels all over the country playing concerts in homes and churches.  Matthew’s engaging conversational performance style has led concert-goers to comment that the stories between the songs are as enjoyable as the songs themselves. 
Ultimately, Matthew’s music is about weaving the strung-out strands of our lives into a fabric of hope and belonging in God.
Matthew Clark's Web Site: www.matthewclark.net
Cofferstowe Web Site: Cofferstowe.com 
Matthew Clark's Podcast: https://www.matthewclark.net/onethousandwords/
Partner With Matthew Clark: https://www.matthewclark.net/partner/
 
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 311: Legend Ozora

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 311: Legend Ozora
 
Legend is an artist mature beyond her years. At only 18 years old, Legend is the first female solo act signed to Old Bear Records. Her love for people and the local church is evident in her life and songs. Much of her passion has been inspired by her numerous mission trips to Haiti serving the poor and orphaned. Her new EP, Come Close, released on Feb 15th, 2019.
Get Her Music: https://www.legendozora.com
 
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.
 

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 310: Wild Harbors

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 310: Wild Harbors
The Band Wild Harbors is comprised of husband and wife singer-songwriters Chris and Jenna Badeker. Formed in 2017, the alternative pop outfit creates gutsy, lyric-driven songs laced with intricate vocal harmonies. Confronted with the knowledge that each person is given one short life to live, they put their previous careers aside to step into the adventure of music and invite other people to live their own adventures.
Their debut album, Monument, was produced by Andrew Osenga in Nashville, TN and it recently released on March 15, 2019.
 
Get Their Music: http://smarturl.it/WHMonument
Web Site: https://www.wildharbors.com/
 
About Your Host: Rick Lee James
Official Web Site: www.RickLeeJames.com
Latest Album: https://fanlink.to/RLJThunder
Available on clear Vinyl, CD, and instant download.
 

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #309: Hank Spaulding and The Just and Loving Gaze of God With Us

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #309: Hank Spaulding and The Just and Loving Gaze of God With Us
 
Henry Walter Spaulding III, or Hank as he is known, is an Adjunct Professor of Christian Ethics at Mount Vernon Nazarene University, Ashland University, and Nazarene Theological Seminary. He is also Senior Pastor at Shepherd’s House Church of the Nazarene. He is author of several journal articles in publications such as the Wesleyan Theological Journal, Studies in the Literary Imagination, and The Journal of Youth Ministry. Today we are discussing his new book, “The Just and Loving Gaze of God With Us”. This is his first book and we are exicited to feature it this week on Voices In My Head.
 

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode 308: Fault Lines with Kevin M. Kruse and Julian Zelizer

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #308: Fault Lines with Kevin M. Kruse and Julian Zelizer
 
Kevin Kruse is a professor of history at Princeton University and Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs also at Princeton. Together they have co-authored Fault Lines: A History of the United States Since 1974, published by W. W. Norton & Company. To say the least this is quite an interesting 45 year period and I’m thrilled to be discussing it with my guests today.
--Rick Lee James
 
 

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #307: Father of Christian Rock, Joseph Markko and The All Saved Freak Band.

Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #307: Father of Christian Rock, Joseph Markko and The All Saved Freak Band.
 
 
“In the fall of 1968, a small radio station in Ashtabula, Ohio unleashed a whole new genre of music upon their listeners when they aired the All Saved Freak Band’s first recorded songs. It was the very first time ANYONE had heard the idiom of rock music being used to convey the message of the gospel (This was before Larry Norman and a full 5 years before to the term Contemporary Christian Music being coined!)
  The All Saved Freak Band’s unique sound stemmed from its ensemble of 12 members skilled in rock, folk, blues, psychedelia, and classical music. ASFB blended those genres and sounds together to deliver straight, unvarnished, lyrical truth which countered the hedonism purveyed by much of rock n roll.
  What makes their work so worthy of reissue is the bold experimentation and superior musicianship on display – qualities critics often find lacking in the very Contemporary Christian genre they were pioneering.
  Their bold sound and stellar chops inspired and influenced a cult following among vinyl heads and musicians alike, being name-dropped particularly by artists like Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) and Damien Jurado.
  Old Bear Record is reissuing multiple records from ASFB, the first such release being the 1976 LP ‘Brainwashed’ .
 
Today on Voices In MY Head I am honored to have Joseph Markko, one of the original members of the All Saved Freak Band.
Find out more at http://oldbearstudio.com/reissued/