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Finding Faith & Motivation Through History & Art with Chris Staron

We all have our own set of beliefs. We anchor in faith for many reasons, and we draw purpose from the faith we believe in and practice.

Today’s guest, Chris Staron, shares his insights about faith and how it led him to stand up for marginalized people in the community through his craft. He talks about his faith journey as a filmmaker, author, and podcaster. He also discusses his motivation to find answers by looking back at historical events. Chris also shares his purpose to create compassion for people with unmet needs.

Tune in to the podcast and discover how Chris found faith and motivation through history and art.

3 Reasons to Listen:

Discover how Chris’s faith and his continuous pursuit of answers inspired his films, book, and podcast.
Look deeper into Christianity as Chris talks about his experiences and insights.
Learn more about the importance of historical events in the way Christianity is viewed today.

Resources

Cradle Robber by Chris Staron
Truce Podcast by Chris Staron
Between the Walls (2006), dir. by Chris Staron
Bringing Up Bobby (2009), dir. by Chris Staron
Episode Details

About Chris

Chris Staron is an award-winning filmmaker, author, and podcast producer of Truce. Some of his films are Bringing Up Bobby and Between the Walls, and he wrote Cradle Robber. His work is inspired by underrepresented people like the skeptics and those hurt by the church.

To know more about Chris and his podcast, you can visit his website. You may also reach him through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or email.

Episode Highlights

[08:25] Chris as a Filmmaker

His film Between the Walls portrays a man’s issues with his own father and with God. It talks about overcoming anger and hurt.
Bringing Up Bobby, on the other hand, is a comedic film about a young boy’s journey of finding out who he really is.
He focuses on making films that create compassion toward marginalized people.
As a filmmaker, he also shared his own struggles in being an independent Christian filmmaker.

[16:29] About His Book Cradle Robber

Cradle Robber is a dark romantic story about a man who mentors a young lady who turns out to be pregnant.
He wrote the book to understand how things work and the motivation behind people’s behavior.
Chris shares that what he wrote about was a hot button issue not many talk about.
It was too controversial; hence he had to self-publish it.

[23:15] Being a Storyteller

Chris describes himself as a reluctant storyteller, mostly due to the insane amount of work you have to put in publishing.
However, he was motivated to write a book to get things out of his chest and search for answers.
Being a storyteller is his way of addressing his personal questions and sharing his discoveries with others.

[25:46] Developing His Passion

Chris recalls a time when he and his twin brother would entertain each other by making up stories to pass the time. It all started there.
He acknowledges his supportive parents. It was his mom who helped him self-publish his first book.
He wrote his first book when he was 11 years old.
Because of his passion for storytelling, Chris shares how he is not a business guy or leader, but more of the prophet type.

[31:41] Truce Podcast

After the 2016 US presidential elections, he wanted to understand what was happening in the world. He felt alarmed by how newly elected President Trump would affect faith and Christianity as it was part of his platform.
He wants to address confusion, hurt, and pain through his podcast. Truce is for frustrated people.
He found motivation in helping bring people back to what the gospel really is.
Chris does not want to stumble over other beliefs, but he wants to share his own knowledge backed by history and research.
Through his podcast, he wants to figure out how things that glom onto Christianity got to where it is today.

“Sometimes I get these burdens on me where it's like I have to tell this thing. I have to address this issue. And the podcast has really helped me get that stuff off my chest. So I get to investigate things that are on my mind, things that are weighing me down, and then hopefully, help other people through that journey.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[37:23] Insights About His Faith

Chris talks about how Jesus is almost dismissive of political leadership and related it to being both an American and Christian today.
Applying the Bible in today’s context is complex. There are concepts and circumstances that can overlap.
Some people have a bad habit of calling things biblical to back up something they like, do, or believe in.
He urges people to read and understand the Bible before picking out verses.

“Ultimately, the goal is to bring people back to “What is the gospel?” That's the whole agenda. Because we can get tied up in political movements and pyramid schemes and things.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[43:14] Goals on Talking About Christianity

He wants to let people who are struggling know that they are not alone.
Christ wants to create a humble, informed church.
Personally, his craft is his way of bringing himself back to learning to love the church and recognizing that Christianity is a giant umbrella.
Due to the downfall of his film career, he grew angry towards the church. He now wants to understand his own anger and God’s role in his life through his podcast.

[50:44] Chris’ Process in Creating the Podcast

Chris draws inspiration from conversations and books.
His creative process includes researching on a topic, finding main interesting points, and looking up experts like authors or lecturers.
He digs deep into the relation of history to Christianity today.

“We have this really bad habit of taking things that we like and calling them biblical. No, just let the Bible be the Bible, and let the things you like be the things you like.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[54:55] Struggles in Podcasting

Chris juggles podcasting with two other full-time jobs, including driving a school bus daily.
It can be mentally frustrating and physically taxing.
He also talks about his sleeping problems and struggles to stay awake during the day.

[58:24] Journalistic Tools for Podcasting

Chris uses journalistic tools when researching for his podcast.
Journalism is backed by history and a thorough process of writing.
It is essential to look into the biases and inaccuracies of the media.
Journalism is the fourth branch of government. It is important to be critical.

[01:03:26] Discussing How Corporate America Created Christian America in His Podcast

Labor unions were born after fighting communism, but injustices continued to arise.
“Do unto others as you'd want done to yourself” is hard to practice in America, which is full of unfair labor practices entrenched in the system.
Through his podcast, Chris wants to discuss the many layers of history and its connection to practicing and enhancing faith in today’s time.

“I would challenge anybody, even if you're not a believer, read the Bible for yourself. [...] You see people quoting verses, and you’re like, if they knew what was around that verse, they would never post that verse. You know, read it for yourself.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[01:08:58] Relating Our World Today to Biblical Stories

Chris took into example plagues from the Old Testament that are precedent and still part of human history in many ways, such as financial crises.
We tend to believe unfortunate circumstances will never happen again due to reforms. However, Chris argues that it is part of the natural cycle of human life.
We forget God’s mercy and how the world actually works during trying times.
We can find comfort in the rises and falls in human history that can awaken us from being scared of what’s happening in our world.

“It’s easier to be scared. It’s much harder to try to keep things in perspective.” - Click Here to Tweet This

[01:11:33] America as a Christian Nation

Founding Fathers believed in God, but not Jesus.
Laws of the Bible are not written in the laws of the United States.
There is motivation to make America a Christian nation, but today, it is more of a nation of Christians.
A Christian nation calls people to a heritage rather than radical faith.
Americanism is not the gospel.

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To growing and becoming all we are created to be,

Tim