New England was already struggling with war, anxiety, national insecurity, disease, food, and economic instability: Now that the Witch Trials are well underway, anxiety goes from troubling to crippling. 6 people have been hung to death, and stories of giant witch covens become far more elaborate. Rumors that 300 witches are trying to turn the New World into Satan's kingdom lead to fear and mistrust among even the most stable families, and even worse, a trusted minister in the church just might be leading the entire evil crusade.

Women are experiencing crippling seizures, bite marks, bleeding at the mouth, sickness, possession, and a host of symptoms no one can control or fully explain. What's happening? Most of Salem believes that the only way to secure their future is to find those in the devil’s employ and rid the world of them. But some believe these executions are themselves the work of the devil, who schemes to get citizens to turn on each other and harm one’s neighbor. Who’s right? What is true? How can we trust anyone?

Listen and learn about one of the most important turning points of the Salem Witch Trials.

After the first execution of the Salem Witch Trials, colonialists are pushed into making a choice: Do we turn back and stop making any judgments in the court of Oyer and Terminer until we can understand these strange torments? Or do we press in further, launching a crusade of bloodshed against the whiles of the devil?

The Witch Trials are an incredible case study of how fear can warp the mind. Is anxiety producing hallucinations? Are demons playing games with the lives of the colonists? Perhaps it’s a strange amalgamation between the two. Giant white birds with demon eyes, black cats, murderous raids in the French and Indian Wars, greasy imps, witch coven meetings in Boston, jealousy, bitterness, and tragic loss all swirl into one of the most chaotic and infamous events in Western History. Colony life was incredibly challenging, and pain and suffering surround every accusation and condemnation in the witch courts.

Dive into the heart-wrenching stories that caused the 18th century to rethink its faith and practice, and helped create case laws America is still using today, like presumption of innocence.

One of the most disturbing and most misunderstood events in all of Western history is the Salem Witch Trials. Myths about the trials have spread for centuries, popularized by print and digital media that tries to share parts of the story in historical fiction. The problem is, people tend to take this fiction as rooted in some sort of fact.

In reality, the Salem Witch Trials is an important event that teaches us the importance of extending grace, the need for Christ-like community, and the dangers of using human government to replace the judgment seat of God against spiritual powers. Human institutions cannot unseat principalities and powers. The trials also warn us of the dangers of social contagion, mob mentality, and the sin of human vengeance.

The World was torn in two directions at the turn of the 20th century: One school of thought believed the world could be perfected through manipulation of science and genetics, resulting in practices like eugenics and lethal pharmaceutical drug testing in poor, racially diverse neighborhoods and adoration for technological exploration among all classes of people.

The other school of thought believed that the untapped powers of the mind could transform the world by grasping at and attaining a deeper understanding of the spiritual powers of the universe. This metaphysical approach to the world was driven by the New Thought Movement, which transformed society in the west with its philosophical and religious outlook on spiritual law. This episode takes a close examination into the life of one of the New Thought Movement’s most influential, and, controversial figures in the early 20th century, Father Divine.

As African Americans are migrating all across the country in search of a better life promised by the American dream, they are ready for the promises that the New Thought Movement will offer. Desperate for hope in the face of racial injustice and economic disparity, Father Divine will announce that the consciousness of the presence of the Spirit of God is operating in a new way in the world today, creating physical health, wealth, and material blessings for those who can get their mind to embrace God’s goodness in faith and expect transforming results.

The Power of Positive Thinking - Mindcure - Prosperity Theology - Self Care - These ideas have shaped the landscape of America over the last two centuries and caused incredible success and frightening philosophies since their inception. But where did these ideas come from? What caused Americans to be obsessed with self-mastery and human potential? Start Here, with the New Thought Movement!

Christianity has a wild, fascinating story throughout human history. Many christians think their view of the bible is clearly derived from how it plainly reads, and yet they wonder why there is so much division among what christians believe. The truth is, we've all been impacted by the lens through which we live and the tides of time and culture.